Chapter 4: Thrown into the Deep End 1/2

Warning for this chapter - some Violence and gore (mainly blood). If you don't feel comfortable with it feel free to skip ahead to the next part

Chapter 4 – Thrown into the Deep End

Kokoro Shiraki shivered as she walked down a long street towards through the first district of Rukongai. A month had passed since her disastrous meeting with the Head Captain, and she was enjoying her morning off before her training session with Captain Kyoraku.

Normally she would train in the morning and have the afternoon off, but since there was a monthly Captain's meeting, they had had to reschedule for after lunch. But Kokoro didn't mind.

Autumn was fading and she wanted to enjoy whatever was left of it.

The air about her was cold and crisp, a strong wind whipping through the streets making the loose windows in some buildings rattle. A few trees still clung to the last of their autumn foliage, dotting the dim slightly gloomy light of day with splashes of red, gold, orange and brown. Above her head she could see storm clouds beginning to gather much to her joy. She loved stormy weather of September and October, especially when it rained. The scent of the fresh earth when the first droplets fell from the sky was, in her opinion, the best smell she had ever known.

Only now it was November, and the winds of winter were starting to swoop in, freezing her down to the bone. She clutched her dark crimson red shawl tighter around her black shihakuso. It was a large old shawl but made of an exceptionally fine, silky yet warm material. She had had it ever since her father had found her as an infant in that forest of the Rukongai, and it had never failed to comfort her or keep her warm from the cold.

"Ahchoo!"

Well…mostly warm.

"Dammit, I hope that dessert shop is open" She mumbled to herself. As a celebration of her first month of training, and as a thank you, Kokoro had thought of bringing something sweet for her to eat with her godfather and Nanao after her training session.

Despite his lazy attitude towards his usual work, the older Captain was really putting her through her paces. Last week's lesson had been a tough one as Kyoraku decided to put a pause on their swordsmanship to work on her speed and footwork. Or rather he decided to chase Kokoro around one of the Eighth Division courtyards in a modified game of tag. It was a surprisingly effective exercise as both participants had to take up an unarmed sparring stance and try to tap one another on top of the head or below the knee as they dodged and weaved about one another.

Being much taller than Kokoro, Kyoraku had managed many gentle taps on the top of her head, much to her annoyance. But she had made sure that she returned the favour by tripping him up and slapping his ankles and then stealing his favourite straw hat off his head, much to Nanao's amusement as she watched from the sidelines with a cup of tea.

It had been fun but very draining. Kokoro was only just starting to get the hang of Shunpo and even then, she could only move over small distances at a time without tripping over her feet.

She wished she were better if only so she could travel easier throughout the divisions and upper districts. It would cut her time in half and not as many people would stare at her. Granted fewer people stared at her these days.

Now that she wore the Shinigami uniform people often assumed that she had earned her scars fighting some battle and thus treated her with less hostility, though some still mocked her behind her back for her childish appearance.

Ah, there it is. Ooh, that smells wonderful.

She smiled, almost drooling as she recognised the sweet store, a small hole in the wall that smelled warm and wonderful as it bustled with the sounds of its bakers moving about the back rooms.

"Welcome we'll be with you in a moment" a middle-aged woman called from behind the counter as she quickly made to dip her head past a small open door behind her, patting down her hands on her apron.

Kokoro smiled as she quickly made her way over to the small counter looking hard at the small pastries on display behind the counter.

Maybe I should get a box of different Manju, they look nice and fresh. Ugh, …what's that smell? It's like blood and rotting flesh. Is there a sewerage issue in the street or something?

Kokoro winced as her sensitive nose picked up something brought in from the wind through the open door of the shop

It took all she had to stop herself from gagging as she politely greeted and placed her order with the shopkeeper.

"Oh, you're a soul reaper?" the saleswoman blinked in surprise as she caught sight of the Shihakuso beneath Kokoro's shawl. "But you're so young. Ah, forgive me that was rude, where are my manners-here you go that will be 700 kan."

"Thank you." Kokoro smiled politely as she made to hand over the coins only to jump as a high petrified shriek pierced the air.

"Oh my, what was that?" the middle-aged lady behind the counter gasped, only to cry out in terror as something howled loudly.

It was a foul sound, something between a roaring wolf, a screeching bird and nails on a chalkboard all rolled into one.

Kokoro's heart froze in her chest.

She knew that sound. She had heard it a couple of times before, but only at a distance for her father's lieutenant Hibiki was always quick to speed her away from its source. However, she had no trouble recognizing its terrible sound for what it was.

"Another hollow? But that's the third one in three days!" the woman clutched fearfully at her apron as another baker from one of the back rooms came out to check on everything.

"What's going on? I thought I heard a-" but the man's voice was drowned by yet another roar from the terrible creature.

"Both of you get back into the kitchen, you'll be safe there!"

"B-but wait!"

"Kiyo let her handle it she's a Shinigami!"

"B-but Aoi she's only a child!"

Kokoro did not know what had taken over her, but she was not going to question it as she dashed outside, leaving her gift of Manju on the counter along with her shawl. She would pick it up later. Right now there was a hollow out there and she had a duty to fulfil.

From the sounds of all the terrified screams and roaring no other Shinigami was in the immediate area besides her, and, though she would never admit it out loud, a small part of her was curious to see what a real hollow was like.

She did not have long to wait for her interest to be sated for she had barely taken two steps outside the sweet shop when she saw the creature.

It was huge, standing about as tall as the roof of the sweet shop and so wide that it took up most of the street. Its dark green body was shaped like a lizard though it had six clawed limbs. It had a long tail with a sharp pointed end whipped behind it as it bent down to scuttle over the ground after its prey. A white mask that closely resembled a crocodile's long skull covered its face, two beady pinpricks of yellow light the only sign of life behind its surface. But the most defining features of all was the great big hole in the centre of its chest and the horrible rotting smell that flooded from its body in waves.

It roared as it made a few clumsy swipes at the civilians on the streets who were all screaming shrilly as they away from it and into the safety of the buildings around them.

That's a Hollow? Oh shit, it's huge! Maybe I should wait for backup before pursuing it-

But before she could take a step back the Hollow stilled where it stood and flicked a long disgustingly purple tongue out from the mouth of its mask. It tasted the air, a horrible hissing sound piercing through the air like the end of a rattlesnake's tail, as it turned around slowly to face her.

"Aw crap."

Kenji Shiraki hated Captain's meetings.

Oh for sure he attended them promptly and dutifully stood through each one of them like the true professional he was. However, he hated having to stand next to Captain Sosuke Aizen of the Fifth Division.

Even after all these years the man still managed to rub his feathers the wrong way without even saying a word or doing anything. His mere presence was enough to set Captain Shiraki on edge.

There was something wrong with him. That much was clear. All Captains of the Gotei Thirteen were dangerous in their own way. Captain Shiraki himself was a renowned swordsman and fighter. But Aizen…Aizen was a difficult kettle of fish.

He might play the sweet, scholarly gentleman in public but Shiraki was sure he was hiding something. He did not care what anyone else said, the man was too polite, too sweet and mild in his mannerisms and too charismatic to be truly normal.

No something was very wrong with the man; he could feel it right down to his bones. Every glance at his colleague was like looking at a rich red apple that looked beautiful on the outside but seeing that something was rotten with worms feasting on the inside.

Needless to say, Shiraki was glad when the old Head Captain banged his walking stick on the ground and barked at all the other Captains to get lost back to their own division.

"Well that went rather well I must say." Captain Aizen sighed to the genteel form of Captain Unohana opposite him.

"Yes that was a rather more productive meeting than last time, don't you agree Captain Shiraki?" she looked amusedly at Shiraki's stiff face. She was one of the few people that knew of his dislike of his fellow captain.

"Yes, I suppose it was," he grunted gruffly, bristling all the way to his dark top knot as he felt something prickle on the edge of his sixth sense.

Just some hollow on one of Sereitei's outskirts. A patrol should pick it up soon.

He mentally sighed, yet even as he made to walk out of the meeting room the feeling the prickling on the back of his neck intensified.

No…Something…Something was not right. He could feel it in the air, and for once the feeling of dread was not caused from standing next to the Fifth Squad Captain.

"Is something the matter Captain Shiraki?" A smooth and polished voice drawled.

Shiraki turned to see a young man with long dark hair tucked into some white hair tubes over the top of his head, a pale, seafoam coloured scarf around his neck, and a refined handsome face standing beside him. Though he tried keeping a straight face his dark grey eyes betrayed his concern ever so slightly.

Not that anyone could blame him. Kenji Shiraki was not a man easily rattled.

"I'm not sure Captain Kuchiki" Shiraki clipped at the younger man, straightening up as he came level with Captain Kyoraku whose usually jovial face looked slightly grim.

"I can feel it too. Another Hollow in the First District."

"And it's coming from that same spot too." Shiraki scowled. This was odd even by Soul Society standards.

That small group of streets in the First District of the West Rukongai barely had anything of value and usually was protected quite well. They had sent scouts to check and see if any of the civilians living there had above average spiritual pressure, but so far they had found nothing out of the ordinary.

Shiraki's thoughts were interrupted when the Hollow's spiritual pressure suddenly spiked tenfold.

"Well, I guess it's being dealt with now," Kyoraku shrugged only to stiffen as they all felt another body of reiryoku suddenly clash with that of the Hollows.

It was distant but distinct, what with its fizzling, crackling quality.

The blood drained from Captain Shiraki's face. He could recognise that spiritual pressure anywhere.

"Kokoro" he breathed and before anyone could stop him, he flash-stepped away.

"Oy Kenji! Wait! Oh not again!" Kyoraku called out quickly making to chase after him.

"What happened Byakuya-kun is something wrong?" Captain Ukitake rushed forward to where his two friends had once stood.

Captain Byakuya Kuchiki sighed softly under his breath.

"A hollow has attacked the First District again"

"Again?" Ukitake frowned worriedly. "That's the eleventh attack in a month! But there are patrols going around so…"

Ukitake paused as the hollow's horrible reiatsu spiked once more, clashing once again with the fizzling crackling one in the distance.

"Oh I see now" the older Captain sighed softly. "Damn, I was hoping it would be a while before we had to deal with this-"

"I take it you know who is fighting the hollow?" Captain Kuchiki's asked calmly.

"Yes, Kokoro Shiraki."

"Captain Shiraki's daughter?" Captain Kuchiki's eyebrows rose ever so slightly.

"Yes, she's still quite young. She only just graduated the Academy earlier this year." Ukitake looked worriedly out over the wide view of the Sereitei from where they stood. "and she's facing it alone. Yikes, no wonder Kenji is so spooked."

"Is she not good with a sword?" Captain Kuchiki frowned but Ukitake shook his head.

"What? Oh no, she is very talented with a blade. Kenji has been training her himself since she first learned to walk. However, she has always been quite timid, and she's never faced a hollow before."

"Nonetheless if she's going to dedicate herself to the way of the Shinigami she will have to start fighting for herself at some point. Her father cannot protect her always." Captain Kuchiki sniffed stiffly.

"Only too true I fear." Ukitake's gaze softened slightly with worry "Still, I hope nothing happens to her. She is such a sweet child."

Captain Kuchiki said nothing, but he too found himself silently hoping for the best, if only for Captain Shiraki's sake.

"Aw crap." Kokoro gulped as the yellow eyes in the black holes of its mask seemed to dilate as its gaze fixed upon her head of pale hair.

The hollow roared and charged forward.

Well, there goes that plan of waiting for backup.

Kokoro's face paled as she drew out her swords and leapt backwards out of the way as the long bone-white crocodilian mouth snapped towards her, exposing two rows of incredibly sharp serrated teeth as it made to snap a second time.

"Ack!" she squeaked as the two frontmost teeth snatched at one of her arms.

Quickly she tugged her arm out of the creature's grip, wincing slightly as she heard cloth ripping loudly in her ears and felt a sting on her right arm. She looked down and nearly fainted at the sight of blood dribbling profusely down her arm from a long cut stretching from her upper shoulder down to just above the veins in her elbow.

"Shit! Too close! Too close!" she puffed as she made a short shunpo backwards to keep her distance from the massive creature which tossed aside her black sleeve and roared angrily at her.

It scuttled fast towards her with a speed that belied its large size, opening its mouth again, only to let its long purple tongue lash out towards her like a whip, its forked tip headed straight for her face.

Desperately Kokoro swiped one of her blades upwards in a block, her cry of fear mingling with the Hollow's howl of pain as the sharp metal sliced half of its tongue clean off, spraying dark blood all over the young Shinigami's face and the street.

If ever Kokoro thought she might piss herself it might have been then as the smell of the hollows blood mixed horribly with her own, filling her nostrils and nearly drowning out all other scents. However just as she was about to open her mouth to scream, something strange happened.

No! Don't scream. Don't show fear. Keep fighting.

A voice rumbled in her head. A very familiar voice.

You again?! but how-

No time to talk Master. It's about to attack again! the rumbling voice growled warningly and Kokoro turned just in time to see a large claw swipe out at her.

She ducked quickly with a cry, rolling out of the way, and blocking another swipe with both her blades.

However, the metal only glanced off the Hollows hard scaley skin.

What the? Why didn't it cut? Kokoro frowned as she ducked and countered once more, this time aiming for a crook in the beast's shoulder.

Yet again her blade just bounced straight off the hard reptilian body, barely leaving a scratch behind.

This was too bizarre; she had never fought a real hollow before but even she knew that her Zanpakuto should have made a dent in it by now.

More power. Attack it with more power. The voice in her head growled

But I-I can't! Its hide is too thick it won't make a difference. Kokoro grunted as she made to duck and weave her way out of the flurry of attacks that suddenly came her way.

Then look for a weak point. It can't be tough everywhere. You've already injured it once. Her Zanpakuto growled in frustration.

Kokoro's eyes widened. That's right she had injured it once. She had cut off its tongue.

But she had no time to ponder this new discovery as the bony crocodile head snapped ferociously at her legs.

She quickly jumped out of the way, using the leap to spin herself so she could land a whirlwind strike with both blades one after the other at its mouth.

But the Hollow was too quick for her and in an instant, she found the end of its long tail slapping out to hit her square in the guts.

She tumbled backwards over the road, but years of training kicked in swiftly and she was quick to turn her tumble into a smooth roll that got her back to her feet. The only trouble was that during her rolls she had accidentally let go of both her swords.

Now they lay several feet in front of the hollow's long snarling masked face.

Shit!

Kokoro cursed as the Hollow, noticing her unarmed state, howled with victory and began charging towards her with the speed of a freight train.

Without pausing to think she rushed forwards towards the gaping mouth of sharp teeth.

"Kid LOOK OUT!" A voice called out to her, but it felt to Kokoro like it was oddly muted, as if she were hearing it from a great distance underwater.

She shut her eyes as she dropped to her knees and skidded on the ground, bending her spine backwards so that she slid straight under the gaping jaws that had tried to grab at her.

She sucked in a deep breath as she felt monsters whole body slide over her, including the whip-like tail, the end of which lightly grazed the tip of her small nose even as she turned on her knees, ducked under it and skid to a stop, her waraji sandals kicking up dust beneath her feet.

The Hollow meanwhile was thrashing around in confusion. One moment its prey had been there right in its clutches, the next it had ducked out of sight. It tried to turn its body around, its large size impeded by the narrowness of the street causing its long tail to thrash into a couple of nearby market stalls, spilling various fruits and treats all over the ground. But the monster did not care for its carnage.

When it caught sight of Kokoro panting on her knees on the ground its golden eyes flared and it snarled angrily. It roared again, louder than ever before as it stampeded hell for leather towards the small Shinigami, who had just dashed forward to pick up a pair of shining swords on the ground.

Kokoro saw the massive shadow loom over her and looked up just in time to see a massive black chasm lined with sharp teeth and a bloodied purple tongue suddenly zoom down to swallow her whole.

"AAARGH!" she roared as with a great effort she thrust both her blades in a cross upwards straight into the gaping chasm.

She felt the pressure of her swords piercing something fleshy before driving through something solid as something liquid and warm, along with something slimy, sprayed over her from within the creature's mouth like a hose. She shut her eyes and mouth, and it took all she had not to vomit her guts out as she smelt more blood fill her nostrils.

She was so disoriented by the smell that she barely noticed the weight disappearing off her blades as the Hollow disintegrated above her into nothingness.

The only thing she was aware of as she lowered her blades was her heart as it pounded through her skull like the frantic beating of a drum.

Everything in front of her seemed blurred for some reason, and she could hear someone calling out to her, she was sure of it but like before all sound that reached her ears seemed half muted like a badly tuned radio.

What…what the hell just happened?

Kokoro could feel her hands shaking as they held on tightly to both of her Zanpakuto blades as another voice purred contentedly in her head.

Well done master. It is over. The hollow is no more.

N-no more…as in…its-

Dead, yes. The voice rumbled softly.

Kokoro felt herself sink to her knees.

She had killed it. She had killed a hollow. Her first ever real kill.

She could feel someone's hands grab her by the shoulders as a familiar voice all but shouted in her ear.

"Kid! Oy Kid! Snap out of it."

A large hand slapped her firmly on the back of the head.

She blinked. Someone was kneeling beside her. Someone garbed all in black, another Shinigami.

He was a young man, tall, with vivid crimson hair tied back in a spiky ponytail. The skin above his brown eyes and forehead was covered in strange jagged black tattoos half covered by a white bandana that rumpled as he frowned down worriedly at her.

"W-what-huh?" Kokoro squeaked and the man sighed in relief.

"Finally, I thought you'd never wake up." he rolled his eyes. "You okay kid?"

"Y-Yeah. I-I guess so" Kokoro gulped wiping a shaky hand across her sweaty brow and shuddering as she felt blood and something sticky smear over her hand. "What the hell is-"

"Hollow spit" the man grunted, "It nearly swallowed you remember? Here."

He picked up her torn black sleeve from the ground and handed it to her. She took it gratefully and quickly wiped her face. As she did so she was vaguely aware of some civilians poking their heads out cautiously from their hiding places in the buildings around them.

"Th-Thanks," she sighed in relief as she felt the cool crisp air hit her now semi-clean face.

"Feeling better?" the man smirked as he got to his feet. "I mean yeah sure you look like crap but at least your face is not covered in blood anymore right?"

Kokoro blinked then chuckled breathlessly. The man was blunt and gruff in his speech, but he was not looking at her funnily nor with disdain like so many others did. It was quite refreshing.

"Renji, Renji Abarai. Fifth Squad" the man, Renji smirked as he held out a hand to help her stand up "And what about you pipsqueak? I don't think I've seen you around in these parts before."

"Kokoro Shiraki, Squad Ten, but I just graduated from the Academy this year." Kokoro nodded as she took his hand and pulled herself up to her wobbling legs, sheathing both her swords once more.

"A greenhorn eh? That explains a lot. So that was your first Hollow then?" Renji quirked a tattooed brow down at her.

"Yeah" Kokoro sighed heavily and the man chuckled.

"Thought as much. Though I gotta admit you handled that big guy pretty well on your own. Not many newbies would have the guts to let themselves be nearly swallowed whole."

"Honestly, I had no idea what I was doing" Kokoro mumbled shaking her head to rid herself of that memory of the gaping chasm hurtling down towards her. "I tried hacking at it but for some reason, my blades just could not cut it through its skin."

"Yeah, I saw that. That was weird" Renji frowned as he looked to the ground a few feet away. "Guess I'll have to mention that to the Lieutenant when I give him today's update."

"Y-you mean Gin I-I mean Lieutenant Ichimaru is here? But why would a lieutenant be leading a patrol in the First District? It's usually pretty quiet around here as far as hollows go." Kokoro coughed to cover up her slip of the tongue, but Renji did not seem to notice.

"That's what I first thought when we got this assignment." He admitted with a scowl "But for some reason, there have been more hollows appearing in this area than normal over the past month. And all of them have been much stranger than normal, like the one you just fought."

"So I was right" Kokoro breathed to herself "That was not a normal hollow-ow!" She winced as she felt her right arm sting.

She clutched at it, hissing slightly with pain as she looked down at the long cut that slithered over her arm.

"What is it? You hurt or something?" Renji looked down at her worriedly.

"I-It's nothing. I can manage." Kokoro grit her teeth as she straightened up stubbornly. She had been cut a few times during her training; she could deal with the pain… even if she did still feel quite shaken up.

"You should get yourself to the Fourth Squad. I'll take care of the clean up here" Renji spared the injury a grim frown.

"A-are you sure. I-I mean it's just a scratch. I can still help out." Kokoro flushed with guilt as she noticed some people doing their best to repair a couple of market stalls the Hollow had crashed into. If only she had been a little faster dealing with it then there might not have been so much damage.

"I'm sure. Normally I'd say walk it off, but one of the hollows we faced last week here on patrol had some nasty poison in its fangs that really screwed with one of our men. Better to be safe than sorry. Besides, I was assigned to patrol this area, I should have dealt with it sooner." He added in a small embarrassed mumble.

"So why didn't you?" Kokoro tilted her head curiously.

"Because I figured you could handle it." He snorted with a shrug, only to frown as he saw her flush darken even more on her already pink cheeks.

"What? Something on my face or something?" he grumbled and Kokoro shook her head, doing her best to hold down the wide smile that threatened to take over her face.

"No-no. It's nothing. Thanks for the advice and help Abarai-san. Good luck on your patrol" Kokoro nodded at him as she walked away with a small bounce in her step.

"Good luck to you too pipsqueak. And good job dealing with that hollow." Renji nodded and waved as she dipped into the doorway of the desert shop once more.

As soon as she was out of sight, he walked further down the street and looked down at the ground. There were still some patches of the hollow's dark blood over the ground.

"Not bad for a first time" He muttered to himself as he remembered the way the girl dodged and wove around the Hollow's attacks. She had good instincts for a newbie…and yet…

"Kokoro Shiraki? Shiraki? Where have I heard that name before?"

"Woah! Shiraki! You nearly scared me half to death! Where are you off to in such a hurry?"

It took all Captain Kenji Shiraki he had not to snap Captain Isshin Shiba's head off as he backed away to avoid a collision between him and his young Twentieth Seat Toushiro Hitsugaya.

He had left the First Division a while ago and was still rushing on his way to the direction of that hollow in the First District. He had felt its spiking reiatsu die down a while ago, but his heart still hammered horribly in his chest.

His daughter. His small, timid daughter barely a few months fresh out of the Academy had been face-to-face with a hollow. A strong hollow, if the reiatsu was anything to go by.

Please let her be alright! Please let her be alright!

He prayed over and over in his head as he flash-stepped away from the front of the Tenth Division without a word, leaving Captain Shiba behind to scratch his bearded chin in confusion as Hitsugaya quirked a brow.

"What the hell is up with him?

"I don't know. It's not like Shiraki to be flustered" Shiba mused worriedly only to jump in surprise as another figure nearly collided into him.

It was Captain Kyoraku, his pink haori slightly ruffled as he puffed for breath, trying to resettle his slightly tipped straw hat on top of his head.

"Kenji-kun slow down. I'm sure everything's alright. Well damn I lost him again." the Eighth Division's captain sighed heavily as he turned to smile apologetically at Shiba "Sorry Isshin-kun, Hitsugaya-kun. I did not mean to startle you two"

"Shunsui, what the heck is going on?" Captain Shiba scowled folding his arms "Shiraki nearly mowed us over and like a bat out of hell! Did Kurostuchi drug his morning cup of tea or something?"

"No no, not at all, it's just Kokoro-chan she's-"

"Shiraki, what the hell?!" Hitsugaya exclaimed in shock.

Both Captains turned to see where the young boy was looking at and gasped.

Kokoro Shiraki was hobbling gingerly towards them, covered nearly head to foot in something deep red and sticky. One of the sleeves of her Shihakuso was ripped off, the material wrapped crudely around half of a long deep gash on her bare arm which she clutched tight with her uninjured arm as she struggled to keep a hold onto a scrunched up crimson shawl and a small cloth shopping satchel.

"Uh…Hi," she smiled sheepishly at the odd trio in front of her, ignoring the many stares of horror and disgust from those that passed her by on the street.

"Holy crap kid, what happened to you?" Shiba clapped a hand over his mouth and nose as a foul stench hit his nostrils.

"H-Hollow in the First District" Kokoro mumbled "I-I killed it, but it nicked me. Otherwise, I'm okay."

She winced as her injured arm throbbed. Now that she had somewhat gotten over the shock of the attack, she felt sore all over. She would not be surprised if she could not move tomorrow morning.

"You killed it?" Hitsugaya blinked surprise "On your own?"

"Uh yeah, I just said that" Kokoro grumbled rolling her eyes a little much to Hitsugaya's irritation. However, they were both spared the trouble of arguing when Kyoraku frowned worriedly at her.

"What about the Fifth Squad? I thought they were supposed to be patrolling the area with Lieutenant Ichimaru?"

Damn, she's hurt. Ooh, Kenji's not going to be happy about this.

As if sensing his thoughts Kokoro quickly touched her fingers to her godfather's arm "It's alright really Uncle. The patrol was nearby, I just happened to be closer, so I dealt with it. Besides, I could not just leave the Hollow to run amok while I waited for back up. It would have hurt someone."

"You did the right thing Shiraki-chan" Shiba nodded proudly, folding his arms. "Were you headed off to the Fourth Division?"

"Yes Captain, just as soon as I drop off my things in my room." Kokoro nodded but Shiba shook his head.

"Don't bother. You look dead on your feet, even if you could flash step you would barely make it. I'll call a healer to come here to the barracks. In the meanwhile, hit the showers clean yourself off and keep the pressure on that wound."

"Y-Yes, sir. Thank you." Kokoro sighed with relief as she gave a small bow, only to cringe as her stomach throbbed horribly.

"Shiraki-" Hitsugaya balked forward but Kokoro shook her head, her cheeks pale and slightly green.

"I'm okay. I'm okay. It's probably just a bruise" she rasped in pain as she did her best to hobble forward, only to stumble and have Captain Shiba catch her quickly.

"Have you had any breathing difficulties?" he asked swiftly.

"Only when I flash step or breathe in too fast. I think I tired myself out," she mumbled blushing. She hated getting injured, but she hated it more when people fussed over her like a child (even though she technically was one still) "I-It's alright Captain I-I'm good to walk, honest-ah" she cried out in pain as she felt his large hands gently prod her sides.

"I thought as much. Fractured ribs. Looks like this hollow gave you a hard time." The captain rolled his eyes as deftly he picked the young girl up under his arm like a rolled-up carpet rug and began to carry her back into the division building.

"Captain!" she whined but Captain Shiba ignored her as he turned to bark at Hitsugaya:

"Toushiro, go to the Fourth squad as fast as you can and fetched one of their higher-ranked healers and meet us back in front of Shiraki's room"

"Yes, Captain" Hitsugaya nodded dutifully and vanished as he performed a flawless flash step.

"Show off" Kokoro mumbled under her breath as she was carried through the corridors, Captain Kyoraku following close behind, sighing with relief.

"I'll come with you. I want to hear more about this hollow and how you dealt with it."

Oh great now I'll have an audience to my pain.

Kokoro thought glumly, her cheeks flushing with humiliation as several of her squad members caught sight of their captain carrying her under his arm.

She glared at those that began muttering behind their hands or sniggered at her, all her usual humility shyness forgotten in the wake of her painful injuries.

"Yeah paint a picture it will last longer, jerks!" she growled at Sabu and his friends as they all gaped at her blood-soaked form. They shrank away as her pointed canines flashed in her snarling mouth as she glowered at them over their captain's shoulder.