Epilogue

Ten Months Later

"It's nice to just grab a moment to stand back and watch the sunset." Hiroshi leaned up against the fence, letting out his breath in a heavy sigh. "It's hard to believe it's almost been a year. It seems like it's rushed by - and yet in other ways, like we've been here for ages."

"I know what you mean," Shinobu brushed the dust and grime from his shihakushou, shooting his friend a grin. "It's been an eventful year. I can't even imagine where we were at when we first came here...it seems like we knew nothing at all, and it would be impossible to go back."

"I never thought that there'd be such a difference between school and real life shinigami work," Kawakami came to join them, neatly side-stepping a puddle and offering them a grin. "Since everything kicked off last summer, it's not as though there's been any big scary incidents, but with drills and patrols and everything else we've been doing, I feel like we've all just started becoming shinigami now. Whatever we were before, I think we're still only right at the start line."

"I think so too," Shinobu looked thoughtful. "I didn't realise it, at graduation, but you're right. That's why Taichou doesn't rank people straight from the Academy. Whatever the Clans may do with their squads, he wants to drum it into us that that gulf exists."

"I suppose he probably understands it better than anyone, given that he went from graduation to Captaincy without having time to negotiate that gulf."

Kohaku's voice cut through their conversation, and the three recruits turned to see their sub-patrol leader crossing the grass towards them. At their surprise, he cast them a grin. "It's all fine. We're done for the day. Everyone has food and shelter and Morata and Nakamoto are checking that all the evacuated children are with the right parents. Tomorrow, we'll come back and do something more about the houses, but for tonight it should be all right. I don't think it will rain, and Ketsui-san and the others dealt with the Hollows here already, so the site is secure. You all did good work - when the others appear, we'll head back."

"Furuta-san isn't with us either, sir," Hiroshi glanced around him.

"I asked him to send a message back to base to report on the level of damage, so everything is ready to go tomorrow morning," Kohaku replied. "His Hell Butterflies are more stable than mine and can fly for longer distances. There are enough blankets to keep everyone warm and the shelter we put together will hold overnight, but it is still pretty much winter and so the earlier we can start putting things back together the better."

He sighed, stretching his hands over his head.

"I didn't realise, when I became a shinigami, that I'd get the chance to help people in this way as well," he reflected. "But I quite enjoy doing this kind of rescue work. Maybe it's not as flashy as being the ones always taking down Hollows, but it's just as important in the aftermath to be able to reassure families that their loved ones are safe."

"You do get to fight Hollows though, sir, don't you?" Kawakami eyed him curiously. "I mean, on proper main patrols. You're Twelfth Seat, so...?"

"Yes," Kohaku nodded. "But I don't really like it. The Hollows we have here are tormented souls and something in their aura makes me sad for them. I can do it, and I will do it, but this kind of job is somehow nicer. It's mending something, rather than breaking it. I'm not a healer, but I guess I became a shinigami to help fix Soul Society and keep it peaceful."

"I am not looking forward to fighting Hollows directly," Hiroshi admitted. "I still have the heebie jeebies about them a bit. I mean, I'm not going to run away from them - but I don't like them either. I don't know if they're sad or not, but they're creepy and they want to kill us. That makes me not really want to spend too much time with them."

"But it's part of the job," Shinobu stretched and clenched his fist. "I'm quite looking forward to it, to be honest. Watching the senpai do it is one thing, but I'd like to get in on the action as well."

"That's always assuming that the Captain ranks you both, of course," Furuta's voice made them jump, one hand coming down each on Shinobu and Hiroshi's shoulders respectively. "Ranking isn't for a couple of weeks yet, but it's not an absolute guarantee you'll be seated this Spring. Taichou likes recruits to have at least a year. There's not an upper limit."

"That's the voice of experience," Kohaku's eyes twinkled with mischief, and Furuta sighed, nodding his head.

"I was a recruit for two years together," he owned. "It can happen. Don't think it can't."

"For two years?" Shinobu shot Furuta a horrified look, and Furuta nodded.

"Taichou has the belief that someone is only ranked when they are ready to be ranked," he said firmly. "And I wasn't ready to be ranked, so I wasn't. And then Kayashima came, and this one," he patted Kohaku on the head, and the Twelfth Seat snorted, pushing his friend's hand away. "And my second year was much more interesting than my first."

"Did you worry about not being ranked first time around, then, Kohaku-san?" Kawakami asked curiously. "If Taichou doesn't automatically rank people, were you worried? Kayashima-san said you came late...so...?"

"Yeah. I didn't actually quite do a year, thinking about it now," Kohaku leaned up against the fence with a sigh. "It was more or less summer by the time I became a proper shinigami. I wasn't sure I'd be ranked - but I wasn't worried about it. I guess everything was so new for me that first year I didn't think about it. I was too busy trying to learn everything I needed to know. Before I was even properly accepted, I had to pass a bunch of tests the Council set to even prove I could be a shinigami - which took me up till the autumn. Then it was scrambling along to not fall behind on everything else. It was a surprise to find I'd been ranked at all. Although it was just at the baseline. Furuta and Kayashima were among the nineteenth seats. I was only twentieth, and right at the bottom."

"Well, for all you didn't know anything about anything, you were still wielding more spirit power around in spell practice than the rest of us," Furuta reflected, and Kohaku looked sheepish. "Whether you were ready or not, I don't know, but I think Taichou decided it was better not to hold you back. We were used to dealing with you and your weird dreams and other stuff, and you were used to us by then. You'd settled with us. A bunch of brand new recruits coming in wouldn't have been prepared for that, and it's not like you weren't capable of doing the basic seated officer stuff we all did. You had less experience, true, but I seem to remember you ranked first when we did our initial Kidou drill that spring. It annoyed the heck out of those guys who were ranked the year before us," he added nostalgically, "but it amused me to see their faces when they were upstaged by a kouhai so emphatically."

"Well, one of the things I'd read a lot about was kidou, so it was just about applying it," Kohaku replied thoughtfully. "I have a good memory and I don't find spells hard."

"Yes, but you also disarmed one of the eighteenth seated officers in about six seconds when Fukutaichou had us round-robin sparring each other," Furuta pointed out. "Aside your shunpo, you picked up the skill essentials pretty swiftly, so even if people asked questions about your first year ranking when it first happened, after that they didn't. Some of my old classmates actually asked me if you were some kind of hotshot genius...at least, until they saw you shunpo into stuff."

"Well, that's improving," Kohaku smiled ruefully. "It's not perfect, but I haven't hit anything in a while, so that has to be seen as progress."

"Taichou ranks recruits at nineteenth or twentieth seat only, doesn't he? I mean, the first time around?" Kawakami asked thoughtfully, and Furuta nodded.

"Taichou doesn't like doubling up seats when it gets to the higher numbers, but at the low end, he doesn't mind. He sees it as a good way of building collective experience, as well as team spirit," he agreed. "Everyone from sixteenth to twentieth seat has drill together, and you're meant to learn from each other as well as from whoever's taking each drill. Someone at sixteenth seat is given more trust and influence in practice than someone at the lower end, so it helps to build a hierarchy as well. As Koku said, I was nineteenth seat, and he was twentieth. Well, Kayashima and I both had Academy years on him, so it wasn't surprising. In the second year after ranking, the highest you can get is seventeenth. From the third year, technically, it's open season on rank and rankings can happen midway through the year, as and when they're needed or considered ready. Most people spend some time at sixteenth seat, but not everyone spends a whole year there, and once you surpass sixteenth seat you get into general drill and specific training sessions that lower seated officers aren't considered ready to take. You also have more priveleges. Of course, that goes both ways. Some people spend a lot of time at sixteenth seat - longer than a year - while they prove they are ready to step it up to the next level. Some people, that's their highest ambition and they won't ever go beyond that level. For others, it's a stepping stone. Being a recruit is an initiation, but being a lower seated officer helps define the rest of your career, as it gives all the top seats an idea of who can rise through the ranks, and who can't."

He held up three fingers.

"In short, you get at least three years grounding in the lower positions, at which point Taichou decides what he thinks you're capable of, and that's when things get interesting."

"So if we were to be ranked at twentieth seat this time, and then eighteenth seat the next time, the aim would be to start the next year as a sixteenth seat, because from that you can potentially move up more quickly, if there was a vacancy, and we worked hard?" Shinobu asked. Kohaku nodded.

"I did that exact thing," he agreed. "I was a recruit, then twentieth, then eighteenth. Then I spent six months at sixteenth seat and then the next eighteen months at fifteenth. Last year's ranking jumped me up to Twelfth. That was a big jump for me," he added, casting Furuta a glance. "I jumped over Furuta and I didn't expect it. Kayashima, we all thought he'd get ranked up, but I didn't expect to get Twelfth. But the Captain told me he wanted me to work with recruits and build my team leading skills - so that's what I'm trying to do. I don't expect to be ranked again this spring," he added. "I'm still getting to grips with this position."

"You could be," Furuta reflected. "Whatever you say about it, Koku, your career track depends on your control and your people skills, since spiritually you're already in the single digits. If we were ranked on power levels, you'd be in the top five already."

"No, I wouldn't," Kohaku shook his head ruefully. "I don't have enough control for that, and besides, rank isn't based on power levels alone. Thankfully. I'm quite happy where I am, if you want the truth. It's been a busy year...I'm happy to consolidate this for a while before I try any new challenges."

"I suppose, next year, if we're ranked, you'll have new recruits in your patrol?" Hiroshi glanced between the two seated officers, a faintly wistful expression on his features, and Furuta grinned.

"Not necessarily," he replied. "The Division is growing all the time. There may be some changes, but sub-patrols like this didn't happen when we were recruits. It's a sign that Thirteenth is going places. I heard there'll be twelve new recruits this year - maybe more, depending on appeals, and that will be the most ever. But you guys will have to give your juniors a good example to follow," he added. "No running off into danger...even if Koku does it."

"I won't!" Kohaku protested, and Hiroshi smiled wryly.

"We've learned that one," he promised, and Shinobu nodded his head. "If Kohaku-san runs off and does something crazy, we tell the Captain. I don't want to be caught up in Kyouka Raigen's spirit power again."

"Was it really that scary?" Kawakami wondered, and Shinobu nodded.

"It was," he said briskly.

"Well, that's probably another reason Koku was ranked right away. Keeping a sword like that at recruit level would've been risky, just like sending him to the Academy would have been," Furuta reflected. "In any case, he could keep up. At least, with that side of things, he could."

He sent his friend a wicked smile.

"It was training him to do things like take baths after practice, line up for drill in an uncrumpled uniform and eat properly with chopsticks that were more challenging," he added innocently.

"Furuta!" Kohaku reddened. "You don't need to tell them that stuff!"

"Why not? It's funny," Furuta was unrepentant, as the recruits began to laugh. "Also, true. Besides, you're scary. They know that now, so you can't hide it any more. Offsetting the scary is important. I'm sharing with them your human side."

"I'm not scary," Kohaku protested hotly. "Kyouka Raigen may be, but I'm not. Am I?" he cast a doubtful glance at the recruits, and Shinobu shook his head.

"Not that scary," he said cautiously. "Not so long as you don't release your sword. But I guess...both Hiroshi and I have seen it first hand. When we're on patrol, it's kind of reassuring knowing that you have that in reserve if you need it - but I admit, I don't really want to face it head on like that again."

"See?" Furuta was triumphant, and Kohaku groaned, shaking his head in defeat.

"Fine. Whatever," he said resignedly. "In any case, I passed all the tests the Council wanted me to, and I didn't take long to pick up most stuff - except shunpo, of course. But I didn't think about ranking at all in that first year, or that I might be left behind. I actually overslept on the morning of rankings. I almost missed the meeting, which wouldn't have been a good start to my career as a seated officer."

"What happened?" Hiroshi wondered, and Kohaku laughed.

"Fortunately I had a roommate who hadn't slept the whole of the night before, and he physically jumped on me, which was either designed to kill me or wake me up - I'm still not sure which. In any case, luckily it had the latter effect. So I scrambled into place in time for the announcements and that was that."

"Jumped...on you?" Kawakami's eyes widened, and Furuta chuckled at her expression.

"That was me," he said frankly. "I was worried about rankings and seeing him sleeping so peacefully annoyed me. Nobody has ever been unranked for longer than two years. I wasn't wanting to be the first."

"If we ask why you weren't ranked the first time around, will we get disciplined?" Hiroshi ventured, and Furuta looked amused. He shook his head.

"You can ask. I don't mind," he replied. "I'm meant to be some kind of mentor to you guys, now, with this sub patrol vice captain thing, so my experience should help you grow as well. But in my case, it was two things. One, I'm not always the most flashy person on the training ground. I admit, I don't really want to be at the top making the decisions, and sometimes that comes across as a lack of drive. But the real reason isn't so much that. In the autumn of my first year here, I was sent out on a patrol with a bunch of others and we were ambushed by a Hollow. Nobody was hurt by the creature and it got taken out, but I got separated from everyone else in the confusion. The ground was really uneven and I fell and slipped over the edge of the mountain shelf and down to the next one. I fell badly and shattered my legs. Compound fractures in both of them," he reached down to rub his left leg absently. "Of course, they healed, but it wasn't a lot of fun. For them to heal properly with no lasting damage took some time. Doing all the rehabilitation afterwards was even less fun. I didn't get to go on patrol again till probably the spring that Kayashima first came to Thirteenth. Fourth have some good methods for fixing broken bones, but, if I'm honest, I wasn't motivated enough with doing their prescribed physio exercises and so it took longer than it should have to get my fitness back. But!" he glanced between the three recruits. "Because I dragged my feet on, well, fixing my legs, I got left behind. And I hated that feeling, so the second year, I made sure I made up for it. I was fit by then. And much more careful. I didn't get separated on patrol or into any kind of stupid self-inflicted difficulties in the second year. Plus, we had Koku, who needed teaching pretty much everything, so there wasn't time to be reckless on my own account. I had to step up and play senpai because I was the oldest, and so that's what I tried to do. The result was that I got ranked. And there it is. The story of my sad two years as a recruit."

"I remember the first time I saw the scars on your legs," Kohaku recalled. "Till then I hadn't really wondered why you were a year above Kayashima at the Academy but hadn't been promoted with the others."

"You probably just thought I was lazy, like everyone else," Furuta smirked. "But, well, I guess I was a bit, about my recovery. I mean, it could have been healed up much quicker if I'd bothered to be proactive, and listened to the advice I was given. I guess I was angry about it, and that doesn't help with motivation, but I learned the lesson. I'm good about doing exactly what healers tell me now, if I get hurt," he flexed his arm ruefully. "It's a much better idea. And that's the moral of my story, kids," he added, turning to the recruits. "You should always listen to people who give you advice, especially if they know more than you do."

"I can understand how that must have felt. I was ambushed by Hollows in the Real World mission at the Academy and I got hurt. I had to be rescued by Shinobu and Takahashi," Hiroshi shivered. "It's still the reason I don't want to face them one on one, not really. It's kind of a relief to know other people have those experiences too."

"Being a recruit is kind of a time for making messes, though, and learning from them," Kohaku pointed out, and Shinobu looked serious. He nodded.

"The Captain said that to me, too, last summer," he said gravely. "And that learning from those mistakes, and building on them, was what makes a shinigami in the future."

"I wouldn't worry too much, either of you. Not all of us can have the stellar record this one does," Furuta indicated Kohaku with a smile, "We can't all make our most stupid and reckless moments times when we also save the world."

"Shut up. I'm higher seated than you, and in charge of you, so teasing me is insubordinate," Kohaku arched an eyebrow, and Furuta offered his friend a lazy smile.

"I know, but Taichou put us together because you're the crazy genius and I'm the steady plodder who keeps you rooted to the ground. I prevent you going off in a daydream of world domination when there are shelters to put up and kids to comfort," he said easily. "And here come Morata and Nakamoto. Are we going back to base now?"

"We are," Kohaku eyed his friend, but decided not to rise to the bait, instead choosing to ignore it. "It's getting dark, anyway, so we shouldn't linger out here too long. None of us are on night patrol, but it won't hurt to check in with whoever is coming this way, just to make sure there are no problems overnight. I don't think there should be..." he paused, holding up a hand to the wind, and his eyes narrowed slightly. He shook his head. "I can't sense anything that seems dangerous or Hollowish in this vicinity except the fragments of the ones Ketsui-san and the others got rid of, but it doesn't hurt to be safe."

"Ah, you sound like a patrol leader when you talk like that," Furuta observed, and Kohaku grimaced.

"I'm trying to," he shot back. "So stop undermining my authority and make yourself useful by bringing back our supply bags and other junk. Morata-kun and Nakamoto-san can help you."

"I'll go help too, sir, if you like," Kawakami offered. "There are quite a lot of bags, and Kanna-chan's still recovering from falling from the tree last patrol. Her left arm is still pretty bruised."

Kohaku shot her a grin at her eagerness, nodding his head.

"If you like," he agreed. "That'll leave the three of us - Yatsubashi-kun, Naniwa-kun and myself - to take the lead and watch out for any trouble. Thank you, Kawakami-san. I'd forgotten about Nakamoto-san's bad arm. She didn't complain about it at all when we were sorting out shelter, but I don't want her to make it worse, so tell her not to push herself if it's aching." He glanced towards his friend. "Furuta, you should learn from her - she has a better attitude than you do."

At this piece of banter, Kawakami reddened, and Furuta chuckled, waving his hand in a lazy salute, before obediently dropping back to join Morata and Nakamoto Kanna, the other two patrol members, giving them instructions as he did so. Kawakami followed him, and Kohaku glanced back at them, letting out a little sigh.

"You and Furuta-san are close, aren't you?" Hiroshi shot Kohaku a pensive look. "He's a completely different kind of person to Kayashima-san, but...and I hope this isn't cheeky to say...they seem to like teasing you a lot."

"I know they do," Kohaku's lips twitched into a rueful smile, and he nodded. "And as much as I poke at them about it, the truth is, I like that they do. It's a friendly sort of teasing - a proof that I belong. People were always scared of me, when I was a child, or I was always out on my own. Here, that doesn't happen. Them teasing me is proof they're not afraid...and that means a lot. I really hope you two aren't afraid of me, either," he added, glancing from Hiroshi to Shinobu. "You'd have every reason to be, given what happened last summer - but for all Furuta jokes about me being scary, it's not how I want to be seen."

"We're not scared of you," Hiroshi said firmly. "If we had been, neither Shinobu nor I would have asked to be on your patrol like this. We both wanted to work with you."

"Me especially," Shinobu admitted. He looked embarrassed, then, "I was a complete idiot at the start of my time here, but I have worked hard at trying to learn from it. I'm not afraid of you either, Kohaku-san. Even knowing you have that power - having power doesn't make someone frightening. It's how it's used and what that person intends with it. I think...probably...you're more powerful than Keitarou. If you'd wanted to do damage with that sword, you could. But...you don't. And because you don't...there's no reason for us to be afraid. Besides, you forgave me. A lot of people wouldn't have done, but you did."

"Kayashima says I let things go too easily sometimes, but this one wasn't one of those cases," Kohaku shot his companion an amused smile. "It was obvious that you were sorry. Holding grudges isn't something I do. We've probably all learned from it...not just you. I wasn't cut out to be your patrol leader when we began this year together. Now, perhaps, I feel I am."

"I still want to disarm you, though," Shinobu admitted. "Even if it's hard, it's my challenge line."

"Me too, though if Shinobu can't, I'm probably dreaming," Hiroshi laughed, and Kohaku grinned.

"I'm not about to lose my sword to a kouhai," he warned them. "Especially not ones whose blade styles I now know as well as yours. I'm working hard to improve my sword skills too, to close up the gaps I leave, so don't think it will get easier if you get ranked and start lower seat drill. Fukutaichou...I mean, Houjou-san isn't going to be there to drum all the things into you that he drummed into me - and though I'm pretty sure Kirio-san is just as thorough, I'm not intending to slack off for a moment. There will be new recruits in a few weeks...and I have to start the whole game over again. This time, I'm not going to worry about what they think of my name or my connections. If they want to know, they can ask me. Otherwise, they can ask the Captain. I'm not going to let misunderstandings happen this year."

"We didn't spend a lot of time with the class below ours, so we don't know much about the new intake," Shinobu said pensively. "The year after that, we worked with for sword raising and stuff, so I know a few of them, but this year's clutch I don't remember a lot about. Still, they're our kouhai too. Neither Hiroshi nor I will tolerate it, if they're badmouthing a seated officer."

"Look at you, all self-important now," Hiroshi chuckled, and Shinobu reddened.

"I know, but that's why," he defended himself. "I'm lucky that Taichou has the perspective he does and that Kohaku-san gave me another chance. Not everyone would do that. Trusting in the hierarchy saves people's lives. I've seen that now for myself. It would be irresponsible for me as a senpai - even as just a lower seat - to not pass that on. It's like Furuta-san said - he told us about his experience so we'd learn from it. That's what being a shinigami really is, beyond the combat aspect. It's teaching people the stuff we learned the hard way, and seeing whether they can build on it and avoid the same mistakes."

"Yatsubashi-kun," Kohaku's eyes widened for a moment, and then a smile touched his lips. He reached across to touch Shinobu's upper arm lightly.

"For a moment, when you said that, I had a strong feeling you're going to get ranked this spring," he said pensively. "I think, both of you are. And for some reason, just now, when you said that, I had the impression I'm going to need to watch my back. You're both going to be coming up behind me. And you..." he lowered his hand, gazing at Shinobu thoughtfully.

"You might just catch me up, if you keep trying," he added. "I'll keep working with my sword, because for a moment I felt like, one day, you might disarm me in a training bout. At least, I'm going to work even harder to make sure that isn't the case."

"Was that a prediction?" Hiroshi asked softly, and Kohaku nodded.

"It was," he agreed. "Not everything is about death or violence. It was just what Yatsubashi-kun's reiatsu said to me in that moment. That this is just the starting point for you two...but the path ahead is long, and you should look forward, not back."

He smiled, slipping a casual arm around the shoulder of each of the two recruits.

"I'm five years up on you in practical experience, but not in actual training," he added. "I'm also only four or five years older than you two as well. Whether I'm still your sub-patrol leader or not after rankings, it doesn't really matter. I've decided to take responsibility for what happened in the summer by really proving myself as your senpai - so whatever happens, I'll keep training with you from now on too. Don't let me down, okay? I have a lot of stuff I still want to do, so don't get left behind."

"In that case, sir, can I ask something else cheeky?" Hiroshi looked hesitant, and Kohaku shot him a quizzical look. "It's just that, well, we call you Kohaku-san. I know there are reasons why, but...I dunno. I'd like it if you'd call me Hiroshi, rather than Naniwa. If...you didn't mind. You are our superior officer, so you don't have to be polite with us - and I feel like, if we're going to spar and train together going forward, it would just be...well...more friendly. And I'd like to think that...after everything...we're sort of...well...friends?"

He reddened.

"I really am not trying to be cheeky," he added hurriedly. "But I just...feel like...it would be nice."

Shinobu shot him a playful smile.

"You're as red as a beetroot," he observed, amused. "But if you don't mind, Kohaku-san, I've been meaning to ask you that too. Out in the field, when we disobeyed you, you dropped the honorifics. When you did, it felt like you were telling us off, because you normally don't. Like Hiroshi, I've thought about it, since everything happened, and I'd like it that way as well. Since we call you by your first name. It just makes sense."

"If you like," Kohaku looked startled, but he shrugged. "I hadn't thought about it. I mean, I always call Furuta and Kayashima by their surnames, and it's never mattered all that much. I wasn't really raised to follow social conventions, so I don't suppose I put any real meaning on how I call people. But if you guys feel that way, then I will."

"Thank you," Hiroshi recovered himself, offering a sheepish smile. "It might be a little thing, and it might not matter very much, but I really feel like we belong here now. And in a way, that's just the final piece of the puzzle. We've taken more of your time and caused you more trouble than any of the other recruits, but you still said you'd train with us going forward, whatever happens. I like that you feel that way. Thirteenth is a family, right? And everyone in my family calls me by my first name. So I'd like it if you did too."

"Fine," Kohaku grinned. "I can't argue with that. From now on, Hiroshi and Shinobu it is."

So this was the Academy.

Jun'ei gazed around the expansive main hall with wide, eager eyes, taking in the faded carvings on the beams that gave away the building's long history as a Yamamoto family manor. Although it had clearly been a Clan estate, once upon a time, there was something else in the atmosphere that spoke of the young men and women who spent their days here, learning and polishing their skills to become the next generation of shinigami. His father too had once walked these halls, he reflected pensively, although, as he gazed around him, he found it difficult to imagine the accomplished Shirogane in fresh Academy uniform, eager and apprehensive about the first term ahead.

It was only a week or so before the end of the existing term, and preparations were already being made for the graduation ceremony which would release a new wave of fresh recruits into the Gotei proper. Term was still in session, and most students were in classes, barring the Seniors for whom education had ended and practical work would soon begin. It had been a surprise to Jun'ei when his father had arrived at the main house early that morning with the news that they were going to pay the Academy a visit, and he had hurried to be ready in time. As they had headed through the Senkaimon towards the Academy's location in District One, Shirogane had told him that it was usual for Clan children to visit before enrolment, to get a feel of the place and see the facilities.

"I have some business of my own there, as it happens," he had added. "Sixth Division will be taking in five recruits from the Academy this year, and I intend to go meet with them and speak to them about the procedures ahead. I won't have another chance to do it, so I might as well bring you with me. You'll have a chance to see the place you'll spend a lot of the next few years, and see how it makes you feel."

Being here really makes it feel like it's going to happen.

Jun'ei clenched his fists tightly, his eyes glittering with excitement.

I've worked really hard this last year, but the more time has gone on, the more I've wondered about this. A chance to learn with people my own age, about things I don't know yet.

He walked slowly along the far wall of the large chamber, pausing to scan the honour boards that hung high above the area where, during normal school hours, tables were often laid out holding trays and food. At length he found what he was looking for, a little yelp of pleasure as his gaze rested on the four characters that proved beyond all doubt that his father had indeed been here, and had excelled.

Nagoya Shirogane.

He let out his breath in a rush.

Father's old name - Grandfather's name - the name he was a student under. It's there, on the board of people who became Anideshi. It's a lot to live up to. I wonder if I can.

His gaze drifted down the names, his eyes widening in surprise as he took in the five characters of another, familiar name.

Ukitake...Juushirou? Kinnya-sama's grandson was here too - and Anideshi? Come to think of it, he told me that himself, sort of. He's not many lines down from Father - and he said Father trained him with his sword. I see. Then the bonds between Academy students do spill into the Gotei - no matter what walk of life you come from.

"Well, what do you make of it?" Shirogane's voice from the doorway startled him, and he turned, seeing the shinigami striding across the hall towards him. He grinned, raising his hand to indicate the boards.

"I was looking for you," he said unnecessarily. "I found it. Nagoya Shirogane. That's you, isn't it, Father?"

"It is," Shirogane followed the line of his son's gesture, nodding his head with a smile. "I almost feel like it's a stranger, though, now. Kuchiki Shirogane has had to become a completely different kind of person, since accepting the job of heir to the Clan. In a way you're lucky, Jun'ei. You were born into it, knowing you'd be that one day. I had a lot to adjust to, when it was decided I would be Guren-sama's successor. Nagoya Shirogane didn't have those concerns to contend with - though I admit, perhaps sometimes that made me complacent."

He shrugged.

"The syllabus is normally six years, but I completed it in four," he reflected. "However, the most challenging year for me was my last one - as Anideshi. I was always much more fond of doing things on my own - but that role forced me to do much more with the other students. It's probably only since I left here that I really appreciate all the things that it taught me. I trust you'll learn from that mistake - there are no wasted lessons here, and nothing is taught at random. Some of the things you learn may one day save your life - so I want you to learn them well."

"I promise," Jun'ei's eyes shone. "I'll do my best. I promised Seiren-dono that I would make him proud, and not disgrace him as my former teacher."

"Ah, to make Seiren-dono proud, but not me? I see." Shirogane gazed at his son speculatively, and Jun'ei reddened.

"I am sorry," he said contritely. "I didn't mean it that way. I want you to be proud of me too, sir. But I have always felt that way, because you're my father."

He sighed, then,

"And I know you are still unhappy about the fact I spent time with Aizen Katsura," he admitted. "We haven't spoken about it since then, and I have not disobeyed you or broken my word. I have had no contact with him, nor have I gone to the Coastal Province even once in the last ten months. But even considering that was an unusual and extreme circumstance, I should like, in the future, a chance to speak with him again. When I have trained, and graduated, and have reached a standard whereby you feel you can trust me to defend myself from danger - I would like your permission to go see him again. I think...it's important that I do."

"Important?" Shirogane's eyes became slits. "I admit, I had thought you had let go of that matter as something that happened in the past. Will you tell me why, all of a sudden, you ask me that?"

"Katsura was the first person who made me understand that there are some people who never get rescued," Jun'ei said sadly, gazing back up at the honour boards as he did so. "There are people everywhere, starving, and helpless. People who lose hope and faith in the shinigami who rule over them. People who end up becoming disillusioned, or desperate, and so turn to crime. Maybe I'm an idealist, but when I am Clan leader, I want to try and help those people, and stop them crossing lines that cannot be crossed back. Katsura regretted crossing those lines, and understood the damage he had done, but he could not undo it. I don't want other people to feel like that. But...I don't know very much about them, or how to find them, or what to do about it. That's one reason I'm looking forward to coming here - so I can learn about those things as well."

"And you think Katsura knows the answers to those questions?" Shirogane kept his voice level, and Jun'ei eyed him anxiously, unsure from the impassive expression in the other's grey eyes as to how much his father was annoyed by his request. He nodded.

"He's lived among them," he replied simply. "He's been one of them. He also caused them trouble as well. Keitarou made him, and told him all kinds of things that weren't true, about shinigami being the enemy. But when I challenged him on it, he challenged me back - that I only believed the things I was told, too - and that the world I was raised in was the only one that was right to me because it was all I knew. I hope that conversation will help make me a better leader in the future - but I should like to be able to ask him more things, because he comes from a world that I don't know."

Shirogane sighed heavily.

"I won't sway you from this, will I?" he asked wearily, and Jun'ei shook his head.

"I will not disobey you," he said firmly. "But I should like your permission, all the same. When I am trained as a shinigami, and capable of defending myself - will you let me, then?"

"At that point, my boy, you will be an adult, and if I am still making all your decisions for you, sending you here will be a waste of both our time," Shirogane said acidly. "We'll have that conversation in the future, but not now. You're racing ahead, but you can't assume that this will be easy. We're only here today for you to see the place, and get a feel for it - but actually being here will be different. You'll mix with all kinds of peers and, probably, obtain the things you want to know from them, in a much more reasonable manner than the one you're suggesting. Still, I haven't raised you to just copy me and imitate my thoughts. If you have a strong conviction, as a future leader, you should follow it - but remember that the consequences of it are also yours to handle, and you cannot run away from them. Kuchiki do not run from difficult decisions...remember that."

"Yes, sir," Jun'ei said soberly. "I shall. And I am grateful for you hearing my point of view, even if I know it concerns you. It's another reason I want to see Katsura again. We cannot choose who our parents are. Some are lucky and some are not. I was blessed with mine. He was cursed with his. Meeting him made me realise it all the more - how glad I am that you are my father, and I have a true role model I can aspire to."

"I think if you try to be too much like me, you'll turn my hair grey, let alone your mother's," Shirogane chuckled, despite himself. "She's already fretting about your sister's insisting she be allowed to learn to wield a sword. But, well, I don't mind. There are good female shinigami in the Gotei, not to mention Clan Leaders as well. If she has the desire to learn, I see no problem with it. However, your mother expects you to be the well-behaved one, who observes all conventions and never puts a foot out of place. If you start taking after your father she will doubtless be even more distressed - and I know she'll blame me for it roundly, for setting you a poor example."

"Mother did get cross about the sword thing," Jun'ei smiled faintly. "But I'm glad you said it was all right. Kinnya-sama said I would come to trust in the people around me, even people I don't know yet. I hadn't thought of my sister as one of them, but now, maybe I do. If nothing else, I will enjoy helping her improve her skills in the holidays, when I come home...though perhaps I'll do it when Mother isn't watching."

"That seems like a plan," Shirogane was amused. "All right, then. I have to go meet with those students, while I'm here, so I may need to leave you to your own devices for a little while. Will you promise me not to get into any trouble in my absence? I'd like you to make a good first impression, whatever happens when term begins."

"I am not going to cause any trouble!" Jun'ei was indignant, and Shirogane eyed his son playfully.

"You just said you were aspiring to follow in my footsteps," he teased. "In which case, I am quite sure you are going to cause any amount of trouble."

"I'm glad you can speak of such things with such self-effacing honesty, Shirogane - though I suppose I should not be surprised."

At the sound of the unfamiliar voice, Jun'ei swung around, and Shirogane turned to acknowledge the newcomer. He was an old man - yet somehow not elderly, for life and energy burned in his eyes and, beneath the thick white beard and bristling eyebrows was the face of a man resolved to the military life he had chosen. He wore Yamamoto robes, but with no particular mark of rank or distinction to suggest he was anyone of any importance. Despite this, Jun'ei knew right away who he was, and he swallowed hard, bowing his head very properly towards the other man.

"Sensei, I was just coming to see you," he could hear his father's voice, the language formal and respectful, as though addressing someone far and away his superior. "I've come to meet with the students you told me about. Guren-sama has left everything to me now, since from the Spring intake he intends me to take the haori permanently - so I thought I'd make a preemptive strike and assess them for myself."

"That's quite fine. They are aware you are coming and are currently making themselves presentable in the Senior study," the old man's voice replied, warmth in his tones that told Jun'ei that this man was fond of his father. "In the meantime, I came to meet your son. Jun'ei, isn't it?"

"Yes, sir," Shirogane agreed. "Jun'ei, raise your head." he tapped the teenager lightly on the head, and, slowly, Jun'ei did so, meeting the other man's gaze with an apprehensive one of his own.

"I see. Yes, he does look like you," the old man rubbed his beard pensively. "Though I think it's mostly the eyes that remind me of that spirited young Kuchiki I taught, some several years ago now. Mind you, he seems a little less ready to challenge the world for his honour...I wonder how long that will last, once he's in my uniform."

"Sensei, please don't give him ideas," Shirogane chuckled. "Jun'ei, I'm sure you realise it, but this is Yamamoto Genryuusai Shigekuni, the principal of the Academy and, from the spring, your most important mentor going forward. Learn well from him, as he knows a good deal more than any of us - even as descendents of the Kuchiki."

"Yes, sir," Jun'ei found his voice. "I'm Kuchiki Jun'ei, Genryuusai-sama. It's an honour to meet you. I've heard a lot about the Academy and I am eager to get started."

"That's good to hear," Genryuusai nodded approvingly. "How did you find the enrolment tests?"

"They were interesting," Jun'ei was taken aback. "Some of the questions made me think quite hard about the right answer. I am not sure I knew all the things that it asked me," he added pensively, "But I did my best."

"You did quite fine, my boy, but I wouldn't expect less from Shirogane's son," Genryuusai's eyes twinkled. "Your mark scored you third overall among the new first years - from fifty four in total. It's a good, solid start that will put you in the top class, and demonstrates that you have a sound academic basis as well as the requisite spirit power I expect from my Kuchiki students."

"Third, huh?" Shirogane shot Jun'ei a sidelong glance, then, "Well, that leaves a couple of places for improvement, doesn't it?"

"Father!" Jun'ei went bright red again, and Genryuusai smiled.

"Your father is teasing you," he said lightly. "On his entrance examinations, Jun'ei, your father also finished in his incoming class, but out of far fewer students. True, he progressed rapidly from then," he glanced at Shirogane, who nodded, "but still needed an extra push at the end to make him realise his responsibilities. You are already off to a better start, both with your score and your enthusiasm. You shouldn't take it to heart - I have no doubt you will be an asset to my school and will make your family proud in the future."

"I'd appreciate it if you didn't spend too much time telling Jun'ei about my time here," Shirogane looked rueful. "I realise that I was not always the easiest of students to manage."

"True, but the best ones often aren't, and I have no regrets for teaching you," Genryuusai assured him. "You're one of the graduates of which I am most proud, as it happens - and if your son has half as much about him, I'm sure, in a few years, we will say the same about him. Though it will be challenging," he added, glancing at Jun'ei. "Especially given that you come from an illustrious family with many expectations on you. Your peers may or may not respond to that - I hope you understand."

"Seiren-dono warned me that it might be the case. That some may resent me, or want to use me, because of who I am," Jun'ei nodded soberly. "But those are challenges I will have to learn to face if I am to be a Clan Leader one day, so I will manage them. I hope I can make friends here - but I do not intend to let anyone take advantage of me, or treat me as less than their equal."

"Good boy," Genryuusai nodded approvingly. "It sounds like you have your resolve. Shirogane," he glanced at the Vice Captain. "I think it would be fine to let Jun'ei take a stroll around by himself, while you come and meet your future intake. He will need to get a feel for the place himself, as it will be his second home in a few weeks. All the students except the Seniors will be in class for another hour or so - and I don't imagine any of the Senior Class will bother with a student they'll never oversee. It would be better if you didn't try and enter any classrooms," he added to Jun'ei, "but I have no objection to you exploring the grounds and getting a feel for the building overall."

"Yes, sir," Jun'ei inclined his head. "I'll do that. I promise, I won't be any trouble."

He bowed his head, then, as the two men left the hall, he paused, gazing back up at the honour boards.

Father is up there, and Kinnya-sama's grandson. But there are also lots and lots of other people - other names I don't know. People I've never heard of - but maybe, one day, I will. Names which aren't Clan names, too. Not just Juushirou-dono's, but others, after that.

His eyes shifted to the bottom of the list of names.

Yatsubashi Shinobu. That was the last Anideshi to graduate here, last spring. Now he's in the Gotei. And all the people above him, too. All of them...now shinigami...fighting Hollows and protecting Seireitei. And it's not just them, but everyone else. Everyone who graduated here...

A shiver of anticipation went down his spine.

I am fortunate in that I know, when I graduate, I will have a place in Sixth Division. But I will have to work harder to earn it in the eyes of my superiors and my subordinates. These people, they did that. They worked hard and reached the top and proved they were capable enough to enter squads and be shinigami, even if they didn't have a Clan to help them. I will have to do the same. Being a Kuchiki is important, but here, it won't matter at all. If I'm going to be a shinigami Father can rely on, then the work begins here. Whatever challenges I face when I come here, my mind is made up. I'm going to be on those boards one day as well - as a shinigami the Kuchiki can be proud of.

"Eleventh Division, stand to attention!"

Enishi's voice barked out across the courtyard of the Gotei division, a sound followed only by that of the gathered officers hurrying to follow his command. As the rows of black and white clad shinigami stood erect, feet together and eyes facing firmly forward, the acting Captain of the Division gave a little sigh, stepping back with a nod of approval at their quick obedience.

Well, he thought, it had not been the easiest of years - but they were proving resiliant, and they were coming through it. Though the shock waves of what had happened, both at the Division and in District One, had not gone away, there was a glitter of resolve in each officer's eye that told Enishi that his squad were coming through it and that, as time passed, they would continue to gain in strength. It was almost spring, soon time for them to take in recruits who would never have known the Eleventh as it was before that fateful night, and, although Enishi had often been to the Academy on Thirteenth's behalf, this year would be entirely different for everyone. His gaze flicked once more along the neat lines for anyone whose sword was not properly sheathed, or whose socks were rumpled inside their sandals. He had taken special care with his own appearance too that morning, for it was an important day. It was the ending of one Eleventh and the beginning of another.

In the silence, the soft tap tapping of a stick grew slowly and steadily more audible. Enishi took a deep breath to steady his own nerves, knowing that most of his officers were probably dying to turn to see the newcomer enter the squad courtyard, but glad that their ingrained discipline had prevented even the youngest recruit from turning to gawp. From where he stood, Enishi could see the frail figure as he rounded the newly repaired gate posts of the Eleventh Division, pausing for a moment to get his breath before forging forward, determination etched on his lines features.

Ten months after the night that Minaichi Atsushi had almost lost his life to the puppet zombie of his Vice Captain, he was finally able to return to his Division, and see the men who had fought so hard to defend his life that night.

Of course, it had far outstripped the expectations of all of the healers who had treated him. At the time, Enishi recalled, he had been told that Atsushi would probably be incapacitated, possibly bedridden, for at least eighteen months. There would be many different trials needed on medication for his seizures, and the weakness in his one side would impede his ability to be swiftly mobile. Only Retsu had refused to speculate firmly on a timescale, saying only that it depended largely on the patient, and was difficult to know what the final outcome would be. Even Enishi, naturally optimistic, had not expected to see Atsushi on his feet within a year, so, when he had received the message that the Eleventh Captain would be visiting his Division, and under his own steam, he had not quite known what to make of it.

Atsushi was thinner than he had been - and he had always been lean, making him almost skeletal. His hair had grown longer, but was still neatly groomed back from his face in the normal warrior's queue that he favoured. His own attire was immaculate - but it was civilian attire, that of the Yamamoto Clan, rather than of the Division that he had served for so many years. There was no zanpakutou at his side either - probably because the extra weight would only add to the burden of the Eleventh Captain's delicacy, but, as the man paused in front of the lines of officers, there was nothing lacking in his scrutiny.

He had not lost Minaichi Atsushi, for all he had lost his fitness, and, despite a childhood mistrusting this figure, Enishi was glad to see it.

He had visited Atsushi many times over the last few months. In fact, he ruminated now, as Atsushi began his verbal assessment of the 'troops', he had made it a pattern of his new schedule, to report to his kinsman at least once a month on the progress of the Eleventh and, sometimes, seek his advice. As he had done so, he had noticed one thing that had not been there before - one change from the man he had feared growing up. In his incapacitation, Atsushi had honed not just his personal resilience, but also his patience, managing the physiotherapy and the different treatment routines with little in the way of complaint. In that mellowing of Atsushi's personality - not a softening, for he was still as strict a taskmaster as he had ever been, but just a mellowing - Enishi had found that they had things on which they could converse in detail, and that it was a conversation, not a one way flow of instructions from senior to junior. And, when Atsushi had told him, the last time he had attended the rehabilitation centre, that he intended on retiring the haori for good - Enishi knew it was as much because he was trusted, as because Atsushi was weak.

Enishi had never been the most perceptive of people, as he would have been first to admit to any of his friends. But in that ten months he had come to understand Atsushi far better than he ever would have imagined. He had realised, in that conversation, that Atsushi's decision had brought not frustration but a measure of relief...as though, at long last, he could hand over the reins to someone he could rely on, and move forward with his own life.

Enishi gazed at the Eleventh Captain now, resisting the urge to lounge against the fence as he often did during morning drill when nobody was there to chastise him, and a faint, bittersweet smile touched his lips.

I guess he lost that Vice Captain he thought the world of, and then all that happened with Ikata, which can't have been nice. And whatever else people say about him, Atsushi-dono isn't the kind to put his men in jeopardy because he's not fit for purpose. He told Ukitake five years ago he wanted me as his successor. I wonder if he was even thinking of it then. He chose to stay in post after everything that happened back then - but maybe that was because he felt it his duty to. Now he has someone to give that duty to...me.

He shuffled his foot slightly against the cobbles.

So this is my lot now. Captain of the Eleventh Division. Official from the Spring. Atsushi-dono submitted his resignation of Captaincy to Kyouraku already, and to the Council, for reasons of medical infirmity. But really, I think it's what he wants as well. Especially since Genryuusai-sensei offered him a job teaching at the Academy. It's a way he can give back to the Gotei, and his seizures won't matter. He might have them for the rest of his life - but he can still train young'uns to step up and do the physical work, so why would he mind?

He let out a faint sigh.

I did hope I'd go back to Thirteenth. But at the end of the day, this is about duty for me, too. To my family. To the Eleventh. To the Gotei. I began this. I have to finish it. And I know Ukitake understands. Shikibu will make a decent Vice Captain, as well, so there's no worries there. It's sad, but I didn't become a shinigami just to follow. Apparently I can also lead - and that means I should be stepping up when I'm needed.

He twitched his shoulders in a shrug of resignation, glad he was behind his kinsman, and so Atsushi couldn't see him breaking his own military form.

Oh well. I guess there'll always be tea in Ugendou, if I ever want a break, or advice, or to lose a game of shougi. It's not like that's gone away. Maybe this is my home now, and for keeps going forward, but it doesn't change who my friends are and that I know I can count on them. Put like that, I have some pretty reliable neighbours, and that's reassuring. Bad things have happened, but, as Atsushi-dono's proving, they're starting to heal. And all we can do is keep moving forward - one step at a time.

"Well, that's the end of another year, I suppose,"

Shunsui set his sakazuki aside, gazing pensively over the shougi board as he debated his next move. "Maybe it's a sign of old age, Juu, but I feel like time is moving much more swiftly than it did when we were students. Am I getting grey hairs yet? I'm starting to wonder if I am."

"You know full well that you don't have a single grey," Juushirou snorted, moving to refill his friend's sakazuki with a grin. "As for me, I know with confidence I don't have a single grey - since my hair is already white, nothing my members can do can age me."

"That's a novel way of looking at it," Shunsui nudged a piece forward, shooting his friend an appreciative smile. "But I'm not kidding. I'm happy to be giving over the job of Captain Commander to Sora in a week or two, but it does seem like everything has raced by. At least, since Katsura's trial last summer...thankfully, nothing overly dramatic has happened since then."

"That was more than enough for one year," Juushirou pushed his own piece across the board, reaching for his sakazuki and taking a sip. "Well? I assume from your comment that all is fine at Eighth. I'm guessing you're like us - making preparations for the new intake."

"We don't rank in the way you do, so there's not the same flurry of anticipation among my recruits as you have here," Shunsui reflected. "But yes, regarding new additions. Tetsuya went to the Academy this year, and we got a good range of applications. Yama-jii seems to churn out more and more graduates each year, now that it's easier for District students to apply across the board...in any case, I think with the usual range of spoiled Kyouraku brats coming from private training programmes in Eighth District, we're looking at around sixteen in total. I have still to review whether all of the private applications have met the standards the Council and Captains set down for Division entry, and I'm really strict about that, so it might change - but I think eight from the Academy and eight from Eighth, which fits quite neatly. Four of those latter eight are District kids, which also makes me happy. What about you?"

"Twelve, apparently," Juushirou cast a glance towards his desk. "Six men, six women, which is a nice even split for once. One or two of them are also fourth degree Clan students, which is a novelty for the Thirteenth, but not one I'm about to turn down. I've mostly left it to Naoko to handle, though. She went to the Academy as well - I wanted her to, since she's the Vice Captain they'll know and it makes sense for her to meet them from the start. That might be partly the reason for so many female applicants, actually - since with Kirio as well, Thirteenth has two female officers in prominent seated positions. Seireitei is still very male-dominated, but knowing that must give the impression that girls can do well in our squad. I didn't think of it that way - I sent her because she didn't get to do much initial interaction with the recruits at the start of last year. She had the Real World mission, but with Enishi's Captaincy becoming official in a few weeks, I thought it the best approach and it seems to have been beneficial. I usually only take ten, but I have been wanting to increase our intake of female officers, so we decided to take the twelve."

He grinned.

"One of those girls apparently ranked top in the year," he added. "I'm quite encouraged by that potential - and the fact she applied to us. I think the last time that happened was maybe Kirio's intake - she was either top or second in her class. I welcome the possibility of training another officer with the same wide range of ability, as they can only grow from here."

"Well, if they met Naoko-chan and still want to come here, then they must be committed," Shunsui chuckled, and Juushirou tutted, shaking his head.

"You're still so mean to her," he scolded. "She's a good officer and everyone respects her. Yes, she's strict, but not in a bad way. Everything she does is for the sake of this place - and the other members know that."

"I was surprised, though, that you'd persuaded her to take it on permanently," Shunsui became serious. "She's always been clear that she didn't want to be a Captain or a Vice Captain. With Enishi going, I wasn't sure whether you'd be able to convince her to step up. What happened?"

"Helping Guren-sama, I think," Juushirou looked thoughtful. "I didn't ask too many questions. I think, finally being able to use that sword to heal someone has helped heal her as well. She's been a lot more interested in developing Dokusou Houshi for combat purposes - not just scouting - and maybe, at last, she's shaken off the shadow of Keitarou's actions. I hope so, anyway. If it means she's moving forward, so much to the good. She did say that she wouldn't have done it for any other Captain, though," he added. "I'm apparently priveleged - she said she'd be my Vice Captain, since it was me, but it wasn't an indication that she ever wanted to be a Captain and she has no intention of following in Enishi's footsteps in the future."

"Well, she's fond of you. That's obvious," Shunsui drained his sakazuki for the second time. "She's rather like a nagging big sister, if you ask me. She doesn't mind telling you off when you're stupid, which is a good trait for your Vice Captain to have, and she knows the place and the job inside-out. She'll be fine, and the recruits will probably learn a lot from her. I just like to tease her, for old time's sake."

"I know. I think she does, too," Juushirou agreed. "It is strange, not having Enishi, and knowing that's for good now, but it's like you and Sora. These things happen, and we move on. Sora's a great Captain and I know Enishi will be as well. Though if Minaichi is going to the Academy to teach, I hope the kids know what they're in for."

"We survived Minabe," Shunsui reminded him, moving a piece across the shougi board as he set up his attack. "And it will be a while before Atsushi-dono gets his sword up and running again. He's recovered faster than they expected, but that has also meant the permanent issues are more clear now, so managing that will have to be priority. I understood he was going to teach combat theory for the time being, so he probably won't brutalise anyone with his sword. Maybe his tongue...but you know, the world of shinigami is tough, and he's been at the front line. With the Academy growing, it makes sense for Yama-jii to increase his staff, and a former Captain isn't a bad person to have on the roster. Given his resume, I think they'll probably respect him...and funnily, he might do a good job. We only saw him in the complaining old grump mode, because he was stuck with Ikata, and also we were prejudiced against him because he rubbed Enishi up the wrong way when he was a kid. Enishi's said since that the long recovery period has either mellowed the guy, or Enishi now knows him as an adult, so isn't so intimidated. These students are a lot older than Enishi was when he was growing up under Atsushi-dono's criticism. Either way, what he will drum into those kids is loyalty to the badge of the Gotei. This is the guy who risked his life to bring down a true traitor in Kusakawa and sought no plaudits in doing so - and he did raise his former Vice Captain like a son, from all others have told us. Mareiko-chan is fond of him, too, and he's protected her as well. I think, probably, he's all right. At least, his morals are in the right place. He's just not very sociable to people like you or me - people who are given their rank without doing anything to earn it," he touched his own chest, "and people who poach his intended Vice Captain target," he pointed at Juushirou, who laughed.

"True enough," he agreed. "In any case, Seireitei does get more dangerous year on year. I might have lost two recruits last summer - if the ones I get in the future have been toughened up by an experienced former Captain, then so much to the good. He'll probably rant and moan about the both of us in his class examples, but I suppose that's just par for the course."

"Speaking of those recruits from this year, what's happening with them?" Shunsui eyed his friend quizzically. "The idiot duo who caused so much fuss - are you going to rank them, or hold them back this time?"

"Naoko and I are going to rank all of them, I think," Juushirou eyed the game board suspiciously, hovering his finger over Shunsui's most recent move, as though trying to figure out the bigger strategy. "I know you did that for a reason, and I will figure it out, you know, even if you try to distract me. As for the recruits, holding onto something that happened ten months ago isn't my style. The situation got resolved and they both took the impetus and have worked hard since. Most importantly, Koku has been part of that as well. He seems to take particular responsibility for having led them into danger...and they're on his sub-patrol, by their own request, so it's worked out nicely. I think they both have a lot of potential, going forward. I spoke to both Koku and Kayashima about their recruits respectively, but it's clear that Yatsubashi is head and shoulders above the rest in spiritual terms. His problems are emotional maturity, and obstinacy, but according to Koku, he's working hard on those things, and Naniwa's got much better at pulling him back if need be. Naniwa's not so imposing, spiritually, but he has enough to make a good solid seated officer in the future. More importantly, I think he's going to go far because he sees things and thinks them out for himself. I think his strategic ability is one of the highest among my current recruit intake. Not seating them this spring would be stupid. They need to be thrown into basic drill and be given those challenges, otherwise what's the point in my recruiting them? I'm not a school teacher. I want officers I can rely on, not students passing exams."

"Well said," Shunsui sat back, folding his arms loosely across his chest. "I suppose so. And if it gives Koku the experience you need him to have as well?"

"Yes," Juushirou finally decided on his move, shunting a piece from left to right to block Shunsui's advance. "He's come on as well. I'm relieved. If he hadn't shown inclination to lead, then I would have prevented him ever doing so - but fortunately he's grown in that regard. It's confidence, not lack of ability, so we can move ahead from here."

"You see him as a future Captain, don't you?" Shunsui asked softly. Juushirou nodded.

"I do," he owned. "Koku doesn't, but I do. And Katsura...when he was here, he also said it. He'd seen it, in one of Koku's stray visions. One Koku isn't even aware of - but the image of his brother, in a haori. He said that's the dream he wanted to protect - the future for Koku he wanted to make sure happened. That's why he hid for so long and did everything he could to help the shinigami when the Soldier attacked - he was helping his brother however he thought he could. Koku clearly doesn't know about that vision, and I don't intend on telling him - but knowing that my intentions are likely to become a reality at some point means I have to work him hard on things he's not confident with yet. He's taken to the sub-patrol job nicely, though. It's too soon to think of him in a haori or even as a Vice Captain, yet. But I think, in the future, we can make it happen. If I want to be a good father figure, I have to help make it happen, for his sake as much as Seireitei's."

"I suppose you do," Shunsui squinted at the shougi board. "I really should stop playing you at this game. You ruin all my best attacks."

"I know you too well, that's all. You never do go for the direct approach," Juushirou smiled sweetly. "If you want to actually beat me, you're going to have to up your game as well."

"I guess I will," Shunsui admitted. "In any case, I think you don't need to worry where Koku's concerned. When I spoke to him, after that incident, he made it clear he wasn't going to take his life lightly any more. He was going to live a long time, work hard, and not ever cause you the same kind of worry. I think it bothered him, that you were ill after everything happened - he idolises you, and he didn't see that as a potential outcome of his attempts to protect you. He's growing up as well...one day he'll be a Captain to make you proud. I'm sure about that."

"I worry about it, a bit, but it's reassuring to hear you say that," Juushirou sighed. "'If you love your child, send them on a journey.' Isn't that the proverb?"

"Something like that," Shunsui agreed. "I will probably have to make the same choices with Shizuka, at some point in the future - though in my case it's a little different, as I also have Riri breathing down my neck over her safety."

He sighed, casting his friend a pensive look.

Koku hasn't told you about his dream, has he? About the future Mirror, and what it might mean going forward. His resolve to live longer came about because he realised if he dies, someone else can take the Mirror, and can use it for bad ends. I want very much for that dream to be false, and for you not to have to lose him in the future, but Koku's ability is what it is, and I have to consider that it might come true. It's probably better, for now, that you don't know it...until we have more information, and know what can or can't be done to change it.

Out loud he said,

"It's hard work, isn't it, being a Captain? Making decisions is tiring work."

"I'm sure most of the tiring work that happens in the Eighth is on Shindou," Juushirou chided, as Shunsui settled on his next move. "I've heard from Sora about your office organisation techniques."

"It keeps them on their toes," Shunsui replied evenly. "Tetsuya's used to me. He took the job knowing what it would be like."

"I suppose Naoko is the same," Juushirou looked thoughtful. "I don't like to think about it much, Shunsui, but the situation with Minaichi made me realise I also need to be on the ball with my health a bit more. I mean, I can't push myself for days together like I did last summer, it just isn't practical. I'm casual with it a lot of the time, as I know it won't kill me - but if I'm not careful, it could hurt other officers. I'm sure Naoko will keep me in line on that front, but I'm going to pay attention to it myself. At the very least, I'm going to ask Retsu-sama about having regular checkups at the Fourth again. I stopped them because I didn't see the point, but prevention is better than cure. And since there isn't a cure..."

He trailed off, and Shunsui eyed his friend affectionately.

"That sounds smart, and I'm glad," he admitted. "I think you've a lot of years in you yet - we both have - in our respective jobs. You're a long way from being a liability, and your situation isn't like Atsushi-dono's. But it doesn't hurt to stay on top of it. We don't know, in the future, what might happen. It might be that it affects you more as you get older."

"It's true," Juushirou owned. "Because of Shikiki protecting my heart, and because there's still some kind of barrier around it, preventing the disease from harming it, my life expectancy isn't threatened by it - but most people with haibyou don't live even as long as I have. It's hard to know what the effect of aging might be on it, since people with haibyou don't usually live to old age. I intend to - I don't plan to die in battle - so I have to think more carefully. If there are things I can do to manage it, so it won't impact on my work, then I should be doing them."

He smiled sheepishly.

"Maybe if I do that, my members won't get it into their head that I need protecting. I want to be the one protecting them, not the other way around."

"Those shinigami would be ground into pulp if you ever released Sougyo no Kotowari at them at full tilt," Shunsui replied lazily. "Even Koku would have a job dealing with it as the both of you are now - even if your Bankai is not yet perfect. Your officers are cheeky and you should discipline them for underestimating you. You're planning for the longterm future - but you're still probably a better Captain than I'll ever be, even when you're running a fever."

He sent Juushirou a pensive look.

I don't suppose Koku's dream really matters either, not in the here and now. Whatever that was, it was a long way off. A Seireitei totally different from the one we know, and one that might not even ever come to be. Lots of decisions get made between then and now. Koku said you were older, and in poorer health, but you were stronger anyway. I don't know what that means, or if it has implications for me as well, but, right now, I'm not going to worry about it. Koku said himself that he won't die young. He's not going to recklessly throw his life away, and whatever he saw is a very long way in the future. How long, I suppose we'll just have to wait and see. If it never happens, then so much to the good. But it's not like me to be caught up on a maybe picture of something that hasn't even begun to happen yet. Not least with someone who doesn't even exist causing chaos and a red-haired ryoka with a Royal zanpakutou...

He let out a soft sigh.

It sounds crazy even thinking it over, so trying to explain it would be worse. The future is going to be what it's going to be. If we get more clues going forward, then maybe, we can act - but right now it's just a possibility in a sea of possibilities.

He watched as Juushirou made his counter move, his brain already beginning to think out a new offensive strategy.

Like shougi, plans change when something comes up. Life does, too. The future isn't set in stone. We can change it. We've already proven it. Unlike the past, which is already decided, the future is different. It's still an open - and entirely unwritten - book, and so it should be. Koku's not living his life with the fear of death hanging over him - and nor will I. If nothing else, Juu, Koku's dream suggests you and I have a lot more years of playing shougi and drinking sake together, and that's fine by me.

He reached out to make his move.

Of all the people in Seireitei, you're the person I'd hate to lose most. Whatever else happens, we got into this shinigami adventure together. I'd like to think we're going to fight it out to the finish as a team as well. As Team Stupid...whatever challenges the future might bring.

Author's Note:

And so we leave them now, for the last time, to live their lives onwards towards canon.

A few notes for the road.

Kohaku's prediction
It's been well foreshadowed already that Koku will be a Captain in the future. Well, a Captain always needs a Vice Captain. In this story, you've met him. Koku's Vice Captain will be Yatsubashi Shinobu. He's obviously just begun his journey as a shinigami - but, in the future, Shinobu will be Koku's right hand man at the Fifth. It's a long way off, yet - but since I won't write about it, I thought you guys would like to know.

Some folk might have thought Kayashima would be the Vice Captain for Koku, but I think otherwise. I think it more likely Kayashima will be Juushirou's VC at some point in the future. I never wanted Koku to be Juu's VC - no way could Juushirou handle that objectively, and it wouldn't have benefitted either of them in the longterm. That's why, when the Fifth Captaincy comes up, Juu puts Koku forward for it, and Koku accepts, taking Shinobu with him.

The reason it was the Fifth was to create a reason why Sousuke might be Captain of the Fifth. Of course, Koku has dreamed about Sousuke in this story as well. It's not quite the advent of the Black Prophesy - but having seen the memories of the past Mirror, it's now going to become more and more possible for Koku to pick up threads of the future Mirror - and, little by little, his attempts to lay the groundwork to prevent Sousuke harming Seireitei in the future will begin. Knowing that Shunsui had those fleeting doubts about Sousuke in the Pendulum Arc, and the reaction to Sousuke's apparent death from both Shunsui and Juushirou indicates they knew or suspected something before it happened - and Koku is the explanation behind that. All the threads of the web weaving together between the past and the future, since, as I mentioned before, in my mind Sousuke doesn't have access to Kisuke's research. He has access to Keitarou's, and probably, Kusakawa's too.

The reason they fail to identify Sousuke as the danger is because Sousuke is good at hiding behind his illusions. He pretends his sword is not that strong, which feeds into the idea of Koku trying to seal the core of the sword away. And Koku asked for the future Mirror not to be left alone. On the surface, Sousuke seems integrated, popular, and loyal. What they don't expect is everything going on under the surface. The kind of Mirror Koku was leaves neither Juu nor Shun really prepared for the kind of Mirror Sousuke is...or the potent connection he has with his sword. That said, a lot of tragic events in Sousuke's own life help, in my view, to make him that isolated figure. Maybe, if someone had reached out to him sooner, and guided him onto the right path, it would have been different...who knows. In any case, Sousuke resents the Soul King. I think, personally, this resentment stems from the Royal Sword and the Royal Blood that runs through Mirror wielders - and the way this distinction isolated him from everything and everyone else. Sousuke is lonely...and it's the Mirror that makes him that way. Something from Heaven - something he wants to overthrow and take for himself to finally feel validated.

Another reason they perhaps wouldn't pick up on the danger in the Pendulum period quickly enough is the absence of the red haired ryoka with the Shiba Moon sword. :)

Enishi's fate as Eleventh Captain, Yachiru, and the Kenpachi title.

I gave this to him in a time when we didn't know about Yachiru. But actually, it worked quite nicely in the end to bring those things together. Knowing the long lost story of the Kenpachi, Yachiru means that Enishi's own brave act in protecting the Eleventh Division - and the eight corpses he struck down there (eight - hachi, as in kenpachi - sword and eight) would logically make that a nickname he might pick up. As for Yachiru herself, I think it's quite clear where she is now. She may have died a long time ago, but, unlike the other corpses, she wasn't struck down. She was sealed away. Her corpse may have rotted, but the essence of her as a being was never quelled or stopped. She was just trapped. Breaking the shrine meant breaking that free. The idea of Retsu and Yachiru, these two faces of the same person in canon, and their differences from each other, feed well into the idea of one body, with two essences inside it. Yachiru is part of Retsu. Minazuki is a sword with split skills. Right now, Retsu is just Retsu. But there's an individual who will bring out Yachiru to fight - the next time the Soldier is born in Seireitei. :)

Enishi isn't killed as Captain of the Eleventh anytime right after this story happens. He holds the post for a good while before it gets to that point. Seireitei has to change somewhat before a Captain killing another Captain to take control can possibly be accepted. The Clan system has to lose its grip a lot more as well, and some of the leaders in charge right now would no longer be at the helm. Guren's retirement as Sixth Captain is the start, but even in canon, the Kuchiki still run their division and their family alongside each other. That's not true for all of the Divisions.

It's still my intention that Shiba Sora is called to the Royal Realm. Just because she wasn't in canon and didn't exist doesn't mean she isn't there, or wasn't there. That said, I don't like the Royal Guard in canon. I don't see Hikifune in this story being the Hikifune in the final arc, so you can basically just assume the Royal Guard in my mind is not the same as the one we saw in canon. Because frankly they all sucked.

Naoko's future.

I think I mentioned this before, but the epilogue under the cherry blossoms at the end of the Meifu Fourth Maki Omake did not include Naoko's future. The reason for this was because when I wrote that, I was still writing Fourth Maki, and my original intention was for her to die in Fourth Maki at the point where she's possessed by Keitarou's sword. She was going to take her own life, but Sora and Mitsuki had other ideas and she survived. But because she survived, she was missing from the omake, and her future remains an open book. I had a few thoughts for her in this story as well, which also did not come to pass. Less violent ones, I hasten to add! In the end, though, her becoming Juu's Vice Captain seems to me to be fitting. What happens after that, I don't know. I really, genuinely don't know. And even though I had those thoughts about where she might ultimately end up, I decided not to share them with you guys. I decided to let you decide for yourselves what becomes of Naoko, how and when. The only thing I would say is that I don't see her becoming a Captain. And, that if she was still in the canon world, at the time Juu visits a certain site in the cherry blossom epilogue, she'd be there alongside him. But what happens? I don't know. Maybe she also goes to the Royal Realm. Maybe she dies. Maybe she leaves the Gotei for some other reason. It's entirely up to you to decide.

And finally...
I have never accepted the way the final arc dealt with Juushirou, and I feel sure that the Shunsui of earlier arcs would never have allowed that to happen. As mentioned previously, the final arc has so many inconsistencies and retcons that it's easier imagining it never existed. In any case, Meifu's Juu and Shun are a team now and will be right up until the end. There are no mimihagis in this future, whatever else might come to pass. As I said at the beginning, my story feeds into canon, but that feed stops at the end of the Fullbring arc and does not go any further. The ONLY aspect I have imported from the Final Arc is Yachiru. I might have used techniques revealed in the final arc, but the story itself is null and void to Meifu and its sequels.

As Koku has proven, sometimes you can change the future, if you work hard enough.

Team Stupid and friends thank everyone for the long years of love and support that you have shown them and this story since Meifu's Prequel to now, especially those who reviewed, sent messages, bantered with me about what might happen next...took my horrible cliffhangers so good-naturedly, and genuinely made these stories happen. You are all amazing individuals and I wish you all absolutely the best. Team Stupid Forever.

::Addendum::
I wrote this epilogue a while back, but I felt the need to add, given the time that I am uploading this last part of my story, please everyone STAY SAFE.