Whoops... Guess there really isn't an excuse for taking that long huh? I suppose I could blame the fact that I was caught up in real life stuff... And honestly, I dislike writing dialogue, since I have to make characters seem as in-character as I can:/.

Thanks again to everyone who have continued sticking around and continue reading despite my long absences! Thanks for all the reviews, favorites, and alerts as well:).

Anyway, here's the next chapter! Not as long as the previous, but I had to end it somewhere.

Disclaimer: Disclaimed.

Chapter 50: Preparations

One week later

Soul Society

Ichigo was bored.

But really, there was no surprise there. After all, there was only so much one could do in a spacious cell that was empty, save for a futon tucked away in one corner and the hard chair he was currently seated on. He'd already counted the number of bars on his cell (forty), determined how many guards were on rotation for guarding his cell (twelve), and measured the dimensions of his cell (eight by six metres).

Alternatively, he could eavesdrop on the conversations of the guards that were currently standing guard outside his cell. Given that he was being held in the sixth division's detention cell, he still recognised a couple of the shinigami guards. The rest were relatively new, having being posted to the division after he'd left it.

While the more senior guards had been eager to speak to him, even they didn't dare disobey a direct order from Byakuya, forbidding them from interacting him. But they were still standing close enough for him to pick up on their conversations. And considering that no one had been by after his farce of a trial last week, he supposed the rest of the division, and the rest of the Seireitei, had been barred from visiting him as well. After all, he knew how fast the rumour mill in the Gotei 13 could spin.

It still annoyed him every time he thought about the 'trial' he'd received. It wasn't even a trial to begin with; it was more of a competition between the Central 46 officials to see who could speak the loudest. By the time the 'trial' ended, his ears were ringing. He hadn't even been able to get many words in edgewise.

As expected, he'd been summarily sentenced to death for hollow experimentation and for possessing hollow powers. Sick of them shouting over him, Ichigo hadn't bothered trying to defend himself with the fact that he had his hollow under control. He doubted the Central 46 officials would've listened anyway.

At least he hadn't been executed on the spot. That would've completely derailed any plans for his escape. Instead, he was to be executed by the Sokyoku in a month's time, or 20 days from the present. It was done, apparently, to ensure that whatever hollow powers he had could not possess him. Ever since then, he'd been imprisoned in the sixth division detention block, although he was scheduled to be moved to the Senzaikyu a week before his execution. Naturally, Ichigo didn't plan on going anywhere near Sokyoku hill. He had every confidence Rukia would've busted him out long before that. He didn't want to think of the possibilities of her failing.

He stared at the reiatsu-blocking cuffs that had been placed on his wrists, and idly tugged at them lightly. As a third seat, and subsequently lieutenant of the sixth division, he'd had to use this on the occasional detainee. As the name suggested, it blocked the reiatsu of its wearer, preventing them from using their powers to escape.

But he'd quickly discovered that the cuffs had a limit. While it blocked him from accessing a huge portion of his powers, he was still able to release a weak 'Hado #1: Sai', with enough force to make someone stagger. Perhaps the cuffs hadn't been designed to hold a captain-level shinigami. It definitely wasn't enough to help him escape, but it could prove useful in future.

His thoughts shifted to Rukia. Even before they became a couple, they'd rarely been apart for extended periods of time. The last had been during his initial hollow suppression training, and in admittedly less dire circumstances.

In all honesty, he'd been doubting the sanity of his hastily constructed plan of having Rukia bust him out. While he knew what she was capable of, he couldn't be certain of how it measured up against the other taichou, who were certainly her biggest obstacle. But given the situation, he'd been hard pressed to come up with a better one in the time they had.

Still, it wasn't like he had a choice in that matter now. So all he could do now was to put his faith in Rukia and watch for an opportunity.

Just then, he heard the main doors open. He stayed put with his back against the cell entrance, but he nearly turned round when he heard a familiar voice curtly addressing the guards, "Wait outside. I want to speak to the prisoner alone."

"Hai, Abarai-fukutaichou."

As the guards exited the room, the cell fell into silence. Ichigo could just picture Renji standing by the bars, watching him with his arms folded and a hostile scowl on his face.

After a minute of tense silence, Renji still hadn't spoken a word, so Ichigo decided to break the deadlock. "Judging by the fact that you've been standing there without speaking, I suppose you're not here to bust me out."

"What for? It'll only just speed up the inevitable when they catch you and kill you," Renji replied icily.

"Then why not do so? After all, it sounds like something you'd want to happen."

When Renji didn't reply, Ichigo turned round to look at his former friend. True to form, he was standing right outside the cell in the exact same pose Ichigo imagined him to be in. However, the hostility apparent on his face was tinged with a hint of sadness and hurt.

While the past few days had been largely spent in boredom, Ichigo had had time to ponder about recent events. And to be honest, he was confused over Renji's behaviour.

He, Rukia, and Renji had been inseparable as they did their best to survive in Inuzuri. With only each other to depend on, it formed a close bond between them that appeared unbreakable.

But when they'd become shinigami, Renji had slowly but surely drifted away from them. Sure, they'd been in different divisions, and he had preferred to spend time with Rukia, but that didn't explain the look of anger on Renji's face back in the living world. It was a look that bordered on hatred. He'd felt it the moment they crossed swords; Renji had attacked with the intent to kill. And he didn't know what caused it.

"You think I'm guilty, don't you?" Ichigo asked bluntly, taking a stab in the dark. While he didn't believe that his former friend could think that little of him, there really weren't any other possible explanations.

Renji's expression lost its anger for the briefest of moments. "It... Doesn't matter what I think."

"I think it does, actually," Ichigo responded simply. "You were prepared to kill me back in the living world. And just now, you considered helping me 'escape' just so I could get myself caught and killed earlier."

"What the hell? You actually believed what I said?" Renji brushed it off with an irritated wave of his hand. "It was just a joke. Can't believe you can't take jokes now."

Ichigo turned round fully to face Renji. "In case you've forgotten, you suck at lying," he retorted loudly, already growing tired of Renji's behaviour.

Renji snorted. "Like hell you would know."

Not really sure what to make of it, Ichigo disregarded it. "Even if you didn't really mean it, you've obviously entertained that thought at some point. The question is: why? And no matter how I try, I can't think of a possible explanation other than the fact that you think I'm guilty of hollow experimentation."

Renji looked at him square in the eye, and Ichigo caught a hint of an unidentifiable expression before it returned to one of anger. "Then apparently you weren't thinking hard enough."

He closed his eyes, biting back the urge to walk up to Renji and smack his head against the bars. It seemed like his former friend didn't think him guilty, but it didn't look like he was going to get the real reason out of him either. "What happened, Renji?" He asked, forcing himself to remain calm.

He frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"The three of us: Rukia, you, and I. We used to be inseparable. We survived through Inuzuri; we made the best of what we had, depending on one another to eke out way through the afterlife. We journeyed to Seireitei to become shinigami after losing our friends to hollows, stood side by side against numerous hollows, and nearly got killed doing so. And even when we had to separate, we vowed to remain friends, and while it was never convenient, we still found time to hang out. So what changed, Renji? What happened during these past few years to result in you wanting me dead?"

Renji opened his mouth to answer, but snapped it shut. Clearly, this wasn't how he expected the conversation to turn out. Eventually, without saying a word, Renji turned round and stalked out of the cell block.

Ichigo stared after Renji's retreating form, before leaning back against his chair. He closed his eyes, not bothering to look up at the sounds of the guards returning to their posts.

He found himself breathing quite heavily, and forced himself to cool down. No doubt his agitation was caused by his confrontation with Renji. He'd nearly lost his cool over Renji's attitude, but thankfully, he'd been able to restrain himself. Attacking a vice-captain wasn't going to help him one bit. It might've provided some satisfaction, but the trouble wasn't worth it. At least he'd eliminated one possible reason for Renji's actions. Unfortunately, that brought him no closer to the actual answer. In fact, it only raised more questions, of which he currently had no means of finding out.

With nothing else to do, he resumed his wait.

One week later

"GOOD MORNING NEPHEW!"

*THWACK* "AGH! QUIT IT YOU OLD MAN!"

Scuffling sounds continued echoing out from the second floor of the Kurosaki household, a stark contrast to the peace and normalcy that could be found on the first floor.

"Good morning, Rukia-nee!" Yuzu said cheerfully as Rukia entered the kitchen. The younger twin was in the midst of preparing breakfast; she was ladling miso soup into five bowls for the entire family.

Rukia returned the greeting, placing her school bag at the table before immediately heading to help, as she had been doing for quite some time. She didn't know how to cook, but she could at least assist in minor areas.

Just then, there was a particularly loud thump, followed by a victorious cry from the Kurosaki patriarch. "Twelfth in a row! You're losing your touch, my dear nephew!"

The immediate silence that followed was approaching deafening.

"Hey Rukia-nee," Yuzu suddenly asked. "Is Ichi-nii sick?"

"Not that I know of. Why?"

"Oh... He's never lost against Otou-san before, and now he has lost so many times in a row. If he's really sick, perhaps I should ask Otou-san to hold back on the attacks."

Just then, Isshin bounded down the stairs, greeting the two of them in his usual rambunctious way. He was followed by Karin, whose face only contained a touch of annoyance at the daily morning noise.

Immediately, Yuzu rounded on her father about the possibility of Ichi-nii being sick, and how he should perhaps not attack him till he recovered. Isshin waved it off, insisting that it would help Ichigo get well by keeping his senses sharp.

Karin offered no opinion at all.

Inwardly, Rukia had to marvel at how they were discussing attacking someone in the same casual tone people used to discuss the weather. But most importantly, she was relieved that they'd chalked down 'Ichigo's' dip in physical prowess as an illness.

By the time Ichigo appeared downstairs, Yuzu had haggled the number of attacks down to three times a week, although Isshin reserved the right to choose which day.

Catching the tail end of the bargaining, Ichigo sent Rukia a quick pleading look. It was a look extremely unbecoming of him, but knowing that that wasn't Ichigo, she settled for shooting him a warning look and shaking her head slightly, making him sigh softly.

Taking pity on him, Rukia quickly polished off her breakfast and left with 'Ichigo', waiting only long enough for Yuzu to pack his food and remind Rukia to make sure he ate it. It was good for his health after all.

"How are you holding up?" Rukia asked once they were out of earshot.

It was like a dam had burst. 'Ichigo' immediately launched into a tirade about crazy old doctors and child abuse.

"This wasn't what I signed up for when I agreed to double up in Ichigo's body!" he half-whined.

Rukia resisted the urge to roll her eyes, wondering what Ichigo would do if he ever heard himself speak in that whiny tone. "It's only for a few more days until I leave for Soul Society, Kon. You can endure it."

Kon brightened up slightly upon hearing that there was a possible end to the torture. But he still continued to mutter under his breath, thinking up stupid, but admittedly creative ways he could get back at Isshin.

Rukia hadn't remained idle these past two weeks. After reluctantly agreeing to let Sado and Orihime join the rescue team, she, Urahara, and Yoruichi had started planning for the mission while her two classmates focused on intensive training. One of the first and foremost problems was transporting Sado and Orihime to Soul Society. Since they were both still alive, they couldn't simply just up and waltz into Soul Society as they were. Separating their souls from their bodies was out of the question too.

Furthermore, they had a time limit looming over their heads. By sneaking into Soul Society, Yoruichi was able to determine that Ichigo, after a speedy trial, had been sentenced to death for illegally acquiring hollow powers. It was scheduled to be held a month from the sentence - two weeks away from the present day. Upon hearing this, part of Rukia was curious about how her sensei managed to avoid detection, but thoughts of Ichigo's impending execution was enough to stem her curiosity.

Even before this information, Urahara had already started working on a way to send living humans to Soul Society. But upon learning about this time limit, he immediately upped his efforts.

"I should be done with two weeks still left on the clock," Urahara had declared. "You guys can head out when I'm done."

He didn't address the elephant in the room, and neither did Rukia want him to.

Aside from her regular trips to gather information, Yoruichi began training the two students extensively, both in the use of their powers and how to fight. Rukia was surprised to hear that Orihime actually held a black belt in karate. Nevertheless, having fighting skills sped up training by a considerable amount. Both Sado and Orihime were able to start harnessing their powers within a day, and immediately began training with them.

The next issue was handling Ichigo's disappearance. It was decided that the three of them would return to school as per normal, since they couldn't enter soul society yet anyway. However, how were they going to explain Ichigo's disappearance? Possible explanations they coughed up were flimsy at best, so they eventually decided that the best option was to use a mod-Soul to double up as Ichigo, since Urahara still had his gigai. However, most regular mod-souls were only engineered to inhabit a body temporarily. They were mass-manufactured to have a distinct personality, one that was usually considered unusual to most. Also, they lacked the ability to modify their personalities to suit different circumstances.

Enter Kon.

Kon was what Urahara called an enhanced mod soul. They were named as such as they had been created a few decades ago as a means to aid in combating hollows. As such, they were different from a normal mod soul, and had combat capabilities slightly below that of an average unranked shinigami. But more importantly, even though they came with their own wacky personality, they possessed a limited ability to learn and adapt, something that was deemed useful in helping them fight hollows.

A few hundred of them had been created as a trial run. However, when many of them fell to hollows, some in quite gruesome manners, the project was eventually deemed as too inhumane and was shut down. While most of the enhanced souls had been destroyed, Kon was one of the few that still remained. Urahara explained that with its limited ability to learn, it could learn enough about Ichigo's mannerisms and behaviours to pass off as the real deal.

Of course, it wasn't going to pass muster around people like the Kurosaki household; being in regular contact with Ichigo, they would surely be able to notice any behavioural changes.

But that was where Rukia came in. Being his partner, she could instruct the enhanced mod better about Ichigo's routine in the Kurosaki household.

The first thing she did was give it the name 'Kon', as calling him Ichigo was too strange for her, unless it was in a public setting and unavoidable. Then, she gave him a crash course in some of Ichigo's behaviours and preferences. It wasn't perfect, but she could perhaps chalk any oddities down to an illness.

For his part, Kon performed fairly admirably, and was able to pull off a passable impression of Ichigo. Rukia was only required to step in occasionally to correct his behaviour.

However, she had her hands full when it came to reining in Kon's own quirky personality, which could unfortunately be aptly described as 'perverted young man'. And there wasn't a worst place to drop such a personality than a school full of teenage girls with developing/developed bodies. She had to constantly stop Kon from openly ogling at their female classmates' chests and attempting to look up their skirts. Not surprisingly, his main target was Orihime. At least she was privy to the fact that that wasn't Ichigo, so she would wave it off every time, albeit with a huge blush on her face. Sure, she could easily explain it away as hormones, but they were supposed to be a couple, and such behaviour was distinctively un-Ichigo-ish.

Rukia had also warned Kon about Kurosaki Isshin's daily morning ritual of attacking Ichigo. The mod soul had appeared concerned at first, but had eventually waved it off with the famous last words, "it can't be that bad." It only took him a day to eat his words.

Lacking the speed and agility of the real Ichigo, Kon stood no chance against the crazed doctor, and woke up daily in a battered state. But with Yuzu's intervention today, at least he wouldn't have to suffer as much. That was fine; despite all the trouble he'd caused her, she still would've stepped in herself.

Eventually.

While waiting for classes to begin, Rukia couldn't help but let her mind wander again. Her honed sense of hearing picked up on the conversations around her, most of them excitedly discussing the plans they'd arranged - plans they couldn't wait to get started on once the final bell rang at the end of today, signaling the beginning of summer vacation. She marveled at how focused they were on their upcoming vacations, completely unaware that three of their fellow classmates were making preparations to embark on a life or death - or a death or permanent death - journey to rescue another of their classmates. Said classmate's body was still present, but it was inhabited by a substitute soul.

Even that sounded weird when phrased that way.

Speaking of which, she wondered how Ichigo was.

Even after two weeks, it still felt weird to see Kon inhabiting Ichigo's gigai. She would often turn to him, and for a split second forget that it wasn't Ichigo she was speaking to.

Though she wasn't going to admit it, it felt strange without Ichigo around. Even before they became a couple, they'd spent most of their time together, be it for training or just being alone together, until it felt just like second nature. Starting a relationship together didn't change that routine much; they simply added on the perks of being a couple. But without him around, she still wasn't used to the sudden change in behaviour; it always felt like something was missing. And that made her even more determined to rescue him.

Still, she wasn't going to lie to herself; the chances of rescuing Ichigo were slim. But she'd made a promise. One she fully intended to keep. Plus, she didn't want to think of the consequences if she failed.

Her gaze fell on Uryu. While she understood his reasons, he was still the indirect cause of Ichigo now facing certain death in two weeks' time. And although he'd admittedly tried to intervene when Ichigo was being taken away, he'd yet to make any effort to approach her, let alone speak to her or offer any form of apology. She would often catch him looking at her with a conflicted expression, as though fighting the urge to speak to her. And each time, he would always end up looking away instead.

She noted with grim satisfaction that both hands and forearms of his were still heavily bandaged, although his right was no longer tinged red with blood that had seeped through.

He moved slightly, and a gleam of light reflected off something on his left wrist, catching her eye. Two thin identical rod-like things were protruding out on opposite sides of his bandaged wrist, as though he had driven a long thin spike through his wrist. 'When had that been there?' she wondered.

Just then, Ochi-sensei entered the classroom, which was the signal for everyone to halt their conversations. But given that it was the last day of school, a moderate buzz still remained.

"Alright, settle down everyone!" Ochi-sensei rapped her wrist loudly on the form book. "Now, I know today is the last day of school, and I would gladly love to just let you all do whatever you want! But I have to pretend to be having a serious-"

That was the furthest she got, as the side window suddenly exploded inward with a loud crash, and a large ball came speeding in towards the front of the classroom. Screams rang out as everyone ducked for cover, including Ochi-sensei.

Her senses on immediate high alert, Rukia recovered instantly. Her eyes quickly locked onto the projectile, which was barreling straight towards the centre of the chalkboard. She had just enough time to register the image on the ball - a picture of Urahara's face next to a hand making a 'V' sign - before it collided with the chalkboard and exploded with a burst of red paint. It splattered out in all directions, covering the entire chalkboard with thick, red paint.

There was silence as everyone stared at the viscous mess in shock.

"All right, who did this?!" Ochi-sensei shrieked upon finding her voice. "Who in the world thought it'd be a good idea to vandalise MY chalkboard!? And on the last day of school!"

While she wasn't responsible, she most definitely knew who was, so Rukia kept a shocked look on her face, imitating her classmates and looking around the classroom. She wondered if Sado and Orihime saw the picture of Urahara on the ball. If they did, she hoped they wouldn't give anything away.

"Well?" Ochi-sensei prompted. "Asano?" All heads immediately swivelled to Keigo

"I didn't do it sensei!" Keigo denied vehemently.

Ochi-sensei's eyes narrowed in suspicion, but before she could challenge the lanky teen, Michiru suddenly exclaimed, "Sensei, look! There are words on the board!"

Their teacher turned round, and the class fell silent again.

The red paint was slowly flowing down the board, revealing words written in red paint. "The preparations are complete," Ochi-sensei read out as the words were slowly revealed. "Gather at the usual location. You may depart tonight."

"What the heck is this?" She exclaimed yet again. "It looks like it's written in blood! For the dead!" She turned her glare back to her students, obviously attempting to discern the culprit from their looks.

"Sensei, there are more words at the bottom!"

And sure enough, most of the paint had flowed off the chalkboard. And right at the bottom corner was another message in a smaller font: 'and if you think this is a message for the dead and written in blood, then you have no sense of humour.'

Needless to say, Ochi-sensei wasn't impressed.

9 hours, 3 teachers, 2 bag and locker inspections, one discipline master, one principal, copious amounts of paint thinner, and lots and lots of cleaning equipment later, the paint was finally cleared off. During that time, Rukia was able to confirm with Sado and Orihime that they both knew whom the message was from, and who it was meant for. Aside from that, all they had to do was not raise the suspicions of the school staff. After all, while they weren't responsible, they certainly knew who was.

Thankfully, they were able to avoid suspicion, and once they were finally released two hours after everyone else, the three of them (plus Kon) were the first ones out the door. After a quick agreement to meet outside Urahara's shop at 7:30, Rukia left with Kon in the opposite direction from Sado and Orihime.

As they headed back, there was a definite spring in Kon's steps. Rukia had also informed him that they were headed to Soul Society tonight. While that didn't matter much to him, it also spelt an end to the assaults inflicted on him by a certain Kurosaki Isshin, and that was good news as far as he was concerned.

Unfortunately, in his glee, he promptly forgot they still had to return to the Kurosaki household for a while. And that placed him within reach of the Kurosaki Doctor.

"We're back!" Rukia announced as she opened the front door. The soft sounds of people speaking was drifting over from the television.

Yuzu's head poked out from behind the couch. "Oh! Hello Rukia-nee, Ichi-nii. Karin's still at-"

"WELCOME BACK NEPHEW!"

"AAAGGHH!"

Rukia whipped round just in time to see Isshin crash land onto Ichigo from above. She couldn't help but winced as they fell to the ground in a tangled heap.

"WHAT THE HELL! WHAT'S YOUR PROBLEM YOU CRAZY OLD MAN?!"

Isshin was the first to untangle himself, and he bounced right back up, completely unfazed despite having jumped from the second floor. "AERIAL ATTACKS, MY DEAR BOY! YOU FORGOT ABOUT THEM!"

"Otou-san!" Yuzu chastised. "I thought you said you were only going to attack Ichigo three times a week?"

"I did!" Isshin grinned. "And that wasn't an attack! I just happened to gain the sudden urge to jump from my nephew's bedroom window on the second floor. Such a pity that said nephew just happened to be directly below it when I jumped."

Yuzu pouted. "That still counts!"

"No it doesn't!"

"You called it an attack yourself!"

As Yuzu continued to argue with her father over what constituted an attack, Rukia shook her head in exasperation before helping Kon up.

"I really can't wait to be shot of this madhouse," he grumbled under his breath.

2 hours later

"Welcome back everyone!" Urahara announced as Rukia (already out of her gigai), Kon, Sado, and Orihime approached the entrance to his shop. "I take it you all got my message?"

"Right in front of so many others? And in paint that looks like blood? Really?" Rukia narrowed her eyes at the shopkeeper.

Urahara merely brushed it off with a wave of his fan. "Why not? Just trying to lighten up the mood a little. It's the start of summer vacation! No need to be so stiff."

Rukia sighed, but dropped the issue. She had long gotten used to Urahara's antics, so in hindsight, she should've expected him to pull some ridiculous stunt for something as simple as passing a message. "Never mind. May we enter?"

Immediately, Urahara became more solemn. "As you wish. But first, Kon?"

Hearing his name, Kon stepped forward. Tessai, who had been standing silently next to Urahara, came up to him. He donned a familiar red and blue glove with a flaming skull pattern on his hand. Then, he placed the gloved hand on the back of Kon's head and gave a push. Out popped the Gikongan that housed Kon's soul, straight into Urahara's outstretched hand. The gigai flopped lifelessly to the ground, but Tessai caught it in his hands. Deftly, he flipped the gigai over his shoulder before disappearing back into the shop.

Urahara chuckled at the fascinated looks on the two teenagers. "You get used to it after a while. Now, before we proceed, there's still someone we're missing."

At this, Rukia became confused. "We are? Who?"

"That ah... That would be me," a voice suddenly spoke up from behind them.

Not immediately recognising the voice, Rukia turned round. A feeling of surprise and anger descended as she saw Ishida Uryu walking towards them.

Once again, Uryu was dressed in the traditional all white Quincy garment, looking pretty much the same as when he'd approached her and Ichigo two weeks back. He was walking with his hands behind his back, but as he reached up to adjust his glasses, Rukia saw that his gloved hand wasn't swathed with bandages and appeared just fine.

"Ishida-kun?" Orihime asked. "What are you doing here?" Having never heard or seen Uryu in action, both she and Sado looked understandably confused.

Rukia, on the other hand, wasn't. "Yes, what are you doing here?" She asked him coldly as he reached them.

"No particular reason," he replied in the same irritatingly aloof manner. "I just happened to be in the area and decided to see what all the fuss was about."

Rukia sighed in frustration, resisting the urge to smack him. "Ishida, enough with that mysterious bullshit, especially after you've avoided saying a single word to me these past two weeks. Now, let me ask again: what are you doing here?" She asked, even though she suspected she already knew the answer.

Uryu turned to stare at her, but she didn't avert her glare. Eventually, he answered, "I heard that you three were going to rescue Kurosaki. I've come to offer my aid."

It was just as she suspected, but Rukia wasn't going to let him off the hook that easily. She raised an eyebrow. "Really? I thought you hated shinigami."

"I've uh... I've come to recognise the wisdom of Kurosaki's words."

"As a matter of fact," Urahara interjected, "Ishida-san approached me two days after Kurosaki-san was taken away. He heard about your plan to rescue Kurosaki-san and requested to join in the rescue effort, on the condition that I did not tell you about his involvement."

Well that was certainly news to Rukia. "Oh?" She looked back at Uryu, whose face was now sporting a slight red tinge.

The Quincy adjusted his glasses again. "It's... The least I could do, I guess," he eventually relented.

Rukia regarded him for a moment, but his expression didn't change. "Well, I suppose another pair of hands wouldn't hurt."

"Excellent!" Urahara clapped his hands together. "Now, if you would all please follow me, we shall begin the final preparations." And without another word, he turned and headed back into his shop, and the four of them followed after him.

The first thing Rukia saw when she descended into the vast, empty training grounds was the huge square stone arch sitting right in the middle. In front of it stood Yoruichi, and to her surprise, Hirako Shinji.

"Yo!" Yoruichi waved to them as they approached. "How's it going? You guys ready yet?"

Rukia bowed to her sensei. "As ready as we can be, Yoruichi-sensei. Thank you for coming along to aid us."

"Nonsense, there's no need to thank me!" she waved her off. "There's nothing wrong with me wanting to help my student rescue her beau," she grinned at Rukia. "Now remember, when you get Ichigo out, be sure to give him the most arousing kiss you've ever given him, preferably in front of dear Bya-bo."

"Uh, right," Rukia intoned, not knowing how to respond. Wanting to avoid further embarrassment, she turned to Hirako. "Are you coming along as well, Hirako-san?"

Hirako shrugged before grinning. "As one of us, we have a vested interest in Ichigo as well. Can't go leave him hanging without being part of it eh?"

"But don't you too have a bounty on your head? They'll capture or even kill you!"

"I'll just have to avoid losing then. Relax!" He added upon seeing her unconvinced look. "I was a Taichou too, remember? I be fine!"

While far from convinced, she relented and turned to Urahara. "So is this it?"

"Indeed it is!" the shopkeeper replied. "Now as you all know, Soul Society exists as a spiritual realm, and only souls or spiritual beings can enter there. While Kuchiki-san, Hirako-san and Yoruichi can enter it just fine, the same can't be said for the three of you," he said, looking at Sado, Orihime, and Uryu. "While the three of you have spiritual powers, your souls have not been separated from your living bodies yet. Therefore, you would normally not be able to enter, not even Ishida-san, despite having a much better control over his spiritual powers."

"Uh, excuse me, Urahara-san," Orihime cut in apologetically. "But I'm just curious. What kind of powers do Hirako-san and Ishida-kun have?"

"Oh yes, you haven't heard about the both of them yet. Hirako Shinji is, or was, a shinigami as well." At this, Hirako gave Orihime a wide smile, only for Yoruichi to prod him hard in the back. "As to why he's here, let's just say that he's in the same position as me, Yoruichi, and Kuchiki-san."

"On the other hand, Ishida-san is... Ah, would you mind if I..."

"It's fine," Uryu replied.

"Very well. In short, Ishida belongs to a group of people called the Quincy, who are born with great spiritual power, and have been trained since young to harness this power. What this power manifests as, I'll leave it to Ishida-san to reveal it to you, as and when he wishes to do so."

"Oh, you mean there are more of people like you?" Orihime asked.

"Well... As far as I know, I'm the only remaining one."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that."

"Now, as I was saying," Urahara continued. "Originally, the only way you can enter Soul Society was for you to sever the connection between your soul and your living body. Unfortunately, such a process is irreversible, and there is no way to reattach your soul to your living body once the chain in severed. In other words, such an act would essentially kill you, and I trust none of you want that."

Indeed, all three of them looked a little green upon hearing that.

"But that, ladies and gentlemen, is where this lovely masterpiece comes into play." Urahara directed their attentions to the stone arch with a flourish of his hand. Beside him, Yoruichi snorted, but he happily soldiered on. "This archway is called the Reishi Henkan-ki, and what it does is simple. It temporarily fuses your living body with your soul into one entity. As a result, your body essentially becomes like any other soul, and will be made of spiritual particles, allowing you to move about freely within the spiritual realm. When you return back to the living world, all you need to return back to normal is pass through this arch again. Any questions so far?"

All three shook their heads.

"To start the process, simply pass through the arch. I will open up a portal to the spiritual realm just behind this arch, so just pass through it before you enter and you'll be good to go. The effect is instantaneous, so don't worry about any delays. Kuchiki-san, since you don't have a living body, passing thru the arch would have no effect on you."

"Is it safe?" Orihime asked uncertainly.

"Oh yes! Perfectly safe! I wasn't the research head of Soul Society for nothing."

"Alright, ar there anymore questions?" Rukia asked the others. The three Karakura High students shook their heads. "In that case, is everyone ready to set off?"

Yoruichi, Hirako and Uryu immediately answered. Sado and Orihime both looked a little pale, but nodded their confirmations.

"Excellent. Now, there's one more thing to take note of. When you enter the portal, you'll find yourself in a tunnel. This tunnel is a passageway into Soul Society and exists as a separate realm. Unfortunately, I can only keep it open for a maximum of 5 minutes, so the moment you enter, you'll have to run as fast as you can towards the exit. If the tunnel closes before you make it out, you'll be trapped within that dimension forever, with no way to escape. Still, no pressure! I'm confident that you all are fast enough to make it through."

"From what I've learnt about shinigami," Uryu interjected. "They don't travel through such dangerous means."

"And you would be correct, Ishida-san. Shinigami traverse between realms using the Senkaimon, a gate that can be opened by any shinigami, even Kuchiki-san over here. However, to use it safely, one needs a special creature called the Jigokucho, which, as the name suggests, takes the form of a butterfly. Without it, one would be forced to travel through this tunnel I mentioned before."

"You can't give us one?" Sado asked.

"Unfortunately not. Official shinigami require authorisation to utilise the Jigokucho. As an exile from soul society, I cannot provide the required authorisation. Given time, I could perhaps create something that mimics its effects, but I'm sure you'll agree that time is something we do not have much of. Besides, every person who passes through the senkaimon needs one Jigokucho each, so even if I could summon one now, it wouldn't be enough. But really, there's no need to worry. I'm sure you all will be able to make it through without issue. Just run forward once you enter and don't hesitate."

"Alright everyone!" Yoruichi suddenly barked out. "If there are no further questions, we shall begin shortly. Everyone please stand in a line fading the arch."

Everyone did as they were told.

"Now, before Kisuke opens the portal, there is one more thing he has forgotten to mention. While this device allows you to enter Soul Society, its biggest drawback to this is that since your body and soul essentially become one, if you get killed in Soul Society, both will cease to exist."

At this, the three living humans paled and stared at her with varying degrees of shock. Clearly, none of them had given much thought on the possibility of them dying.

"And while I thank you all for joining in this dangerous mission, I must stress again that there isn't any obligation on your part to stay, and there can be no turning back once you step through the gate and into the portal. So I'd like to ask this one question one last time: do you wish to continue, knowing that failure could very well mean a permanent death?" She looked at all three of them pointedly.

The three of them looked back at her. Orihime looked slightly uncertain for a moment, but she steeled herself and nodded resolutely.

Sado remained silent, but no one could mistake the hardened determination in his eyes.

But it was Ishida that spoke up first. "It's like how Hirako-san put it. If there's no turning back, then we just continue moving forward. And if failure means death, then we will just have to keep winning."

At his words, Yoruichi looked at him for a few seconds before breaking into a smile. "Nicely put."

"Alright, everyone get ready!" Urahara took over. "The countdown will begin the moment I activate the portal, so the moment I say go, run through the portal. Remember: once you step into the Dangai, just keep running forward. Don't stop, and don't hesitate. That one second might just be the difference between escaping and getting trapped. Yoruichi will bring up the rear of the group, and since she naturally has no intentions of getting stuck inside forever, do not fall behind, or she'll be forced to drag you out with her. And trust me, if that happens, you'll probably wish you were trapped for all eternity instead," he ended with a grin.

Yoruichi rolled her eyes but didn't comment, merely moving to stand behind the group. "Kisuke, activate the portal."

Nodding, Urahara walked up to the portal. He tapped the side of the Reishi Henkan-ki with his cane, and almost immediately, four bolts of purple energy shot out from the corners. They coalesced into a ball at the centre of the portal before expanding outwards to fill the entire arch.

"Ok!" Urahara called out over the thrum of the bright purple energy. "The Reishi henkan-ki has been activated! Next, I'm going to activate the portal that will lead directly to the Dangai. It's directly behind the converter so you wouldn't see it. But the moment I say go, just run through the archway and head for the light. Ready? Aaand..." Raising his cane once again, he rapped the side of the portal once more. "Go!"

Upon Urahara's command, Rukia kicked off towards the portal. On either sides of her, the others surged forward as well, but her gaze was firmly fixed forward, or more specifically, what laid beyond the veil.

If she was being honest with herself, Rukia was doubtful of her chances. Their group of six had to wade through thousands of shinigami to reach their goal. While these shinigami posed little threat even in numbers, there were still the thirteen captains to deal with, not to mention the vice-captains. But she viciously quashed these doubts. She couldn't afford to even hesitate a second; Ichigo's life depended on it. So as they rapidly closed in on the portal, Rukia focused on one thought only.

'We're coming for you, Ichigo.'

Soul Society

Ichigo's eyes flew open as the keening wail of a klaxon blared throughout the Seireitei, filtering in through his prison cell window. It wasn't the sound that intrigued him though; there was always something going on in the Seireitei. Rather, it was the fact that it was an alarm he had never heard before. Perhaps it was some newly implemented system, but a quick glance at the current guards on duty suggested that they too didn't know what was going on.

"… Unusual readings… Sections 3 to… Shift to… High… Drill…"

Ichigo sat up more attentively on his futon as the garbled words reached him. Being isolated from the outside, if it was information worth gleaning…

It took at least a minute, but he was eventually able to make out the announcement in its entirety.

"Attention! Attention! Unusual readings have been detected in the western sector! Patrols in sections 3 to 8 are to shift to high alert while awaiting further instructions. This is not a drill! Attention! Attention! Unusual readings…"

While he had no means to be certain, his instincts pointed to only one possible reason.

"Rukia," he smiled. "It's about time."

Yup! Gonna end it here. Hmm... so wonder what's up with Renji...

And given the way things have been changed, it's only right for the vizards to send at least one of their own, don't you think?

You know... I realize one problem I have with the manga. While it's cool to see new powers and stuff, the fights keep getting prolonged to the point that I can't be bothered when a character looks to have been defeated, because they'll just stand up in the next chapter with another unknown hax power and proceed to go ape on their opponent, regardless of hero/villain role, and then we have to wait another week. It's getting tiresome, really...

Although, come to think of it... my writing speed isn't something to be proud of either:/. Oh well... This time maybe:).

Anyway, hope you enjoyed this chapter! Don't forget to review/favorite/alert this story, and the next one would... hopefully not take that long.