Backup

Chad left the very next day, quietly eager to find his Abuelo. Upon having Soul Society, he paused. I need to play this smart… he reasoned. I don't know much about Soul Society… maybe I can enlist a couple of friends to help?

"Oi."

Chad blinked and looked down. Seeing a very familiar black cat, he smiled. "Yoruichi-san."

"It is good to see you, Chad. Kisuke told me why you are here, and I'm bored, so I thought I'd help you out," Yoruichi told him in her cat form's deep voice.

The large teenager nodded gratefully at her. "Thank you, Yoruichi-san. I appreciate it."

The cat jumped up onto a nearby fence and began walking. Taking the hint, Chad began walking behind her. "Soul Society is a big place, Chad-kun. How do you plan to find your grandfather?"

"I'm not sure," Chad admitted. He fingered a very special coin in his pocket – it was a Mexican coin that his Abuelo had given him, and he had used it as a constant reminder of his vow to never fight unless to protect others, a vow he had made the day his Abuelo was buried. "I brought a picture of him that I hoped to make copies of so I could post them periodically through Soul Society…"

"A decent start," Yoruichi judged. "But you should also realize that there is a chance he has already died here and passed on to the cycle of reincarnation."

Chad bowed his head. "I have thought of that. But if there is even the smallest chance for me to see him, I must try."

Yoruichi sighed. "Is there anything distinguishing about him? What's his name?"

"His name is Oscar Joaquin de la Rosa," Chad told the cat quietly. "Strong and lithe despite his age. Very self-controlled and kind, he'll take a punishment to protect those he cares for. Before he died he had short white hair and a mustache." He paused, taking out his wallet and presenting the many-years-old picture of his Abuelo. "About five foot nine, height-wise."

"Anything else?" the talking cat pressed hopefully. "A tattoo maybe?"

Chad took a moment to think, straining his memory. Eventually he nodded. "He has a large ornate rose tattoo on his left shoulder."

"Good. That will help in our search in the Rukongai."

"How large is Rukongai?" Chad asked curiously.

"There are eighty districts in the four cardinal directions," Yoruichi stated, jumping down from the fence.

"Three hundred and twenty districts?" Chad said incredulously.

"Like I said, Soul Society is a big place. Now come on, we need to make copies of that picture."

Shortly afterward, Chad carried a backpack filled with over a thousand flyers, all with a copy of Abuelo's picture and distinguishing information. "So, how do you want to start?" Yoruichi asked.

Chad looked over the map of the districts and pointed at the first district to the north of Seireitei, where the Shinigami lived. "We'll start with this one, and spiral around through the equivalent west, south and east districts," Chad decided after a few moments. "It may take longer, but we'll pick up a reputation, which will help if my Abuelo remembers me." He bowed his head. "It has been a decade."

Yoruichi leapt up and landed gracefully on Chad's shoulder. "I'm sure he remembers you, Chad-kun. Let's begin."

"Agreed." Chad began walking. I'm coming, Abuelo.

Meanwhile, in the living world, Ichigo was in school again. He frowned, deep in concentration as he once again practiced his ability to sense his friends. Ichigo knew he could use spirit threads, also known as spirit ribbons, to detect and locate them – he'd been able to do that since his early days as a Shinigami, even before his friends had discovered their powers. However, that was more of a tracking measure than a detection one – it required a short time to focus and manifest the threads to the point where Ichigo could see each individual one. As a result, it was impractical to use the spirit threads for general sensing purposes.

Ichigo nodded to himself as he once again located Inoue's unique reiatsu signature. That was a little faster. If only my own reiatsu didn't get in the way! He shook his head. I just have way too damn much for my body to contain it all. He sighed and started over, this time looking for Ishida's reiatsu.

Ishida Uryuu paid only the most minor of attention to the class himself – he was busy studying his colleague and rival, Kurosaki Ichigo. The Substitute Shinigami was growing incredibly strong, Uryuu had to admit. He's only getting stronger. I refuse to fall behind… not when I have my powers back.

But how do I grow stronger? Kurosaki's growth rate is inhuman! How can I hope to compare? He achieved Bankai, one of the hardest Shinigami goals, in two days! TWO DAYS! Uryuu mentally slapped himself. Snap out of it, Uryuu! It's not like you to succumb to despair! We're opposites, Kurosaki and I. He has power. Oh, Uryuu could definitely feel the power – Kurosaki emitted more reiatsu naturally in seconds than some Shinigami had at their entire disposal. But where he has power, I have control. He narrowed his eyes and gently pushed his glasses up a bit, making them glint and become opaque from the outside. Although he's been catching up in that regard, albeit slowly.

Uryuu frowned pensively. Perhaps I should do the same. I am already very strong in control. I am quickly regaining the ability to draw in greater quantities of spirit particles – I'm still not up to where I was with the Sanrei glove, but it's still better than I used to be without. Speed-wise, I am doing well with my Hirenkyaku. His frown deepened. But even with it, I am not even close to as fast as Kurosaki is in Bankai, in his Shinigami form.

The Quincy shook his head. I should not dwell on it. Kurosaki, Inoue and I will all improve in our skirmishes, and I am still training outside them. With that, Uryuu turned his attention back to class, absently gathering and releasing the ambient spirit particles in the air in a form of mindless training he had conditioned himself to do.

Meanwhile, in Hueco Mundo, Yammy forced himself to sit still while an Arrancar medic reattached his arms. He seethed with rage at how he'd been humiliated by that little human girl and that orange-haired Shinigami. I am an Espada! One of the elite! To add insult to injury, Aizen had informed Yammy that he was not to have his arms healed until the next day, as punishment for… some reason that Yammy couldn't remember off the top of his head. He was too full of rage at the ones who had almost killed him to recall why he had been punished.

As soon as his arms were restored, he clenched his left fist angrily. "I'll kill that son of a bitch and his little whore," Yammy swore to himself. The medic fled, not wanting to die from Yammy's tendency to smash things – and people – when upset.

"Is that so?" came a new voice. Yammy turned to look, and saw a lithe, tall Arrancar with blue hair sticking up and back, whose mask remnant was on his right jaw. His Arrancar outfit was opened at the chest, revealing his Hollow hole. "You might be interested in something I'm putting together then."

"If it involves me killing that orange-haired Shinigami, Grimmjow, I'm in," Yammy agreed immediately.

Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez grinned, much like a large cat might when it has trapped its prey. "Great. My Fraccion will be joining us in a raid on the human world tonight." His feral smile widened. "We'll be killing everyone with even a modicum of spiritual power in that town. You can take on that Kurosaki Ichigo again if you wish – I'll just laugh as he tears you apart, and then I'll kill him."

Yammy growled. "He will die, even if I have to use my Resurreccion."

Grimmjow smirked widely. "Good. I want to see how good that human girl is… the one who kicked your ass."

"Just don't get in my way, Grimmjow."

"Nor you in mine, Yammy."

A dimension away, Captain Commander Genryuusai Yamamoto slammed his Zanpakuto, sealed as a walking stick, into the ground, the sound of which echoed through the hall where he and the rest of the loyal Captains of Soul Society were gathered. "Yesterday afternoon, two Arrancar attacked the human realm. Thanks to the Squad 12's Technology Bureau, we were able to scan their reiatsu."

A tall, laid-back looking man with long stringy black hair cleared his throat. He wore a pink flowered haori – a lightweight jacket that is worn over a kimono – over his Captain uniform. "Maa, Yama-jii," Kyoraku Shunsui began, "why is this unusual? We've met Arrancar before."

Kurotsuchi Mayuri, Captain of the 12th Division, was an odd-looking man with skin as white as a sheet, with glowing golden eyes and a strange piece of headgear that angled off to his right at a 90 degree angle from his body. His eyes and mouth were surrounded by black makeup, and he wore a large purple scarf around his neck. "These Arrancar were different," he began with a large smile. "The Arrancar we have seen before… they were unstable, incomplete. The ones that invaded yesterday stayed long enough for some of my scanners in the human world to get a good reading on them. These Arrancar are somehow stable." He grinned wider. "Ooh, I can't wait to get my hands on one of them, to experiment on them."

"You might get your chance," Hitsugaya Toushiro, Captain of the 10th Division, said coolly. He was extremely short, looking only 10 or 11 years old, in stark contrast to his sheer white hair, which stuck up in natural-looking spikes. "Given that Aizen has the Hougyouku, and the emergence of these new Arrancar, it's probable that he's the one behind them. It looks as though he's building an army."

"Hitsugaya-taicho is right," Ukitake Juushiro, Captain of the 13th Division stated. He was tall, and somewhat sickly-looking, as though constantly suffering from a hidden ailment. His long white hair fell behind his head, with exception of a few bangs that partially covered his right eye. "Aizen is working faster than expected. It is only lucky that Kurosaki Ichigo and his friends were able to repel them."

"Quite handily at that!" Zaraki Kenpachi said with a bloodthirsty grin. The Captain of the 11th Division was extremely tall, nearly six foot seven, even without his spiked up hair. His hair, oddly enough, had small bells at their tips, though the most noticeable thing about him was still his size and obvious strength. "Ichigo's getting even stronger! I can't wait to fight him again!"

Yamamoto slammed his staff down again. "Silence!" he commanded. "We were not expecting Aizen to attack so soon. We must send reinforcements to the human world, for the next time they attack, it will be in mass. We must keep as many Captains here as possible, however – we lack Captains for the 3rd, 5th, and 9th Divisions."

Kuchiki Byakuya, a noble whose expression had yet to change from the beginning of the meeting, stepped forward. His long, black hair waved gently about his shoulder as he spoke up, "I propose Abarai Renji, my fukutaicho, be among the search team – he is one of the few who have been sent to the human world in recent times, and he is well known by the Subsitute Shinigami Kurosaki Ichigo and his allies. Further, he has achieved Bankai."

"Impressive," Shunsui murmured. "He would seem to be an excellent choice. Perhaps we should promote him to Captain, to relieve one of the empty spots?"

Byakuya shook his head. "Not yet. He is not ready for the responsibilities of Captain."

"So be it," Yamamoto intoned. "Inform Abarai Renji-fukutaicho that he may select as many non-Captains as are available to go to the human world. One Captain of his choice may join him."

Shortly thereafter, Byakuya informed Renji – a fiery redheaded youth whose hair was style in a pineapple-type ponytail, and whose tribal-appearing tattoos reached up his neck and arm – of his mission, and Renji set out to find the two people he knew he'd want to come along.

"Oi! Rukia!"

The rather short adopted member of the Kuchiki royal family turned around from her training, her glistening white released Zanpakuto shining. Upon spotting her childhood friend, Renji, she smiled. "Renji! What're you up to?"

"I'm being sent to the human world, and I've been asked to create a team to serve as reinforcements against Aizen's forces," Renji told her quickly. "I'm to leave in about an hour. Want to come along?"

Rukia's smile broadened. Ichigo… "Of course, dumbass! I'd have kicked your ass if you had left without me!"

Renji chuckled. "Then come on, I have another person or two to fetch."

The black-haired girl merely sheathed her Zanpakuto, sealing it in its unreleased form again. "Lead the way."

Several minutes later, they came across the entrance to Squad 11's training round. Rukia blinked. "Who are we looking for again?" she asked, ignoring the many shirtless men fighting each other.

"The most bloodthirsty one here that isn't Kenpachi-taicho," Renji said with a smirk. "Howl, Zabimaru!" Renji's Zanpakuto warped and changed shape from the general katana of his unreleased form to a wide chain-sword with wicked spikes emerging from the top of each segment.

"Did I just hear a pineapple-haired hothead release his Zanpakuto?" an excited voice sounded from a ways away. A moment later, another tall, shirtless, muscle-bound man appeared in front of them. This one, however, was bald, and he wore a large grin reminiscent of Kenpachi.

Renji smirked. "Hey Ikkaku." He swung Zabimaru at him, and Zabimaru extended at Ikkaku, preparing to surround him, but the member of the 11th Division merely grinned wider and brought up his sword sheath to block in his left hand, his right hand already swinging to counter Renji.

"You'll have to do better than that!" Madarame Ikkaku yelled gleefully as Renji skillfully dodged out of the way, allowing Zabimaru to come back together.

"Sorry, Ikkaku, but I'm afraid there's no time to spar," Renji said, and he truly did sound regretful. "I've been asked to create a team to reinforce Ichigo and his pals from Aizen's forces – apparently they sent in a scouting team yesterday before Ichigo kicked their asses. Wanna come?"

Ikkaku thought it over for about a second and a half. "There's a good chance for a great fight?"

"Pretty damn good chance of that," Renji agreed.

"Then I'm in."

"I'll come along too," a self-absorbed sounding voice butted in. Renji turned around to see Ayesagawa Yumichika, a self-proclaimed pretty boy. Yumichika wore his hair in such a way that it framed his face, and he had colorful feathers on his right eyebrow and eyelash. "I'm rather interested in seeing what beauty products they have in the living world. Plus, I could use a good fight."

Renji shrugged. He didn't know Yumichika that well, but he figured the extra manpower could be useful. "Sure, why not?"

"Oh, what's this?" yet another voice stated from nearby, this one being a bit bubbly. Fights stopped everywhere as men began to stare and drool at Matsumoto Rangiku, whose breasts were so large that there was a betting pool on whether she had implants. Natural or not, Rangiku was not ashamed of her extremely large assets and instead showed them off with a slightly opened Shinigami robe.

Renji forced himself to pay attention to Rangiku's face and long, wavy, ginger-colored hair – while we was a red-blooded male, he WAS on a mission. For the third time in several minutes, he reiterated the situation.

"Oh really? Well, I want to come too! I'd like to see Orihime again… she's turning out to be quite some competition for me in this department," Rangiku said airily, folding her arms under her enormous boobs, enhancing their looks further.

Several men by that point had nosebleeds by that point and tried desperately to conceal them. Renji sighed, fighting off the urge to do the same. "Rangiku-san… please stop holding up your…." He felt a chill and paused, glancing at Rukia, who was staring at him with such intensity that he almost froze in place. "Er… your…." Renji could feel Rukia's killing intent now, and thought furiously, to look for a way not to get himself hit. Honestly, she's scarier than her brother sometimes… He sighed.

Rangiku blinked, and looked very innocent as she asked, "Holding up my what, Renji-kun?" She then leaned in for the answer, giving Renji quite an ample view if he chose to look.

In Renji's head, there was a war going on. One side of him told him to look and damn the consequences. A second side wanted him to simply finish his statement with as much dignity as he could and hope Rukia didn't beat on him too much. The third was screaming to run away before Rukia even thought he was considering looking.

WHAM! Too late, Renji thought to himself as Rukia smacked the back of his head. Fortunately – or unfortunately, depending on the point of view – he hadn't been prepared for it and so his back hunched forward, his head bent downwards… straight into Rangiku's massive mammary.

"Why, Renji!" Rangiku positively purred, putting her hands on the back of Renji's head, gently keeping him there. "So forward! I like that in a man."

Renji could feel Rukia's reiatsu flaring ever higher, her killing intent skyrocketing. Oh fuck. He quickly broke free and backed away from the two of them, his eyes wide and hands waving in front of him, trying to ward them off. "No, no, it was a mistake!"

"Oh, you didn't like it?" Rangiku pouted.

His traitorous tongue answered before his brain could intercept the response. "Of course I liked it!" … Shit…

"Reeeeeeennnnnnnjiiiiiiiiiiii," Rukia growled, drawing her sealed Zanpakuto.

"Um, Rukia? You can kill me later, we need to go back up Ichigo and his gang," Renji pointed out, hoping against hope that she'd give him a reprieve.

Rukia was silent for a minute. "Fine." She sheathed Sode no Shiraiyuki and turned away. Then she looked over her shoulder and added darkly, "But you WILL pay for that."

Renji wiped the beginnings of sweat from his brow. "Too close," he breathed.

Ikkaku clapped a hand on his shoulder, almost startling Renji – he'd practically forgotten the bald man was there. "Well, at least you got a good look," he whispered.

The redhead stayed silent. When there is no good answer, say nothing at all if you wish to live, he reminded himself, watching Rukia's tense form. He shook his head after a moment. "If Rangiku-san is coming, then we need someone who can handle her and make sure she doesn't kill me," he muttered. "Alright, everyone meet me at the Shinigami R&D Institute to get your gigai. I got one more person to get."

Several minutes later… "No," Hitsugaya Toushiro stated clearly.

"But Hitsugaya-taicho, how are we supposed to manage her?" Renji pleaded. "She doesn't listen to any male but you, and Rukia's not going to stop her because Matsumoto-fukutaicho outranks her."

"I refuse to go with you," the 10th Division Captain insisted. "It will be nice to have Matsumoto away for a short while."

"And do what, paperwork?" Renji retorted. "She IS a fukutaicho, after all, so she'll have to do paperwork too, and guess who'll have to do it if she's gone?"

Toushiro blinked. "You have a point," he said slowly. Not to mention that she probably left everything for the last minute…again… He nodded. "Very well, I'll come along, if only to avoid the paperwork."

Renji breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank Kami!"

Ichigo sighed – class was finally over. Now, let's see… I was at Urahara's for training yesterday, so today it's the Vizards' turn… He nodded to himself and headed back home for a nap – he would need the extra sleep, as the Vizard would keep him up all night.

He climbed in through his window to avoid his father – Ichigo was extremely tired, and didn't feel like tussling with his incredibly annoying parent. He lied down in bed and closed his eyes, letting sleep wash over him like a warm blanket.

Little did Ichigo know that his sleep was going to be interrupted. Six Shinigami in gigais, all in their school uniforms – they had tried to catch Ichigo at school, only to be too late – approached the Kurosaki residence.

"Yeah, Ichigo's here," Rukia said with a smile. "Though if I didn't know better, I'd say he's exhausted, judging from the feel of his reiatsu."

"Nonsense," Rangiku argued playfully. "What could keep him exhausted?"

"Better question," Toushiro interrupted, somehow knowing that Rangiku was going to make a sexual answer to her own question. "How do we alert Kurosaki that we're here? Last I recall he was not proficient at sensing reiatsu signatures…"

Rukia smirked. "Let me." She quickly clambered up the tree and into Ichigo's open window – he'd forgotten to close it.

However, no sooner had she climbed in, did the orange-haired Substitute Shinigami appear in front of her, murder in his eyes as his strong hand gripped her throat and held her up. Rukia was shocked by the response, enough that she didn't react before Ichigo recognized her.

He immediately dropped her, where Rukia landed on her feet nimbly, rubbing her throat. "… Rukia?" Ichigo murmured, confused and tired. "What're you doing here?"

"Baka Strawberry!" Rukia yelled, somehow pulling a notebook out of nowhere and smacking Ichigo's head with it. "What was that for?!"

"Ow! At least give me a chance to explain before you smack me, you violent midget!" Ichigo retorted.

"I'll show you violent midget, you absurdly tall idiot!"

The Shinigami outside sweat-dropped from the shouting. "Renji, did you know that Rukia was this violent?" Ikkaku asked.

Renji shook his head, equally dumbfounded. "I thought she was only that violent to me, not Ichigo. She must be really fond of him."

If possible, the others sweat-dropped more as the sounds of a beating ensued. "… You call this fond…?" Yumichika asked in astonishment.

"Perhaps Rukia belongs in the 11th Division," Ikkaku offered with a shrug. "Having fun doing violence is our type of thing."

"But I thought the 11th Division frowns on Kido-type Zanpakuto," Rangiku pointed out. "Rukia's is an ice-type, like taicho."

"Get back on track, people," Toushiro ordered, lightly irritated. I'm stuck with a bunch of so-called adults with the attention spans of a hummingbird… "Oi! Kuchiki! Kurosaki! Get down here!"

They were down several seconds later, though Ichigo gave a very dirty look to an innocent-looking Rukia for a second. Then he turned to the others. "Renji? Mind telling me what's going on here?"

"Put simply, we're here as backup," Renji explained with a shrug. "We'll talk more in your room so we can't be overheard. Let us in."

Ichigo sighed. "Alright then, but hurry – I don't even WANT to think about what my father will think of this."

Thankfully, Kurosaki Isshin was nowhere in sight, so Ichigo managed to get them all into his room easily.

"Aaaaaaah!" a voice cried from the closet. "Nee-san!" Kon, a Mod soul that inhabited a lion plush most of the time, lunged out towards Rukia.

Without even looking, Rukia brought her foot up and stomped Kon to the ground. "Pervert."

"Nice angle," Kon said, looking up Rukia's skirt, completely unharmed. He was, after all, made of plush.

With a notable twitch above her left eye, Rukia repeatedly stomped on Kon before kicking him back against the closet door.

Ichigo merely sighed and shook his head. "Damn it Kon, can't you behave?"

"Where's the fun in that?" Then Kon seemed to spot Rangiku. His beady eyes grew large. "Oh sweet Kami, the land of the goddesses has appeared before me!" He lunged again, this time at Rangiku's ample breasts.

The shapely woman merely caught him and held him in front of her face. "Wait, is this a mod soul? You stuck him in a plush body?" she asked incredulously.

"Yeah," Ichigo answered with a shrug. "I felt bad keeping him in pill form all the time. That, and he's good at stress relief, with no need to worry about injuries."

"I'm also quite good with pleasuring a woman," Kon told Rangiku, trying to entice her into letting him finally get sex.

Ichigo snatched him out of Rangiku's grip and threw him out the window. "Go take a walk!" he yelled after it. Then he shut the window and sat down on his bed. "So, explain."

"The Arrancar attacked early," Toushiro stated simply. "Yamamoto-soutaicho decided to send some backup, as it's almost certain they'll attack again, and soon."

"But why you guys?"

"Well, I was originally chosen to lead the team," Renji began, "as I have achieved Bankai and know you. Rukia came along because she knows you pretty well, and has recovered her powers. I asked Ikkaku to come with because I trust him. Yumichika-san and Rangiku-san overheard and decided to come too, and I invited Hitsugaya-taicho to help handle Rangiku-san and get away from paperwork."

"OK, I get all that…" Ichigo began, "… but when do you head back?"

"Probably not until the Arrancar threat is over," Renji responded with a thoughtful look on his face. "Why?"

"Where are you going to stay?"

"Well, here!" Rangiku replied, surprised he had even asked.

"You might not have noticed, but my room isn't that big," Ichigo told her dryly. "There's no way I can keep you all here."

"What?!" Rangiku cried out. "Then what good are you?"

Ichigo blinked. "You MUST be kidding. Don't you guys have things like rent in Soul Society? Here in the living world, people who take advantage of other people's generosity without giving something in return are known as freeloaders and are not respected."

Rangiku blinked, then reached up to start unbuttoning her shirt.

Ichigo's eyes widened, but he was too tired to stop her energetically like he would normally do. "Rangiku-san, stop," he said tiredly. "I'm the son and sometimes assistant of a doctor – you don't have anything I haven't already seen. And while I'm sure you could give me absolutely spectacular sex in exchange for staying here, that's not something I want or need right now." He shook his head. "Besides, even if I weren't a moral man, where would you stay in here? It's a rather small room. And I've done my best to make sure my family isn't involved in Shinigami business, so I can't just sleep on the couch until the Arrancar are gone."

Rangiku pouted at him but re-buttoned her shirt. "That was a different reaction that I usually get," she observed.

"What can I say, I'm an unusual guy," Ichigo told her dryly.

"Kurosaki has a point about the lack of space," Toushiro mused. "What about your friends?"

"Well, I'm sure Inoue would be happy to have a friend or two over…" Ichigo answered, thinking it over. "Chad and Ishida both live on their own… Ishida would say no in a heartbeat – he really dislikes Shinigami. Chad…" Ichigo shook his head. "Sorry, but Chad's place is really too small for more than one person. Try Urahara's."

Renji nodded. "That's where I'm going – I need to get answers from him anyways."

"I'm staying right here, in your closet like we used to," Rukia stated firmly, crossing her arms and doing her best to look stern.

As Ichigo nodded at the short brunette, Rangiku jumped at the opportunity. "You stayed in his closet? With no supervision?" She gave a knowing smile. "How forward, Ichigo!"

"It's not like that!" Ichigo protested. "This was after she gave me her powers, and had nowhere to stay! And besides, she's the one who insisted on it!"

"That was only because you needed to do my job and kill Hollows for me!" Rukia growled at Ichigo. How dare he try to pin her on me?!

"Yeah, and that's only because you didn't do your damn job to begin with and kill the one threatening my family!" Ichigo retorted.

"And who's the idiot who threw himself at the Hollow without any powers at all?!" Rukia argued. "Oh, right, you!"

"Midget!"

"Strawberry!"

"Hmph!" They both looked away from each other.

After a few moments, Ichigo turned to the others. "Ok, so Renji's gonna try to stay at Urahara's. Rukia's staying here. What about you guys?"

"Meh, we'll find a place on our own," Yumichika said with a shrug.

"Yeah, 11th Division members are tough – we'll sleep outside if we need," Ikkaku continued.

"I still want to stay here!" Rangiku said with a large smile.

Ichigo sighed. "There's no room for you here."

"I could stay in the closet with Rukia," Rangiku suggested.

Ichigo opened the closet, showing its small space. "It's barely big enough for her, and she's a midget."

WHACK! "I am not a midget! You're just abnormally tall!" Rukia argued, putting away her notepad.

Ichigo opened his mouth to retort, then sighed. "Whatever, Rukia."

Everyone blinked. "You ok?" the adopted Kuchiki clan member asked, uncertain of Ichigo's sudden unwillingness to banter.

"I'm fine… just tired," Ichigo reassured her. "Been doing a lot of training." I'd best not reveal my mask… not if Soul Society banished the Vizard.

"What kind of training?" Renji asked, curious.

Ichigo shrugged, and wordlessly summoned his Zanpakuto into existence. He hefted it up onto his shoulders with only his right arm, which had been growing much stronger ever since he started training in his human form. Noting the astonished looks, Ichigo smirked. "Zangetsu here told me I could do this one day, and I've been training without going Shinigami. Doing things this way helps build up my base strength and speed so when I do become a Shinigami, I'm that much faster and stronger without resorting to my reiatsu. Not to mention, it keeps me from being completely vulnerable if something happens to my badge." He let Zangetsu dissipate back into spirit particles. "Also been learning Kido, so Rukia can't just slap me with simple Bakudo and keep me down. I don't think it'll ever be my strong point, but I do need some knowledge of it."

"A wise idea," Toushiro stated, crossing his arms and looking at Ichigo appraisingly. Perhaps he's not just a hothead like I thought he was.

"You look stressed, Ichigo-kun" Rangiku purred, crawling up to sit next to Ichigo.

"Stressed?" Ichigo mused. "Yeah, I suppose I am. Constant training, worrying about Aizen…" He shook his head. "Maybe when Aizen's dead I can get a vacation…"

"There are other ways to de-stress, you know," Rangiku suggested.

Ichigo stood up. "That's enough," he said coldly, giving her the full force of his glare. "I've told you, Rangiku-san, that I'm not interested. You are not staying here, and you are not having sex with me. Understood?"

Rangiku froze and swallowed, feeling Ichigo's slightly-flaring reiatsu. Then her expression turned serious. "Understood, Ichigo-san."

"Good." He pointed at the window. "Now, out with all of you! Rangiku-san, Toushiro –"

"It's Hitsugaya-taicho!"

Ichigo ignored him. "You two should try Inoue's – I'm pretty sure she's got the room. The rest of you already have your plans, so get going!"

"Yeah, sure." Ikkaku and Yumichika quickly jumped out the window.

"Thanks for the tip," Toushiro told Ichigo in a rare display of appreciation before he turned and jumped out the window himself– he was particularly impressed at how Ichigo had managed to get Rangiku to respond to his authority, despite the woman not knowing him well and his lack of a proper position.

"I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable," Rangiku apologized.

Ichigo sighed and settled down. "You didn't, but I meant it when I said I'm not interested. Your repeated attempts just irritated me."

Rangiku looked him in the eye, looking for something. She apparently found it, because she nodded. "Some men try the hard to get trick to see if it helps get inside my robes. I just wanted to see if you were different."

Ichigo looked outside at the night sky. "Rangiku-san… I'll admit I do like to banter, especially with short stuff here…"

"Hey!"

"… but for future reference, I usually mean what I say. When I am teasing or bantering, I make it relatively obvious. You are attractive, but I am not interested in having sex with you." He gave a hollow – not Hollow – chuckle. "Not when there is so much I must do to make sure my friends and I don't get killed."

Rangiku nodded, and wordlessly made her own escape through the window.

He turned to Rukia. "Rukia, I'm tired, and I'm frustrated, and all I want is to get an hour or two of sleep before I get going for tonight's training. So please, for the love of Kami, do me a favor and just keep quiet in your closet?"

Rukia took a closer look at Ichigo's face, and saw the small circles slowly forming under his eyes from lack of proper rest. She nodded silently and quietly set up the closet, which did not take long – Ichigo had left it as it was from when she was originally sleeping there.

"Thank you." Ichigo said gratefully, flopping back onto his bed.

You know, Ichigo… we will fight again soon.

Yeah, in five days.

If you don't take care of yourself, then I'll win and take over your body.

I know.

It'd be easy to do it now, when you're exhausted and can't fight back, King.

I suppose it would. Ichigo turned a mental glare at his Inner Hollow. But our pride wouldn't accept that. We both want to fight when we're at our best, to see who's stronger. We agreed on two weeks, and you're desperate enough for a good fight to wait until then.

A dark laugh resounded in Ichigo's head. You know me too well already.

Ichigo was silent for a moment. Tell me… what is your name? I can't just keep referring to you as Hollow, now can I?

If I have a name, I don't know it.

Finding himself interested in the topic, Ichigo fought to stay awake to continue the conversation. Then what about other Hollows? How do they know their names? I mean, there's Grand Fisher – you can't tell me that's his original name as a Plus soul.

Ichigo received the mental equivalent of a shrug. Not sure, King. I think, when the Hollow consumes the Plus and gains dominance, he creates his own name based on his powers.

If that were the case, what about that Yammy, and Ulquiorra?

How do you know Aizen didn't name them?

Suppose you're right… With that, Ichigo drifted off to sleep, uncaring that Rukia was likely watching him – it reminded him of better times, when life was simpler, where Rukia guided him and Ichigo slew Hollows for her… where there were no knowledge of grand conspiracies, no knowledge of Aizen, no knowledge of the weight that now lay directly on his and his friends' shoulders.

In his mindscape, however, Hollow Ichigo looked perturbed. Summoning out the spiritual form of Zangetsu, they stared at each other for a few minutes. "How did you learn your name?" Hollow Ichigo finally asked.

Zangetsu merely smirked and shook his head.

That frustrated the Hollow enough for him to scowl, looking even more like Ichigo than he normally did. "No, really, how? You're an effing sword! Who named you?"

"Zanpakuto are born from the strength and will of the wielder's soul," Zangetsu eventually said. "I have always been with Ichigo, though he will never know. I have grown and matured as he did. Eventually, his soul whispered a name, and I realized as though I had known it all along, that it was my name." He looked into the Hollow's amber eyes. "Give it time. You will soon learn your own name."

Hollow Ichigo was hardly satisfied by that answer, but before he could question Zangetsu further, the spirit had dissipated into black spirit particles and flown back into his midsection. "I suppose I will just wait, then… I wonder what my name is? I hope it's kickass!"

Outside, Rukia silently watched Ichigo's breathing slow, hidden in the closet, until she was sure he was asleep. She leaned back in the closet. Ichigo… you've changed…How can you have changed so much, in so little time? It has been barely any time at all since I've seen you, and yet you've matured so much. In the darkness and safety of knowing that Ichigo would never see it, she allowed her expression to change to worry. And you're training yourself to the bone… She felt the stirrings of guilt grip her. I shouldn't have brought you so far into my world. You're a mortal human… you haven't died yet. You should have been allowed a normal life.

Rukia looked sadly at her human friend through the crack between the closet door and the wall. When nii-sama pierced your soul sleep and chain link, you could have stayed human and returned to your life. And yet, when you had that chance, you chose to take up the mantle of Shinigami again. I'm glad you saved me, and I'm grateful you are going to lend your power to fighting Aizen, but I can't help but wish that on that day, I had been strong enough to protect your family from that Hollow, and never brought you into my world.

She sighed, thinking about what could have happened if that night had gone better. Who knows, maybe that would have changed everything? There would have been no need for me to recover my powers, so I would never have gotten that gigai from Urahara. Then I would never have had the Hougyouku hidden in my soul, and Aizen wouldn't have gotten his paws on it. He wouldn't have openly betrayed us all without a way to create his Arrancar. She shook her head. I shouldn't think about what-ifs… There is only the present we live in, and the future we shape.

Once more, she looked at her orange-haired friend. Ichigo…I don't think this town will need to worry, with how strong you are becoming.

Outside, high in the sky, those few people with spiritual awareness could see a tear in the sky, like jaws suddenly being forced open. From that black opening, several figures stepped out. Yammy was first, followed directly after by Grimmjow and his Fraccion – Arrancar of lesser strength who serve the Espada.

Yammy punched his right fist into his left palm. "I can't wait for my rematch with that orange-haired Shinigami, Kurosaki Ichigo!"

"Then shut up and help us search for him. According to Ulquiorra's report, there are only a few beings with significant reiatsu here," Grimmjow said. "So let's use our Pesquisa."

All the Arrancar closed their eyes and pulsed with their reiatsu.

All of a sudden, Rukia's Shinigami cell phone rang, at the same time Ichigo's Shinigami badge screamed "Hollow!"

"Son of a bitch!" Ichigo swore as he woke up, mildly refreshed from his short nap. He smacked himself with his Shinigami badge, letting his human body fall back to the bed. "Rukia!"

"I know!" Rukia was already in her Shinigami form as she opened the closet door, shutting it behind her. She leapt out the window, Ichigo right behind her.

Ichigo frowned and reached out with his spiritual sense, feeling beyond the haze of his own reiatsu. The fact that he could immediately feel something undeniably Hollow, yet almost Shinigami, made him wary. "There's at least one really strong Arrancar out there!"

"You sure?" Rukia yelled back.

"Positive, I've faced them before, and this reiatsu is definitely similar!"

"Damn it! It's still daylight, there are humans to worry about!" Rukia cursed.

"Then let's hope they're still Hollow-like in their behavior," Ichigo stated grimly. "They should come after the ones with the most spiritual power. I'll give them something to focus on. Rukia, you make sure the other Shinigami are ready to protect those with even a modicum of reiatsu."

She nodded, seeing the tactical strength of that plan. "Right!"

They both Shunpo-ed away in different directions – Ichigo towards the Arrancar reiatsu, and Rukia towards Renji and the others.

Grimmjow opened his eyes. "There are far more than Ulquiorra reported!" he growled. "Kill everyone with any reiatsu at all! Massacre them!"

"Yes, my liege!" Grimmjow's five Fraccion Shunpo-ed in various directions… towards Ishida's house, Urahara's store, Inoue's house, and a street where Ikkaku and Yumichika were walking.

"You don't order me around, Grimmjow," Yammy retorted. "But I'll go after Kurosaki. Maybe if I feel like it, I'll help you out."

"No need to look for me, Yammy." Yammy spun and saw Ichigo, with Zangetsu in Shikai, looking at him coldly. "I'm already here. You want a rematch? Fine. I'll purify you with Zangetsu here and send you on to Soul Society." He smirked. "I'm sure you'll make a fine Shinigami one day."

"HOW DARE YOU?!" Yammy roared, deeply insulted by the insinuation that he would ever become his most hated foe.

"Simple, the same way I'm going to kill you without going Bankai," Ichigo boasted.

"Ha!" Yammy laughed with a smirk, "Did you forget? Your measly Shikai can't cut me!"

"Wanna bet?" Ichigo rushed at Yammy, relishing the feel of his increased speed and strength. That training in my human form really paid off. Ichigo wasn't as fast he had shown Yammy in his human Bankai state, but it was still significantly faster than Ichigo had been in Shinigami Shikai before his training.

Yammy was arrogant, but he had felt Ichigo's power first-hand previously, and he wasn't completely stupid. He knew that Shinigami were much stronger and faster than humans typically were. He also knew that before, when he had claimed that Kurosaki Ichigo couldn't cut him, Kurosaki had increased his power and done just that. Further, his Hierro was weakened in the human world.

So, perhaps wisely, Yammy used Sonido to disappear and reappear behind Ichigo, left arm already raised for a vicious backhand that he felt would surely take Ichigo's head off. However, he hadn't taken into account that Ichigo had only used his right arm to swing Zangetsu, and his left arm was free.

Ichigo brought his free arm up and blocked Yammy's strike before spinning and using the spin's momentum to slice with Zangetsu once more. This time he struck true. Yammy, being off guard from Ichigo's block, failed to move completely out of the way and was struck in roughly the same place he had struck Ichigo's forearm, slicing partway into it before Yammy could Sonido backwards, out of range.

Ichigo and Yammy, separated by a dozen meters or so, stared at each other for a few seconds, each of them analyzing their wounds. That really hurt, Ichigo realized. I think my bone cracked there. Gotta be careful – he's too strong to simply block, and I don't want to reveal my trump card yet.

He can cut me with that sword, and he's fast, Yammy thought to himself, his anger boiling. How dare he make a fool of me, an Espada! How dare he bring me down so low!

A laugh distracted them both as they turned to see the source of the noise. Grimmjow merely laughed more. "See, Yammy, I told you he'd kick your ass again! And look, he hasn't even gone Bankai yet! Why don't you go try to go kill that human girl again, the one who took your other arm? She might be easier prey!"

You're kicking his ass without going Bankai? Way to humiliate him, King! He has no chance! Hollow Ichigo crowed.

I'm trying to provoke him into using his Resurreccion, Ichigo explained. If I can beat him then, then we can get Ulquiorra on our side, and use Aizen's own creation against him.

Oooh, I like that idea. Poetic vengeance, for stealing Soul Society's Captains to use against them.

I thought so too. For once, both Hollow Ichigo and Ichigo's emotions and mental expressions were identical – a sadistic glee.

"That's it, I've had it with both of you!" Yammy bellowed, his mighty rage making his reiatsu flare.

"Wait, is he getting bigger?" Ichigo asked incredulously. Indeed, where Yammy had been large, and about six and a half feet tall before, he had now grown to ten feet tall and showed no signs of stopping. Yammy's Arrancar uniform stretched and stretched until the part covering his torso ripped to shreds. Finally, Yammy seemed to stop at fifteen feet tall. "What the hell?"

Suddenly, a Garganta opened nearby, and Ulquiorra stepped out. "Yammy. Return to Hueco Mundo at once."

"What?!" Yammy asked, not believing his own ears. "But Ulquiorra, I was about to annihilate this bastard!"

"No, Yammy. You are not fully prepared for your fight with Kurosaki," Ulquiorra countered tonelessly. "I wish to see the true outcome of your battle when you are at your strongest, Yammy, and that is in Hueco Mundo, after you have devoured sufficient Hollows to maintain your Resurreccion state."

Yammy slowly began to deflate with a sigh, his anger dispersing. "Yes, Ulquiorra." He sullenly entered the Garganta.

As it was closing, Ulquiorra looked Ichigo dead in the eyes. "We will see each other soon, Kurosaki Ichigo." And then the Garganta was closed, leaving only Grimmjow and Ichigo.

"Well, wasn't expected Ulquiorra to butt in," Grimmjow muttered. "But hey, that means I get to fight you myself!" He grinned. "Nice to meet you, Kurosaki Ichigo! I am the Sexta (Sixth) Espada, Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez!"

Ooh, I like him.

That's cuz he sounds like you.

Of course! Why else would I like someone?

Ichigo readied his blade, and Grimmjow frowned. "I want a true fight, Kurosaki. Use your Bankai – I guarantee you'll need it against me."

Ichigo scowled, reaching out with his spiritual sense… only to confirm Grimmjow's words. Grimmjow was on a whole new level from Yammy, with incredibly strong reiatsu. "Fine then, Grimmjow." He threw out Zangetsu and flared his reiatsu. "BANKAI!"