I do not own Bleach.

~4th squad hospital~

A white haired man sat on the edge of a bed with crisp white sheets. The room was bare and the atmosphere heavy. He was waiting, waiting to find out how long he had left to live.

A woman with hair braided in front of her walked into the room. Her expression was solemn and her eyes had a bit of a shine to them. She didn't know how to tell her friend the news.

"Just tell me, Retsu-sempai." Jushiro Ukitake had known his illness would kill him eventually. He just didn't think it would be this soon.

"I've tried to predict how long you had left before. It was never consistent, but this time...it is." Unahana looked down at the folder in her hands. In it were the results of 20 different tests she had done to determine if it was accurate, and all of them said the same thing. "You have about a month, two at best."

"So I won't even make it to the beginning of the war." Jushiro sighed as he got off of the bed. He walked to the door with his shoulders slouched a bit. He placed a hand on the woman's shoulder as he passed her. "Thank you, Retsu-sempai."

Jushiro left the hospital and walked straight back to his barracks. He sat on the porch out side his barrack and watched the wind send ripples across the pond. He breathed in the fresh air and tried to come to terms with the diagnosis he had recieved.

"Why the heavy atmosphere, Juu-chan?" Jushiro looked up to see his long time friend, Kyoraku Shunsui, standing beside him.

"I just came back from seeing Retsu-sempai." Jushiro got up and went into his barrack to make himself some tea.

Shunsui sat down outside o the porch and pulled out his sake bottle. "So what is the prognosis this time?" Shunsui knew his friend hadn't gotten a definite answer yet, and he wasn't expecting one to ever come.

Jushiro walked outside and sat down with his cup of tea. "Two months at best."

A silence spread over the two friends. Neither of them spoke a word. Both of them were thinking about what that meant to each of them.

Jushiro went to speak to Shunsui, but found a hell butterfly going between them. He caught it on his hand and listened to it's message. He sighed and stood up as the butterfly flew away. "Come on. We have a meeting to get to."

Shunsui put down his sake bottle and placed an arm on his friend's shoulder. "We're probably already late. So why rush?"

Jushiro sighed at his friend. "Just because you're used to being the last to show up, doesn't mean I am okay with that." Jushiro shunpoed towards 1st squad. He didn't speak a word to Shunsui as they walked towards the meeting hall.

To Jushiro's amazement, they weren't the last ones there. He gave a sigh of relief as he took his place in the line of Taichous. He ignored the worried looks from two of the other Taichous across the room as he waited for the meeting to start.

Once Yamamoto entered the room and took his seat, the meeting began. Most was just stuff concerning preparation for the upcoming war. So Jushiro decided, while he thought of how to best prepare his squad for the war, that he needed to fill his Fukutaichou position before he passed on. He began thinking of who he could appoint to the seat.

"Ukitake-Taichou." Jushiro was snapped out of his thoughts. He didn't know what was going on, but he didn't let it show. "I will be sending you on this mission. Be sure to report back on whether or not this mysterious reiatsu is a threat or not." Jushiro nodded and acted like he knew exactly what the Soutaichou had said previously. "Kurotsuchi-Taichou. Send a report to Ukitake-Taichou regarding where the reiatsu is emanating from and what it's signature is." Jushiro was looking forward to finding out more about the mission. We was going to be glad to get away from the worrying glances for a while.

"Yamamoto-Soutaichou." Everyone turned their attention to the Taichou of 4th squad. "May I suggest that you send someone to accompany Ukitake-Taichou. Just incase his health begins to declines again." Unahana ignored the disappointed look on the 13th squad Taichou's face.

The look did not escape the 8th squad Taichou's eyes. "Nanao-chan and myself can accompany him. We already have a schedule set up for our squad, so they won't be slacking off in their preparations while we are gone." Shunsui tipped his hat up and smiled at the Soutaichou.

Yamamoto thought on what two of his Taichous were suggesting. It was true that Jushiro didn't have the greatest health record, but he had seemed to be improving. He knew, however, that Jushiro's illness could strike him at any time. "Very well. 8th squad Taichou, Kyoraku Shunsui, and 8th squad Fukutaichou, Ise Nanao, will accompany 13th squad Taichou, Ukitake Jushiro, to the World of the Living." With that he stamped his staff on the ground and ended the meeting.

Jushiro left the meeting hall quickly and without speaking to anyone. He decided to walk back to his squad to try and clear his head. He started walking faster when he felt someone following him. He grew aggravated when his follower increased his speed as well. "Please stop following me Shunsui."

"But I'm your friend, and I'm worried about you." Shunsui increased his pace so that he could walk beside his friend. "You should take it easy. You don't want-"

"WANT TO WHAT?! Kill myself? That was already determined to happen when I was a child!" Jushiro stormed into his squad building. He ignored the worried looks from his subordinates as he walked towards his barracks. Once he was inside he let his reiatsu loose to try and release some of his frustration he had built up inside him. It crackled around the room.

"What made you so angry?" Shunsui stood outside of the room and just out of reach from the crackling reiatsu. He knew how much it hurt to get shocked by his friend when he was angry.

Jushiro took deep breaths to relax. He continued till his reiatsu was back under control. He made himself some tea and walked out of his barrack. He sat down and stared over the still pond while he sipped his tea.

Shunsui sat down beside his friend and watched him with worry.

Jushiro could feel his friend's gaze digging into the side of his head. He sighed as put down his empty tea cup. "You don't have to come with me. Neither you or Retsu-sempai should have brought up my health." He closed his eyes and enjoyed the breeze that blew his long hair out behind him. "Sometimes it's nice to not have anyone worry about you. Then no one gets hurt when you leave."

Shunsui frowned at his friend deeply. "No one will get hurt? I doubt that." He moved closer to his friend and put an arm around his shoulders. "For one, you can't pick who worries about you. I worry about you because you are my friend, and as your friend I also expect you to worry about me, and you to expect me to worry about you just as much as you worry about me. Did you leave me alone when Lisa left and I went into a drunken depression?"

Jushiro sighed, he knew Shunsui wouldn't leave him alone to be depressed or mope around. "No, I didn't. But that's different. You are perfectly healthy. I'm not sure how your liver has survived for so long with the amount you drink, but you're healthy. I couldn't just watch you throw your life away."

"And neither will I. You still have lots of life left in you." Shunsui smiled at his friend.

Jushiro sighed again as he got up and went back into his barrack. "I'll see you tomorrow at the Senkaimon." He waved and closed the door.

Shunsui frowned and sighed heavily. 'This is going to be a long mission. I'm going to have to make sure he doesn't get too depressed. Maybe some time in the real world will help him be more lively?' Shunsui smiled weakly at his thoughts as he headed back to his own squad barracks.

Jushiro leaned against the door to his barrack. He waited till he felt Shunsui's reiatsu leave the squad buildings. He then silently fell to the floor and coughed into his sleeve. His coughing lasted for what felt like hours. His sleeve was soaked in blood when he pulled it away.

He sighed as he walked to his bathroom. He soaked the pieces of his uniform to get the blood out before it stained the fabric. He looked at himself in his mirror. His skin was pale and taunt and his once bright green eyes were now a dull green, nearly grey colour. 'Is this how it ends for me? With a mission to track down someone with an unusually high reiatsu level? Just someone else to drag into our war, a war I can't do anything to help with.' Jushiro sighed as he went into his bedroom and fell down onto his bed, wishing the next day wouldn't come.

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