NOVEL NEXT Chapter 10: Retorta chapter 4
Unohana grabs Gin by the collar and throws herself backwards, slipping into Shunpo in her haste. She still is very nearly not fast enough to avoid the small explosion of rubble as a new crater forms.
The newcomer isn't visible through the clouds of dust, but his presence is impossible to miss, even as tightly leashed as it is. Unohana restrains a tremor of something that might be excitement with all of her considerable self control.
There's a moment of absolute silence, broken only by the sound of rubble settling. Then a groan echoes through the clearing, and the new arrival pushes himself to his feet with a scowl.
" Ow, dammit, that fucking hurt. What the shit. Oy, Geta-boushi, you here?"
The last of the obscuring dust clears, and Unohana blinks, instinctively glancing over at Juushiro's unofficial lieutenant to ensure that Kaien hasn't somehow managed to vanish and dye his hair in the last thirty seconds. But no, Shiba-san is there, looking as confused as anyone else.
The newcomer with long orange hair and Kaien's face casts a dismissive glance over the arrayed force and then turns away from them as if they're no threat at all, ignoring the way Yamamoto puffs up as if he's about to try and speak. He focuses on Kisuke, the flavor of his reiatsu going flat and tense.
"Geta-boushi? Hey, Urahara-- Kisuke, Kisuke , look at me, what's wrong?"
Unohana watches as the boy moves over to where Urahara-taicho hasn't moved from his defensive position, knife angled outwards. The young Shinigami doesn't seem fazed in the slightest by the implied threat, entering the assassin's range without fear. Gently, he lays a hand over the one holding the knife, and Urahara flinches.
"You're dead. How… Kyouka Suigetsu is gone, I destroyed her, you're not real."
The sheer level of blank pain in those words makes Unohana wince. She's always liked the younger captain, he's always been respectful, and his admittedly awkward relationship with his squad is superseded by the concern he shows for all of his subordinates. For that alone, she would have questioned the official story. Even today, he had spared Gin. Unohana knew her speed, and she had a fair idea of Urahara's, and she knows very well that had he truly desired, Gin would be dead now.
She wouldn't wish this pain on him.
The new arrival closes his eyes briefly, looking equally pained, and then opens eyes that are glowing gold. Unohana has only an instant to brace herself before reiatsu slams down on all of them, sending the best of the Gotei 13 to their knees. She catches herself with one hand, but the only others who manage to keep themselves from collapsing entirely are the Soutaicho, Ukitake, and Kyouraku. Urahara-taicho seems completely unaffected, however, and she raises her head against the pressure enough to see the cautious hope dawning in his eyes, followed by realization.
All the energy drains out of him in an instant, and he slumps forward bonelessly, only to be caught gently by the shoulders. The knife clatters to the ground, unheeded, and Unohana watches as the man presses his forehead against the younger Shinigami's shoulder. Over the silent roar of nearly-tangible reiatsu, she can hear him whispering,
"I thought you were dead ."
"I'm here, Kisuke. It's okay. I'm fine ."
Urahara looks up, a little helplessly, and the orange-haired youth leans down to press his forehead against Urahara's with a fond smile.
Unohana glances away, for a minute, feeling as though she's intruding on a moment even more intimate than a kiss. Then a low chuckle rings through the clearing, and she looks back to see the pair straighten.
"Really, Geta-boushi? I disappear for a while and your first reaction is to kill Aizen? This is why Yoruichi says you should never be left alone for more than a few minutes at a time, you know."
Ichigo can't help but look over at Aizen's corpse for the fifth time. He can't believe Aizen is actually dead , but he knows Kisuke, and Kisuke is thorough. Aizen is dead.
Aizen is also human, more or less, which isn't really possible, but since they got dumped in the time stream, Ichigo figures they got spat out at some random point in the past. The old man is still alive, at least, so they've got to be farther back than a decade. Gin is alive, too, as a tiny silver brat peeking out from behind Unohana's skirts.
Just as he's about to ask, though, a sharp voice cuts in from behind him, hoarse with age.
"Just what do you upstarts think you're doing?"
Ichigo blinks and looks back to see Yamamoto kneeling on the ground, one hand braced against Ryujin Jakka to support himself against the weight of Ichigo's reiatsu. In fact, everyone is on the ground now, either prostrate or barely kneeling.
… whoops.
With effort, he reels his reiatsu back in. This Gotei 13 must not be as strong as the one he's familiar with, to be flattened so easily by the relatively low level of reiatsu he puts out unconsciously. Holding his reiatsu in like he's doing now is usually reserved for stealth missions or meeting with civilians. It feels a little like holding his breath.
Cautiously, Ichigo meets Yamamoto's eyes. The wariness he sees there stings, but it doesn't surprise him. The man has always prioritized the order and wellbeing of his organization more than that of any individual in it, and Ichigo has always been the Soutaicho's worst nightmare-- too much power to be controlled, and too willing to break with the system for those he considers friends. Sometimes, though, Ichigo thinks that Yamamoto sees everything that he could have been, if he'd only trusted himself a little more instead of submitting himself to an extremely fallible higher power.
This version of Yamamoto, though, has never met Ichigo, never fought beside him against a greater threat, and Ichigo knows that the man is already calculating how to dispose of him if necessary. A great deal lies on his answer, here, but the problem is… he has no idea what he and Kisuke are doing.
He looks back at Kisuke, who straightens, face carefully blank in the presence of outsiders, and offers quietly,
"This is one and a half weeks after the Visored's hollowfication. Yoruichi-san and Tessai-san have taken the Visored to an initial location for stabilization, while I came after Aizen myself."
That's… over a century. No wonder Gin is so small. But it means that all of their immediate problems are taken care of, so he and Kisuke should be able to get out and join the others. If Yamamoto lets them, that is.
With a wry grimace, he turns to face the assorted officers of the Gotei 13.
"I don't suppose you'll let us go if we say we mean no harm, will you?"
Yamamoto scoffs.
"You are standing over the bodies of one of our trusted lieutenants, with a man who turned eight of our greatest warriors into mindless beasts . He carries the zanpakuto of another officer around his waist. And you dare to tell me that you mean no harm."
Ichigo bristles even as Kisuke goes rigid.
"That was Aizen , you old fool! He was the one who was experimenting on your shinigami, and he's had the Central 46 wrapped around his finger for decades now. If we didn't kill him now, he'd bring war down on all of your heads!"
Yamamoto lifts an unimpressed eyebrow at him.
"And I'm sure you have proof of this. Somewhere."
Ichigo growls. The Visored all saw Aizen and Tousen, working in concert, and most of them were aware enough to listen to Aizen's gloating to Shinji. Unfortunately, though, that's theirs to tell, not Ichigo's, and it's not like Yamamoto is going to take Kisuke's word for truth.
Regretfully, that leaves Ichigo with no real way to break this stalemate. He's not sure revealing that time shenanigans were involved is a good idea, either, and he's definitely not going to before he can consult with Kisuke. Privately , thank you.
He doesn't really want to fight the entirety of the Gotei 13 right now, though; Kisuke's already pale complexion looks closer to ash, and there's a nasty wound on his right hand that's bleeding steadily. The sword at his side isn't Benihime, as the old man said, and Ichigo reorients himself. First things first.
Ichigo risks a moment to close his eyes and send out his senses. Reiatsu sensing has never been his strong suit, so he makes up for it with intensity of focus, long hours of practice, and sheer need . Kisuke is next to him, a beacon of familiarity that's wavering more than Ichigo would prefer. The cluster of Gotei's strongest are indistinguishable clumps of brilliance.
He reaches further.
Ah. There she is, practically screaming to his senses with frustrated, helpless fury. Benihime has never enjoyed being unable to act, and the abrupt separation from her wielder has disoriented and enraged her.
Well, that much, Ichigo can fix.