It was morning already. The sky was bright, the birds were chirping, and the sun shone down upon the town of Karakura Town.
Once again, a normal day in Karakura Town save for the Kurosaki family.
Ichigo was nowhere to be seen.
Yuzu and Karin tried looking for him but Isshin told them not to worry, that he was probably still at his new club and would come home later in the day. He also mentioned how his son had been acting weird lately, which made Yuzu and Karin wonder if their brother was hiding something.
Shirou was the last person to leave the clinic, bidding farewell to his family before walking away.
"I am off."
"Have fun at school, Shirou!" Masaki saw him off and waved her hand, smiling widely. "And make sure you get back early!"
"I will."
Shirou left for his school with a bag on his shoulder, and he walked along the street. As he passed the familiar streets and buildings, a strange sensation washed over him, making him pause and look around. Something was wrong, he felt it in his gut.
Someone was watching him, following his every movement.
He narrowed his eyes and continued on his way. It must be his imagination. He didn't think anyone would actually follow him.
Soon, he reached a crossing and stopped. He waited for the traffic light to change to red and then crossed the road. The moment he stepped onto the pavement, his phone started vibrating.
'Who is calling at this time?'
He wondered. He didn't have many friends, let alone acquaintances, who would contact him. Most of them preferred meeting him immediately rather than calling or sending a text message. And even then, it wasn't often that someone called him.
He pulled out his phone and saw an unknown number written on his screen.
"Who's this?'
Curious, Shirou answered it. Immediately after he put his phone to his ear, a voice greeted him from the speaker.
"It's me."
A woman's voice. A voice he knew too well but hadn't heard in a while.
The voice belonged to the Shinigami responsible for everything, the one who started it all. The woman who was the catalyst for the fight in Soul Society, the one they saved from execution.
"Kuchiki-san?" He raised his voice in surprise and disbelief.
"It is I, yes." She confirmed, "Sorry for contacting you at such a time.Are you free right now?"
"Yes, but..."
Shirou looked around and checked if someone was following him. He saw a few students heading to the same school as him. Some people were walking down the street as well. It wasn't too crowded but still had quite a bit of people around him.
Not good.
"Is there something you need?"
"Yes, let's meet up in front of the park."
Rukia ended the call after that. Shirou looked at the screen for a moment before blinking.
He was certain he heard that correctly, and yet...
"Meeting up?"
Wasn't she in Soul Society? What did she want? And why was she here?
He had so many questions that needed answers.
Without wasting any time, Shirou quickly changed direction, walking toward the direction of the park, leaving the path to school behind. Skipping school for one day wasn't bad, and if he got caught, he would think about it later.
It was only about 10 minutes before he finally arrived in the area. The place was quiet, there was no one around except the occasional jogger passing through or an old man feeding the pigeons.
Shirou scanned the park for Rukia but found nothing. There was no trace of her.
"Where are you looking?"
Just as he got confused, the sound of a young girl came from behind him, prompting him to turn his head. He looked over his shoulders to find a girl wearing her uniform, crossing her arms and smirking at him. She had her black hair cut into a short, glossy bob that framed her pretty face perfectly.
"Yo, been a long time no see. It seems you're still alive."
"...Kuchiki-san." He greeted, smiling slightly.
Rukia gave him a curt nod before she motioned for him to come closer. She walked over and stood right beside him.
Shirou could smell her perfume from here; a scent of cherry blossoms. It was a pleasant smell, one that suited her well.
"Hmm, nothing happened to you yet." She commented as she observed his body with an analytical look. She poked him here and there. After a while, she stopped, looking up to him with a slight smile on her face, "Yeah, nothing is wrong."
"What?" Shirou got confused.
"Nothing." The Shinagami stepped away from him and huffed, "Anyway, let's talk about why I am here." Her face was serious.
Tension filled the air around them.
"Yes, what happened? Why are you here in Karakura town?" Shirou asked, raising his eyebrow at the woman who had just appeared out of nowhere. "Is it because of the arrancar?"
Rukia raised her eyebrows in surprise at the question. She hadn't expected him to know about it.
"Are they already here?" She asked and he nodded, "I am a bit late then. I was about to warn you about the danger, but it seems it was pointless. Well, I will be staying in the human world from now on."
Shirou's eyes widened slightly at that. "Really?"
"Yeah. Soul Society has noticed a strange movement in Hueco Mundo and I was tasked to investigate, so don't be so surprised."
Rukia's words struck a chord within his chest, leaving him speechless for a moment.
It seemed like things were getting complicated once again. The appearance of the arrancar and Aizen was already enough, and now Soul Society sent a representative.
It wasn't anything unexpected since this town was the main target. And yet...
"I see," Shirou said. His eyes met hers for a moment before averting them back again. He felt nervous for some reason.
"Hey, is something wrong?" She asked. "Is something bothering you?"
"Nothing." Shirou answered simply. He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. "Are you here alone?"
"Nope, I am only here first to warn you. There will be more people coming later to assist you and Ichigo."
More people meant more help. Shirou felt slightly relieved at the thought of having extra help.
"Great, I was getting tired of dealing with this by myself. Thank you."
"No problem." She replied. Her tone changed as if it was nothing important, but her body language betrayed her true feelings as she crossed her arms behind her back, looking up to the sky. She looked very proud.
"Leave the investigation to me. You have a school to attend, right? Go right now, don't be late because of me." Rukia said, waving her hands dismissively at him.
She then added with a playful smirk on her face, "It will be a big problem for you if the teacher caught you skipping class to meet a girl in the park."
"..."
He stared at her with a deadpan expression. It wasn't the first time Rukia said something embarrassing like that.
Waving his hand, he turned away and started to leave. "Yeah, see you later."
"Wait." Rukia suddenly called out, making Shirou stop. He looked at her in confusion, wondering what she wanted from him. "There's a question I've been wanting to ask."
"Yes?"
"Is Ichigo... okay?"
That was it?
Shirou blinked several times at the question. Then he smiled and answered.
"He's okay. Don't worry too much. My brother won't go down so easily, you know."
"That's... true. I will take your words." She smiled and nodded in satisfaction.