"Bwahahahaha! And with that, the spirit has been laid to rest! However, just because it is gone does not mean that one is now free to disturb its resting place! Just as how we of the living have our little homes to feel safe in, this graveyard is the safe haven of spirits so to disturb it is the equivalent of someone coming in and vandalizing your home! Remember, kids! Spirits Are Forever With You!"
"And cut!" Kaoru shouted and I grinned as I placed my hands on my waist, the kid cheering happily while Ikumi clapped her hands with an amused yet exasperated smile on her face.
"That was awesome!"
"Glad to see you enjoy it! And a thank you to my loyal audience!" I spoke with a smile while bowing to the crowd of people in the restaurant we were sitting in, all of them clapping happily as I sat down.
"Mr. Kanonji, don't you feel kind of nervous when you're doing that?"
"Oh, definitely, but when you've been doing this for as long as I have, you tend to get used to the attention and focus only on what you need to do", I answered with a shrug and Kaoru frowned slightly before I looked over at Ikumi who was busy giving me a narrowed gaze.
"What? Do I have something on my face?"
"You know why I'm looking at you like this." She responded and I smirked and shrugged as I ate some of the fries on my plate.
"This is just a quick lunch between friends."
"Then you don't mind me raising the bill up by a few thousand, no?" She asked with a raised eyebrow, which I returned with an amused look as I shrugged while noting Kaoru just looking amused with our interaction.
"Oof~ Fine, I suppose I can ask them to bring two separate bills then, yes?"
"I never agreed to that." Kaoru chimed in and Ikumi snorted as I chuckled and nodded.
"Of course, I'll pay for your food too. Your mom on the other hand might have to pay for hers on her own."
"Then I'll pay for mine and you can pay for Mom's."
"…Well done, kid. Bested at my own game." I said with an impressed hum as Ikumi just gave me a smug smirk, Kaoru's happy grin making me chuckle as I waved at the waiter for the bill.
"It's okay. Like I said, this is lunch between two friends. Uh, two friends and a son of the first friend." I said with a smile as Kaoru frowned at me, rolling my eyes as I saw him grin happily before looking over at Ikumi as she frowned.
"It still feels wrong to just let you pay especially since you already let us eat for free yesterday today."
"We could always go out."
"Not a chance. What's the other option?" She asked with a smirk and I chuckled as I leaned back in my seat.
"Can you cook?"
"Mom's the best cook there is." Kaoru answered before she could, to which I glanced at him and back at her as she shrugged.
"I'm decent."
"Wonderful. I've been meaning to learn how to cook, but there's just this difference between wanting to learn food that could be considered restaurant worthy and food that one can only find at home. Would you mind teaching me?"
"Hmm, okay. However, no funny business."
"Of course. You can come along too. My house is empty without inviting guests over and I know Nakamura hates having to keep me company when we're both bored."
"Wait, your assistant lives with you?" She said and I snorted as I shook my head.
"No, he's just a guy without a social life, but I'm slowly but surely setting him up with my producer."
"So, you're trying to find a girlfriend for your assistant on top of finding love for yourself?"
"Yeah. Besides, he has a crush on her and what boss would I be if I didn't help him achieve his dreams?"
"Hmm, I believe I learned something new about you today, Mr. Kanonji." She said with an amused smile and I bowed my head slightly with a flourish.
"And I'm glad to hear that. So, tell me a little bit about yourself while we wait for the bill to come."
"Did you just signal for him to hold off on bringing it?"
"…Which answer gets me to make you stay longer?" I asked and she giggled for the first time I met her as even Kaoru looked up with a surprised look.
"Very well. What would you like to know?"
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"Welcome home, sir. How was the day out with Ms. Unagiya and her son?" Nakamura asked as I walked into the house, taking my jacket off and placing it in my coat closet.
Taking off my hat and shoes and putting them on the hat rack and shoe rack respectively, I placed my cane on the wall hanger I had custom-made while putting on my indoor slippers.
"It was incredible. I believe I'm slowly but surely getting through to her, Nakamura."
"It was only a matter of time, sir. I find it's hard to get mad at you even after you nagged me for a few hours at a time."
"Eh, you love my nagging and you know it," I said with a grin and chuckled as he shook his head with a smile, following after me as I walked over to the kitchen along with the pizza that was floating behind me.
"Spicy pepperoni, triple cheese and stuffed crust. Just how you like it."
"Thank you, sir." He spoke as he opened the box and took out a slice, biting off a piece of it with a pleased groan.
I simply rolled my eyes while taking out two whiskey glasses along with a bottle of it from the cupboard, placing ice in our cups before pouring us both a bit.
However, as I went to take a sip, I frowned as I heard the door-bell ringing, looking over at Nakamura who looked just confused as he finished his slice.
"Expecting anyone?" I asked as my cane flew from its wall rest and into my crest, Nakamura frowning and shaking his head as he reached to his book and pulled out the pistol on his side.
"What? Not all of us have spiritual powers", He answered with a shrug as I looked at his gun in slight surprise before I smirked as I turned and walked over to the door.
Looking at where Nakamura was, I smirked as he had walked to hide in the entranceway to the living room with his attention focused on the door before I took a deep breath and opened it.
"Um, hello." As I did, I blinked at the young voice that spoke up, looking down to see a nervous Karin Kurosaki standing on my front porch.
"…Uh, sir?" Nakamura asked as he quickly hid his gun while I frowned as I scratched the back of my head.
"Yes? Can I help you, kiddo?"
"Don't call me kiddo." Karin said with a frown and I rose an eyebrow before nodding as I turned to the side.
"Very well. Wanna come in or not?"
"Not really. Just wanted to ask you something."
"…Hah, sure. What did you wanna ask?"
"Can you teach me to do what you do?" Her blunt question nearly made me fall and I could hear Nakamura coughing out of surprise in the background, but that could also be from the sip of whiskey he drank.
"What do you mean…teach you to do what I do?"
"You know, the spirit spells and the spirit exorcising and all of that."
"…Sure. Tomorrow morning, early. The river near Furin Hall."
"Cool!" Her excitement was infectious as I gave a small chuckle at her happy smile before stifling my laughter as she blushed slightly while looking at the dark night streets of Karakura Town.
"Need a lift?"
"No." She answered and I simply raised an eyebrow as she said that, but didn't move at all before shaking my head as I picked up my shoes and the car keys.
"Hey, Nakamura. Just going to drop off our little friend here."
"Okay, sir! I'll keep your glass cold."
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"So, your family owns a clinic, huh?" I asked as we stopped in front of the Kurosaki Clinic, already having known that little tidbit of information as Karin nodded with an aloof look on her face before I stopped in front of it.
Turning off the engine, I climbed out along with her before smirking at the sight of Ichigo looking concerned as he stood waiting at the door before his eyes widened as he saw me walking up alongside a frowning Karin.
"Where have you been, Karin? Dad's been his quiet worried self and Yuzu thought you were kidnapped. Where did you find her?"
"On my front porch. She came to ask me if I wouldn't mind teaching her what I do and I agreed." My blunt response drew him for a look as he looked angered, confused and bewildered all at once while Karin rolled her eyes as she looked up at my amused smile.
"Don't forget about tomorrow for the training."
"I won't." I nodded at her response and watched her walk into the house before looking down to see Ichigo gripping the front of my shirt with a glare.
"What the hell are you thinking?! I don't wanna put her through what I go through on a daily basis!"
"Well, I can't take my offer back now unless you wanna tell her why she can't learn from me, hmm?" I asked with a raised eyebrow as I calmly removed his hand, sighing as he gritted his teeth with a frown and a curse.
"Listen, if I didn't accept her proposal to train, she would have tried to find help from someone else you don't know about or tried to train on her own and we both know the possibilities that could happen if a beginner tries to do stuff they're not supposed to."
"But…but I can't just let her fight the monsters that I do. She's my little sister for crying out loud!" He grunted and I reached up to my glasses and pushed them up.
"Don't worry, I'm not going to let her train in things too complex nor am I going to throw her for the Hollows just like that. I simply wish to give the girl the means to defend herself like she asked."
"…Hah, fine. Okay, I guess that's fine." He muttered and I nodded before looking around with a frown as I felt out for Rukia's energy only for my senses to come up empty.
"Hey, where's your friend? The one that always hangs around you?"
"W-Wait, you…you remember Rukia?" I looked back at him only to raise an eyebrow at the shock on his face right before I froze as I realized why he asked that question.
"Black hair, small, sassy? Yeah, I remember her."
'Wait, how the hell was she taken away when I didn't feel any shift in the ambient reishi in the air? Damn, the Research Department have a lot more skill than I gave them credit for.
"R-Really? That's cool. Yeah, she just had some family problems so she had to leave early last night."
"Ah, I see. Well, I'll leave you to go scold your sister."
"Okay, thank you for bringing her." He said as I walked over to my car, to which I simply smiled and nodded before climbing in with a frown as I took a deep breath.
'So they did take her last night, huh? That leaves ten days before Ichigo and the others have to go get her and another eight or so days before the execution, I think. I know that their time being chased by that flesh-train thingy in the Dangai causes some temporal shifting, but I don't know by how much.' I thought with a frown as I turned the car on, turning into the street before humming as I began driving back home.
That gives me at most eighteen days to get to a level where I can figure out my soul surgery to remove the Hogyoku from Rukia- Wait a damn second…
'The Gotei 13 have the Kido Corps and they're supposed to have all the forbidden techniques one can learn on souls, right? Hehehe~ I think I might tag along for this trap after all.' I thought with a smirk as I focused on the road, feeling my new training plan for the eighteen days coming together as I continued driving.
After all, I'm a scholar at heart so what scholar would I be if I just let a treasure trove like that slip through my fingers?
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"Huh, I see you brought a friend." I spoke with a smirk as I sat leaning against a tree, watching as Karin walked towards me along with the familiar sight of a shy girl dressed in the same black shirt and long shorts that Karin was wearing as she waved.
"H-Hi, I'm her twin Yuzu Kurosaki."
"Ah, your energies felt similar so I suspected something along those lines. The name's Don Kanonji, little lady, and I'm pleased to meet you, but I thought you wanted me to train just you."
"She heard what I wanted to do and decided to come along for some reason."
"I-I just wanted to make sure he wasn't one of those creepy old dudes Dad warned us about. Uh, n-no offence, Mr. Kanonji." I simply looked at her with an incredulous stare before slowly turning to Karin who looked amused at my stare.
"Firstly, let's get that out of the way. In no way, shape or form would I date or go out with anyone that over the age of eighteen, okay? Secondly, even if they're over the age of eighteen, I'm the type that likes big stuff so girls that don't have that are also not in my view. Some may hate me for saying that but a guy likes what he likes and he dislikes what he doesn't like. Is that clear and understood?"
"What does he mean by 'big stuff'?" I heard Yuzu whisper to Karin and rolled my eyes as Karin answered her with a shrug.
"You know how Orihime looks like? He likes girls that look like her."
"Wait, he likes Orihime? You can't have her! She likes my big brother!"
"…Is this Orihime over eighteen?" I asked while ignoring that last bit and Yuzu frowned before shaking her head and I smiled and nodded.
"Then you have nothing to worry about. Your brother still has his girlfriend."
"Also, big brother Ichi doesn't need you to monitor his dating life."
"But he doesn't even bring girls over~" Yuzu whined and Karin rolled her eyes as I chuckled before watching as the aloof twin spun her soccer ball on her finger.
However, as she did so, I frowned with a hum as I saw the reishi in the air wrapping around her finger before it flowed into the ball, drawing both of their attention as Karin kept spinning the ball while Yuzu just looked confused.
"Uh, is everything okay, Mr. Kanonji?"
"Can you see what you're doing, Karin?" I asked and the girl blinked as she looked at her finger that was spinning the ball before slowly shaking her head.
In response, I walked over and placed a hand on both of their shoulders, fuelling my own Reiryoku through their bodies before they both stared in shock at the reishi gathering around Karin's finger.
"W-Wait! What…what was that?!" Yuzu asked in surprise and Karin stopped spinning before they both watched the reishi returning back to the atmosphere, looking at me as I cleared my throat to draw their attention.
"The energy you two saw was Reishi, the spiritual energy that every spiritual object and being is made of. For reference, the potential amount of spiritual energy inside of you is called Reiryoku and Reiatsu is the spiritual energy you exert when using spiritual energy to attack."
"Wait. Wait, you could see that?" Karin asked in surprise as she looked at Yuzu, who nodded slowly in shock as she gave me a look of awe.
"Y-You…you made me see it?"
"All I did was open the latent spiritual valves inside you that your sister and brother have already unlocked. Now, you can see spirits just like they can."
'All at the cost of nearly three-quarters of my spiritual energy and she's already far beyond me in terms of pure Reiryoku alone.' These three Kurosaki siblings really amazed me with how much Reiryoku they had without any kind of actual training.
Yuzu, while having nearly double or triple the amount of Reiryoku that I have, only had about half of what Karin had and even she did not even close to the absolute monster that was Ichigo if what I sensed last night was correct.
While they did not have the Hollow taint to their Reiryoku that Ichigo had as a result of a Hollow having fused with his Zanpakuto spirit, there was no doubt in my mind that these two kids in front of me could still become monsters in their own right if they're trained correctly.
'And if I play my cards right, I'll have two very thankful and very powerful students that will do what they can to protect their master.' Did I feel bad for manipulating two young girls to feel protective of me? A bit, but I wouldn't call it manipulation.
I'd call it…making them selectively emotional attached to me and their family…wait, that came out the wrong way.
"So, now that you girls have seen the Reishi in the atmosphere, I have just one question…", I trailed off as the two girls looked at me, grinning as I tilted my glasses down to reveal a pair of glowing gold eyes looking back at them.
"What do you say we get this training started?"
A/N: Yuzu and Karin have had some wasted potential as they could have been reishi-manipulating 'Quincies' so the Don decided to just…nab them as future insurance.
Not in a bad way, just in a friendly 'I'm training you so protect me in the future when you're stronger' way.
Also, yes, he is going with the others to the Soul Society, but unlike the others who are there to rescue Rukia, he is simply there to cause chaos and work out his own objectives.
As one would expect from someone called…The Don~!
Anyway, Yuzu and Karin are now the don's students and he's going to train them before he goes away on a business trip.
Also, don't worry as we're going story-original after the whole Soul Society invasion. What it is, though?
Heh, you'll have to find out.
Like always, you can go to my Pat-reon-.-com-/-KingCrimsonNova to read ahead on this as well as many other stories & even some that haven't been released out to this site yet. If you want to, you are free to, but if you don't want, all's good as I will still be uploading here. This is just me trying to get some extra cash.
As always, read, enjoy, review and until the next chapter,
Ba-Bye~!