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Masquerade Between Hell and Justice	By : Karmira Category: Bleach > General Views: 3498 -:- 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.

Chapter List
- 4
- 5
- 6
AUTHOR’S NOTE: I know I haven’t been updating consistently. There’s a lot of drama in RL on my part, including all the chaos of moving into a new house and packing up the old one. But by the end of November, I should start updating more regularly.

Thank you for your patience. Please leave a review if you have the chance.

The elusive Gin appears and we see the Kurosaki family dynamic ...

Chapter Four: Mischief from the Shop

Karin halted at the doorstep to her house, grinning from ear to ear at her success at not only securing the hat but also her steady shunpo. She spun the hat on her finger as she walked into the house. "I'm back," she hollered, stepping out of her shoes.

"Well it's about time." Her father's voice rang out as he entered from another room. Seeing the shopkeeper’s hat in her hand, he laughed. "I am shocked Urahara did not beat you here." Her rubbed the top of Karin's head as he walked past her. "How'd ya get it?"

Karin let her dad ruffle her hair for a moment before pushing his arm away. "Stole it when he was foolish enough to let go of it," she explained with no sign of remorse. She sat at the table and twirled the hat again. "He keeps telling me to seize any opportunity. That's what I did." She paused in the spinning of her prize. "Though I am surprised that he hasn't appeared yet. Maybe I got a decoy."

"Decoy or not, its still his hat, right?" Isshin laughed. "So does this mean he is going to train you now? Your brother would be proud of you." He walked over sitting at the table with her as a knock came to the front door.

"Ah! There he is!" Isshin stood to answer the door.

. . . . .

Kita waited, standing on the front step, for someone to answer the door, and when Isshin answered, she smiled brightly. "Hello Mister Kurosaki. I was wondering if I could speak with Karin?"

"Well, of course you can, Kita. Come on in." Isshin opened the door further for her. "It's nice to see you again, and it has been awhile since you have stopped by.” He led her into the house. “You and Ichi aren't fighting, are you?"

Kita giggled softly as she followed Isshin into the main room. There sat Karin with Kisuke's hat spinning on the end of her finger. She giggled again and then looked to Isshin.

"No, not at all. Me and Ichigo get along fine. I don't think he and I have ever fought. Let alone had foul words with one another. You don’t need to worry.“ She looked back to Karin. "I actually came to get Kisuke's hat. It's my fault Karin has it."

Listening, Karin frowned. "He didn't come himself?!” she asked. “Darn it!" She tossed the top hat towards the family friend. "I guess that wasn't enough to get a real reaction from him." Waving her hands, she sat at the table again. "it's my loss.”

Kita giggled, catching the hat as it was tossed to her. "Sorry Karin, but it doesn't count when I was the one that took the hat from his head." She put the hat on and looked to Isshin. "I will be on my way so you can have dinner in peace." She bowed to Isshin then the family. "Thank you and have a wonderful evening."

"What's going on down here? Why's it so loud?" Ichigo said, coming down from his room.

Kita looked Ichigo's way. "Hello, Ichigo. Long time no see. Sorry if we were a little loud." She replied with a giggle as she adjusted the hat on her head.

"No, problem," Ichigo grinned. "What brings you here, Kita? I figured you would be at Kisuke's."

"Well I was, but I had to come get Kisuke's hat." She told him, tipping the hat to him. "I kinda let Karin get ahold of it when I had it.”

Ichigo chucked. "Really? You two managed to get a hold of that ugly hat?" He raised his hands to each of them for high fives. "Nice~

Karin's high five was automatic but not as crazy as her brother. "I was hoping he would come get it himself, but since Kita is here, I'm gave it back. I guess it takes more than just having the hat to make the shopkeeper rise to a challenge." She tilted her head up at her insanely tall brother. "How did you do it?"

Kita high fived Ichigo as well and started snickering when Karin asked her question.

Ichigo gave a slightly annoyed huff at the thought of Kisuke's training. "It's not me, it's him. Then again, sometimes you just have to pester him until he does what you want. He's totally nuts."

"Yep, I have even learned that in the last few years and I am not even being trained by him." Kita said as she turned waving over her shoulder. "Well, I need to get his hat back to him before he has a coronary." She laughed softly, "I will see you all later."

Ichigo and Karin told her bye as she walked from the room.

"Later, Kita. Say hi for me," Ichigo waved to her as she slipped on her shoes.

After saying her goodbye, Karin folded her arms and looked at the floor. "So I have to do something else beyond surprise attacking him..." she murmured.

Ichigo laughed and patted his kids sister's head. "Give it u,p Karin. That guy is nuts. He'll come around eventually, when he's ready.”

"Yeah, yeah," Karin mumbled, pushing the hand away from her hair and patting it down. “When have you ever seen me give up on something I'm interested in?"

Ichigo smiled and shrugged, heading back up to his room. "Just be careful. Don't get dragged into anything too dangerous. And give Kisuke a run for his money once he does respond."

"I can manage that," Karin grinned. As Ichigo started up the stairs, she hollered, "Don't go skipping dinner. It should be done soon." She then sat at the table, drumming her fingers as she contemplated new plans of attack. Stopping her brooding when her twin called out to her.

---------

After stopping by Urahara’s Shop and dropping off Kisuke's hat, Kita decided to take the long way home. She had things on her mind that she needed to clear off before she got there and her parents started in with the 20 questions. Kisuke protecting her and not giving a real reason being one of them. Sighing, she walked over to a nearby bench and sat down.

"What did he mean?" Kita looked up into the clear night sky. "What did he mean my godly ... What am I?" She sighed once and continued looking up at the stars, her hand folded in her lap.

"A penny for your thoughts?" a voice called out from ahead of her. Silver hair gleaming in the night light, Gin pulled away from the tree he'd been leaning on. He smirked. "Was all the fuss over that man giving you a necklace?" he teased.

Kita lowered her eyes from the night sky and looked the way of the silver fox that walked toward her. "Hello Gin, and I guess that’s part of it. Yes. Trying to get a straight answer out of any of you is like pulling teeth. Why must things be so hard?" She scooted over on the bench to make room for Gin to sit next to her. "So how have you been? I have not seen you around for a while." She tilted her head and looked at him. "You're staying out of trouble, right? No contact with your former Boss, right?"

At the last question in the rush, Gin lifted his finger to her lips, and still grinning, replied, "A fox never tells all of his secrets." He propped said hand under his chin. "But I suppose with all the riddles around you, there is no harm in my saying that I have not been fraternizing the enemy." He looked up at the starlet sky. "I won't be telling ya where I've been though~"

Kita giggled softly looking back up at the night sky as well. "And I would not be asking for details. We all have secrets." She smiled warmly and looked over at him. "Ones even we ourselves are not aware of, it seems." She gazed at him for a few seconds as he watched the stars and then looked to her hands in her lap. "What am I, Gin?"

Gin's smile didn't change. His eyes were hidden by his long bangs. "You're an innocent soul whom people want to protect. Do you really need to know more?"

Looking from Gin once more she sighed looking to her hands again. "There's more. I know there is. If it were that simple, Kisuke would have said that. And this..." Kita paused and lifted the charm from her neck, “would not be around my neck. And an undying promise to never take it off would have not been made."

Just then, Kita heard a ripping noise coming from across the park. She turned her head, seeing nothing … and then a black opening started to appear. She had no clue if Gin was seeing what she was seeing and she could not take her eyes from it.

Stepping into the night air of Karakura, Loki looked around the area. "A park. Well, it seems I am not far off from what I was told of my target’s living arrangements." Loki turned as his eyes caught a couple sitting at a bench not far off.

Walking forward, hands deep in his pockets, Ulquiorra glanced in the same direction and paused. He turned to face the couple a few feet away, keen eyes still void of emotion. He stepped towards them, eyes on the silver hair, distinct, in the night light.

As that faint ripping sound revealed the signatures of two espada, Gin stiffened momentarily and then chuckled. He looked out of the corner of his eye. Kita was watching transfixed as a tall handsome espada stepped out, followed closely by ... Ulquiorra Cifer. So he was still alive. Gin's eyes turned back to the sky.

His eyes narrowed as he bonked Kita with the hand on the bench, a touch to the back of her neck. She passed out, as if from the unseen pressure most humans couldn't face. Gin stayed where he was, watching the Cuatro Espada approach him.

Curious as of what Ulquiorra was doing walking up to the couple. Loki watched. "The girl--" before he could finish his thought he watched the girl fall over into the man’s lap. He huffed and started his walk to find the girl Karin. His interest in them now depleted.

Trash.

Ulquiorra closed his eyes. Gin Ichimaru wasn't his task at hand. He disappeared from the park, sonido’ing towards Inoue's territory, the better to get this over with quickly.

Gin leaned back in the bench, eyes hidden, as he waited for the new espada to leave the area. When he did, the silver fox vanished, Kita with him…

. . . . . . .

The silver fox appeared at the back room in a fury of shunpo, Kita over his shoulder. He set her down on the ground as Hat-n-Clogs watched closely from under his hat.

Gin waited till he had settled his burden to explain himself. "She's just out cold. Aizen's sent some espada to town and they saw me." Kisuke's eyes were suddenly much sharper underneath that hat. The fox shrugged. "We know one of them, the Cuatro, Ulquiorra Cifer. I made her look normal and uninteresting, waited for them to leave the area, and came back here." He folded his arms and looked towards the outdoors.

Kisuke was not sure what to say to Gin with the news he was just told. "So Ichigo did not kill Ulquiorra like he believed?" Kisuke questioning himself more than Gin. He picked Kita up bridal style, “She will stay here tonight. I don't like this."

As Kisuke walked to the rooms down the hall, he stopped and looked slightly over his shoulder at him as Gin looked back out the door, probably to escape his gaze. It didn’t matter. ”If you go to him,” the Shopkeeper warned, “I will be the one to kill you this time around."

Kisuke started his descent once more leaving Gin there alone. Nothing more was said on his part as Yoruichi slipped past him, dark eyes keen on interrogating a certain fox. Laying Kita to rest in Tsukiro’s room and covering her, he considered the matter at hand as his mate’s voice echoed from the thin walls.

"Well, he did try and kill Aizen, so I think that disqualifies him for another place in Aizen's army," Yoruichi called out, picking up a cracker from the plate on the table. She took a bite. “And I'm sure Gin will be of great use to us this time, won't you?” She gave a lazy smirk, much like her cat counterpart. “After all, why else would you have stopped those two from taking interest in Kita?”

Gin didn't reply immediately. For a moment, all was silent, then that same smile filled his face, his silver bangs hiding his eyes. "It was the nice thing ta do," he whispered. "And now, I've been warned." He chuckled, head still turned to the outside. A couple moments long, he stayed there. Then, he turned to move deeper into the house towards his own room.

"And what will you do when Aizen himself rears his ugly head?” the cat prompted, raising her voice. “Plot the end of his life again? After how well it worked out for you the last time?” As Gin tilted his head to regard her, Yoruichi crossed her arms underneath her chest.

Returning from his first task, Kisuke chuckled as Yoruichi moved closer to Gin, her stride serious and meaningful. "If you really want to end his life that badly,” she hissed. “you'll need help. Especially this time around. But we need to know that we can trust you. Locking Aizen again up won't accomplish anything. He'll only get out again somehow. But to take his life and end this for good, we ALL need to work together. So how about it?"

This time, Gin didn’t stay quiet long.

“There are many different ways to work together, aren't there?" the fox sneered, not liking the confrontation.

He didn't understand them and they didn't understand him. However, they kept trying. He didn't know how to take it.

"Why don't ya wait and see?” He continued in a solicitous quip. He swirled around and left the room.

Yoruichi sighed and walked over to the table to sit down. "Well, I suppose I was expecting that." She turned to Kisuke. "What do you think? Think he's on our side, or working on his own agenda again?"

Kisuke sighed, adjusting his hat. "It’s Ichimaru. He will turn to his own agenda like he always does." A crazy smirk then crossed his face. "But I think we can trust him with Kita's life. Even if he wants to admit it or not, he has taken a liking to her." Kisuke turned and started back down the hall. "I am turning in. Today has been too long for this shopkeeper, and nothing now will accomplish anything.”

Yoruichi nodded and stood up, stretching like a cat. "Yup. Time for bed." She walked back to their room, saying, “Things are to get crazy from here on out. I'll need my beauty rest. Let’s sleep.”

————

Gin left the main room, paused outside Kita's room, then continued on to his own, closing the door. He moved to the window, perching on the windowsill, head on his hand. The cat had made some good points. He had his own arguments that he had been building for years. Had he known that his old master would escape Soul Society's prison? He honestly didn't know what he believed in that respect. Had he been waiting for Aizen to appear again when he had? Again, he wasn't sure. Spending time with this kind of people made his head and plans spin. There were two truths mixed in the confusion he lived in: he owed them, and the answer he had come to at his trial. He chuckled. The path might just be clearing up now.

In the next chapter, we finally get a couple moment, an interlude of peace before the espada move in and chaos starts.....
- 4
- 5
- 6
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Masquerade Between Hell and Justice