Mental Wounds

Ichigo's eyes were wide open in an instant, adrenaline running through his veins as his mind comprehended the first thing it could that morning: someone was attacking him. AIZEN!

There was no time to summon his trusty Zanpakutō. Moving from lying down to leaping forward, Ichigo's lashed out with his right hand. Successfully gripping his attacker's face, he used his forward momentum to plunge the man's head into the floor. Wait, that shouldn't have worked if it was Aizen. It must be an assassin from Soul Society!

Anticipating the assailant's next move, Ichigo caught the enemy's punch with his left hand, before flipping the man over onto his front using his leverage over the man's face and arm, managing to pin him to the floor with the Vizard's knees digging into the attacker's back. He was about to summon Zangetsu and cut off the assassin's head, but just then, Ichigo's brain caught up with his body – this was his usual morning ritual. Now recognizing the distinctive hair and the way the "assassin" was now saying loudly into the floor that he had nothing left to teach him, Ichigo sighed and released his father. "Dad, you had nothing left to teach me in terms of hand-to-hand combat months ago."

Isshin brushed himself off, not having a scratch on him. "Good… you have the self-control to not kill someone if they catch you unaware."

Ichigo was uncomfortably reminded of the fact that he was one of the most, if not the most, powerful being he knew, but he nodded seriously anyway. "Don't worry, everything will be fine." Aizen is dead, he is dead and won't come back, he reminded himself. And it's too soon for Soul Society assassins…

The ex-taicho looked at his son in concern. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah…" Ichigo looked away. The words "I'm fine" were on the tip of his tongue, but somehow they wouldn't come out. He sighed. "No."

Isshin sat down on the Vizard's bed. "Want to tell me?"

Ichigo rubbed the back of his neck and looked up, his face strained. "Just a nightmare."

"What happened?"

No getting out of this, I guess. "Aizen tricked us all and faked his death again."

Isshin nodded slowly. "I guessed this might happen." He stood. "Ichigo, your mind and body are still operating as though you're fighting a war. Your nightmare is simply a symptom of the fact that you're tense, ready for life-or-death combat at less than a second's notice. You can't even see it, because to you this is your natural state now."

"What do you mean?" Ichigo asked.

"I mean that you should look at yourself. The way you're standing is as though you expect to be attacked at any second. Your muscles are tense, primed and ready to block and counterattack as soon as they register an attack," Isshin explained. "You look like you're on guard, waiting to be attacked."

"Can you blame me for it?" the Vizard demanded bitterly.

"No," his father denied softly. "What I'm trying to say, Ichigo, is that you need to find a place, or an activity, something that you enjoy, that helps you relax. Being constantly battle-ready is an asset in war, Ichigo, but it has no place in peace." He put a hand on Ichigo's shoulder, looking him in the eyes. "It will be hard. It will feel like you're going against every single instinct in your body, you'll feel panicked and self-reproachful when you realize that you let your guard down. But you need to do this, Ichigo, if only for your own sanity."

Half an hour later, Ichigo was walking to school but his mind remained centered on his father's words. Something that I enjoy and helps me relax… But what? Searching back through his memory, Ichigo was dismayed to realize that he didn't really have any hobbies, or relaxing activities or places. His life prior to meeting Rukia and becoming a Shinigami had been simple – school, family, beating off thugs, and hanging out with Chad, Keigo and Mizuiro. Occasionally he'd help out some ghost. Afterwards, he'd been a bit preoccupied with learning how to be a Shinigami, and then saving Rukia, and then training to protect his family, and then fighting Aizen.

The closest thing Ichigo had to a fun pastime to taking satisfaction in kicking the asses of gangs who challenged him. But that was counterproductive to the whole point of relaxing, so Ichigo discarded the idea. Besides, he reasoned, it'll be good to do something besides fight. So… what to do?

He was still pondering that by the time he reached the school, his head bowed in thought and his hair obscuring his eyes from sight. Oblivious to all the muttering of the students around him, he entered his classroom, taking his usual seat.

A pointed voice broke through Ichigo's state of self-searching, forcefully bringing his attention back to the present. "Kurosaki," Ishida greeted.

"Ishida." The pair nodded at each other before the Quincy took his own usual seat. Spotting a Quincy cross on the other young man's clothing, Ichigo suddenly remembered that Ishida was in the Handicrafts Club and was particularly good at sewing. So that's his way of reconnecting with life…

The realization prompted Ichigo to think about his other friends… what did they do that they enjoyed? Inoue likes making weird food… Tatsuki likes karate… Chad plays bass guitar and listens to music… Mizuiro goes after older women… Keigo likes to play around and do whatever seems fun.

But what about me? Something that I enjoy doing… Finally shrugging and figuring he had to look around and try new things, Ichigo finally brought his attention back to the real world, and suddenly realized that everyone was staring at him.

"What?" he asked flatly.

"Well, Kurosaki-san…" one of the girls whispered nervously, despite one of her friends trying to shut her up with rapid hand signals. "We were wondering about your hair…"

"Ah…" Ichigo hadn't thought about the impact his sudden aging would have concerning his school life. Of course his hair would be a noticeable change. The extra height would be noticeable soon too, but Ichigo was glad that his clothes still fit, though this was only because he'd bought them with a few extra inches in mind. But how to explain the rapid growth of his hair…? Wait, my reputation should help a bit here… "I grew it out," he said simply.

"But it wasn't nearly that long a few days ago when you last came to class…" the same girl pointed out. "It should have taken months…"

Apparently not. "Listen…" Ichigo trailed off, waiting for the girl's name. He wasn't sure they'd ever talked before, but he was horrible with names and it had been months to him, so he really couldn't tell.

"Natsui Mahana."

"Mahana-san, it has to do with the reason why I've been out of school for so long," Ichigo hedged. "Not really something I like talking about."

"Mahana…!" the other girl hissed. "Come on…!"

"Oh, alright, Michiru…" Mahana relented, letting herself be pulled away. "By the way, Kurosaki-san… you look really cute with that hair!"

"HOW COULD YOU, ICHIGO?" Keigo's voice demanded hysterically as he skidded to a stop from bolting into the room. "Mizuiro is taking all the older women, and now you're going to take all the ones in our grade?"

Ichigo gave him a deadpan look. "It's not what you think, Keigo." He brought a hand to his forehead, massaging his temples to stave away a headache. All I want right now is some peace and quiet.

It was then that the teacher, Ochi Misato, stepped in. "Everyone sit, it's time for roll call." Then her eyes spotted her worst offenders for skipping class. "Do my eyes deceive me?" she asked semi-seriously. "Sado, Ishida and Kurosaki are all here today? And Kurosaki, what happened to your hair?"

Ichigo sighed. "I'd really rather not talk about it. Suffice to say it grew."

"Alright. Ishida, Sado, Kurosaki, stay after class, we need to discuss the effects of your absence."

Ichigo groaned, but nodded.

Class passed without incident, with Ichigo paying close attention to the lesson. Though it had only been a few days here, to him it felt as though a lifetime had come and gone. It was hard for Ichigo to remember the material from the last time he'd attended, which had been months ago to his perspective. But fortunately, as the class continued, Ichigo found the lesson not at all hard to follow, and he was able to remember more and more.

The bell rung all too soon to signal lunch, and the students began to leave. As requested, the three defenders of Karakura stayed behind and stood in front of Ochi-sensei's desk. "Let's start with Sado. Why were you absent for so long?"

Chad thought quickly, trying to come up with a plausible reason. He couldn't exactly say that he was visiting the afterlife to go find his dead grandfather, and his fortitude was well-known, so claiming illness was out of the question. "I was kidnapped while walking home," he fibbed in a low voice. "I don't know by whom, or where I was taken, but somehow Ichigo found out and came to my rescue. I just got home yesterday."

"Why didn't you go to the police?" Ochi inquired Ichigo, turning to him.

"And say what?" Ichigo demanded plainly, picking up the story. "'My six-and-a-half foot tall friend got kidnapped?' 'By whom?' 'I don't know, it could be any of the gangs that we beat up for picking on us.' Throw in my orange hair and I'd get myself arrested before anything got done."

"Point," Ochi admitted. "So, who was it?"

Ichigo and Chad glanced at each other before Ichigo shrugged at his teacher. "No idea. I found Chad in an abandoned warehouse. No one was there, and I took the opportunity to get us out rather than wait for them to come back. We don't go looking for fights, you know."

"And how did you find him?"

"I know a few people," Ichigo said in an embarrassed voice. I can't believe I'm saying this. It sounds so corny! "And people hear things."

Ishida was astonished at how easily Kurosaki was able to lie to their teacher – then again, Kurosaki did have a reputation as a hooligan, so it wasn't hard to believe that he knew some shady contacts, and it was well-known that Chad was Kurosaki's best friend.

"Alright," Ochi conceded, satisfied with the story. "Ishida, has your family business issues been taken care of?"

"Yes."

"In that case, let's keep your absences to a minimum from now on, all three of you," she warned. "We haven't had any tests while you were gone, but I expect high marks from all three of you in the next few assignments, or else I will have to give you special makeup exams. Am I clear?"

"Yes, Ochi-sensei," the three of them agreed together.

"Then get out of here. And try to be more careful walking home, Sado."

They made their way to the grounds where Inoue was waiting for them. "You are so cliché, Kurosaki. 'I know a few people. And people hear things.' Really?"

"Hey, it worked, didn't it?" Ichigo retorted. "Give me a break."

But Ishida was no longer listening – he'd suddenly had an idea. He couldn't use his Quincy powers anymore outside of maintaining his skills and saving lives, per his vow to his father. But here, perhaps, there was a way for him to aid in the protection of Karakura in a way that was not at all spiritual. He absently sat down next to Inoue, resolving to continue thinking about it later.

"Oh, Inoue!" Ichigo exclaimed, suddenly remembering something. "Would you mind coming with me to Urahara's today after school? We need your personal touch on something."

Inoue looked at him questioningly for a moment before smiling and nodding. "Sure!"

The rest of the class after lunch passed without issue, and soon enough Ichigo found himself with Inoue heading to the shop. "So, what is it, Kurosaki-kun?" the perpetually-happy girl asked as the shop came in sight.

"Eh…" Ichigo rubbed the back of his neck. There was really no easy way to ask this of her. "Well… I'm sorry, Inoue, but we need you to use to your powers to check Aizen's body to make sure it's not an illusion."

Inoue gasped, stopping in her tracks and covering her mouth with her left hand. "But…!"

"I know I said I killed him," Ichigo admitted quickly. "It's just… we want to be sure, you know? Aizen's faked his death before, and we can't afford to be wrong."

The teenage girl nodded slowly, obviously gathering her courage. "Alright, Kurosaki-kun."

Ichigo knocked on the door, and it opened almost immediately, Urahara just beyond the threshold. "Come in, come in," he beckoned. "It's just in the back."

Inoue began visibly trembling as they approached. Ichigo put a hand on her shoulder, startling her. "It's ok," he reassured her. "Nothing can hurt you here."

She swallowed audibly, but entered the room. Thankfully, Urahara had placed a sheet over Aizen's headless corpse, and Ichigo watched with concern as Inoue almost collapsed in relief. She was… afraid to see the body?

"Sōten Kisshun."

The reality-rejecting shield materialized over the covered body quickly, and less than a minute later, Inoue nodded and called it back. "There's no illusion," she reported. "And it seems to be… dissipating?"

Urahara nodded. "Bodies of Shinigami do that after they've been killed. The reishi that make up their being dissipate into the air. It's our version of decomposition. Thank you, my dear… it seems that this truly is Aizen's body."

Ichigo stepped between Inoue and the corpse. "Thanks, Inoue. You've helped more than you know."

Inoue gave him a confused look, but then smiled softly at his sincere expression. "I'm glad I could help, Kurosaki-kun… If that's everything, I think I should head home now." Without waiting for a response, she quickly took her leave of the vicinity.

Before Ichigo could follow, however, Urahara gripped his wrist, holding him back. "Ichigo… are you alright? You look like you have something else on your mind."

The Vizard hesitated, but nodded a few seconds later. He related the conversation he'd had with his father that morning, before sighing. "I just feel sort of, well, lost. When I look at everyone, I can see what they like doing. Chad has his music, Inoue her food, Ishida his tailoring… even you have your inventing and playing occasional harmless tricks. But I haven't really had anything but fighting and training, and that's kinda counterproductive."

"Hmm. If I may make a suggestion?"

"Sure, go ahead," Ichigo invited.

"While I was a taicho of Soul Society, I did research on the bond between Shinigami and Zanpakutō in an effort to strengthen both, and there's a very interesting piece of trivia I found there. It seems that usually, a Shinigami's Zanpakutō has similar desires and interests to its Shinigami. If Zangetsu's said anything, you might want to follow up on it," Urahara advised. "You might find it to your liking as well."

Ichigo took a moment to consider, remembering his past conversations with the blade of his soul. He gave the barest hint of a smile. "Thanks, Urahara."

"Anytime, Ichigo." The shopkeeper led his young man he'd trained to the door. "My door is always open to you, Ichigo. It's the least I can do."

"Thanks again." Ichigo held up an arm in farewell as he walked away, lost in thought. Zangetsu's mentioned he likes sunsets and stargazing, he recalled. It's a place to start.

Interrupting his musings, a figure appeared in front of him with a flicker of Shunpo. Tensing, Ichigo was halfway to summoning his Zanpakutō when he recognized the reiatsu, and the hairstyle. Ichigo narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "Shinji."

"Ichigo," the Vizard greeted. "Mind taking a detour to the warehouse for a few hours?"

"Fine," Ichigo accepted with a shrug. They began walking, and each was quiet for a several minutes. "So what's this about?" the Substitute finally asked.

"You'll see," Shinji responded mysteriously. The pair was silent the rest of the way to the warehouse, before the blond Vizard threw open the door, entering it. Ichigo followed a moment later.

But Ichigo was completely taken aback when he saw all seven of the other Vizard standing in a military-style line. When the seven immediately bowed to him, he was even more shocked. "What are you doing?" he demanded.

"Ichigo, you are a true Vizard," Shinji stated from next to him as he began walking to stand in front of the line, looking Ichigo directly in the eyes. "You've reached both Bankai and Resurrección and found a balance between each, becoming something more than Shinigami and Hollow. You avenged us all when you killed Aizen when we failed to do so. You are stronger than us all, Kurosaki Ichigo. Now, we implore you…" Shinji suddenly bowed as well, at about a 40 degree angle to the rest of his body. "…teach us Resurrección!"

They want the power of Resurrección? Cazador asked darkly. They buried their Hollows deep within their souls, Ichigo. Make them regret it.

Ichigo got the impression that Cazador felt some form of sympathy for the Inner Hollows of the rest of the Vizard. After all, the same fate almost befell him as well.

They will never achieve the pinnacle of Hollow powers until they have reached the same truth and acceptance that you learned, Ichigo, Zangetsu contributed.

Ichigo's customary scowl grew. "You want to learn Resurrección? Fine."

"What?" Love asked, dumbfounded. "Just like that?"

"You don't even want to know what we'll use it for?" Rose added.

"I don't care what you want it for," Ichigo answered. "Learning Resurrección is going to be one of the most painful and humbling experiences of your life. It will be hard, and you will definitely not come out the same way as you started. Everything you know about yourself will be challenged, and you will not be able to achieve Resurrección until you have accepted the truth of who and what you are.

"For you all, it will be doubly more difficult than it was for me, because you all sealed your Hollows away for a century," Ichigo rebuked. "If you still want me to teach you, then prepare for hell and open your mind and your very soul." He called on his Hollow power then, materializing his mask without a motion as he glared at his would-be students. "Because in order for you to reach Resurrección, you must resurrect your Hollows!"

Kyōraku Shunsui sat by Yamamoto's bed, where he had yet to awaken. His sensei looked so very old right now, despite his well-maintained muscular body. As Unohana had said the night before, Yamamoto was physically fine now, and just needed time to regain his reiatsu. He'd completely exhausted himself with his Ennetsu Jigoku, and then surviving a hand-sized puncture wound to his lung long enough to be treated. 

"Yama-jii…" Kyōraku murmured. "You leave pretty large shoes to fill, you know? Being acting sōtaicho is a lot of work. I'm just glad Sasakibe-fukutaicho can handle the duties of the 1st Division pretty well by himself. You trained him well."

There was silence for another minute, before Kyōraku sighed. "I wish I knew what to do about the Kurosaki kid. Ichigo-kun's gotten so very strong, sensei. Some might say too strong. Unfortunately, those same people are the ones who run our government. I know that you wanted him to identify with the Gotei 13 and eventually join us, but I can't shake the feeling that it's now or never. I tried last night to make Ichigo a part-time taicho of Aizen's old Division, but we didn't have enough taicho to get the motion through.

"We would have, if Unohana-sempai hadn't made a few good points about Hinamori-chan." Kyōraku sighed again, his voice laden with sorrow. "I don't know what I'm going to do about her either. She's a fukutaicho, and quite skilled at Kidō, so it is not as though she isn't strong enough to do some damage if she wanted to. The question is whether Unohana-sempai can get through to her and help her through this. If she can't, then we have no choice but to lock her up in the Maggot's Nest. But she is just as much a victim in this as Ichigo is… both of them victims of Aizen, just in different ways…

"It feels wrong to think about punishing her for something that isn't really her fault, but I'll do it if I have to, for Soul Society's good. I just want to give her a chance. But it isn't right, either, that her chance comes at the expense of Ichigo's safety from the Central 46. They meet up again soon, you know," he absently reminded his comatose teacher. "And then Tōsen and Gin will be tried for their crimes, but there's another set of problems there.

"Gin claims to have joined Aizen for the express purpose of betraying and killing him at the first opportunity, because of something he did to Tōshiro's fukutaicho, Matsumoto-chan. Gin served faithfully, growing stronger and waiting for his chance. He found the weakness of Kyōka Suigetsu, and struck Aizen down with his Bankai's special ability. It would have worked, had Aizen not been as evolved as he had been. I don't want him to go to trial with the Central 46, because he seems to have been on Soul Society's side the entire time, and to be honest, Gin did what he felt he had to do because we wouldn't have believed him about Aizen. I can't begrudge him that. But Central 46 will protest if we don't punish him enough, so I need to come up with something suitable there.

"Tōsen, on the other hand, joined Aizen to get vengeance on Soul Society for not punishing the Shinigami responsible for the death of his friend, from before he even joined the Gotei 13. He even went against our laws and acquired forbidden Hollow powers. But Komamura-taicho and Hisagi-fukutaicho have asked for leniency on Tōsen's behalf." Kyōraku shook his head. "What's so frustrating about this is that I can sympathize with Tōsen. Where he was denied justice, he sought to bring it out himself. Isn't that what I did with Jūshiro when Rukia-chan was to be executed?

"Why can't you just wake up, Yama-jii?" Kyōraku asked halfheartedly, not really expecting any response. "It's so difficult to uphold the law when I know it will punish people who saw its deficiencies and tried to do what was right. How have you managed for so many centuries? How can you balance the need to maintain law and order, and the need to satisfy your own sense of right and wrong?"

As expected, Yamamoto's unconscious form gave no answer.

The 8th Division taicho shook his head, his eyes downcast. "I'll just have to do the best I can. Get better soon, Yama-jii… we need you." He swept from the room quietly, donning his straw hat to hide his eyes on his way out.

Yamamoto's eyes opened then, and he heaved a sigh of his own. He'd been awake the entire time. I know it is painful, Shunsui… but you are my successor. My time is very nearly over, my student. You must find your own balance… Perhaps you will be more successful than I, and find a balance that causes you less pain. Make a Soul Society that you can be proud of.

"Was it really necessary for you to deceive him, sōtaicho?" Unohana asked quietly, entering the room. She'd known as well that Yamamoto had been faking sleep – after all, she was the best at medical Kidō, and there were several identifying differences between faking it, and truly sleeping.

"Yes," the leader of the Shinigami intoned, just as quietly. "I am so very old, Unohana-taicho. My reiatsu grows weaker with each passing year. I have perhaps another century left before I am no longer the strongest, and that is when the rumors will begin in earnest. 'He has gone senile,' they will say. 'He is too old-fashioned,' 'He cannot adapt to the new world,' 'He can no longer protect Soul Society'… They will call for my retirement, and the Gotei 13's reputation will plummet until I do. So I must have my successor ready before then. Shunsui must be ready to take the reins of the Gotei 13. He must be prepared."

"As you wish. I shall leave you to your rest, then."

Yamamoto closed his eyes once more. Let us see how Shunsui does without my guidance. This old man still has some lessons to teach.

Unohana silently moved into the next room, where Hinamori was currently recovering. She smiled pleasantly when she noticed that her patient was awake and sitting up. "Ah, welcome back. How are you feeling, Hinamori-fukutaicho?"

"I feel fine. When can I leave?" Hinamori's tone was quiet, but there was a hint of underlying anger that Unohana easily detected.

"I'm glad you feel better, but just to be safe I would prefer you stay here for the next day or two, just in case."

"Just in case of what?" Hinamori challenged.

"You fought a Quincy and a human with strange powers that we know little about," Unohana reminded her easily, her tone taking on just a hint of an edge, despite her still-pleasant smile. "So I would prefer you stay."

Hinamori quailed under the smile and lay down again. "Yes, ma'am."

"I'm so glad you see things my way," the healing taicho replied, her smile never wavering as she began a general medical Kidō on the young woman. "Besides, your wounds have not yet fully healed – I could not spare the power, when Yamamoto-sōtaicho had a hole in his chest."

"Oh," Hinamori said softly. "Did… Did Aizen-taicho do that?"

"Yes," Unohana confirmed with mixed feelings. Though inwardly glad that Hinamori had brought up the topic herself, the taicho was concerned about the 'taicho' that the fukutaicho had added to Aizen's name.

"I'm sure Aizen-taicho had a good reason for it, though…"

"That depends on how you define a good reason, I suspect," the healer demurred. "The sōtaicho and Aizen-san were fighting."

"Aizen-taicho just wanted to fix things," Hinamori tried to explain. "Soul Society needs to change, and the Central 46 is responsible for most of the mistakes, but the Spirit King put them in power so Aizen-taicho wanted to replace him to fix it!"

Unohana sat down in a chair she normally reserved for visitors, but she had the feeling that this meeting would take a while. "Please, take a deep breath and start from the beginning. I understand Aizen-san spoke to you?"

Hinamori did as she was bid – she'd always liked Unohana, so surely she'd see the truth. Several minutes later, the fukutaicho had largely repeated the speech that Aizen had given her.

"So, to summarize," Unohana began, "Aizen-san saw several flaws in Soul Society's justice system and decided to fix it by replacing the Spirit King. Knowing he had to have the Ōken, he was going to try to be the next sōtaicho, but saw that Kyōraku-taicho would be the next one due to his age and power and favored position. Everything he's done after that was for the sole purpose of fixing Soul Society."

"Exactly!" Hinamori exclaimed. Finally, someone who believes me!

"You have to admit, though, that he did hurt a lot of people," Unohana commented. "Didn't you tell me that he sacrificed hundreds of people to the Hōgyoku to try to make himself stronger?"

The girl looked down. "Yes," she whispered. Her head shot up. "But those hundreds are nothing to the millions that he will save by replacing the Spirit King!"

"Hinamori-chan…" Unohana said somberly. "Aizen-san is dead."

"What?" Hinamori gasped. "No!"

"Yes," the healer continued. "Kurosaki Ichigo killed him."

The fukutaicho began to quiver. The emotion behind it, however, Unohana had trouble deciphering. Is it rage? Or fear? Or sorrow? Or some combination?

The first thing out of Hinamori's mouth, however, was not "Why?" or "How could he?" as the taicho had expected. It was instead, "Does… does Aizen-taicho's body… have the head still attached?"

Strange question. But, I don't see the harm in answering it honestly. Besides, she needs to trust me. "No," Unohana denied.

Hinamori began to shake a little more violently, and this time Unohana could identify the emotion behind it. Intense fear? "Hinamori-chan, what's wrong?"

"Does Kurosaki know I'm still alive?" came fear-ridden voice.

"Most likely, but what does that matter?" Unohana was now terribly confused. There was obviously something more than Hinamori wasn't telling her.

Hinamori, however, was in the middle of a terrifying flashback.

**Flashback**

"Don't hurt Aizen-taicho!" Hinamori cried, tears running down her face. "Didn't you hear him? He's a good person, he's doing this all to help us!"

"I don't care. I am going to kill him, slowly and painfully," the masked monster that Kurosaki Ichigo had become uttered, his Hollow reiatsu emanating sinisterly. "And when he is dead, I am going to hang his head in my home, fake your death, and fuck you day after day in front of it. Maybe I'll even let my friends here take turns with you."

Hinamori paled in fear of the threat, but she knew that Aizen-taicho would never lose to someone like this! "You cannot defeat Aizen-taicho, you monster! Abomination!"

**End Flashback**

Hinamori began hyperventilating as panic ran through her system. Kurosaki was coming to make good on his promise! "Hide me!" she begged Unohana-taicho. "Please! Kurosaki's coming for me!"

Soifon was a very, very frustrated woman. Soul Society had been this close to offering Kurosaki the position of taicho, only to be stopped by a healer's bleeding heart. She'd honestly expected better of Unohana-taicho, who had seemed so levelheaded and pragmatic. Fine then. If Hinamori-fukutaicho is the problem, then I'll quietly remove the problem. Suicide shouldn't be too hard to believe, considering Hinamori's obsession with Aizen. She's too much of a risk anyway. Once that's done, Unohana should have no objections. I simply have to wait for Hinamori to leave Unohana's constant watch, and then have my Onimitsukidō take care of it. 

That decision made, Soifon turned her thoughts to Kurosaki himself. But… what concessions could we make to appease his sense of having been wronged? To assuage his worries? He must be made loyal to Soul Society, but how?