"Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Urahara Kisuke. And I can teach you how to kill these monsters."

The girls look at the man. His eyes were cast in shadow by his hat and he was hiding a smile behind a fan. Rei crossed her arms in front of her chest.

"How do you even know about these monsters?"

"You surely did not think yourself the only ones able to seem them, did you?"

Not wanting to admit that they, in fact, did not consider the possibility of other people being able to see ghosts and monsters too. They were used to fighting enemies only they knew of.

"Why are you here?" Minako asked instead.

"I sense your-" he pointed his cane at Rei, "strange reiatsu and had you followed."

"You what?"

"My friend then told me that you ran into some trouble with a hollow."

"Hollow?" Ami opened her small laptop. "Is that what those monsters are called?"

"Yes. My friend also told me that you have powers of your own but were still unable to defeat a hollow as weak as that one."

"That one was weak?"

Urahara nodded.

"What else do you know?" Ami asked.

"About hollows?" He closed his fan, stepping closer. "A lot. But what I don't know a lot about is you and your powers."

Rei stepped closer as well.

"Why would we tell you?"

"I won't just give a group of strangers all this information for free. I told you a bit about hollows. Now it's your turn."

Minako snorted.

"You gave us names."

Urahara raised a brow, fanning himself air.

"We're Sailor Senshi," Usagi said eventually.

He kept waving his fan and Rei sighed.

"I'm Hino Rei."

Her friends looked at her in surprise. Then Ami realized it too.

"Mizuno Ami."

"Tsukino Usagi."

"Kino Makoto."

"Fine. Aino Minako."

"Interesting." He smiled. "My offer to help you was serious. I can train you and give you information about the world you stumbled into. If you accept that is."

"What's in it for you?" Makoto asked.

"Information. I am somewhat of a scientist." He took in the sceptical faces of the girls. "Don't worry. I won't experiment on you."

"Very reassuring," Minako mumbled.

"You don't have to accept right away. I will give you some time to think it over. If you accept, come to Karakura Town a week into your summer break. Someone will pick you up from the train station."

He turned around and made his way down the stairs, leaving the girls in contemplating silence.

It was Ami who spoke up first.

"What do you say?"

"I say we go," Makoto answered.

"I don't trust that guy." Rei frowned. "He is up to something."

"Do we really have a choice? We can't just ignore these monsters."

"We didn't need shady guys to give us the powers to fight before either. So why would we need them now?" Minako interjected.

"Yeah.. Because cats, magical horses and small children are much more trustworthy…"

"Makoto got a point there."

Usagi looked up at the sky, while Ami sighed.

"I agree with Makoto. We should go. Wait." She raised a hand at Minako's and Rei's protest. "Don't interrupt me. We need information. And he can give that to us. He seems to be a practical person. As long as both sides profit from it I don't believe he has any reason to turn on us."

Rei pondered Ami's words.

"I still need a bit of time to think it over," she answered eventually.

"Me too," Minako said.

"Like I said, I'm in."

They looked at Usagi who was still looking at the sky.

"I think we should at least go to Karakura and listen to what he has to stay. We can always leave afterwards."

"Usagi said something wise."

She looked at her friends, smiling brightly.

"And a vacation sounds nice too. Can't we go right now? School is boring."

"And she is back to normal."

"Shut up, Rei."

.o0o.

They got off the train at Karakura station. While the other passengers made their way to the exit, some of them greeting friends or family members, they looked around trying to spot the person Urahara sent to pick them up. However, after several minutes, the platform was empty except for them.

"How long are you planning on standing around like this? Kisuke is waiting," a deep voice called out.

The girls turned around but did not see anybody. Until Rei spotted a black cat sitting on one of the benches.

"Are you here to pick us up then?" she asked.

"You don't seem surprised I'm a cat."

The girls laughed.

"You are not the first talking cat we've met."

"Alright. I'm Yoruichi. Follow me."

Rei and the others followed Yoruichi through the street of Karakura Town. Soon, they reached a courtyard hiding between buildings. At the end was a shabby looking store. Their guide jumped up the porch and called out for Urahara. Minako leaned towards Usagi.

"Weird place for a store, isn't it?"

Usagi nodded.

"How are people supposed to find it?"

The door slid open and Urahara came out.

"My clientele prefers discretion. Come in, come in. We have much to discuss. I have many questions and I am sure so do you."

After brief hesitation they entered, following Urahara into a small room with a low table. As soon as they sat down on the floor, a tall man came in to bring tea. Disappearing right after.

"Let's see," Urahara said after taking a sip. "Before we start your training I need to know a bit more about what exactly you are. You called yourself… Sailor Senshi?"

"Yes. We're Sailor Senshi. Warriors chosen to protect this planet and its people."

"And what are you protecting them from?"

"Evil forces and invaders from outside our solar system mostly." Minako crossed her arms, levelling a challenging look at the man but he only smiled his usual smile, taking another sip of tea.

"I have to admit. I don't think I have ever heard about… Sailor Senshi. I did some research after we met but couldn't find much except news reports from Tokyo. All of them limited to the last few years. And a game called Sailor V. I dismissed the latter."

Minako snorted.

"Sailor V was my code name before I joined the team. They based a game on me."

"Interesting. So you were active longer than the other girls?"

She nodded. Urahara waited for a moment but she did not elaborate.

"Would you demonstrate this transformation Yoruichi witnessed in Tokyo?"

They exchanged silent glances before transforming. After sitting down again—the room being quite a bit more crowded now due to Sailor Moon's wings—they looked at Urahara expectantly. He was covering his lower face with his fan, eyes looking at the Senshi with undisguised curiosity.

"Your reiatsu are indeed stronger now than they were before."

"Could you elaborate on that please?"

"Of course, Ami, right?"

"Mercury, at the moment."

"I see." He closed his fan. "Reiatsu is spiritual pressure. Usually, the stronger your reiatsu, the stronger your spiritual abilities. Normal humans rarely have any spiritual pressure worth noting. But sometimes, there are a few living people with noticeable reiatsu. Those people are usually able to sense, or even see, spirits. And among those there are even fewer humans that gain spiritual powers capable of hurting or even destroying hollows."

While he was talking, you could hear the clicking of a keyboard as Mercury's fingers fly over it, typing along.

"Your reiatsu," Urahara continues, pointing at the girls, "is interesting in the sense that is not that of a normal human. When not transformed, your reiatsu—while strange—is barely above average. For a human. Barely worth speaking of. But while you are in this form, your reiatsu is widely above average. For humans at least."

"Then why weren't we able to defeat that… hollow?" Jupiter asked.

"I can only guess that your powers are simply not meant for the fight against hollows. I assume your enemies so far were of the living sort?"

The girls nodded. Mercury looked up from her computer.

"Then who fights against the hollows?"

"Shinigami."

Mars frowned.

"Shinigami? As in, gods of death?"

"Exactly. Shinigami a beings from the other side. The world of the dead, also called Soul Society. And they have two jobs: First, send normal spirits, called Plus, to Soul Society. Second, kill evil spirits, the hollows."

"Are Shinigami born?"

"Spirits with sufficient reiatsu have the possibility to apply to the Shinigami Academy where they train in both magic and sword fight to become Shinigami."

"So, are we going to apply to that academy and become Shinigami ourselves? Is that your grand plan?"

Urahara laughed at Venus's question.

"Almost. The living are forbidden from entering Soul Society but I am planning on making you Shinigami."

Venus uncrossed her arms.

"I was only joking with the becoming Shinigami thing. We? Gods of death? How is that supposed to work?"

"Didn't you just say they train for years?"

"And that they use… swords?" Sailor Moon frowned. "The five of us don't fight with swords."

Urahara's smile sent a cold shudder down the Senshi's backs.

"I have my ways. But I will warn you: the training might kill you. You can still decline and go home now. But once you start you will have to pull through."

The girls looked at each other.

"What do you say?" Mars whispered.

"I still don't really trust him," Venus answered."

"I say we do it," Jupiter said, "if we don't learn how to fight those monsters we will likely end up dying anyway."

"In the end we don't have much of a choice, do we? If we're honest, we already made our decision when we came here."

They looked at Sailor Moon, who was looking at the table, eyes unfocused.

"Our fight will not end anytime soon, will it?"

"You don't have to fight. We will always protect you, you know that."

She looked up with a sad smile.

"And who will protect you?" She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. When she opened them again they were filled with determination. "I will do it. I will not let you fight alone."

Venus turned back to Urahara.

"What is the plan?"

He smiled at them and stood up. The girls followed him, deeper into the store and down a hidden ladder. Sailor Moon and Venus gaped at the scene before them. At the bottom of the ladder was a giant cave, lit brightly as if the blue ceiling above them were the real sky.

"Woah! That is so cool!"

"How is this even possible?"

"I am glad you appreciate my humble little training ground."

Jupiter whistled.

"Not bad."

"It is completely hidden. Nobody knows it exists."

"Yes. Cool cave. Can we get back to business?"

Urahara sent Mars a look, slightly pouting. He lifted his walking cane and before any of the girls could react, he hit Mars square in the chest with it. She transformed back, hitting the ground. The girls screamed. Except for Rei. Who was now standing next to her body, eyes and mouth wide opened. Urahara was hiding a smile behind his fan.

"What the hell happened?" Jupiter asked.

"Lesson number one: you need to learn to move around properly in your spirit form. I am sure by now you have noticed that breathing has become much more difficult."

Rei looked down at her spiritual body then at Urahara.

"I don't feel any different to be honest."

With a frown he took a closer look at Rei.

"You do not have a chain connecting you to your body."

"What does that mean?"

"Well," he tapped his fan against his chin, "when a spirit leaves their body, it has a chain attaching it to it. If you break that chain, your body dies."

"What?!"

The girls went into fighting stance, summoning their powers.

"Calm down, ladies. Your friend is not dead. Probably. She simply doesn't have a chain to begin with."

They relaxed a fraction but kept their powers summoned. Urahara pointed his fan at his chest.

"A plus has a broken chain right in the middle of the chest. That's what connected them to their body. But Mars-"

"Rei."

"Rei, does not have a chain. Not even a broken one. Why don't you try to get back into your body?"

Rei looked at her body.

"Uhm. How am I supposed to…?"

"Just climb back in."

She leaned down and reached for her body. Realizing she could touch it, she tried lifting it up and with a small flash of light she was back inside it. She checked herself over with and with a heavy sigh, she slid down to the floor.

"Urahara you fucking bastard. If you do something like that again, I will kill you."

Urahara looked at them from behind his fan.

"Careful with the death threats."

The girls gulped but the sensation of danger left before it fully grabbed them. Urahara smiled cheerfully.

"Now let's get the rest of you out of your bodies."

In quick succession, he hit the girls in the chest with his cane, pushing their spirits out. Rei was lying on the floor, staring at the ceiling.

"It feels even worse the second time around."

Minako meanwhile was stretching.

"Except for the initial strangeness, I don't feel much different compared to earlier. Actually…" She bent her knees and then started sprinting. She jumped, arms stretched in front of her and rolled off smoothly once she hit the floor. "It is even easier now. I wish I could play volleyball like this. Would that be considered cheating?"

Makoto looked up from inspecting her body. She closed and opened her right fist several times before punching the nearest rock. She looked at the dent with little surprise.

"It feels similar to when we're transformed actually. As Sailor Senshi, we're stronger and faster too. Oh." She turned towards Urahara. "Sorry about your rock."

"No need for apologies."

Ami was still inspecting her body closely.

"We transformed back when we left our bodies."

"Makes sense, no?" Rei said, still lying on her back. "Our powers are connected to our souls after all."

Ami nodded. She put two fingers on the wrist of her body and frowned.

"We don't have a pulse."

"That is completely normal. Don't worry, your bodies are fine."

"I see."

All the while, Usagi was looking between her friends, her body, and Urahara, tears welling up in her eyes. She dropped to her knees.

"How can you be so calm? We're dead!"

"No we're not." Rei sat up. "You just saw me get back into my body. No problem. Not dead."

Usagi sniffled loudly. Urahara clapped his hands together, making the girls jump slightly.

"Interesting, very interesting. However, I cannot use the planned method to give you Shinigami powers that way."

"Planned method being?"

"Cutting the chain linking you to your bodies, starting a transformation into a hollow giving you three days to find the Shinigami powers within you before I have to kill you."

"What the fuck, dude."

"Language, Minako."

"I'm with Mina on this one. What the hell." Usagi crossed her arms and sniffed.

Ami sighed. Rei stood up.

"I'm not even surprised anymore at this point. So what are we supposed to do now?"

Urahara sighed.

"It seems we will have to use a more… traditional approach."

Minako leaned towards Makoto.

"Is it just me or does he look a little disappointed?"

"First, we will focus on kidō, Shinigami magic. This seems easiest way for you to learn to use your spiritual energy since you are already using a type of magic." He looked up at the fake sky. "We will only do basic sword training with wooden swords in the beginning."

"And when are you giving us real swords?" Usagi asked.

"I won't. You will have to find those yourself."

"Find?"

"A Shinigami's sword is called a Zanpakutō, and it is part of a Shinigami. A second soul so to say. Therefore I won't be able to give you one."

Minako turned around, looking at the ground and behind a rock.

"I am guessing it won't just be lying around somewhere for us to pick it up?" Urahara smiled. Minako kicked a pebble across the cave. "Yeah. Thought so."

"To learn kidō, you need to be manipulate your spiritual energy. For that… hm. I should have the prototypes of these orbs lying around here somewhere." He walked around the cave, around various rocks, lifting some up, throwing things around until he grabbed a cardboard box. "There it is!"

He swiped the dust off and opened it. Inside were a bunch of glass orbs, each one about the size of their heads.

"A bit big for marbles, aren't they?" Makoto grabbed one of the orbs.

"They aren't marbles. I call them spirit orbs. I helped an old friend of mine develop them a while ago." He grabbed one of the spheres as well. "If you put your spiritual energy in one of them, they form a shield around you." As Urahara spoke, a shimmering sphere formed around him. "For the shield to fully manifest, you have to keep the flow of energy consistent."

Ami inspected the shield with interest. She knocked on it lightly.

"This seems quite practical."

"It can come in handy. But these here are only prototypes. While they form a shield, it is not very strong. Makoto?"

"Yes?"

"Would you hit the shield please? No need to hold back."

"Ok."

She shrugged and took a stand, knees slightly bent. With a spin shit kicked the sphere and a loud crack echoed across the cave. Makoto threw her fist at it and it shattered. A gust of energy forced the girls to take a step back, arms in front of their faces.

"Let's get started then." Urahara handed his orb to Makoto.

.o0o.

The next day, Urahara woke the girls early, much to Usagi's horror. It took her friends almost half an hour to get her out of bed. It was Rei's threat to get a bucket of cold water that finally got Usagi out of bed. Not without complaining though.

After their breakfast, they went back down the ladder where Urahara pulled their spirits out of their bodies. They agreed with Rei: it did not feel any better the second time around. They went back to training with the orbs. Sword training had been skipped they day before because they had gotten a late start but Urahara had promised they would start this afternoon. The girls were, admittedly, not looking forward to it.

"Getting our Senshi powers was a lot easier." Usagi plopped to the ground, pouting at the orb in her hand.

"We didn't get them, we were born with them," Ami said absentmindedly, staring at her own orb, head slightly titled sideways.

"Honestly, Usagi. I know you're not the brightest but even you should know that by now."

"Rei… you're being mean again."

"Mean? I'm just saying what we're all thinking."

Usagi jumped up.

"Right now I would not mind having a sword."

Rei got up as well.

"As if you'd ever hit me. You'd fall flat on your face first."

Ami sighed and turned her back on them.

"How are we supposed to concentrate with them fighting?"

Makoto laughed.

"I can't imagine trying to learn anything without having their bickering as background noise."

"And it's not that difficult."

Usagi snorted.

"You sound as if you already managed to get a shield."

Rei was grinning now.

"Not quite. But still more than you!"

"Prove it!"

Rei grabbed the orb tightly between both hands, eyes closed. She was standing quietly for a while and when Usagi was about to comment on it, specks of red energy came out of the orb. The girls gaped at Rei. The red specks disappeard before they could form anything and Rei opened her eyes, cocky grin on her lips.

"See? Easy."

A bead of sweat rolled down her forehead. The other girls rushed towards her.

"How did you do that?"

"I just… put energy into it?"

"I see Kisuke put you to training," a deep voice interrupted them.

They turned around, spotting Yoruichi sitting on one of the rocks. They greet the black cat.

"What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to see how you're doing."

"Not that well." Minako threw the ball into the air and caught it again. "No matter how hard I try, nothing happens. It would be more useful to just throw it at a hollow."

"You've only just started. I have a feeling you will make quick progress once you figure the spirit orbs out."

"I did not take you for an optimist, Yoruichi," Makoto said.

"I sensed your reiatsu when you were fighting the hollow. Besides, we women must support each other."

"Women?"

They blinked at the cat.

"You're a woman?"

"I thought you knew. You said you met a talking cat before."

"Three actually," Ami said.

"But Luna doesn't sound like a man," Usagi added.

Not it was Yoruichi blinking at the girls in slight confusion.

"I guess I should have thought of that. They probably use different methods than I do."

"They are most of the time", Minako thought for a second. "Yeah, we rarely see them in their human form."

"Are you actually a cat, Yoruichi? We assumed you were like our friends but now…"

"I chose this form because it is easier to get around undetected but I'm not actually a cat."

"Makes sense."

The girls shrugged and went back to training.

"I never asked how their transformation worked, now that I think of it," Ami said to Minako, "And Sailor Tin Nyanko never turned into a cat. Did Artemis tell you anything?"

"Only that he is not from earth."

"We should ask them when they come back from Mao."

.o0o.

Lunch time arrived and none of the girls had gotten any closer to producing a shield except for Rei and maybe Ami. They insisted they saw specks of blue come out of her sphere but Ami said it must have been their imagination since she could not replicate it.

After their small break Urahara gave each of them a wooden katana and pointed at five dummies.

"We'll start with the basics. Just copy what I do."

In a smooth motion he hit the dummy on the head, legs, and then stabbed it straight in the chest. The girls gulped.

"Just repeat these and once you think you got them down, switch up the order. Try to hit the dummies in the exact spots I marked."

And the girls went at it. The wooden weapons felt awkward in their hands, their strikes were filled with hesitation. They could not help but imagine the dummies as people. Real swords could kill a person.

.o0o.

In the evening, the girls were lying in their room listening to Usagi complain about sore muscles when Yoruichi came in to say goodbye.

"You're leaving?"

"I will be heading to Soul Society tonight."

"I thought that place was off limits for the living."

"Nobody said I'm from the world of the living."

"Oh."

She laughed at their faces.

"You don't have to look so sorry. I was born there."

Their faces switched from sympathy to confusion.

"Urahara told us that Soul Society is the world of the dead."

"It is."

"Then how come-"

"Aren't the dead just a different kind of living?"

"What the…"

"Goodbye girls, and good luck in your training."

"Don't just leave without an explanation!" Minako jumped up. "Hey! Yoruichi!"

Usagi stared at the door through which the cat had just left.

"I have no idea what's going on."

"For once, you're not alone."

"Rei. What do you mean 'for once'?"

"We all know you're not the brightest."

"Here we go again…"

"If you start fighting we will eat dinner without you."

Usagi spun around, grabbing Minako's shoulders hard.

"You wouldn't do that to me, would you? Minako?"

She put her hands on top of Usagi's shoulders and gave a her solemn nod. Usagi sank to her knees.

"No food. Rei. Let's stop. No food. I need food."

"There, there, Usagi. Let's get dinner."

.o0o.

The sound of footsteps and muffled voices woke Ami in the dead of night. She woke up the other girls, silently motioning them to remain quiet. She pointed at her ears. The other girls listened.

"Who visits a shop at this time of the night?" Makoto asked, voice barely audible.

"Let's find out." Minako got up. "I want to know what the weirdo in a hat is up to."

She cracked the door opened and peeked outside. The corridor was empty but at the end she could see light. It was coming from the trapdoor leading to the cave. Minako slid the door open fully, waving the others closer. Quietly they went to the ladder.

"Uhm." Usagi lightly tapped Makoto on the shoulder. "Why are we sneaking around?"

"Minako thinks Urahara is up to something."

"Maybe he's just doing his laundry."

"You're too trusting, Usagi."

Rei turned around.

"Minako is right. We still don't know why he even wants to train us."

"But-"

"I have to agree with the others."

"You to Ami?"

"Shh!" Minako looked down the trapdoor. "Coast is clear. Let's go."

One after the other they climbed down the ladder. Usagi was the last to reach the bottom and her friends were already hiding behind one of the large rocks staring at the spectacle in front of them. A giant rectangular thing with a whole stood there. In front of it were Yoruichi and Urahara. Next to them were four people. All of them had their backs turned towards them. The four strangers seemed to be roughly their age. A girl with light brown hair and a tall boy with tan skin were wearing regular clothes you might wear to exercise but the two other boys stood out in their fashion choice. One wore clothes in all white, including a small cape. The other one was dressed in black, striking a stark contrast to his bright orange hair. He was carrying a sword almost as tall as himself on his back. Usagi felt the hairs on her body stand up when she looked at him.

"Who is this guy?"

Rei shook her head.

"I don't know. But his energy feels off."

"Maybe you're feeling this reiatsu thing Urahara keeps talking about," Makoto mused.

"That would mean his reiatsu is higher than that of regular people, no?"

"I think all of theirs are."

"But his feels different."

"Girls. He is carrying a sword," Ami pointed out, "he is probably a Shinigami."

"What about the others?"

"May-"

"Something's happening!" Minako whisper-shouted.

The rectangular thing started to glow and a gust of air came out of it. The four strangers and Yoruichi entered and a second later the glowing stopped and they were gone. Urahara was looking at what turned out to be some sort of gate, back still turn to them. The girls moved to sneak back when he called out:

"You can come out now."

He turned around.

"Eh hehehe… Are we in trouble?" Usagi smiled awkwardly.

"Was your curiosity satisfied?"

"That thing there. It's a gate to Soul Society, isn't it?"

"Yes."

"And the guy with the sword was a Shinigami?"

"Yes."

"And the other three?"

"Humans with spiritual powers."

"You said they were rare and then there just happen to three of them in your secret basement."

"There is five of you."

"Touché."

"Will you tell us why they went to Soul Society when it is forbidden for them to go?"

"Maybe they will tell you themselves if they comeback."

"Ok. Wait. If?"

"You should go back to bed. You need your energy."

They trotted back up and after they turned off the lights in their room, Minako let out a groan.

"I told ya he was up to some shady shit."

"We don't know that yet."

"Common Usagi. He broke the laws by sending living people to the other side."

"He probably had a good reason for it?"

"Who is to say we're not breaking any of their laws by doing this?" Rei whispered.

The girls went silent.

"We can't just sit here and do nothing when these monsters—hollows—kill innocent people," Makoto said, "Now let's sleep."

.o0o.

Urahara was sitting on top of a rock to get a good view on the girls. It had almost been two weeks by now and they did better than he expected. When he first talked to them, they seemed too gentle and kind-hearted to be Shinigami. Their reiatsu as well were warm without a hint of aggression. Throughout the lats several days though, he had to change his opinion. The wild energy he had felt the first time he saw Rei became stronger, sharper, the more she practiced. So did those of the other girls. He was actually considering letting them up against a hollow soon. A weak one.

But then there was Usagi. Out of the girls she had made the least progress. Urahara had not been sure what to think of her when they first met. Her reiatsu was the most difficult to read and now it turned out she had zero talent for becoming a Shinigami. Her complaining of sore muscles, crying the moment she got a small scratch, clumsy handling of both sword and spirit orb. Even if she by some miracle managed to gain Shinigami powers, she would survive for long. She was not made for this world. She lacked the instinct to kill. Usagi barely produced any physical form of energy with the orb and in sword training she hit the ground more often than her sword hit her opponent. Even unmoving dummies seemed to pose a challenge to her. Urahara almost believed that she was not putting any effort into the training—nobody could be that terrible at it. The other girls were more promising.

Ami was precise in her sword training, accurately copying the moves he had shown them, but lacking force. Against the dummies there was no problem but when it came to training against her friends, she held back. The girl had an analytical streak and usually won her practice bouts by outsmarting her opponent. But that was not good enough. Smarts could only get you that far when your enemy outmatched you both in strength and speed. Or if they saw right through your tacticts.

Minako fared much better with the sword. She was quick and did not hold back her force. She and Makoto made the fastest progress on that front. Makoto from time to time seemed to forget she had a sword in her hand however, using her arms and legs to fight. This was not necessarily a bad thing but it left her defences wide open. Minako was unpredictable. Sometimes she showed brilliance in fighting and other times she seemed equally clumsy as Usagi. He thought back on their conversation about their time as Sailor Senshi. In his research the name "Sailor V" showed up in newspapers about one year earlier than any reports on the other Senshi. It seemed to him that she had gained good instincts but needed training to turn them into skill.

Rei on the other hand seemed to have an affinity for kidō. She was the only one out of the five capable to fully form the shield and hold it so far, Ami being a close second. Her sword skills were also improving.

Right now though, Rei was fighting with Usagi. Again. A daily occurrence. He watched as Usagi started crying and—to his surprise—Rei stopped yelling. She sat down next to her friend and put the orb back into her hands.

.o0o.

"I'm just a burden to you all." Usagi plopped down on the ground, putting the orb next to her.

Her eyes were unfocused and tears were rolling down her cheeks. They were not her usual loud tears but silent. She did not even seem to notice them. Rei sat down next to her.

"Let's try one more time then we can take a break, ok?" She put the orb back into her hands.

"I don't know what to do. I can't feel any of the spiritual stuff."

Rei grabbed her own sphere.

"When I direct my reiatsu into the orb, I think of my powers as Sailor Mars."

Usagi looked up, sniffling.

"When I use my Mars Flame Sniper, I can feel the energy gathering in my hands," Rei continues, "once I feel it in my hands, I let it flow inside the orb instead of forming the flames." She looked at her friend and smiled. "What do you feel when you use your powers?"

Usagi rubbed the tears off her cheeks.

"I… feel a warmth inside my chest… and then… it spreads to my entire body."

"And to the rod?"

"I guess it goes there too… But I usually don't think about it."

"Maybe you shouldn't think too much about this either." Rei ruffled Usagi's hair. "After all, thinking is not your strength."

"Reeiiii," she complained, pushing her hand out of her hair, but her voice lacked the usual edge.

She brought the orb closer to her face, closing her yes and relaxing. After a moment, a burst of light came from it pushing Rei away. The shield grew bigger and bigger, Usagi floating inside it, eyes still closed, an almost serene expression on her face. The other girls gape at the shield. Not even Rei's had been the big. And it kept growing.

"I think that is enough. Usagi. Usagi!" Rei yelled but the girl did not react.

Urahara marched up to the shield and gave it a blow with his walking cane. It shattered with a loud crack and Usagi fell to the ground.

"Ow. Ow, ow ow."

"It seems you're not a hopeless case after all."

She looked up at him with a frown. Then her eyes widened and she grinned.

"I did it!"