Chapter 3: The Don's March

Chapter 3 – The Don's March

A few days had passed since the end of the execution, and frankly Ichigo Kurosaki was just glad to be home in one piece.

He was gladder Rukia was alive, but he was technically worrying about his family in his absence. Not so much ol' Goat Chin (Isshin), but his sisters, Karin and Yuzu. What if a Hollow attacked them in the same way his mother was attacked?

Ichigo gripped the metal of the bleacher seat in unconscious anger.

Grand Fisher was technically still at large, but that was okay. He had the power now. He would protect his family from anything and keep getting stronger.

Unfortunately, now Aizen was still around too, and he was much more dangerous.

"Ichi-nii, are you okay?"

Ichigo looked over at Yuzu, who looked worried.

"You seem upset. Do you want some snacks?"

Yuzu Kurosaki reminded him so much of his late mother Masaki it was insane. She had subconsciously taken up the mantle as sort of coping mechanism for her death.

"I'm fine, Yuzu."

"Good son!" Isshin Kurosaki slapped Ichigo's back. "Today is a nice family day! You should be focusing on your sister!"

Ichigo's eyes drifted back to the field, where Karin was playing an intense game against the rival team.

"…Yeah. Go Karin!" He shouted, deciding to forget about his troubles for now.

Karin looked up and flashed a quick grin, nodding and moving in to make the goal.

Ichigo's eyes suddenly shot open.

No…..a Hollow's nearby! I have to…!

But as soon as he felt it, the feeling immediately faded.

What? I guess….Sandal Hat or someone took care of it.

Ichigo leaned back and took a sip of water from his bottle, noticing Yachiru Kusajishi smiling next to him, watching the game with interest.

"This looks fun, Ichi! Can I play?"

Ichigo nearly choked on his drink.

WHAT THE HELL?!

"Um….guys I have to use the bathroom, be right back!"

"Now? But Karin-chan's about to score!"

Ichigo turned to the field, flinching as he felt Yachiru jump on his shoulder with the limberness of a rabbit.

"Yep she is! Oh boy!"

Karin couldn't help but notice the pink-haired girl standing her brother's shoulder. After all, she could see spirits too.

"What the….?" She whispered.

Unfortunately her distraction caused someone to steal the ball, earning boos from the crowd.

"What?!" Ichigo gasped, then realized it was Yachiru. "You…..little….."

"Calm down son!" Isshin laughed. "He's just a kid, but Karin-chan can still turn this around!"

Ichigo dragged Yachiru away and excused himself.

XXXXX

"Start talking, Yachiru." Ichigo crossed his arms. "Why are you here?"

"Ichi, I was just visiting, honest! I killed that Hollow for ya."

Ichigo looked surprised that a little girl was able to defeat a Hollow so quickly, but then he realized who she worked under.

"K-Kenpachi's not here, is he?"

"Nah. He really wants to play with you, but he wants to wait until you're both ready."

Ichigo had no interest in fighting that maniac again.

"You made my sister miss the ball."

"So that's your sister? Aww she's cute. What about that girl next to you?"

"Yeah, that's Yuzu. Yuzu and Karin, they're twins."

Ooh they'll do nicely in the future. Yes….

"Yachiru, you can't just pop in like that. Karin can see ghosts, and she doesn't know about all…..of you, you know?"

"Ichi, where's Boobies?"

"…what?"

"Your friend, with the hairpins!"

"Inoue? Why?"

"I need to talk to her."

Normally this was supposed to be a routine Hollow purification, but Yachiru was smart enough to bribe Hiyosu with candy before coming here. She had plenty of time before she had to come back.

"….look, just don't cause trouble, okay? Her house is that way."

Yachiru followed Ichigo's finger and thanked him, jumping on telephone wires and rooftops at breakneck pace.

"Wait a minute…."

Ichigo looked horrified.

Tatsuki's with her today!

Orihime Inoue giggled as she waved her hand dismissively.

"No he didn't!"

"Yes, he did!" Tatsuki Arisawa laughed and poked her friend on the side. "I had to give my own milk instead. Man Ichigo was a crybaby back then…."

"Kurosaki-kun isn't like that at all now."

"Yeah yeah, he's more moody these days."

Orihime had seen him fight heaven and hell just to save her friend Rukia, and that didn't come without lots of pain, suffering, and willpower. She only wished she was as strong as Ichigo.

Better yet-

"Sooo….." Tatsuki gave a sly smile and leaned in. "Made any moves yet?"

"T-Tatsuki-chan! I don't….I mean…." Orihime whimpered as she turned bright red.

"Come on, Orihime! If you like him, you should do something about it. Ask him on a date!"

"I can't do that!" The auburn girl spluttered.

"Why not? Ichigo's a moron if he says no, like how can he resist a cute girl like you?"

Yachiru was listening to the scene from the open window.

Ohh….Boobies likes Ichi…well! That makes things kinda easy!

Orihime groaned and looked away, wishing her friend would stop teasing. Naturally her eyes were as wide as dinner plates when she saw Yachiru waving at her.

"Um….Tatsuki-chan?"

"What's up?"

"Umm…..could you go to the store and pick up some red bean paste? I think I want to make something special…..just as a thank you for being a friend, you know?"

Tatsuki's stomach was begging its master to stay far away.

"Sure…..I guess. Be right back."

Tatsuki shivered as she stepped outside. Yachiru jumped in the room.

"Boobies! How's it been?"

"Yachiru-chan! What are you doing here?!"

"Don't worry about that. I want you to join my club."

"Club?"

"The Shinigami Woman's Association, or SWA for short. We do fun activities, raise money, gossip….it's a blast!"

"That sounds great, but…..I'm not a Shinigami. "

"Yeah, so?"

Orihime sweatdropped. "But….well, I'm still a student in high school. I can't really focus my time on a club that's…..kinda far away….."

"Oh don't worry about that. We have our ways."

Yachiru fished through her shihakusho and handed a picture to Orihime, who simply looked at it.

Various female Shinigami (the only ones she could name were Rukia and Rangiku) were gathered together, all smiling at the camera.

Yachiru mirrored her expression in the picture. It was a fun party, used to celebrate back when Rukia joined the club (10 members IS a milestone, Nan-Nan!)

Orihime couldn't help but notice how forced Soi's smile was, but everyone else seemed generally happy. Although Rukia seemed slightly embarrassed.

"….How is Kuchiki-san? I would love to spend more time with her again."

"She's great! I convinced the gang we needed more members, and you're a perfect fit!"

Orihime laughed. "But why?"

"Huh?"

"Yachiru, I told you I'm not a Shinigami. I'm not really that special. Why did you pick me instead of another girl in Soul Society?"

The vice-captain was completely perplexed by the question. Special? Who said you weren't? I mean, I know who are you are. Plus you're nice…..you healed Ken-chan too…

Yachiru stared for a minute into Orihime's eyes. They were bright but had a feeling of uncertainty, of fear, of inferiority rooted into it.

Yachiru didn't like when people were afraid.

"Boobies, you're really special to me. So give it a thought, okay? I'll send someone to confirm very soon."

"But I don't think I can-"

"Hey Orihime, I forgot my wallet, can you-"

Tatsuki froze when she stepped back into the room, as did Orihime.

Yachiru just waved at the girl.

Shit shit shit shit SHIT!

Ichigo was considering going Bankai just to be fast enough to race over to Orihime's home.

She's gonna screw everything up!

He hated that he had to ditch his body with Kon and miss the game, but of course, the one Shinigami that was known for being out of tune of the world around her had to show up.

Ichigo wished Kenpachi showed up instead.

When he finally reached his destination, he quickly crouched down and peered into the window.

"So this is Seireitei. It's really big! And I live riiiiiight here….or was it here?"

Ichigo's heart was ready to explode.

Yachiru was drawing X's on a large, rather messy map of the Seireitei on a sheet of graph paper. Orihime's eyes were darting from back to forth, while Tatsuki just continued to stare with the most dumbfounded look on her face.

"We carry these, they're zanpakutou. They….oh Ichi's here! Boobies, maybe you should ask him out!"

Ichigo wanted to cry as Tatsuki's head turned to face him. She of course was the closest to the window.

Meanwhile Orihime wished she was a Shinigami so she could flash-step away and never never revisit this conversation ever again. She was about to cry herself.

"…okay. Ichigo, you have five seconds to start talking."

Ichigo whimpered and silently wished Masaki was alive to fix such a horrible situation. She would bake some cookies to distract Tatsuki, or lie and say Ichigo was sick….

"Four. Three. Two. On-"

Meanwhile Rukia suddenly got a cold shiver down her spine.

Why do I feel as if I'm involved in some messy situation?

Much to her annoyance, Yachiru did steal flowers from Byakuya's garden, although luckily no one else did. She was replanting the mound of sunflowers ripped up.

"….Rukia."

Rukia jumped at Byakuya Kuchiki's voice, realizing his shadow was now covering her crouched form.

"I swear Nii-sama, Yachiru did this!"

The young Kuchiki stood up and nervously stepped back.

"…..so she did. I'm not surprised."

Byakuya shifted his gaze to his late wife's sister, and briefly marveled once again on how identical the two looked. The same violet eyes, the fringe in her hair, the height-

No….I must focus.

"How are you feeling today?"

"…excuse me?"

"I am asking how you fare."

"….fine, I guess."

This was not the older Kuchiki's strong point. But all that happened, the execution, the battle with Ichigo Kurosaki, and stopping the blade of Gin Ichimaru from killing her…he had to try to make a change in his relationship with Rukia. His shame far outweighed his pride.

Rukia herself wanted to be closer, but inwardly she was afraid.

"Actually, I need to tell you something."

"Yes?"

Rukia's gaze turned stern and she crossed her arms.

If Ichigo can defy him, I will do the same. Forgive me, Nee-san.

"Captain Ukitake has promoted me to sixth seat, given my skills with Kido, my Shikai, and the fact that I wish to get stronger."

Silence, the wind blowing through the well-kept hair of both Kuchikis.

"…has he?"

"Nii-sama, you may be angry, and I do apologize. But I don't want to be helpless again. The next time I see Aizen, I plan to freeze his limbs, not let him stage my execution."

"Honestly the traitor deserves worse."

Rukia's eyes widened. Byakuya wasn't smiling, but his eyes said that he agreed with Rukia completely.

"…..you're not going to say no? Or lock me up in a cell?"

Byakuya flinched inwardly, but chose his words carefully. "You have my permission to pursue higher rank in your division, Rukia."

"….."

Rukia looked cross.

"Nii-sama, you must have more to say than that."

"…..? Shall I offer you a position here, if that's what you want?"

Rukia covered up the dirt mount and shook her head.

I want us to be like Ichigo and his sisters. But….it's okay if that's not what you prefer, Nii-sama. "Excuse me, I must be off."

Byakuya felt dismayed as Rukia flash-stepped away. The captain was honestly at a loss.

It seems cold treatment was not something that could be corrected with a simple apology. Rukia was definitely upset when he laid bleeding on the ground, Shinsou withdrawing from his wound, so she did not hate him.

But it would take a while for things to be different. Rukia had experienced closeness and friendship, but never from her "brother".

Even worse was that Byakuya wasn't used to such a situation. Hisana never got angry at him.

She would be furious at me right now…

It took the better half of an hour, but Tatsuki finally understood the story.

Or at least, the parts that made sense.

Fact 1: Ichigo could see spirits, as could Orihime.

Fact 2: Ichigo carried a large sword like this strange pink-haired girl, and was able to hunt down evil spirits with it. Like Don Kanonji (Ichigo made sure to emphasize they were nothing like Don Kanonji)

Fact 3: Evil spirits with hideous shapes and masks were called Hollows.

Fact 4: Ichigo and this strange pink belonged to the Shinigami, those who hunted them down. Rukia Kuchiki was also one, hence her absence.

Fact 5: Tatsuki had a headache now.

"Okay…even if I were to believe all of this…you're telling me our town's in danger now?"

"What? No no, we can fight the Hollows just fine!"

Tatsuki was surprised when Orihime insisted she had powers of her own, but she stopped being surprised the second the hairpins flew off to make a barrier. Surprise was not going to help now.

"No…that Aizen guy."

It was probably the only part of the story Yachiru, Ichigo, and Orihime had agreed on. Aizen had almost killed Rukia, and now….he was with the bad spirits.

"…..Yeah." Orihime frowned.

"….Yep." Ichigo nodded, scowling.

Yachiru wanted to punch a window for hearing his name again, but Boobies had nice stuff anyways.

"…I want in."

"What?!" Ichigo stood up. "No! It's bad enough this brat had to show you something that didn't mean to be shown, but-"

Tatsuki grabbed Ichigo by his collar, her eyes staring holes into his own.

"You expect me to sit by while you AND Orihime continue to risk your lives? Not a chance. And you were gonna keep this all a secret? For how long? When all of us are dead, or something?"

"Well….." Ichigo gulped.

"And you! Orihime, how could you lie to me?"

"I didn't lie, Tatsuki-chan! I…..just wanted to help Kurosaki-kun save Kuchiki-san. I needed to train."

"That explains where you went this summer. I felt it….I felt you were gone. So you went to the spirit world…"

"Soul Society." Yachiru smiled.

Tatsuki dropped Ichigo to stare at Yachiru.

"What's your agenda, kid? You said you came here to visit Orihime, but why?"

"Boobies is my friend, and she's your friend. So that means we're friends now too!"

"….yeah okay." Tatsuki said sarcastically.

"I want Boobies to join my club!"

"Stop calling her that, okay? We've got more important things to worry about than some club, it seems. Unbelievable…..you two are unbelievable….."

"Tatsuki-chan, I'm sorry! Please….don't hate me."

"I could never hate you, Hime."

Tatsuki turned to kick Ichigo in his face.

"YOU are a different story. Thanks for saving Kuchiki, but you could've killed Orihime! She's not a Shini…whatever like you!"

"Ow! Damn it…."

"So you want to join too, Spikey-chan?"

"Join?! Get out of here!"

Yachiru giggled and jumped to the window.

"Well okay, Ken-chan might start looking for me…wait! Boobies!"

"Huh? What is it?"

Yachiru grabbed Orihime and much to everyone's surprise, slung her over her shoulder.

"I'm gonna borrow her for…..uh, I guess a few hours."

Yachiru quickly flash-stepped away.

"Inoue!"

"Find her."

"Huh?"

Tatsuki hissed and grabbed Ichigo by his throat. "Find her, and bring her back right now."

Momo Hinamori was looking out the window of her room at the 4th, and she was really looking forward to going back to work again. Her wound had healed, but…..sadly it left a nasty scar.

No more. No more sadness. She was going to get stronger.

"How are you feeling, Hinamori-san?"

Momo turned to smile at Retsu.

"Good. Are you sure I can't go back to work yet?"

"You may return to active duty tomorrow, but I insist your work be limited to things inside the Seireitei perimeter. And you need to have sessions."

"…..for what happened?"

"Yes, Hinamori. Every patient that goes through this door must be fit leaving, physically and mentally."

"…okay, ma'am."

"Sorry we're late!"

Much to the shock of the two Shinigami, Yachiru bounced into the room with Orihime in tow. She carefully set Orihime down, but the human girl did not look very well.

"Ooh…..I'm so….dizzy now….I think…"

Orihime quickly vomited on the floor, causing Retsu to stare critically at Yachiru. Her sandals were now covered in the mess.

"…..what?"

XXXX

Moments later, Orihime was lying next to Momo on an adjacent bed, moaning and rubbing her head with a wet cloth.

"So why did you kidnap Inoue-chan again?"

Yachiru gestured to the flowers Orihime somehow managed to keep intact on the way over here.

"She wanted to give Peaches flowers."

Momo hesitantly took the three flowers as Orihime handed them over, although her eyes were starting to spin now.

"Yachiru, did you kidnap her to force her into the SWA?"

"No! I mean….not completely."

Yachiru looked bashful from her position on the windowsill.

"She felt sad when I told her about Peaches. And I wasn't gonna forget to visit her!"

Retsu sighed and shook her head. "Feel free to stay as long you wish, Inoue. Flash-step is not something you throw a regular human into."

Orihime gave a thumbs-up, but covered her mouth when she felt the sickness rise in her throat.

"Thank you….Inoue-san. They're pretty…."

Orihime managed a weak smile, but gasped at the other flowers.

"What! Oh….."

"We did that!" Yachiru grinned. "We look out for each other!"

"Yachiru, please come over here."

Retsu brought Yachiru out into the hall.

"You need to apologize."

"But Boobies never said no."

She did, not that Yachiru cared.

"And besides….she could help Peaches."

"Pardon?"

"Her hairpins. They heal people. She could heal Peaches."

Yachiru didn't know the extent of Orihime's power, but in reality, it was uncertain if Soten Kisshun could alter emotional states.

"Hinamori is fine, she'll be going back to work tomorrow."

"She's not fine. She's still talking about Aizen."

Retsu raised an eyebrow at Yachiru's serious tone. Once again, the girl was not smiling.

"Oh….Yachiru, it's going to take her a while to move past that, you know. She was the closest to Aizen, and….well, some wounds just don't heal easily. The emotional damage is far worse than the physical damage."

"But it's not fair!"

Yachiru sniffled as tears came to her eyes.

"He hurt Peaches. She should hate him back."

"Are you aware of the five stages of grief?"

"…yeah. Fruit, veggies, meat-"

"No, no, that's the food pyramid. Basicially, Hinamori is only on stage #1 – denial. She is denying Captain Aizen as a traitor, placing the blame on Ichimaru. Next stage is anger."

Yachiru looked thoughtful. Anger, Peaches needs plenty of that.

"There is little I can do at the moment, Yachiru. Eventually she will recover, but this needs time."

"But can I help?"

"Huh?"

"I want to help Peaches, the club says so now! And if Boobies becomes the rookie, she can help too."

"…you may do what you feel is needed, but I only ask you do not force recovery. We can't have Hinamori-san relapse."

Yachiru nodded, but thought of another idea.

"I'll be right back!"

Yachiru jumped on top of a rooftop and quickly looked around.

"Hey Yachiru."

She looked down to see Kenpachi staring at her, eyebrows furrowed.

"Where the hell do you keep running off to?"

"I've got important things to do Ken-chan! By the way, Ichi's chasing me, so you should look out for him."

Kenpachi's grin threatened to split his face open.

Nemu was calmly typing several statistics into a division computer before Yachiru appeared on top of her head, bending over to stare at her upside down.

"Madame President?"

"Nemu-chan, have I got something for you! I need your help too, though."

"Is there a meeting now?"

"Not yet, not yet. First, what can you tell me about the five stages of uh….grease?"

"Grief? The Kubler-Ross Model was first created in-"

"Nemu-chan! Is there anyway to speed things up?"

"I suppose under repeated conditions to the source of the grief, but I would not advise it. Hinamori's condition should not be rushed."

"Hey! How did you….never mind. You know the rookie headband?"

"You found a new member?"

"Yes, I want you to alter it, so even humans can see it!"

Yachiru handed her the old item and winked.

"Hai."

"Also can you come with me with the 4th Division? You have the chance to talk about your crush with a friend of his!"

Nemu immediately looked away in shyness.

"Madame President, you are mistaken. I do not harbor romantic feelings for any Shinigami."

"Well yeah, Pencil's not one of us. "

Sadly Nemu was heavily committed to memorizing Yachiru's nicknames, and try as she liked, she could not resist asking the girl for social advice or deny these new feelings.

Nemu Kurotsuchi was interested in one Uryu Ishida.

"I assume you brought Orihime Inoue here? She would be connected to both the headband and this friend you speak of."

"Yep!"

"I see. I must decline."

"Why?"

"Because….."

She knows what happened on the night of invasion. She has seen Mayuri-sama's cruelty first hand. What if he captures her instead should she talk?

Nemu shook inwardly with dread. She had seen many test subjects of her captain, but she couldn't bare the thought of experimenting on a human she witnessed feel pain firsthand.

"I….."

"Nemu-chan, you gotta be more brave sometimes. Like me! So you'll get in trouble if you leave the division, so what?"

Nemu forced a weak smile. She doesn't know. If Madame President knew….how would she react?

Again, this required thought. She had never seen Yachiru look as angry or as serious the meeting just a few days ago. She was serious in her endeavor. She wanted revenge for Momo.

Yachiru Kusajishi was a pro at sneaking into divisions, but her division already clashed enough with her own. If Mayuri were to get back at Yachiru, Kenpachi would not be happy.

The last thing Seireitei needed was another civil struggle.

Nemu put a hand to her face, completely unsure of what to do. Her brain kept processing more and more guilt as the days went on. That night changed everything.

She suddenly became aware of Yachiru speeding down the hall, having lifted Nemu and her chair above her head with ease.

Maybe….I should be brave.

"Hinamori-san, can I ask you something?"

Momo looked up. Orihime was still a little queasy, so the two decided to play a calming game of shogi before she went home. She inwardly knew Tatsuki wouldn't be pleased with her.

"Sure."

"What do you when a friend feels betrayed?"

Momo's eyes widened slightly. The question hit so close to home. She had accused her friend of foul play based on a simple letter. A letter Captain Ichimaru faked, she added.

"Well…I would try to make it up to them. But maybe they would want space."

"Oh…..do you think they can forgive you?"

Momo bit her lip. Did Toshiro forgive me?

"I…..don't know."

"Hinamori-san, I'm really sorry."

"For what?"

Orihime smiled sadly. "If we didn't break into the Seireitei….maybe this wouldn't have happened."

Momo unconsciously felt the length of her scar through her gown.

"…..it's not your fault, Inoue-san. Everyone has been through a lot."

Yachiru soon kicked open the door and plopped Nemu, still in her chair, onto the floor. Unlike Orihime, she was not dizzy in the slightest.

She did look very uneasy the second her eyes met Orihime's.

"Oh hello Kurotsuchi-san." Momo smiled.

"You…..you're that girl." Orihime whispered.

"…..yes."

"What, you know each other? That makes things really easy then! Go on, ask her!"

"I can't." Nemu whispered back.

"Why not? Nemu-chan…..!"

"You….Ishida-kun and I saw you during the invasion. When….."

Orihime looked troubled and covered her mouth.

"Your captain…."

"Inoue-san, it is very important I speak with you, privately."

"Um….that's okay! Honest!"

No, she fears what I am capable of now. I stood right next to Mayuri-sama when he blew up our subordinates with ease…

"I swear I will not harm you."

"That's okay, really!"

"Hey!"

Yachiru stepped between the two and pouted.

"Boobies, we never hurt our fellow members. Ever. That's a promise, and anyone who breaks that promise….."

Orihime's gaze shifted back up to Nemu.

"Okay. But maybe I should go home after that."

Yachiru tugged Nemu's skirt and gave her a firm look. Give her the thing before she leaves, and make sure you ask!

Nemu merely stared impassively.

"By all means."

When the two exited the room, Yachiru jumped on Momo's bed again.

"What was that all about, President? Things seemed so….tense."

"Oh they'll be fine, Peaches."

Yachiru gazed out the window, picking up Kenpachi's crazed reiatsu running towards Ichigo's terrified one.

He'll have fun. Hopefully Spikey-chan will join us too.

FIN