Chapter 43: Theft of the Seal
(Soul Society)
It was a week after their wedding, a week spent away from it all. From squads, paperwork, fights, patrols, nothing but themselves, indulging in each other to calm their nerves. Ichigo and Rukia enjoyed their vacation, granted to them by the Captain Commander, in a small house away from Seireitei. The only notable instance of anything in that week was when Tessai stopped by to give Ichigo a tattoo. It was part of a hypothesis that Urahara developed that should make him immune to Kyoka Suigetsu's power, so now Ichigo had a visage of his horned mask over his heart in metallic ink. They were sitting in front of the lake by the lodge when they saw a single black butterfly heading toward them.
"Guess this means our honeymoon's over." Rukia said as the messenger landed on Ichigo's finger. After a couple seconds passed, he released a sigh as he rose to his feet. "What does Yamamoto want?"
"Something about a joint operation with Toshiro's squad." He said while heading into the small cabin to change into his Shihakusho. Inter squad teams were not unusual but full squad team ups don't happen unless it's something major. They quickly changed and Ichigo brought them both to the first division base, entering to find Toshiro, Rangiku, Isshin, Tessai, Hachi, and Yamamoto waiting for them. Chojiro was making tea... western style. The meeting must be serious if he was getting away with that. Rukia quickly left to return to her own division as Ichigo went inside the meeting room, taking his place beside his father.
"Thank you for gathering on such short notice." Yamamoto began in his aged gravelly voice. "It's that time when we must transport the Oin." At that word the older Shinigami faces hardened, reflecting the gravity of the situation. Toshiro and Rangiku looked shocked while Ichigo was out of the loop. Something Genryusai recognized and began to rectify. "The Oin is the Royal Seal of the Soul King, hidden away in the Living world and moved roughly every couple of decades. Like anything pertaining to the Soul King, it is an object of great power that was deemed forbidden to look at directly." Ichigo's expression clearly marked his annoyance and disbelief.
"So we won't know if we even have the right one for transport." Ichigo stated, letting said annoyance show. "Why are we even doing this? Don't we have more important things to do?" The ice captain and ash lieutenant looked to Ichigo in shock of his brazen attitude, sure that he just angered Yamamoto. "Like the war against Aizen?" The hybrid continued without fear, earning an affirmative nod from his teacher.
"Absolutely. That is why we're doing this in the first place." The old man said, again earning a shocked look from the youth. Tessai took over, as it was his idea.
"Aizen looked into a lot of information regarding the Soul King and the Oken." The spell master started. "So it's possible he knows about the Oin, but not where it is. Here's the plan," He said before bringing up the holographic projector in the room and displaying the parade escorts, "squad 10 will be joined by Hachigen to recover the Oin and transport it while squad 15 and myself will act as a decoy. Should either come under attack, the other will be immediately alerted."
"So this is banking on the assumption that they'll go after ours because we're the greater threat and more likely to be protecting the real Oin?" Isshin asked the other commanders. "Can't we seal it away and post decoys anyway?"
"Were it that easy." Tessai sighed heavily. "What we are aware of is that the Oin actually alters entire areas, making it's hiding place rich in Reishi. And according to what we've found about Aizen's research, it takes 100,000 souls and a half spirit mile wide radius of land to make an Oken. That land is currently Karakura Town, where the Oin is currently sealed." Ichigo and Isshin gasped at the implications and what Aizen was threatening. "Because of our focus being on the war and the sudden need to relocate it, the SRDI was only able to make one usable decoy." The human world defenders let out a disappointed groan. "Now they are focusing on creating a seal so we won't have to worry about it."
"Fine." Isshin said as he recovered. "Let's get to it."
(World of the Living)
The two processions made their way through the sky, a hidden ceremonial parade of musicians and dancers, all led by the Kido Corps and guarded by two entire squads. Tessai and Hachi were in front of the main alters for each parade, sealing them behind a barrier to protect the precious cargo within. Everything was quiet, calm, but no one dropped their guard. The soldiers and spell casters were ready for most anything. Tessai and Hachi were ready to deploy forbidden kido spells, granted special permission to use such if it protected the artifact. They were ready, or at least they were mostly prepared. It appeared as though the decoy didn't fool their enemies as a torrent of flame blasted toward Hachi.
"No problem." He said cooly, snapping his fingers and creating a barrier to block the flames. "Commander, they're attacking-" He was calmly saying before lightning struck him from above. Without the spellmaster conscious, the kido he made began to dispel and allow the large ball of fire and lightning to attack with free reign. Soon the convoy was in chaos as the elements attacked.
"They're attacking, let's go!" Tessai yelled out, stabbing his staff in place while the entirety of squad 15 gathered around him. "Kukanten'i!" He called out, clapping his hands together and pulling them apart with a sphere of light surrounding them. The second that light disappeared, they were next to squad 10's convoy, which were under heavy attack. Toshiro was currently clashing with someone that wore a ragged cloak and a hollow's mask. The strangest thing though, was that their swords were almost identical.
'That can't be right.' Ichigo thought as he and the squad moved on the assault. Orihime was healing, everyone else was either fighting or rescuing the other convoy. Ichigo flew in to assist while Isshin cleared out two girls that were red and blue, appearing to be Arrancar. Ichigo was in earshot as he heard the masked figure speak.
"You haven't changed at all." He said, prompting Toshiro to try and remove the mask. He only managed to grab the cloak as the figure started to escape, revealing Shinigami attire. Ichigo landed next to Hitsugaya as the young captain seemed downcast.
"Someone you knew?" Ichigo asked, seeing a spot of growing blood on the boy's body. He looked at Ichigo with concern, doubt, before tensing up. "Don't you even think about-" the hybrid started as Hitsugaya flash stepped away, "...it. Damn ice midget." He groaned just before the ruin alter exploded. Squad 10's members yelled out in worry while Isshin, Tessai, and the members of squad 15 just waited. Ichigo crawled out of the rubble, regenerating from burns and shrapnel as he stood in front of the remaining leaders. "Doesn't matter if I heal fast, this still hurts." He groaned, pulling out a couple stakes of wood from his arms and chest. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure we just lost the Oin."
(Soul Society)
Almost immediately upon returning to Seireitei and informing the other captains of the situation, Soi-Fon took a unit of the stealth force to go to the crash site of the Oin convoy to try and find anything clues or leads on the attackers and Hitsugaya's sudden disappearence. Uryu stuck around with the Soi-Fon's group in the Human world while the other seated members of the 15th searched the city and surrounding areas. In Soul Society the injured went to squad 4 while the Tessai, Isshin, Ichigo, and Rangiku all went to deliver their report of what happened to the head captain.
"-and Toshiro left without saying a word." Isshin said, finishing his report. "I assume to find and hunt down the people responsible." Yamamoto stroked his beard in thought.
"A masked Shinigami and two Arrancar." He murmured, evaluating the information in his mind. "And what would possess captain Hitsugaya to move without reporting in or to just act on his own accord?" He finally asked the captain. To his expectation, it was Ichigo who stepped forward.
"Sensei, I could be wrong but it might be someone Toshiro feels he should deal with on his own." The hybrid announced. "His sword looked very similar to Toshiro's own Zanpakuto." There was a gasp of shock in a number of the assembled members of the Court Guard Squads. "It's impossible for two people to have the same Zanpakuto, but how similar can they be?" The question lingered among the leaders of the Shinigami as they tried to decipher their lone clue, a possible second Hyorinmaru.
"Something rare enough that it should be easy to find in the archives." Genryusai finally said as he began to give out his orders. "Captains Urahara and Kuchiki, search the archives for any trace of this instance. You are granted full access to all records to find an answer." The two nodded in affirmation to their commands. "Captain and lieutenant Kurosaki, you are both to look for Hitsugaya and find out anything you can." The father and son did the same as the previous captains. "Lieutenant Matsumoto, you are to return to your division, take charge as acting captain, and await further orders." Rangiku was about to say something before a glance from Isshin stopped her. "You have your orders. Dismissed!"
(Squad 10 Barracks)
Isshin got a call from Uryu that prompted his immediate return to the Human world, something Uryu found after Soi-Fon confirmed that the Oin was missing. He ordered Ichigo to take a look through Toshiro's office to see if he could find anything that could help. The tenth squad looked miserable, failing their mission and their captain went MIA. He heard a couple saying it was just as bad as when captain Isshin disappeared. Matsumoto was doing her best to cheer up her squad mates, but even she couldn't raise her attitude to the usual cheer she had. The entire squad seemed heartbroken, giving Ichigo all the more drive to try to find and bring back their missing captain.
'Come on!' Ichigo roared in mental frustration, tearing through anything about Hitsugaya's past he could get his hands on. 'There's got to be something here. Anything about someone with an identical Zanpakuto.'
"He might not be in the official records Ichigo." The elder of the two Zangetsu spoke to him. "Just because they looked similar doesn't mean they are the same."
"But it's kind of a gut feeling that they are connected." The Hollow of the two said, offering his insight. "It's impossible for two of the same exact Zanpakuto aside from dual wielding. Since that unknown assailant's blade resembled Hyorinmaru so closely, it's reasonable to think that their abilities will also be very similar."
'Question is, is this guy even registered in the system or was he just some random guy that managed to grab an Asuachi like Zaraki did?' Ichigo asked, finally giving up on Toshiro's diaries and journals after finding nothing for the hundredth time. His phone rang with a text from his father, ordering him to return to the human world. He got ready to leave when Rangiku came into the office. "Yeah Rangiku?" He asked, not used to seeing the usually jovial lieutenant looking so serious.
"I'm going with you." She said. There was no demand, no request, she said it like it was a fact. One that Ichigo didn't agree with.
"No you're not." He said, putting everything back in it's place. "You are staying here, making sure your squad recovers, and you are going to lead them until further orders." He tried to leave, but she grabbed his sleeve and made him face her.
"Ichigo, he's my captain!" She said, reminding him that this was technically a matter for her squad.
"I understand Rangiku, but you can't leave your squad leaderless like that." He said, using duty to override emotion.
"Ichigo please." She pleaded, tears growing in her eyes. "I... I can't lose another captain." Her grip began to slack as she came closer to breaking down. Ichigo wrapped his arms around her and she stilled, slowly latching onto him like a security blanket.
"Don't worry." He said, tenderly stroking her back. "Everything will be alright. I'll make sure of it." After waiting for a few more seconds he pulled away and turned to open space while flicking his wrist, opening a neat Garganta. Rangiku watched as he walked away, a matching silhouette of Gin appearing by his side. Once again, someone she cared about, someone that she felt she could lean on, was leaving without telling her where they were going. Just like Gin did all the time. At least, she thought it was. Ichigo looked back to her and flashed a confident smile. "I'm going to bring him back Rangiku. Don't worry." He said before disappearing into the void. Silence returned to the squad barracks, leaving her with only one noise. The sound of her heart beating loudly in her chest.
(Urahara Shoten/Squad 15 barracks)
Ichigo made his way through his inter dimensional portal and returned to his squad's base in the Living world. He made his through the base and taking directions from his squad members, many of whom were almost or fully recovered, made his way to the division's prison cell. Inside were Orihime, his father, and Toshiro Hitsugaya enveloped in Orihime's healing shield.
"That was annoyingly fast." Ichigo said as he came into the room, the other two keeping a focused gaze on the young captain. "What happened?"
"After Soi-Fon confirmed the loss of the Oin and departed, some of the squad found him passed out from blood loss." Isshin informed his second in command. "We currently have him under for now, because I'm wondering whether if he'll tell me anything, or if I should call Tsukishima."
"Toshiro's not an idiot dad." Ichigo reassured his father. "When he wakes up, he'll understand that he might as well tell us what's going on. Does Yama-jii know?" Isshin nodded as Orihime finished up.
"Hiyori set up the audio transmission so he can hear what happens, but only those in the Monitor Room and myself will know what he says." He nodded to his son, telling him to go to Hiyori's station and await further orders. He made his way to her room, which had a video link with Urahara, Byakuya, and Yamamoto waiting. No words were exchanged for hours as they waited. Finally Toshiro woke from his drug induced slumber. "Wakey wakey Toshiro." Isshin said in his dad voice, cheery with enough anger to know he's less than thrilled. "You've got some explaining to do young man."
"Captain Shiba, I-" Hitsugaya started as he steadily grew more awake, until the sound of a fist colliding with a skull woke him right up. The lecture from his former captain only made it worse for the boy.
"Abandoning your post, making no excuse or justification for your actions, letting someone get the drop on you? Weren't you raised better than that?" Isshin scolded, giving Ichigo flashbacks to the few times he made Isshin mad himself... those were scary memories. "Now, you are not going anywhere until I get some answers. If you can prove to me you had a good reason for the stunt you pulled, I won't turn you in to Yamamoto." There was a pause as they waited for the ice dragon's response.
"Fine." Hitsugaya said, almost defeated. "But please captain, let me deal with this. I promise to retrieve the Oin, but if I'm right then this is something I have to do." Ichigo and the other listened intently, waiting for the reason, any excuse that might seem justifiable to let things take this course. "When I was still an Academy student I had a very close friend, named Kusaka Sojiro. We always ended up competing but it was to improve ourselves as we strove to be the best in the Academy." Urahara and Byakuya immediately began pouring through the archives, looking for anything regarding this 'Kusaka' character. "But that changed when we managed to awaken our Zapakuto and we had the same sword, Hyorinmaru." There was a look of disbelief among the older captains but they held their tongues and kept listening. "Apparently this was against the law as Central 46 demand that one of us prove our worth for the blade. Kusaka started the fight, and was executed after he was deemed unworthy."
"And you think this Kusaka has the Oin?" Isshin asked, not a single hint of doubt in his tone. "To what end?"
"That's what I want to find out. So please captain Shiba, let me deal with this. I have to." Toshiro pleaded. Ichigo looked to Urahara, who seemed to have found something and whispered to Yamamoto. Ichigo saw the old dragon grip his cane tightly, actually digging into the wooden disguise of his blade. He knew his master was furious because his head can attest to how strong that damn stick was.
"Isshin," The leader of Soul Society finally spoke, "captain Hitsugaya is granted permission to pursue this matter. But he will not do so alone." He faced Ichigo and continued his command. "Ichigo will accompany him until the Oin is recovered." Isshin relayed the orders, while making it seem that Yamamoto was left unaware. Toshiro was thanking his previous captain greatly as a result. "Ichigo, the Oin must be recovered at all costs. Until it is safely in our hands, no holding back." Ichigo nodded at his teacher, determined not to let the world come under any risk.
(Soul Society)
'Soon Toshiro.' The masked figure thought as he stood atop a building within the Seireitei. He remembered the treachery of the corrupted Soul Society, how his devotion was paid with betrayal. All because they had the same blade. His fading soul coming into contact with the power of the Oin, like fate itself wanted him to survive. It took years of training, waiting, building up his power to finally steal the Oin. He knew when it revived him that it had the power to fully control time and space, the power forbidden to anyone but the Soul King. He was surprised by the extra convoy, but he knew the true Oin when he felt it. Now all that was left was to ensure that Toshiro would join him, but Soul Society was not as he remembered.
"Master Kusaka." He heard his two loyal Arrancar, Yin and Yang, come to him. Yang with red hair and fire, Yin with blue and lightning. Both nearly identical aside from their color and haircuts, wearing the same sleeveless jackets with their color coded elbow length gloves and skirts. "It appears that Toshiro Hitsugaya made contact with one of the new Gotei squads. Should we go after them?"
"No." Kusaka answered. "Separate Toshiro from them, he will come to me." His hand went to the Oin hidden in his pocket. "After all, we want the same thing."
(Illustrated Guide to Soul Reapers)
Riruka's Eyes: Take 2
Urahara and Mayuri were pouring over their notes, trying to figure out why they only got stars in Riruka's eyes instead of hearts. The two greatest scientific minds were wasting their time with this minor issue, but they demanded answers.
"This is proving quite vexing." Mayuri complained. "She gets her candies, her plushies, her cute outfits, and all we get are her pupils turning into stars! What is missing?"
"Well, all of those are outside influences of thing she want." Kisuke theorized, looking at a collection of drawings of the classical heart. With his mind going to anatomy, he was unaware of his hand idly drawing on of the representations of love. Mayuri noticed it, and got an idea.
"Kisuke, how about we try this?"
(One experiment later)
Riruka was laying on the table, her body twitching and breath labored, with her tongue hanging out of her mouth with a pleased smile and her pupils turned into hearts. She was dressed in a hospital gown and covered with wires attached to her body. The two scientists breathed a sigh of relief.
"Should've figured that that would be the key." Urahara sighed. "Arousal, how could we miss that."
"Now on to actually important stuff!" Mayuri said with a smile as he left to continue their real work. Urahara took a second to set out a set of clothes and directions to the nearest shower.
Weekly Power Status
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Ranking 
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