Ichigo and Rukia were sitting in their class, feeling utterly tired. Rukia didn't get sick that morning but they were up all night discussing about ways they could keep contact. Urahara was already busy working to update her spirit phone so she could use it to call Ichigo in the human world.
Ichigo wanted nothing more than to spend his remaining two weeks with only Rukia but the damn school was taking away that dream. He's been sitting through lectures after lectures that seemed irrelevant in life. Even Uryuu looked bored, although he was taking down all the notes with much detail (and Ichigo already decided to copy his later).
Ding Ding Ding
Finally! Lunch!
"ICHIGOOO!" Keigo made another dive for his orange-haired friend, but only got the air knocked out of him when Ichigo punched him in the stomach.
"What do you want Keigo?" Ichigo asked annoyingly.
Keigo immediately jumped back up as if he never got hit at all. "The weather is finally warm so let us return to our party of manliness on the roof!"
And before Ichigo could protest, he was being dragged by Chad, Uryuu and Mizuiro. And here he had hoped to spend a peaceful lunch with his girlfriend.
Rukia was planning on joining them when Orihime popped up with Tatsuki and dragged her outside, away from everyone else.
"What's going on, guys?" Rukia asked. The three were now standing alone behind the gym. Her two friends were looking at her with concern and urgency.
"Kuchiki-san, are you alright?" Orihime asked with eyes that looked like it was on the verge of tears.
Rukia swallowed hard and pulled out her fake charm. "Why, of course I am Inoue! Why would you ask that?"
"Oh, I don't know. Maybe because your reiatsu-thing seems out of whack," Tatsuki scowled.
Rukia's fake smile dropped as she looked between her friends. "So you noticed."
"Of course!" Orihime nodded, "And please tell us what is wrong. Aren't we your friends?"
Rukia sighed as she leaned against the wall. She looked back at the two and smiled. "Thanks for worrying about me."
"No problem," Tatsuki smiled, "NOW will you tell us?"
Rukia nodded as she started her long talk…
Few Minutes Later
"Kuchiki-san!" Orihime cried as she clung onto her petite friend.
"I'm going to kill that bastard!" Tatsuki cracked her knuckles.
Rukia could only laugh as she calmed her friends. "Really, I'm fine. And I'm happy so please don't worry."
Orihime pulled back and looked at Rukia with her tear-stained face. "Is there anything I can do to help?"
Rukia patted Orihime's chestnut hair and shook her head with a smile. "I'm afraid not. But don't worry because I'll be in good hands."
"So when exactly are you leaving?" Tatsuki asked.
"Next weekend. So please be careful when you're around Ichigo," Rukia begged.
Tatsuki reluctantly nodded her head.
"Who else knows?" Orihime asked.
"Well, of course Ichigo's family, Urahara and his workers, Yoruichi, and almost all of Sereitei by now," Rukia responded.
"Are you sure I can't help with anything?" Orihime asked again.
Rukia smiled as she said, "Well, I'd appreciate it if you guys can keep a watchful eye on Ichigo. Who knows what kinds of stupid things he'll do while I'm gone. And make sure he knows nothing about this until after the baby is born."
"Don't worry about that. I'll get Chad and Ishida to help out too," Tatsuki winked. "Though I still can't believe that idiot's inability to sense something so obvious as this."
Rukia laughed and nodded her head in agreement. Tatsuki and Orihime then announced their plans on how to keep Ichigo busy.
"I know!" Orihime clapped her hands together as she smiled, "Let's title this operation: Keep Kurosaki Ichigo-kun Clueless of his Child which is now growing inside Kuchiki Rukia, who will leave for several months so Kurosaki Ichigo must not Know."
The two other girls stared at Orihime for a few seconds, getting an earful from the long title.
Tatsuki decided to take him out most of the nights to festivals and school gatherings. She also needed an extra person for her martial arts competition, so Ichigo would make the best option. Orihime wanted to send him out of the country and perhaps make him join the circus… of course Tatsuki stopped her before she got too carried away in her fantasies.
Rukia laughed and helped plan their little project. She was glad to know that her friends were here to take care of things. And Ichigo's family would also contribute to make things easier for her…
But in reality she really wanted Ichigo's comfort over everyone else's.
It was a typical night in the Kurosaki Clinic as everyone sat in the living room to watch a late-night movie.
Ichigo still hadn't noticed the change in Rukia's reiatsu, although he has noticed she was tired a lot more lately. He watched her from the corner of his eyes as Rukia's head slightly bobbed up and down.
"You want to go bed?" he silently asked to not bother the others.
Rukia shook her head and smiled. "I'm fine, don't worry."
Ichigo sighed as he leaned back on the couch to watch the movie. Sensing he was still worried, Rukia gently placed her head on his shoulder and leaned towards him. Even though they've been doing this a lot more often in public and his family didn't really care anymore, Ichigo still couldn't stop the blush on his face.
He was just about to get comfortable when suddenly—
Hollow! Hollow! Hollow!
Ichigo's Shinigami Badge suddenly erupted during the movie.
"Shit," Ichigo mumbled.
Just then Rukia's spirit phone started to go off. She pulled it out of her pocket and read the information that was typing on her screen.
"Looks like two Hollows. They're not that powerful but still more than the ones you've been chasing after these days."
Ichigo smirked as he quickly used his badge to escape his body. "About time I get some real action."
Rukia took Ichigo's badge and was about to use it—
"Matte," Isshin grabbed Rukia's hand to stop her. Both shinigamis looked at him with a blank stare when Isshin smiled at Ichigo and spoke, "Son, please go without Rukia-chan. There is something I want to talk about."
Though Ichigo didn't notice, Rukia could sense the seriousness in his tone. She quickly turned back to Ichigo to give him a reassuring smile. "Do as he says. After all, it wouldn't be fun for you if I get in your way and fight off the Hollows, leaving you bored."
"Che, fine," Ichigo pouted as he ran out the door and used shunpo to where the Hollows were.
Isshin turned back to his daughters. "Yuzu. Karin. Go to my room to watch the rest of the movie. I have something important to talk about with Rukia-chan."
Yuzu nodded as she stood up and grabbed her twin's hand. "Come on Karin-chan! Yukie-san is about to run away!" She cried, running upstairs to see what the main character might do next.
Rukia looked at Isshin and asked, "Is there something you wish to tell me, otousan?"
"Ah! I like hearing that!" Isshin joked. Then he spoke in a calm, but serious, tone. "Rukia-chan. I haven't told you this yet because it hadn't crossed my mind until now."
"What is it?"
"How many times have you left your gigai since you've gotten pregnant?"
Rukia rubbed her chin as she thought about this. "Well actually, I don't think I ever have. I've been pretty sick so Ichigo wouldn't let me fight with him."
"Rukia-chan" Isshin continued, "I recommend you do NOT leave your gigai until after the child is born."
Rukia raised a questioning eyebrow at the ex-taicho. "Why not?"
Ishin rubbed the back of his neck. He really hated being the bad guy here. "Well, I think it might harm the child."
Unconsciously Rukia placed a protective hand over her stomach and wore a shocked expression.
"It's like this: Right now your gigai is no different from a real human body. And if you were to exit your body, your shinigami form will hold the soul of the child but not its human body. So the body might die or get damaged since it would no longer have a soul. This might not apply when the child is actually born but until then, any sudden change might affect the unborn child. And because when a child is still inside the womb, it is dependent on the mother for its survival."
Rukia scratched her head in utter confusion. "I don't understand. If Ichigo can exit his body and reenter it, why wouldn't it apply to the child?"
"Ummm," Isshin scratched his bearded chin as he thought for a second, "Well, it's because while still in the womb, it is still developing and if anything was to happen it might affect the child that could in turn also affect its growth. Also, if you are planning on living here, I do think it'd be best to leave the child in a human form rather than giving birth to only its soul. This might even help concealing the enormous reiatsu."
Rukia sighed as she nodded her head. It was pretty depressing to find out you were not allow to continue your job anymore because of your pregnancy. But Rukia lightly rubbed her stomach and smiled. It was still better to have this child then chasing after the Hollows.
Isshin stood up and walked over to the kitchen. "Have you taken your pills today?"
"Yes. I take them everyday just like you told me," Rukia responded.
Isshin nodded his head as he returned with two glasses of juice. "Good, and never forget about them. Every time I sense a Hollow I'm afraid it's after my grandchild."
Rukia chuckled as she accepted the glass and drank the refreshing juice.
In a few minutes Ichigo returned but with a bad gash on his back.
"What the hell did you do?" Rukia asked with a venomous tone as she helped him move into the living room.
Ichigo only grunted as he sat down, still trying to calm his breathing. Then he felt Rukia's palm against his back as she started kidou.
"Maybe we should call Inoue," Rukia muttered. But before she could stop her kidou, the green glow under her hand expanded and immense reiatsu surged from it.
"What is that?" Ichigo asked, trying to turn around from his position.
But as soon as he finished asking his question the gash was totally healed. Rukia had 'panic' written all over her face. She turned around to face Isshin but couldn't say anything as his serious expression was staring intently at Ichigo's back.
Beep Beep Beep
Hollow! Hollow! Hollow!
Both Ichigo's shinigami badge and Rukia's spirit phone went off at the same time.
"More Hollows?" Ichigo asked Rukia as she flipped open her phone. She nodded and Ichigo was about to get up when Isshin grabbed his shoulder and pushed him back on the couch.
"You had your fun already," Isshin grinned, "Now let daddy have some too." Isshin grabbed the shinigami badge and slammed it on his chest as he escaped his gigai and ran out the front door.
Ichigo jumped back into his body and looked back at Rukia who was suddenly looking pale. He placed a hand on her shoulders and asked, "You okay?"
Rukia jumped upon feeling someone touch her, but calmed down when she looked into Ichigo's worried eyes. She lightly smiled as she leaned into his body. "Yeah… still a bit tired."
Ichigo wrapped a strong, protective arm around Rukia as he ran his other hand through her hair. He didn't like the scared look on her face just then. Something was going on that was making her nervous and he hated the fact that there was nothing he could do.
"Ichigo?"
"What?"
Rukia looked at him for a second before bringing her hand up and punching him from under his chin.
"OUCH! WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT FOR, YOU MIDGET?" Ichigo yelled as he checked to make sure his jaw was still connected.
"That was for being stupid and getting yourself hurt," she glared.
Isshin was running around, chasing the Hollows that suddenly appeared too close to his house. He pulled out his Zanpakutou to quickly finish the hunt.
With a large cry, Isshin flew into the air and swung his blade at the Hollow's mask, immediately cutting it into pieces. He then sidestepped when another Hollow swung his spiked tail at him. At the same time Isshin quickly locked his arm and used his other hand to grab the tail to forcibly pull its body closer to him as he jammed his Zanpakutou into the mask.
Soon he was killing off the Hollows one by one without so much as breaking a sweat. It seemed only the weak ones were foolish enough to trace after such a powerful reiatsu.
"Ara. Finished already?"
Isshin, who landed on the ground, turned around to see Urahara and Yoruichi looking back at him with a grin.
"Che, they were nothing but weaklings," Isshin snorted as he returned his Zanpakutou into its sheath.
Urahara chuckled as he fanned himself.
Yoruichi looked around at their surrounding, trying to sense if there were any more Hollows around. "So what was that reiatsu that suddenly called them out?" she asked.
Isshin sighed as he and his two friends decided to jump from roof to roof just to make sure everything was safe. "Well, that pathetic son of mine got a hit while getting rid of a Hollow. So Rukia-chan decided to use her healing kidou but it suddenly went out of proportion and immense amount of reiatsu came out of it."
Urahara tipped his hat back a little to expose a serious expression. "Has she been taking her pills?"
Isshin nodded.
Urahara returned his hat to its original position and sat down on the roof they were currently standing on. "If so much power came from just a small kidou then I wonder just how powerful this child will be."
"I can make a guess," spoke out a new voice.
Isshin turned around and grunted upon see Ryuuken walking up to them with a cigarette in his mouth.
"Must you smoke around me?" he cringed.
Ryuuken answered by blowing a puff of smoke at Isshin. The ex-shinigami waved his arm frantically in front of his face to wave off the smoke. When it was gone, he was about to jump on Ryuuken for a good strangle but he was already talking with Urahara.
"If that child is already giving Kuchiki that much power then expect it to be much stronger than that idiot's kid," Ryuuken told Urahara.
"Who are you calling an 'idiot'?" Isshin yelled. But the others totally ignored him as they continued with their serious conversation.
"Has Sereitei found out about the child yet?" Ryuuken asked.
Isshin nodded. "Byakuya made a 'friendly' visit not too long ago. I had to tell him about everything. He agreed to inform the rest of Gotei 13 about this and they should be preparing for Rukia's arrival. And Yamamoto will be assigning Ichigo whole bunch of missions to keep him busy and away from Soul Society."
"Will Soul Society be able to control the child?" Yoruichi glared at the ground below the building that they were on.
"I'm sure they'll be fine. After all they will have the contribution of all the captains and their seated officers," Urahara replied, "But what I'm worried about is how the reiatsu might affect those not strong enough to stand up against it."
Isshin sighed as he walked over to the edge and looked up at the sky. "Looks like no matter how much we want to avoid it, in the end my grandchild just might lose its innocence a bit too early."
"Is there any way to limit its reiatsu? Its power right now is immense so we should stop it from increasing," Yoruichi pointed out.
Urahara sighed as he hid his sad face behind his fan. "It'd be nice if we could do that but sadly the only way to prevent the child's growing reiatsu is to take it out of Kuchiki-san's womb. So pretty much we'd end up killing it."
There was a short pause as everyone sighed with disappointment. This pregnancy might be more problematic than they thought.
"Well, there really is no use in complaining about it now. It was bond to happen someday, and hopefully it'll happen only this once," Ryuuken said as he threw down his cigarette and stepped on it.
Isshin nodded as he crossed his arms over his chest. "I'm sure this won't happen to my future grandchildren. The child now only got so much power because both parents couldn't control their new powers. If the two can learn to control it and be extra careful, then I'm sure there won't be any problems."
"Looks like Mayuri is going to have a field day with this," Urahara joked.
"But the problem now is: what about our new enemies?" Ryuuken asked.
There was another pause.
"What's happening in Hueco Mundo?" Isshin asked Yoruichi.
She sighed as she flipped her long purple hair. "I met Nell again but the information is the same as last time…except that things now seemed even more eerie."
"I don't know who it is, but I'll bet Gin and Tosen has something to do with it," Ryuuken commented.
Urahara nodded as he stood up and dusted off his pants. "I'm going to ask Sereitei to dispatch a group of shinigamis to join Yoruichi next time she goes. And this time, we're planning on making a full investigation of the place."
Isshin yawned, stretching his arms over his head. "Whatever. If it's a new threat, then I'm sure it won't be too hard for us to beat."
"But do you really expect us AND Soul Society to be ready to fight so early after the last war?" Ryuuken raised an eyebrow.
"I'm sure you won't have to worry too much about that," Urahara chuckled, "Any new threat will not happen for a long time so we'll have a few months, maybe even a few years before the second war starts."
"And we'll be ready by then," Isshin grinned.
A/N: O.o I wonder what'll happen with this new threat... Well, this might not really happen until the sequels... but just read on and see what happens!
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