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A New Window	By : Platinumsabr Category: Bleach > Het - Male/Female Views: 13905 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach, nor the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story. Any Original Characters are mine however, as is the story itself, and if you see it or any part of it posted elsewhere please report it

Chapter List
- 10
- 11
- 12
The
Scarlet Creation

Kin sat silently around the large
table sitting dead centre of the dining room as she watched her boyfriend sleep
soundlessly against the wall by the door leading to where the two injured
parties slept silently. Ichigo had had to finish the job, but only after Kaien
had completed nearly everything under his guidance. He was still learning after
all.

Nonetheless, he had exhausted
himself. There were only a couple of severe injuries on the soft-spoken healer,
but there were numerous other wounds and that required time and a good deal of
reiatsu to heal. They had only done a cautionary evaluation of Nemu, but that was because Hisagomaru�s
ability was incredible and they knew there likely wasn�t anything left to heal.

Now he was dead to the world and
his hair had fallen out of its former position and hung limply around his head,
blocking his closed eyes from view. She had never noticed how long it really
was before, and that wasn�t even counting the extremely long ponytail that now
resided around her neck.

She was knocked out of her
thoughts when Asuka returned and set a cup of hot
chocolate in front of her as she sat down. �Still watching him huh?�

Kin nodded and took a grateful
sip of the hot drink. Whatever plans they might have had had been thrown out
the window and it was now pretty far into the evening. The healing had taken
longer than she would have thought, but then again she had never seen the
Fourth Division in action before. She didn�t know it would have taken even
longer if Ichigo hadn�t resorted to healing directly with reiatsu and opted for
reiatsu-enhanced bandages.

�I�don�t think I really believed
him before today,� she muttered softly and Asuka
quirked an eyebrow at her.

�Believed what?�

Kin smiled, though it was visibly
forced. �I thought he just didn�t want to go back to school but�he really did
it didn�t he? With a little more training he could already be a member of the
Fourth Division�eh?�

Asuka
smiled proudly. �Ah, that�s it. You didn�t believe he could be a doctor
already.� Kin nodded sullenly. �Well he didn�t get like that overnight. He
wanted to be like his dad, but mostly he just needed something to do while he
was bedridden. There was no shortage of volunteers for helping him flip pages,
that�s for sure.�

Kin scowled mockingly. �Now
you�re just trying to make me jealous.�

Asuka
was nonplussed. �Hey, in case you hadn�t noticed, he�s got some serious looks
going for him, and if you remember what I�ve been
telling you for the past couple of weeks��

Kin groaned. �I know, I know:
stronger the partner, stronger the offspring.�

�Hey, don�t get mad at me, that�s just the way things are. There are exceptions, and
they�re becoming more common nowadays, but that�s still how most Arrancars view it.�

The mocha-skinned teen had to
forcibly keep the blood from rushing to her cheeks. She knew �it� only meant
one thing when it came to Asuka.

�So�what do you think happened to
them?�

The gigai�d
teen knew what she meant, and she allowed them to change the topic. That didn�t
stop her from thinking, Wuss. �Who knows. I�ve met Hanatarou a few
times before, but not enough to know him very well. This whole situation of him
coming here is strange though. Why would he come here instead of going to his
division headquarters?�

Kin shrugged. �He must not want
to stay in Soul Society for some reason.�

�Meh. Guess we�ll have to ask him when he wakes up.�

The casual conversation was cut
short when they felt the tremendous force of unknown reiatsus
push down on them, and considering that there were reiatsu inhibitors in the
house, that meant there was either one very strong person or many strong
people. Kin looked over at Asuka for some kind of
explanation and saw the blue-haired woman�s eyes were wide, then they narrowed
and her mouth lengthened into a gritting snarl.

�Those
bastards. Why now of all times!?�

She quickly jumped out of her
chair just as Souken ran into the room from where he
had been talking to Tatsuki. �Dammit, again?� he
asked Asuka seriously, to which she only nodded. �Do
you think they know about the Queen�s pregnancy?�

Asuka�s
scowl deepened. �That�s the only reason they would have to attack here! Those
screw-ups, it�s as if they knew Kaien was out of commission! Where�s Ichigo??�

Souken
didn�t answer for a few seconds, as in that time he had ran over to her and put
a hand on her shoulder. After differentiating the flow between her gigai and her, he quickly muttered the incantation his
mother used so often. �I reject.�

With the flow between her gigai and her gone, Asuka�s
spiritual form was pulled from the fake body instantly and she quickly reached
for her sword.

�Ichigo went to take Tatsuki to Hueco Mundo. We have no idea if
it�s a two-pronged attack. She�ll be safer there even if Las Noches is under attack, and at least that way he�ll be able
to send reinforcements if need be.�

Kin was confused, but she quickly
changed into her Shinigami form and followed them as they ran to the nearest
door. �What are you guys talking about!?� They all ran
out the door and instantly looked up, where a huge number of animal-like beings
were looking down on them. Kin blanched in horror. �Holy��

Souken
and Asuka both glared. �The Adjuchas.�

�There�s so many of them��

The daughter of the former Sexta Espada snorted derisively.
�You haven�t seen Kaien and Ichigo in action. This is enough for the first
wave. Ever since the Hougyoku was absorbed there have
been more and more Menos� reaching the Adjucha
level.�

Souken
merely scoffed as he rolled up his white sleeves before activating his bow in
an explosion of blue light. �There�s not as much reishi
here as in Hueco Mundo, but
this should be more than enough. No more time for talking, we
can�t let them get to Kaien.�

A body suddenly whizzed by them
and shot up into the air, where a huge explosion of reiatsu signaled the
destruction of one of the Adjuchas as the others
scrambled away and readied themselves for their assault on the house. The three
still on the ground looked up in shock to see a white-clad, white-skinned young
woman looking down on them with a fierce face. �It�ll be a cold day in
hell the day that I allow anything to harm my brother!� Tsukiyomi fumed out angrily and glared at the large expanse
of Hollows as she held her sword at the ready. �Bring it on you Vastro-Lorde wannabe�s! Answer The Cries Of The Moon, Amaterasu!�

Kin stared in wonder as the white
blade in the hands of Kaien�s little sister warped
and elongated until a thick black blade tinged in the color of blood stood out
from a dark gold hilt with the same kind of deep crimson threading. Dangling
from the end of the handle at the end of a small loop was a long golden sash
that ended with an identical metal ring. While she was looking at it, the
blackish-red blade suddenly exploded into pitch black flame that licked at the
air in controlled fury.

�What the hell is that?� she
murmured in shock.

Asuka
grinned sadistically. �She�s the black moon�s daughter. Tsukiyomi,
the Moon Reader, has the black sun as her zanpakutou. Its dark flames rival
that of Ryuujin Jakka, the
strongest of the fire-type zanpakutous.�

The sounds of battle soon started
with the inner-Hollow-like young woman tearing into her opponents with her dark
flaming blade swinging. Souken wasn�t about to let
the middle Kurosaki child have all the fun, and with a slight hop, Hirenkyaku had taken him into the fray and arrows started
flying as the Adjuchas engaged their enemies with
animalistic ferocity.

The two left on the ground stood
shocked for all of a second. It didn�t take long before Asuka
smiled a smile that reflected just how much she was her father�s daughter. With
swift movements she had her hand on her sword�s blade and with a familiar
release cry she took off into the air in her complete feline-like form.

The sound of a door being opened from
behind her drew Kin�s attention ad she looked over to see Masaki calmly walking
out of the house with her hand on the normal zanpakutou sheathed at her side.
Her usually kind orange eyes were sharp and deadly and Kin gulped unwittingly.
�What are you still doing down here? Would you not be fighting if Kaien were
right now?� Kin shook away her shocked state and tightened her face into her
familiar battle frown. �I thought so. Let�s go too Ikasam,
we can�t let anything get near Kaien right now.�

Kin had already turned away and
drawn her sword, but she turned back out of curiosity to see who the youngest
Kurosaki had been speaking to. The blood drained from her face when she saw
Masaki pull down her hand from her forehead and a white bone mask accompanied
it down, the dark red markings eerily like her father�s located on the right
side of her mask instead of the left. Before her very eyes, she witnessed the
orange-haired young woman pull the mask directly off her face, but the yellow
eyes lined by pure darkness didn�t stay on her face, instead they too went with
the mask, filling in the eyeholes that should have been vacant. Kept held at
eye-level, Masaki let go of the eerie mask and it stayed.

The daughter of the Goddess of
Flash watched in terror as the white mask melted in the air and drew an outline
of a body with its remnants, before like a sketch being filled in, the outline
gained form and function and the Hollowized eyes that
had floated in the air like the only visible parts of a specter gained a face
to hold them. When it was all done Masaki stood in front of a carbon copy of
herself, albeit a completely white version.

Kin held her breath for no real
reason as she watched them, but she nearly fell on her face when the white
Masaki let loose a girlish squeal and launched herself at the real Masaki until
she was held in a rather intimate looking hug. �It�s been too long!!! Finally!�

To Kin�s surprise, Masaki
actually returned the hug and stroked the wavy white hair the same
length as hers softly. �I�m sorry. I know you get lonely but these past few
weeks have been pretty hectic, and I didn�t want Tsuki
having any adverse effects on you while she was readjusting.�

The inner-Hollow sighed
dramatically and looked up at the sounds of battle that still raged overhead. �These
freaks are in for some pain. I�ve finally been given some time out here and
they�re interrupting it!�

�Guess we�ll have to finish this
quickly then, won�t we?� Masaki stated smugly and the being she call Ikasam scowled deeply.

�You always do this to me,
you know? It�s getting irritating. Maybe I don�t want to help you this
time?� She huffed out indignantly, though even for an inner-Hollow her
face looked obviously hesitant. Before Kin even knew what was going on the
youngest Kurosaki had pulled the other version of herself to her and gave her a
deep, full-on kiss. Kin nearly fainted from the blood that rushed to her
face but it was over rather quickly and thus she was spared that fate, though
that certainly didn�t mean her cheeks weren�t still glowing healthily.

�Do you really mean that?�

Ikasam
smiled devilishly and licked her lips. �Not a chance, but I got what I
wanted, didn�t I? We still have to find a man for us sometime in the future, so
there�s no way I�m letting you die anytime soon.�

Masaki smiled her usual, kind
smile that was so unassuming one really couldn�t know her true potential.
�Shall we then?�

Her other walked over to her side
and turned to look in the same direction as her host. �Like you really
have to ask?� she replied sarcastically.

In complete unison they drew
their swords and jumped into the intense battle still raging above. Kin blinked
a few times and rubbed her eyes just to make sure she hadn�t been seeing
things, then she sighed confusedly. �I don�t think
I�ve ever heard of an inner Hollow acting like that
before. Good grief, this family is just messed up when it comes to powers.�

She wasn�t about to allow herself
any more time away from the fighting, and so with a swift movement of her hand
her jacket had been discarded and Shunkou blasted to
life on her back.

Finally, Kin Urahara-Shihouin had
joined the fray.

To any outside observer, it would
seem like a suicide mission. Six people against a good two-hundred-plus evolved
Menos Grande�s. The thing to be thankful about was
because of their incomplete evolution, the Adjuchas
didn�t have zanpakutous. The downside of that same
fact was that they didn�t need them, they were
their own best weapons. They ranged in size from almost human-like to near
skyscraper level, and they were facing two�three if Ikasam
counted�fourteen year olds and three nineteen year olds.

Definitely
suicide�were the opponents in question not the children of some of the
strongest beings the worlds have ever known.

Kin was a blur in the air marked
only by the blue lightning that flashed every time she appeared. Her punches
had the force of tornadoes and her kicks were no less when it came to power.
The blasts of lightning she could shoot from her hands were just as terrifying
as the blade in said hands as it cleaved through opponents like butter.

She was no fool to being attacked
from behind, and before her newest attacker could even get his arms around her
she had jumped back and locked her ankles around his head before she gave a
sickening twist and with a shattering snap, his neck was broken and her
zanpakutou had been driven through for safe measure.

She was easily as fast as her
mother and the number of opponents almost blotted out the sky, and moving
within such a filled area was hard, though that meant no swing of her sword hit
dead air, and instead always hit something, be it hand
or head. She hadn�t called out her sword, but that wasn�t needed thanks to Shunkou adding dense Kidou to
every strike. Her bright golden hair shone in the light of her technique and
her eyes were mischievous even though the situation was so dire.

There were certain aspects of her
mother�s nature she just couldn�t hide.

Tsukiyomi
was as vicious as her father in her strikes, though there was planning behind
the blows that belied the angry movements of her blazing black sword. One by
one limbs and heads met the end of her blade and the intense inky fire
destroyed them instantly. She was no slouch at Shunpo,
though her opponents weren�t too stingy on using Sonido
either.

With a steady hand she parried
the claws of a large Adjucha away and watched as the being drew back its hand
in pain at the black fire that had held it at bay. With such a great number of
opponents, no side was left unguarded and she soon had stopped another strike
only to find yet another attacker coming at her from behind. She gritted her
teeth and with practiced movements, had slipped her foot into the loop at the
end of her zanpakutou�s cloth and surprised the
opponent in front of her by yanking her foot back and adding strength to the
force of the blade�s hold, slicing through him in one fell swoop before she let
go of the handle and swung the sword behind her with her foot, coming up right
between the legs of the other Adjucha that had been charging at her and slicing
him clean in two.

Now around her ankle, she rotated
the sword like a jump-rope and closed her eyes serenely like a dancer. Flames
circled her form as the blade swung around her as she switched it from foot to
foot and she flipped into action, sending the already swinging blade through
another target as her movements changed like a rhythmic dance and burned
through Hollows left and right without her even looking at her opponents. Like
Kaien, she had an acute sense of reiatsu and it wasn�t too hard for her to
sense her foes as she danced with the clothed zanpakutou. She smiled as she
felt the cloth extend and retract as she looped it around her wrist and sent
the blade flying in an opposite direction from what would be expected only
swinging from her feet, but the beauty of zanpakutous
is that the laws of the Living World rarely apply to them, and having something
like an infinitely extendable cloth is nothing. Case in point: Zangetsu.

It almost looked like it was
going to hit her many times but every time she would grab the ribbon at just
the right time and was able to easily direct the momentum of her fiery sword at
another opponent before she would once again start the spinning process with
her feet.

She was like a white ghost,
spiriting from place to place like an elegant dancer dancing to a tune only she
could hear as menacing black fire roared around her yet didn�t harm her. One by
one they purified around her yet even more took their place. Never once did she
falter, and it was only thanks to that that she was still alive. Suddenly a
hand had reached out and grabbed the cloth and Tsukiyomi
tripped and fell onto the air as her reiatsu kept her up. She looked over in
fear to see an Adjucha had managed to grab the cloth and now her flaming blade
was dangling harmlessly from its hand and she was at the mercy of all the
beings around her.

In a charge they all came at her
but before they got close a giant blast of energy had destroyed them all and
her zanpakutou fell back into her control once again. She looked over in
confusion to see a man standing on air about twenty feet away with an outstretched
fist in front of him. His dark bronze skin was only offset by his even darker
brown hair and she could see one eye visible from under his long bangs. He was
a good 6�5� and proportional to his height, and both of his arms were encased
in black armor; a shield-like left and a regular yet spiked-like right which
had spikes that flowed over his chest from the arm they were connected to.
Though a zanpakutou was sheathed at his side, he didn�t use it.

�Chad!� she cried out
gratefully. She hadn�t seen the large son of Yasutora
and Halibel in what seemed like ages. He nodded to
her and then turned to attack the rest as she smiled and restarted her elegant
movements, being sure to keep her sword as fast as it could possibly go to
defend against another mishap.

A little distance away, another
battle was taking place. One look at her sister and anyone would know the
gentle teen was just as fierce as her mother in battle. Masaki and Ikasam were much less elegant in their strikes, but that
was only from the point of view of the dancing style their sister used. Theirs
was no less awe-inspiring. Theirs may not look like a dance, but they were
smooth and synchronized. When one slashed right, the other slashed left. When
one slashed up, the other slashed down. If one was in danger of being attacked
from behind, the other would defend, and if one was being attacked, two swords
always met that opponent.

They were in complete unison
almost down to their breathing. Their moves matched each other perfectly with
no words being said or any hand gestures made. They simply reacted to the
situation in ways that would use the both of them to their fullest potential,
and the Adjuchas had no defense against their
swordsmanship as they evaporated faster and faster under the purifying strikes
of the zanpakutous.

One Adjucha attacked Masaki�s
blind spot and without even blinking Ikasam had
blocked the blow and Masaki had turned around and sliced through the attacker
without even looking at her inverted half and surprisingly she didn�t even come
close to hitting her. It was as if they could see through each others� eyes and
it was no less breathtaking to look at than Tsukiyomi�s
graceful dance of death.

�I haven�t had this much
fun in a long time!� Ikasam cheered with a
sick grin as she sliced through yet another Hollow. Masaki quickly blocked the
next attacker and like she hadn�t even been paying attention, Ikasam threw her sword to the side offhandedly and it flew
over and stabbed straight into the ugly insect�s head.

�I can see that,� Masaki answered
ruefully as she parried a blow but was unprepared for the amount of force
behind it and was launched at the ground viciously.

�Masaki!!�
The inner Hollow quickly rushed after her other half and was able to get behind
her to soften the blow. That didn�t mean she didn�t feel it when they both hit
the ground and hit it hard. �Damn, that�ll leave a mark��
she moaned pitifully as she tried to get her breath back.

They weren�t the only ones
hurting, as even with the abilities of those present there were too many to
completely fend off and none of them were totally unscathed except for the
newest arrival, but he was gaining a few wounds every now and then before he
obliterated the attackers. From Asuka�s battered
state to Souken�s sweaty one as he tried to fire
arrows while disregarding the bloody state of his left arm�the one he need to
fire his arrows�all of them had their own wounds. Kin�s were far more serious,
as they had managed to get to her legs in the time she had been fighting and
now large gashes adorned her left leg. She wasn�t a master of Shunpo for nothing and she could still move at a freakish
pace with only one leg, but eventually the wound would catch up with her and
she would be unable to move at the pace she needed to keep up her attacks and
defense.

In a battle like the one they
were in, any second wasted was a second closer to death and they both looked up
in fright to see a horde of Hollows descending on them. They were in no
position to repel them and even getting into an attack position would be hard
from their crater, so they looked on like death itself was coming on them in
the form of gnashing, animalistic Hollow teeth.

Before they could blink, the
bloodied Kin was in front of them, but there was no stopping the attack that
was like a tidal wave, regardless of Shunkou�s
abilities. Nevertheless, it seemed Kin was prepared to die protecting her
boyfriend�s family.

�GETSUGA TENSHOU!!!!�

Their eyes widened when a huge
wave of blue energy ripped over their crater and their protector and vaporized
the enemies that had been approaching them in the situation that had seemed so
futile.

�Daddy!�

�Daddy!�
They both cried out in relief and quickly jumped out of their crater.

The battle around them seemed to
stop as a reiatsu almost as powerful as Ichigo�s
pushed down on the air with crushing force and everyone turned to see the new
arrival.

It wasn�t Ichigo who had released
the trademark attack of Zangetsu, but Kaien.

No one moved as the reiatsu
roared viciously around them and the young man stood like Death itself outside
the door, the large black blade in hand. His hair shielded his eyes from view
and hung in spiky waves around his head, and his white jacket had been discarded
somewhere to reveal his bare muscled torso to the world as his breaths came in
heavy pants that showed in the terse movements of his spiritual body.

He was still obviously exhausted
even in that form, but when his head moved and his eyes glared up at the
arrivals there was no doubt that he was pissed. His yellow eyes were
glowing so brightly the bangs of his hair were lit in their light and his
muscles were tensed so tightly they were bulging against his skin. The larger
cause for concern was that his eyes weren�t only glowing like beacons,
what was worse was one eye had already completed a Hollowization
and the black ink was clawing at the sclera of his other eye, trying to
complete itself.

Kin was staring in wonder. Had
she not had Shunkou activated, there was no doubt in
her mind that she would be on the ground right now under the tremendous force
of his reiatsu, in her injured state or not. How much stronger did you
really get over those five years?! She thought in panic.

A low rumbling caught her
attention and she looked up in curiosity to see dark thunderclouds boiling in
over what had been a clear night sky moments before. She could see the
realization strike her friends though, because their faces�even Chad�s usually
emotionless one�were contorted in horror and they quickly vanished only to
reappear in the small crater Masaki and Ikasam were
in while Asuka tackled Kin into it too.

�Get down!!� she yelled
frantically over the growing sound of thunder.

Even from where they were, Kin
could still see the glittering metal as things fell from the sky and rained
down on the opponents. She saw them try to scramble away but many were hit and
some even in vital areas, where to her surprise they evaporated like in
purification. That was quickly explained when the torrent stopped and Kin was
able to look around and see that the shower had actually been zanpakutous. They varied in shape and size,
and from what Kin could only assume: ability.

There were almost too many to
count, and it took a second for her to realize what had happened. �Sweet Lord
in heaven�� she muttered breathlessly.

They were Kaien�s
zanpakutous.

�Reign Over The
Frozen Heavens! Hyourinmaru!!�

They all watched as the exhausted
body of their friend�or in a few cases, family�launched over their heads with
the familiar blade in hand and shot wave after wave of instantly frozen water
at the hordes of enemies. The Adjuchas tried to get
away but to no avail, and many met their end in the face of the red-eyed ice
dragon. That explained the weather at least.

Kaien wasn�t nearly done yet, and
after discarding the blade and reaching out his empty hands, two more shot up
into his outstretched palms before he put his hands together and what had once
been two blades became one. Floating over the unsuspecting masses, he brought
the sword up beside his head and muttered another release.

�Suzumushi
Form 2: Benihikou!!!�

As he swung the sword out, the
hundreds of blades that came from it flew down on the enemies and those not
absolutely destroyed by the assault were pinned to the ground, only to be
terrified when they realized the sword weren�t sticking into the ground. No,
for the ground beneath the blades� points was rippling, and they could only
watch in pain as the blades disappeared beneath the earth, going through the
excruciating ordeal of cutting through the holes they had made in their targets
in the process.

Kin watched in amazement as the
sky seemed to darken further and from each of the hundreds of blades that had
disappeared, a thousand blades rose up from the ground, these ones larger than
some of the largest Adjucha there. This was far more than Byakuya
Kuchiki�s Bankai, this was a fusion of zanpakutous
to make something far more deadly.

Something
almost beyond comprehension.

The giant blades seemingly
countless in number stood in the air for a horrifying second before Kaien
finally spoke the true name in an eerily calm voice.

�Bankai. Scatter, Senbonzakura
Kageyoshi.�

For those in the crater, their
entire world was glowing pink flower petals.

In what seemed like a moment the
blades had passed and disappeared and they all looked up to see the night sky
again�and there was only one Adjucha left out of the hundreds that had been
left even after their previous efforts. Kin watched as he landed on the ground
and the two zanpakutous fell to the ground beside him
in their sealed forms as he glared at the remaining Adjucha.

�You think you can come here, to my
home, attack my family, my friends!?! You think I�ll let you get
away with hurting my love!?! You expect to take over the realm of Hueco Mundo and here with ME
protecting it!? Now you listen asshole, I�ll die
before I allow that to happen!�

He didn�t reach for any of the
innumerable swords around him, no, instead he raised his arm to the side and
from his outstretched fist glowing red light started gathering. They saw the Adjucha�s eyes widen in fear and he ran away into the sky,
hoping to reopen the Garganta.

It wasn�t a Cero summoned to
fire, for as she watched she saw the intense spiritual energy flow up his arm
and all of the sudden red lightning exploded from his back with the sound of a
resounding thunderclap. The red energy tore up the ground as it sparked from
his back and his hair flew around him in disarray from the force created by his
technique.

Kin gulped heavily. Right then he
looked�amazing. His muscled chest was sweaty and glowing in the light of Cerokou, and his glowing yellow eyes fighting off the black
threatening to take them over were glaring at the retreating form of his last
enemy from under their tattooed lids. He looked like a fallen angel on ragged
wings of darkest red. Simply�beautiful.

In a blast of wind and a burst of
red light he had vanished and she shot her head over to the Adjucha just in
time for her to see him land a punch to its stomach so hard she could feel the
shockwaves from where she stood. Before the animal-like thing could recover he
started battering it every way with his fists and thanks to the extra speed he
gained he was able to catch up to the thing before it hit the ground every time
and punch it a different direction.

She half-expected him to call out
�hidden lotus�.

The agonized cries of the Adjucha
tore at her heart but she wouldn�t allow herself to feel pity for one of the
beings that had tried to attack Kaien�s home. She
could see the armor-like skin get battered and break with every new punch or
kick sent to him and she winced at the bloody mess he had become.

With one last angry kick, the human
sized Adjucha had been shot straight up into the air and like a bullet, Kaien
took off after him, sending one last punch to its gut that echoed in the
strange sound of a Cero gathering before the red attack blasted him apart
almost instantly after the punch was sent.

In less than five minutes Kaien
had annihilated the entire assemblage.

Kaien spit at the ground in
disgust at having to fight above his home but that was the last thing he was
able to do. The seven in the crater watched as clarity drew on them as his zanpakutous disappeared and the body still hovering in the
air fell to the earth like a rock.

�Kaien!�

�Kaien!�

�Kaien!�

Masaki, Ikasam,
and Tsukiyomi all shouted at once. They should have
realized in his exhausted state, no matter how strong he was, he still wouldn�t
be able to keep it up for long. It was probably a good thing too, because any
longer and there was no doubt to the growing strength of his Hollow nature,
something which wouldn�t have been satisfied with simply the destruction of those
enemies. They rushed from the crater and the three of them were able to catch
the body, immobile from his use of his zanpakutous, though
that wasn�t even noticed because he had fallen back asleep, completely and
utterly exhausted.

Kin wanted to go with them, but
since she had deactivated Shunkou, her cut leg could
barely support her, let alone move her at the speed she needed to catch him.

�Hello,� a soft male voice
greeted, and they all�but Chad�jumped
in surprise and turned around to see the adult Hanatarou
Yamada behind them. �I�m sorry I was so much trouble before. Nice
to see you again Miss Asuka, and you too Souken and Chad.�
Even as a taller adult, he still addressed everyone formally. Without saying
anymore he examined their wounds and withdrew his zanpakutou. �This won�t hurt
a bit.�

Kin still flinched when he
brought it down and even though she knew Asuka had Ierro, it was impulse. Thus her surprise when once the
blade struck, all of Asuka�s wounds disappeared and
the process was repeated with Souken and even the
large bronze giant that was Chad Sado. The gauge on
the blade was almost filled and though she didn�t know what that meant, she
still allowed him to �cut� her and she groaned happily when she felt her wounds
vanish.

�Fill up, Hisagomaru,�
he muttered softly and Kin watched as the zanpakutou shrunk to the scalpel-like
sword she had seen him carrying when he arrived. He walked over to where Masaki
and her other as well as Tsukiyomi were seated around
their brother and squatted down by him. �This one should help you recover a bit
faster. I�m sorry.�

With that apology in advance, he
looked over Kaien�s left arm before choosing an
acceptable spot and placing Hisagomaru�s edge there.
�Back away please. I only want him to get the smallest part of the release.�
Those around him nodded and jumped away.

To Kin�s shock, Hanatarou sliced his blade upward and a huge slash of
energy burst forth from the tiny blade, tearing through the ground away from Kaien�s arm. Hanatarou was a good
judge of distance, and the released energy only clipped his arm slightly in the
exact spot he had wanted. Even exhausted and asleep, the body of Kaien still
started shaking as the wound healed and yet another zanpakutou was added to his
collection. The soft breathing of his sleep turned ragged but with the energy
released, Hanatarou merely tried to �cut� him again,
and his breathing immediately evened out.

�What did you do?� Kin asked in
wonder as she walked up beside him and knelt down beside her boyfriend.

Hanatarou
smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head. �My zanpakutou absorbs the
wounds of those it cuts and once the gauge fills, it can release all the energy
in one huge strike. I went to see Ichigo and the others many times while they
were in Hueco Mundo, but because
of Hisagomaru�s ability I was never able to give him a
cut so he could use it too. Thanks to your injuries I was able to do that, and
hopefully it�ll help him. From what I understand of his power, I should have
helped him get over the seizures faster.�

Kin breathed a sigh of relief.
�I�m sure he appreciates it. I�m��

Unlike the old Hanatarou, this time he actually interrupted someone. �Miss
Kin, aren�t you? I�ve heard many stories about you from Kaien when I went to
visit. He talked of you often,� he remembered fondly and Kin felt herself blush
under the soft-spoken man�s words. �We should go inside now, he needs his
rest.�

The group which had now fully
assembled nodded at once and Chad
picked up the form of his fallen friend as he lay sleeping like he weighed less
than nothing while Kin followed right beside him.

After he had been put into his
bed, the others that remained awake sat silently in one of the living room
areas the giant headquarters-like mansion that had been given to Ichigo and Tatsuki.

�Would you care to tell us how
you came to be hurt and exhausted right in front of this house?� Souken asked Hanatarou in typical
Quincy
straightforward fashion after the long silence.

Hanatarou�s
always uncertain eyes darted to the side. �I think it would be best if I waited
until Ichigo was back until I explain everything.�

The Quincy nodded in understanding. �So Chad, what
brought you here?� he asked, easily changing the topic.

Chad glanced up from where he had
been talking quietly to Tsukiyomi. �Ichigo and the
others were fending off an attack on Las Noches. He
and Dad thought it was a good idea for me to come here because of Kaien�s exhaustion,� he responded, with the same low and gentle
voice that made his father who he was.

�It�s a good thing too,� Tsukiyomi muttered, almost bitterly. �If you hadn�t arrived
when you did I would�ve been vulture fodder.�

�Yeah, it was the same thing with
me and Kaien�s grand entrance. Even in his
exhaustion, he still defeated all those things so easily. I had no idea he
could also use the Bankai�s of his zanpakutous,� she said, unable to keep the awe out of her
voice.

�That took some serious time to
achieve,� Asuka answered. �It isn�t that he uses the Bankai of the swords he�s absorbed�well, he does, but since
there are no spirits with those zanpakutous because
he himself is the spirit, he basically forces himself into Bankai.� She saw Kin gulp, and knew the genius teen
understood. �He didn�t force any of the spirits into submission because there
aren�t any; he had to force himself into submission. That meant he had
to have complete control over his body, and that�s harder than it sounds.
Until�you know, I�ve never seen him get so close to losing control. I don�t
know how he knew when he had done it enough to gain the Ban release, but
somehow he did. Must be a part of his nature I guess.�

Kin looked down sadly. She knew
what �you know� meant, she knew very well. She wasn�t going to let that happen ever
again. �Amazing� Shikai, Bankai,
and that crazy Cero version of Shunkou too; how much
more power can he get?�

Ikasam
gave an unladylike snort and flicked some of her white hair behind her head as
she resumed cuddling into Masaki�s side like she didn�t like the interruption
of conversation. �Who knows? All four of us don�t even know if we have
limits or not, so the way I see it is as long as we�re still alive we�ll get
stronger. Simple as that.�

Kin still couldn�t help but be a
little perturbed that there was a spiritual entity that should be restricted to
the inner world of Masaki out in the physical world, but she bit back her
uncertainty under the knowledge that the Kurosaki�s were anything but normal
and such an occurrence shouldn�t really be that surprising. That didn�t stop it
from being so, but it would lessen over time.

She hoped.

All they could do now was talk
and wait until Ichigo and Tatsuki came back and Kaien woke up. They would be no
help in Hueco Mundo and
they had to stay there if there was another attack, especially with Kaien still
incapacitated.

It was a tense wait, to say the
least.

~~~~~~~~~

Ichigo mumbled a curse as he
stepped out of the Garganta with Tatsuki right beside
him. One of the Adjuchas had gotten lucky and managed
to slice open his arm pretty good, so he had bandages covering the healing
appendage but it still didn�t like being moved. He hadn�t let Tatsuki fight,
naturally; he wouldn�t do anything to endanger the baby. Anything.

As they stepped onto the ground
of their immense backyard they could see the remnants of the battle that had
taken place. Scorched ground was everywhere, as were many broken pieces of earth
or concrete from either feet, paws, or numerous impact points. What instantly
alerted him to the change the battle had taken was the frozen pieces of ground
and roof in a few places and the many stab points embedded into the ground and
cement patio. They both knew that could only be caused by one thing, and the incredible
reiatsu that hung in the air even now confirmed their thoughts.

Kaien had fought too, and he
hadn�t been nice about it either.

�You alright?� he asked his wife
as she stepped out of the Garganta, just to make
sure.

Tatsuki rolled her eyes and put
her hands on her hips in frustration. �I�m pregnant, Ichigo, not disabled.�
Unlike him, she was still in her physical body, as unlike Soul Society, Hueco Mundo didn�t need special
exchangers to change the physical body into spirit form. It was unknown what
would happen to the baby if she left her physical body when pregnant, as it was
common knowledge that the body went into a near-death state when the soul was
pulled from it, so the effects that would have on the baby was impossible to
determine.

Ichigo wasn�t going to risk it.

He hated leaving Hanatarou and Nemu in the states
they were in, but his first priority was his wife�s safety and he also had to
make sure Hueco Mundo was
safe too, which true to his predictions, it hadn�t. There had been no warning
for the attack at all, though there rarely was before. He should have known it
would have taken a few weeks for word to get out about Tatsuki�s
pregnancy and even then it would have taken at least a day or so before the Adjuchas found out about it. It had been plain bad luck
that Kaien had exhausted himself just hours before the attack.

He opened the door for his wife
and she sighed dramatically and stepped inside, where he followed. When they
came to the living room they saw all occupants of the house awake and waiting
except Kaien and Nemu.

�So, was there only one wave this
time?� he asked outright, just to make sure.

Tsukiyomi
nodded. �Yeah. They were stronger than usual though.
If Kaien hadn�t have woken up then�yeah�I don�t know how many of us would still
be here talking to you.� She saw her father�s eyes widen in fright and she
winced subconsciously. She hated making her dad worry, because talking to Ogihci when Ichigo was worried wasn�t the most pleasant
thing in the world, and she loved talking to both aspects of her father.

�It was my fault,� Masaki
admitted ashamedly. �I got me and Ikasam into a bad
situation and we couldn�t fight back in time. If we had released our swords it
would�ve been a different story, but by the time we realized that was even
necessary we had made our own crater and were in no position to call them out.
Kin tried to help us but she was in pretty bad shape too. If Kaien hadn�t been
there we would�ve been goners, but Chad, Tsuki,
Asuka and Souken would have
probably finished them off after that.�

Asuka
bit the inside of her cheek nervously. �I didn�t want to use Desgarron here. I might have been able to destroy most of
them but I also would�ve destroyed most of your home.�

Ichigo smiled softly at the
worried second-generation hybrid and walked over to put a hand on one of her
shuddering shoulders. She had an ingrained fear of him just because he was her
King, regardless of how she treated her Queen. �It�s okay Asuka,
I never asked about what you did or didn�t do. The important thing is you�re
all okay and they�re all gone.�

Asuka
mumbled an incoherent thank-you and buried her head into the chest of her
husband. The powerful teen would never admit it, but she had been scared to
death of retribution.

Ichigo stood up straight and let
loose a long exhalation before he flopped down on one of the unattended couches
and Tatsuki�while sighing at the childishness of her husband�followed suit. �Finally home! Hanatarou, glad to
see you up and about, you okay?�

Aforementioned man nodded. �I�m
very well now, thank you.�

�Oh don�t thank me,� Ichigo
retorted comically. �Kaien did everything, I just
guided him along every now and then.�

Hanatarou�s
eyes widened even wider than they were in their natural state�which was saying
something�before they softened. �It�s almost hard to believe how much time has
passed. Before, I lost track of time so easily, but ever since you came and
everyone started having children it just seems to fly by. He�s just like you.�
It was strange to think of someone like Hanatarou as
an elder, but technically he was older than Ichigo, so who knew how many
years could have passed him by already.

�Did something happen in Soul
Society? I know the Adjuchas attacked here and Las Noches,
did they also attack Soul Society?� Ichigo asked concernedly. He still hadn�t
forgotten about the state Kaien and the others had found him and his lover in.
He had never seen Hanatarou look so distraught
before, and that was something, considering the Fourth Division was constantly
looked down upon.

�N-No,� he stuttered. �There was
no attack in Soul Society. Everyone�s fine, and
missing you by the way. Even Miss Rangiku has been
complaining that her little girl hasn�t been able to play with the twins for a
while.�

Tatsuki rubbed the back of her
head sheepishly. �Yeah, we haven�t been to the Society in a while, have we?
Christmas Break just started, so I�m sure we could persuade everyone to go for
a little vacation, right?� she asked, and the three girls nodded, though Ikasam likely wouldn�t get to stay out during such a visit.

Ichigo glared playfully up at his
wife. �BUT, we�d have to have a gate with Spirit Converters, because right now
we can�t have you leaving your body. You haven�t forgotten that little fact,
have you?�

Tatsuki crossed her arms over her
chest and fumed silently. �No, Mr. Worrywart, I haven�t forgotten that
little fact.�

Being a medical specialist, Hanatarou was able to quickly read between the lines. �Miss
Tatsuki�you�re pregnant?�

Ichigo grinned broadly, the same
dumb-ass grin that looked way too much like his father�s. �She sure is!�

Hanatarou
lowered his eyes and wrung his hands together worriedly. �Congratulations.�

�Hey, what�s wrong?� the
orange-haired captain asked immediately after noticing the way his friend was
acting.

�I too, have also become
pregnant,� a gentle voice said softly from behind them, and everyone in the
room looked over simultaneously to see Nemu Kurotsuchi standing in the same ladylike pose she always
did right behind them.

Ichigo�s
face instantly lit up. �Hanatarou!!
That�s amazing news! Why didn�t you tell us earlier!?�

The same worried face and
wringing hands answered him, and he looked in confusion at him as Nemu walked over to her lover and sat down in his lap
gently, something she wouldn�t dare do in the open in Soul Society.

�Master Mayuri
was not pleased when he found out. Our relationship has remained hidden for the
past nineteen years, and this was not the best circumstance under which to tell
him,� she explained formally, just like she always did. There was a tinge of
sadness to her voice though, and almost unimaginable pain just beyond its
borders.

The normally calm and stoic woman
openly cringed when she saw the realization gradually dawn on the
bright-eyed captain, as those bright eyes went wide before they narrowed to
almost inhuman proportions and she knew his skin wasn�t getting lighter because
he was paling in shock. Oh no, he was undergoing a very frightening change that
was a very powerful part of who he was.

�I�ll kill him!� Ichigo
hissed viciously as he slammed his fist down on the coffee table so hard it
shattered, and everyone in the room jumped except Nemu
and Hanatarou. His reiatsu vibrated around them in
his anger and Hanatarou clutched Nemu
closer to him as if he could feel her fear growing without her even saying
anything.

�Please Ichigo, all we ask is
that you give us a place to stay for a little while. The wounds I gave Captain Kurotsuchi should take him a while to heal, so please don�t
rush out on our account.�

The white-haired Ichigo cocked an
eyebrow at him. �You hurt him?�

For the first time in his life he
saw Hanatarou�s eyes harden in hatred. �He hurt Nemu. I wasn�t willing to give him the possibility of
hurting our baby, but I couldn�t stop him from hurting her, as much as tried to.�

With what was obviously a great
deal of difficulty, Ichigo calmed down and let loose a long breath that took
his White Transformation with it. �Fine. I�ll give the
bastard �till after Christmas. December twenty-sixth we�re going over there and
I�m making sure nothing will ever happen to you two or your child,
diplomatically or not, got that?� It sounded more like a threat than a promise.

�Y-Yes,� the healer stuttered.

Ichigo�s
eyes narrowed and he shrunk back when he saw the yellow pigment start
overtaking them again. �Diplomatically or not.�

To his surprise, Nemu actually nodded with what was
definitely great relief written on her face. �Thank you, Captain
Kurosaki.� It sounded sincerely heartfelt.

Ichigo had never been able to
keep up an angry front in front of a woman before, and it had even less effect
when said woman looked like she had finally found a reason for living again.
His eyes softened and he smiled embarrassedly. �Ah, don�t worry about it; and Ichigo�s fine by the way. You can take whatever room you
want, I�ll be sure to set up a barrier around it so you won�t be disturbed
unless you want to be.�

Nemu
stood up from where she had been seated and bowed gratefully. �Thank you
Ca�Ichigo.� She looked over at her lover with the same demure look she showed
everyone, but this one had actual warmth in it. �Shall we check our
accommodations then?�

Being the person he was, what
else could Hanatarou Yamada say? �Sure.�

Leaning lovingly on her
significant other, the two left the living room.

When they were gone, Tatsuki set
a hand on her belly softly. �It looks like you won�t be alone little guy,� she
crooned lowly and allowed herself to relax into her husband�s side when he sat
down beside her and joined his hand to hers.

�You two are such a bunch
of saps,� Ikasam groused irritably. The
others in the room had been thinking it, but only an inner Hollow would have
the courage�or what could be better known as stupidity�to voice it out loud.

Tatsuki looked up and sent a
mother�s most potent weapon at the inverted half of her daughter�s soul. �The Evil Eye.� The white teenager gulped heavily and seemed
to shrink in size while trying to crawl back into Masaki by force. Ikasam wasn�t any ordinary garden-variety inner Hollow, but
even she could be intimidated. The fact that she recognized the fact
that Tatsuki was her mother was the greatest driving force behind that.

Kin was the only one alone. Chad was
sitting by Tsukiyomi, Asuka
was with Souken, Masaki was with�herself, and Ichigo
was with Tatsuki. Even though Chad
and Tsukiyomi weren�t a couple, at least they were
talking. Kin didn�t know what to say anymore. She had alienated herself for
five years from these people, and though conversation wasn�t impossible, it was
hard to initiate when this many of them were together. It wouldn�t have been so
awkward if Kaien were with her, but he was exhausted beyond comprehension.

Come to think of it, I�m
pretty tired too, she realized almost laughably late. Fighting a battle
like the one they had just been in had taken it�s toll, and staying up even
later on watch for any more waves after that hadn�t helped matters. There were
two options for a situation like this, and she found she liked one far more
than the other.

�Umm, would it be all right if I
spent the night?� Kin asked while stifling a large cat-like yawn.

Ichigo smiled warmly. �No
problem. Not only did you fight a battle you had nothing to do with, but you
were prepared to die for my daughters from what they�ve said. Even if we hadn�t
known you since you were knee-high, you�d still be getting the presidential
treatment in my books. Thanks for everything, Kin. Have a good night.�

Kin nodded sleepily. �Kaien
wouldn�t have hesitated to do any less. But thanks, I�ll do that.� With that,
she forced her unwilling legs to move and left the room.

She wasn�t going to a guest room.
There was only one place where she felt comfortable beyond description, and she
wasn�t going to be somewhere else when she could be there. She opened the door
softly just in case, and smiled as even in the dark, her unique eyes made out Kaien�s form sleeping motionlessly on the bed. Even if his
body wanted to move in his sleep, as he was, he couldn�t move a muscle. She
returned back to her physical body and sighed in relief at the difference in
material between her two forms. She was still in her school uniform, as they
were going to stop off at her house after they had went to his because hers was
on the way to where they were going to go. Both outfits were comfortable, but
her Soul Reaper garments were sweaty and bloody and these weren�t, so the one
more likable was obvious.

She removed the precious scarf
from around her neck and undid her hair from its usual ponytail. Had she been
at home, she would have changed into her pajamas, but be it that she wasn�t and
she had no energy left for Shunpo, she would just
have to sleep in what she was wearing for tonight. There was always the option
of sleeping in her undergarments, but since Kaien would eventually wake
up, she didn�t want him to think badly of her considering they hadn�t even
gotten to that stage yet�whether she wanted them to or not. She looked over
offhandedly and suddenly a much better solution appeared to her, one she
preferred much more.

She slipped off her uniform and
picked up the discarded shirt she had seen thrown on one of his dressers. Just
like she thought, the white school shirt he had been wearing for the past few
weeks was almost three times too big on her, and it covered her perfectly while
being loose enough to offer mobility in her sleep. On a whim, she lifted the
collar now hanging limply around her neck and sniffed heavily. Instantly the
scent she knew almost as good as her own hit her nose, the scent she reveled in
every time she raised the scarf he had given her to her nose. Though the two
scents were definitely from the same source, they were different. The weaved
hair of her scarf smelled natural with a tinge of what she could only guess to
be remnants of shampoo and conditioner, while the shirt around her smelled like
the unique musk he exuded mixed with the light addition of cologne. This was
the scent of her love, and the scent she wished she had had all through the
five years he had been away.

Needless to say, the shirt was quickly
adopted as her own.

She nestled into the place in his
side she had found she fit in perfectly and relaxed into him as she found sleep
harder and harder to elude.

It was almost funny; they could
sleep in the same bed together, but they wouldn�t sleep sleep together.

�I love you Kaien,� she whispered
sleepily before her eyes closed and she nodded off almost immediately after.

Kaien�s
arms wrapped around her protectively and even while sleeping, a small smile
formed on his face.

This was one thing even his
exhausted muscles would force themselves to do.

~~~~~~~~

Kaien hated waking up like this.
He could move, that was something to be thankful for, but his muscles ached. Bankai took more out of him than simple Shikai,
and that was seen more in the state of his body than the time he needed to wait
before he could move. There was no time difference, just a difference in how
his body reacted.

His aching muscles finally seemed
to input that they still had nerves attached, and that was when he noticed that
not only was there extra pressure being put on him, but that the thing making
that pressure was soft and warm.

And in his
arms.

He forced his eyes open and was
relieved when only dim gray light answered him, rather than bright white. That
meant it was early morning, either that or it was overcast outside. He looked
down and his eyes widened when he saw the sleeping woman cuddled up into his
side, the thing which he had his arms around. Her chocolate skin wasn�t
anything like his healthy peach, and he had to admit she looked absolutely
gorgeous meshed against his pale side. He could feel one of her legs wrapped
over one of his own, and he looked further down to see the bare flesh of her
sculpted leg covering the one of his nearest her. It was then he noticed that
he seemed to be seeing a lot more skin than he was used to, and hesitantly he
trailed his eyes up her leg to thankfully be stopped by the flap of white
material.

Wait a minute, something�s not
adding up here. The school�s uniform fit her so perfectly it was almost a
crime, so for it to be going that far down either meant it was longer than it
looked or�. The answer hit him when he took a sniff in, and he gulped heavily
while he cursed the problem that afflicted every male in the morning, now
having no reason to go away.

The shirt was his.

Damn if that hadn�t been one of
his fantasies for the longest time. To wake up with her in his arms with only
one of his shirts covering her; that was practically every male�s dream when it
came to the person they loved. He was thankful they had put him back in his
body before they had let him sleep, because getting into it was always
uncomfortable after recovering, so it was a lot easier to simply go through the
process while in it. That, and because his physical body
still had pants on. Her bright golden hair was strewn everywhere around
her head, and it was stunning to look at. He had to see her awake with it down.
Ever since he had come back he had never seen her without it, and sleeping she
looked like an Amazonian goddess with a river of gold seemingly flowing without
end from her dark skin.

He shuffled away from her
slightly so he could rest on his side rather than his back and much to his
chagrin, she instantly whined in loss and cuddled right up against his chest
and further into his arms.

Boy, did that plan backfire,
he thought while fighting off the blush rising on his cheeks. Feeling soft
feminine flesh almost directly against his pelvis was a situation any guy would
dream to have, but for his plan to work he had to wait. Now, getting his
hormones to agree with him was another matter altogether.

Carefully, very, very
carefully, he scooted down until her sleeping face was right in front of his,
and not only did it give him a much better view of her flawless face, but it
also removed his hips from being all but pasted to her. Taking a hand off her
side, he gently caressed it down her cheek and smiled lovingly when he saw her
smile in her sleep and give a small hmm of
approval. She looked like an angel when she slept, but then again to him she
looked like an angel even when she was wiping off the dirt from her face after
just destroying a Hollow with her bare hands.

He could have laid
there all day and simply watched her sleep, but her lips were looking more and
more tempting the more time went on, and finally he gave in and set a small
kiss against them. Her hmm was more pronounced
this time, and her arms came up over her head to try and stretch only to hit
the hand that had stayed softly on her cheek. She blinked sleepily in confusion
and out of curiosity she grabbed what had stopped her stretch, thus putting her
small hand over his larger one. She smiled contently and rubbed the hand down
her cheek again. Even half asleep, she knew whose it was.

�Good morning,� she mumbled
half-lucidly as she finally opened her eyes for the purpose of seeing and as
soon as her eyes adjusted, she was gradually confronted with the face of her
boyfriend, smiling over at her like he had just watched the sun rise.

�Good morning to you too,� he
whispered back, and this time it was her who suddenly threw an arm lazily over
his neck until her hand had grabbed the back of his head and then she had
pulled him to her, thus allowing her to press her lips to his in full
consciousness.

If waking up could be better than
this, she didn�t see how.

�You�re wearing my shirt,� he pointed
out with a smile.

She looked down on the crumpled
white garment she was wearing then back at him. �This is my shirt,� she replied
with a pout, and he instantly smiled wider. That was exactly like Kin all
right.

�Of course, I wonder what came
over me?� he played along, and in response she snuggled back into him and
breathed in heavily from the crook of his neck.

�Hmmm, I like the source much
better though.�

God, could her voice get any
sexier!? Her voice was low, sleepy, and had an airiness to it that showed
her contentment. It was the sexiest thing he had ever heard.

A shiver went through him and he
put his head at the nape of her neck too, far more affected than her when his
hypersensitive nose inhaled her scent. �Well wouldn�t you know it, that belongs to you too.�

She grinned into his skin. �I�m
going to hold you to that,� she whispered huskily, and the shiver that went
through him that time was far stronger.

He smiled and moved her so they
could kiss again. He would never tire of her lips. Never.
�Soon, I promise.� It was almost comical, how the roles had been reversed.
Usually it was the woman that held back, and this time it was the man.

Instead of pouting, she smiled
adoringly and rubbed a lithe hand down his cheek. It felt way better than it
was supposed to. �I know. I�ll be waiting.� She surprised herself with
how patient and loving she sounded. Love did that to people, and so did the
fact that she had a plan of her own.

�Breakfast?�

She nodded and rolled away from
him onto her back and stretched out, cracking her back off the bed and thus
jutting her chest straight into the air before she fell back to the bed with a
relaxed sigh. Kaien was fighting the blush off his face with renewed vigor, as
the long stretch had made the shirt ride up and he was sure the white material
on her legs wasn�t that of the shirt.

Four more days, four more
days, four more days�.That was his mantra, the thing he used to will his
uncooperative body into submission again. He sighed when his body finally went
back to normal and he shuffled off his bed and stood up to his full height to
do a stretch of his own. He heard a sharp gasp behind him and he would have
turned around, but he wasn�t able to because she was right behind him in less
than a second, running her hands down the long scar running from his right
shoulder to left hip.

�What is this!?� she asked
concernedly, and he sighed again.

He had forgotten about that one.

�No matter what, the first cut I
get from a zanpakutou I�ve never been cut with before scars over. This is one
of the few that managed to catch me off-guard; that�s all. A sparring match got
a little too heated and I ended up getting my ego handed to me on a platter,�
he explained, trying to make light out of the wound. The Vastro-Lorde
that had done it had been mortified beyond belief that she had actually been
able to hit him like that and it was only because of that that she was still
alive, otherwise Ichigo would have purified her right there.

He felt her arms wind around his
waist from behind and her head was pressed against his back as she molded
herself to him like a lover who didn�t want their love to leave. �You�re always
getting hurt because of me. If I hadn�t kissed you back then you wouldn�t have
released your reiatsu and you wouldn�t have gotten hurt by that Menos, and if I hadn�t gotten hurt by that Menos then you would have stayed with me and not left to
train. It seems like you�re always getting hurt because of what I�ve done.�

While trying to disregard the
thoughts of how female emotions can turn on a dime, Kaien turned around in her
grip and hugged her back. �I�m not getting hurt because of you,
I�m making the choice willingly. If anything, I�m getting hurt for you.
If I can get stronger by gaining an extra scar or two so I can protect you better,
then I�d do it in a heartbeat. The pain of these cuts was short-lived, but just
thinking of you getting hurt because of my inability to protect you lingers in
my heart for far longer. If I can take these scars so you won�t have to,
they�ll be cuts I�ll feel no shame in receiving.�

Her grip around him got tighter
and she nodded into his chest, trying to fight off a bout of sniffles that was
unlike a woman of her strength. �You�re just a chauvinistic male,� she joked
weakly.

He chuckled lightly. �Oh no, I
don�t doubt your ability to beat me into the ground, but I can�t be your knight
in shining armor without getting a few war-wounds, can I?�

She gave a reluctant laugh.
�You�re such a damn sap, just like your dad.� This time he smiled and gave a full
laugh as he stoked his hand through her long unbound hair, something he
realized he liked just as much as seeing it. Maybe he�d have to talk to her
about leaving it down sometime.

�I�ll take that as a compliment.
Now come on, let�s go get some breakfast.�

She nodded again, but she wasn�t
quite ready to let him go just yet.

~~~~~~~~~

The day had gone by without a
hitch after that, and it was the most fun Kin had had in a long time. It didn�t
even matter what they did, because as long as she was with him it was fine. It
was abnormally cold, even though it was winter, and the jacket she
usually wore just for show had actually become necessary.

Kin Urahara woke up the next day
feeling invigorated and refreshed, something she usually only attributed to
shampoo commercials. She smiled as she stretched out on her bed at
home�sleeping with Kaien was nice, but she couldn�t really justify it to her
parents unless there was another battle without insinuating�other things�and
welcomed the new day. As she got up she felt it: the first inconvenient cramp.
Immediately her mood soured, another aspect of that
particular function.

That right there pretty much
eliminated any chance of seeing Kaien for the next two days.

One part of her wanted to go and
see him anyway, but the other, more prominent part beat that part down rather
harshly and reminded her what had happened the last time this had happened.

This is just great, and only three days before Christmas too! She
fumed. That meant the next time she would see him would be Christmas Eve, and
though that worked perfectly for her plan, she hadn�t anticipated not being
able to see him at all for the time between those days.

Going into her daily routine
briskly, she quickly phoned Tatsuki to make sure the information was passed along,
even if his mother had to make up another excuse. She hated the fact that her
boyfriend would have to be so personally aware of her bodily status. It didn�t
help that that put a bit of a wrench into her plans. She needed to prepare, and
yet in this state he would easily smell her. She could hide her reiatsu easily,
she was a master of Kidou after all, but hiding her
scent wasn�t something she was used to or was even sure was possible to
do.

Wait a minute. Kidou�. She thought as an idea struck the genius teen.
It wasn�t so much the word Kidou that had triggered
her idea, but a more expansive part of that word: barriers.

Her sly grin would have made Ogihci proud.

It was time for her to do some
shopping, both for Christmas gifts and�otherwise.

�Joy to the world�� she snickered
mischievously as she rubbed her hands together in glee.

She did take after her
father too after all.

~~~~~~~~

Author�s Notes: The next update might be after Christmas, but I
might just make it in time. It�s Christmas themed, so
be ready for that. Thanks for all your time and I hope you enjoyed the updates!

To all those who leave (or left,
since I put these all up at the same time) reviews, thank you very much and I
hope you continue to enjoy my story!
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