Title: Dirty Secret
Author: Megan
Paring: Grimmjow/Ichigo, Implied one sided Renji/Ichigo
Rating: R
Warning: Swearing, sexual language, angst, slightly ooc Rukia, and a very, very long one shot (AU)
Summary: Ichigo and Grimmjow’s relationship was very much kept secret for both of their protection. But when something happens and they are found out, what will soul society think of Ichigo? (And no, this isn’t a song fic for Dirty Little Secret by AAR…)
The sun was only just starting to appear on the horizon when the gate between Seireitei and the real world appeared. Four shinigami stepped out of the portal and onto the wet grass of a park, the gate shutting behind them.
“Hitsugaya-taicho?”
“Alright, you know what we are here for. Abarai, Kuchiki, go find Kurosaki and tell him to meet us at Urahara’s. Don’t waste time.”
“Hai! Hitsugaya-taicho!”
The short white haired captain and his Fukutaicho disappeared, leaving Renji and Rukia looking at each other.
“Ichigo isn’t going to be happy that we came so early.”
“Aw, he’ll get over it. All he’s doing is sleepin’”
---_---_---_---_---_---_---_---_---
The morning sun was just starting to warm the bed when Grimmjow awoke. Opening one eye, he glared around the room before tugging at the curtains to shut. They came about half way before the Espada got lazy and gave up.
It was normal for Grimmjow to wake early. He usually did, just to see the sun rise, before going back to sleep. It was his instincts that made him do it.
Something moved beside him on the bed, and he looked down at the orange haired Shinigami curled into his side. It was only a month ago Grimmjow had started staying the whole night, and he quite liked it. Ichigo was very vulnerable in the mornings, something only he got to see. Made the teal haired Espada feel he had more power over the teen.
Ichigo was still not awake, only moving around in his sleep. Grimmjow sighed, deciding to let the shorter man sleep longer. He fixed himself in the blankets and hunched over more into Ichigo. He would sleep a while longer, until the sun was over the rooftops, before waking the teen for their morning exercise.
His eyes were only just starting to close when he heard something land on the windowsill. ‘Shit! How could I have missed them?!’
A head with red hair pulled back into a pony tail popped its way through the curtains. “Hey, Ichigo! What’s the big idea?! Closing the curtains on us-.”
Renji stopped talking as soon as he saw the Espada sitting up in bed, looking rather pissed off. Grabbing Zabimaru, Renji hopped into the room and pointed his zanpakutou in the man’s face.
“Hollow! What are you doing here?! Where the fuck is Ichigo?!”
“Shut up would yeah? It’s the crack of dawn for fucks sake!”
“Renji! What’s going on in there?”
“Rukia! Don’t come in here!”
It was too late. The raven haired girl had already crawled in the window, and was staring in horror at the teal haired Arrankar.
“Kisama*… What have you done with Ichigo?!”
“Jesus… you fucking Shinigami like to ask a lot of questions don’t you?” He looked down, glad to see Ichigo was still covered by the blankets. He tried to think of a way out of the situation. Grinning, Grimmjow licked his lips. “I ate him. Was tasty too. But fattening. I guess being a stupid, depressed teenager can really make a soul fat. Needed to sleep it off. And well… the room wasn’t going to be used any more.”
“USO!* Ichigo is too strong to lose to you! Now where is he?!”
“I told ya I killed him! Jeez, fucking woman, stop yelling.”
“You bas-.”
“Grimm, stop yelling. It’s too early for that.” The orange haired teen popped his head out from beneath the covers and nuzzled the Espada’s shoulder. “What the hell has got you all riled up.”
Grimmjow, who was still trying to keep his composure, growled. “Them.”
Ichigo turned quickly, eyes shaking with fear as he saw the two Shinigami staring back at him, faces similar to his.
“Would have been so much easier if you had just stayed asleep. Stupid shinigami.”
Renji tried to make words form, but he couldn’t. Why was Ichigo in bed with a fucking Arrankar, and WHY was he so fucking close to him?!
Rukia managed to get a “Why?” out before Ichigo started talking.
“It’s not what it- there is a reasonable… Why the fuck are you here in the first place?!”
Renji looked taken back, but quickly pulled on a strong front. “Where do you get off asking us ‘Why the fuck..’, we asked you why first. Kurosaki, explain what is going on here.”
The teen opened his mouth to say something, but Grimmjow interrupted.
“We’re fuck buddies, red. Is there a problem?”
“Grimmjow! What are you…. Fuck buddies?!”
“What, you want me to say lovers? I don’t think that will help the situation. Either way… is there a problem with it?!”
Rukia snorted. “Problem? Yeah, there is a fucking problem! You’re a hollow, and Ichigo is a shinigami. You’re supposed to be enemies, not a couple!”
Grimmjow snorted. “We aren’t a couple, bitch. He’s just good for a screw. S’not my fault he has grown attached to me.”
“Grimmjow!”
“Well ya have.”
“I-“
“Ichigo.” The orange haired teen looked up at Renji, trying hard not to look him directly in the eyes. “Is it true? Are you really sleeping with him?”
The substitute shinigami looked down and remained silent. Renji growled in disappointment. “Answer me damn it! Are you sleeping with him or not?!”
Rukia grabbed Renji by the sleeve and pulled lightly. “Renji…” The red head grunted, stopping his verbal assault on the teen. Rukia looked at Ichigo with sad eyes. “Ichigo… did he… rape you?”
Grimmjow smirked. ‘Yeah, Ichigo. Tell them I raped you and you are off the hook. They’ll come after me and treat you like a child. And when they think you’re safe from me, I’ll just come back and “rape” you again.’
Ichigo mumbled something, and Rukia leaned in. “Pardon?”
Barely audible, the teen whispered, “No. He didn’t rape me.” He looked away from them and gritted his teeth. “I’m sleeping with him.”
The teal haired Arrankar clicked his tongue. ‘Figures.’. A rip in space suddenly opened up outside the window, and the Sexta Espada jumped for it.
“Heh… that’s my queue to leave then.” He flashed Ichigo a grin. “I’ll be seeing ya around, berry.”
Ichigo sprang from his seat and kneeled at the window, still wrapped in his blankets. “Grimmjow wait-.”
The sharp blade of Renji’s zanpakutou touched Ichigo’s neck, daring him to follow the Arrankar. Grimmjow snorted at the act, disappearing into the rip as it closed up. Ichigo slowly looked away for the now clear sky, trying to look at Renji.
“Follow him, and you’ll regret it.”
“Renji…”
“Ichigo, I just don’t know what to say to you. Why?”
“I don’t know.”
“That’s not good enough.”
“Renji…” the orange haired teen looked at the ground sullenly. “Does soul society need to know…?”
The Fukutaicho looked dismayed. “I don’t know. There has never been this kind of a situation before. I don’t know what they would do with you if they found out you were… sleeping around with an Espada.”
Ichigo flinched. “I won’t apologize. There is nothing to apologize for.”
“You bastard-.”
“Renji.”
The two males looked up. Rukia was standing next to them with her cell phone in hand. “Hitsugaya-taicho is on his way.”
“Did you just-“
“Yes.”
Ichigo’s eyes widened. “Why?! WHY Rukia?! What the fuck do you think-.”
“Ichigo, I suggest you keep your mouth shut when you are speaking to some one of higher rank. I might not be a seated Shinigami, but you’re only a substitute Shinigami. This means in this case, I hold rank on you.” She turned a glaring gaze on the bewildered teen. “I did what I thought was right. They will probably go into high alert and send all able bodied Shinigami to Hueco Mundo to kill that son of a bitch. They’ll ask you why, but knowing you you’ll tell them to mind their own business and disappear for a while. Grimmjow will be killed and things will go back to the way they are supposed to be.” She sighed, closing her cell phone. “And after all the times spent teaching you about hollows, you go and do something like this-.”
“Like what Rukia? Sleep with one? Oh, congrats. I don’t remember that being in any of the lessons.” Ichigo snarled at her, holding the blankets around his waist as he stood to put on clothing. “The only fucking thing you told me was hollows were fallen and consumed souls that we are supposed to save. Well ok. Done. I can do that.” Slipping on boxers quickly, he pointed out the window. “But that man is not the same type of fucking hollow’s I have had to deal with for the past year. He’s different. He’s-.”
“What? An Espada? Wow, being a new level of HOLLOW sure does make him different.”
The teen shot Renji an angry glare. “You wouldn’t understand. No, of course not.” He bent over and pulled on some pants, dropping the blanket as he pulled on a shirt after. “Neither of you get it. You’ve never-.”
“Kurosaki Ichigo.” The three of them span around to stare into the cold eyes of the tenth division captain. “Discharge your soul from your body and come with us. Yamamoto-Sotaicho wants to speak to you.”
---_---_---_---_---_---_---_---_---
Ichigo had left Kon in charge of his body while he was away. Something told him he might be gone longer then a few days.
Upon arrival at Seireitei, the group is met by several Special Forces units and Soifon, who immediately commanded they take Ichigo under arrest.
“What is the meaning of this? We heard nothing about Ichigo being place under arrest.” Rukia moved towards the shackled teen, but was grabbed by Renji and held back.
“We were ordered by Yamamoto-Sotaicho himself to place the human, Kurosaki Ichigo, under arrest and have him taken to a holding cell until Yamamoto-sama is ready to speak with him.”
“But why?!”
The second division captain gave Rukia a cold stare. “You know exactly why.” She turned and started to leave, telling her troops to move out. Ichigo was pushed forward, who only sneered and followed begrudgingly. Renji, Rukia, Matsumoto and Hitsugaya watched the teen be taken away swiftly. Once they were out of site, Hitsugaya turned and started heading for his office. “I suppose we better get ready too.”
Renji turned towards him. “For what?”
“Kurosaki will be ordered to explain his situation in front of all captain’s and vice captains of Gotei 13 and, depending on how sever it is, stand trail. The meeting will be called soon. Abarai, Matsumoto, I suggest you two be ready.” He looked back at Rukia. “Of course, you will not be aloud in. But you will be mentioned in my report. You did the right thing Kuchiki.” And with that, the short captain and his vice captain disappeared to their barracks.
Rukia looked down at the ground, a sad emotion over coming her face. “I wonder if I really did…”
---_---_---_---_---_---_---_---_---
Approximately one hour since the five of them had arrived back in soul society, the meeting was called into place. When Renji walked through the door, he could hear the rest of the vice captain’s talking excitedly. He met up with Shuuhei, who gave him a questioning look.
“What’s going on Renji? People are saying Ichigo is on trial for something. What happened?”
The red haired vice captain shook his head. “Even I really don’t know. None of it makes any sense.” It hurt, Renji knew, that Ichigo had done something like this. The vice shinigami captain was confused about everything surrounding the situation. He couldn’t understand why the teen felt the need to sleep with an Arrankar.
When the last person entered the room, everyone fell silent. Ichigo was brought in, bound in chains, and pushed to his knees in the center of the room. He didn’t look up.
Yamamoto stared at the boy through his thread shaped eyes for about a minute before speaking.
“Kurosaki Ichigo. Do you know why you are here, bound as a prisoner?”
The teen looked up for a moment, then looked back at the floor. “Maybe. I am pretty sure why I was called here. But I never got the memo on being shackled, sorry.”
Renji stared at Ichigo in horror. ‘Who the hell does he think he’s talking to?!’
The old man didn’t flinch. “Would you like to explain why you were brought here?”
The orange haired Shinigami sniffed. “Not particularly. It’s really no ones business.”
The Sotaicho narrowed his eyes (if that is possible) at the teen. “Do you know what you are being charged on?”
“Nope.”
“According to Hitsugaya-taicho’s report on the information Kuchiki Rukia gave him, we are charging you with treason, fraternizing with the enemy, and the possibility of you being a spy.”
Ichigo could feel all the eyes in the room staring at him with wonder. “May I ask what it is that Rukia told Toushiro?”
Looking down at the papers, Yamamoto cleared his throat. “Her exact words were, you had ‘been meeting with an Espada on a regular bases’ and the information about which is ‘personal’. Care to enlighten us?”
Renji looked back at Ichigo, who only seemed to be ignoring the general’s orders. ‘Be smart Ichigo. She didn’t tell them exactly what you had been doing. Think of something good and you might get off with a warning or a slap on the hand. Anything is better then being labelled a traitor.’ A red eyebrow perked when he saw the teen shaking, and he thought Ichigo might be crying. But when the substitute shinigami exploded into laugher and not sobs, Renji wondered if the teen was still sane.
“I fail to see what is so funny, Kurosaki Ichigo.”
“Yeah, sorry, you probably would with that lame kind of information.” The teen took a few deep breathes of air to calm himself. “Personal meetings with an Espada, that’s rich. Never heard fuck sessions called that before.”
Renji winced. ‘That idiot…’
Gasps could be heard throughout the room, and the red haired Fukutaicho suddenly wanted to be very far away from the place. He didn’t like how the atmosphere was changing.
Yamamoto pointed a wrinkled finger at the teen. “What did you just say, boy?!”
Ichigo looked up, smirking. “I ain’t gunna repeat myself. I told you it was none of your business.”
Soifon stepped forward, growling. “Bakemono!* The commander asked you a question, and you better damn well answer it!”
The orange haired shinigami didn’t bother to look at the captain, and only scoffed. “Don’t have to say anything I don’t want to.”
“Human-!”
“That’s right! I am human. What of it? You can’t fucking charge me as a god damn shinigami!” Ichigo’s reiatsu rose sharply, and he tried to brake his bonds. “Now let me go, or I will fucking let my self go!”
Several shinigami grabbed for their weapons, but the commander raised his hand. “Hold.” He looked down at Ichigo, who was still glaring up at him. “I don’t know what you think you are doing, Kurosaki Ichigo, but I will not stand for it. You are a substitute shinigami and whether you like it or not, you are under our rules.” He lowered his hand and put it back on his staff, leaning forward more. “If you really are having sexual relations with this Espada of the traitorous Aizen, then we have no doubt but to think that you are also a traitor. Many things can be said in the heat of the moment, and how do we know you haven’t leaked information?”
“What information could I possibly know that Aizen doesn’t already, old man?!”
“Regardless,” He raised his staff inches off the ground and slammed it back down. “You will be tried as a shinigami, and you WILL be convicted of treason. Your sentencing will be in three days. Until then, you will be held in the sixth division’s cell, as Kuchiki-taicho has graciously offered it.” Another hammering of the staff, like a judge’s hammer, and the meeting was called to an end.
Ichigo gritted his teeth and looked down, ignoring all the cold stares he got as shinigami captain and vice captain passed. Only when a pair of feet stopped in front of him did he chance looking up.
“Renji…”
“Get to your feet.”
“What-.”
“No talking back, prisoner. Do as you are told and get up.”
He was grabbed roughly and pulled to his feet. Growling, he looked away from the red head, who was trying to look him in the eyes.
“You had so many fucking chances to try and fib your way out of this, and you have to go and be an idiot.”
Ichigo snorted. “Sorry, I’m not very good at lying about my relationships.”
“Teme*…”
“Renji.” The two look towards the voice, and find Byakuya standing a little ways off. “Stop bickering with the traitor and put him in his cell.”
“H-Hai taicho…”
Ichigo laughed dryly. “Glad to see Byakuya still hates me the same.”
---_---_---_---_---_---_---_---_---
It had been about 24 hours since Ichigo was shoved in his holding cell after the meeting. Since then, Renji hadn’t gone to see him. The red haired Fuku Taicho wasn’t sure if he wanted to see the orange haired teen anymore. Every time he thought of the shinigami representative, something inside him pulled hard. He was angry, he knew that for sure, and hurt that Ichigo did something so stupid and didn’t try to talk with him about it. Weren’t they friends?
He looked down the hallway that he had been walking down, and swore under his breath when he noticed where he was. He had subconsciously started heading to see the teen, since his mind had just been on him. Did he really need to see Ichigo that bad?
As he neared the teen’s cell, he heard people talking, and stopped just before the corner. Peering around it, he saw two shinigami standing outside of the cell, hands on their hips, smirking at Ichigo. He leaned in more to catch what was being said.
“I asked you a question, traitor, what’s it like?”
Ichigo didn’t look up from his spot in the corner. He was staring off into space, looking absolutely bored. The taller of the two Shinigami kicked the cell doors.
“Stop fucking ignoring me, you piece of trash! I asked you a fucking question!”
Ichigo’s eyes flickered over to the two. “What is what like…?”
The man smiled. “Finally.” He leaned through the bars of the cell just a little. “What’s it like sleeping with a hollow? Though it’s pretty low of you to have sunk that low to fuck with one of those things.”
The man’s partner shook his head. “No, you have it wrong dude. It was an Espada. That takes guts to try a stupid stunt like that.”
“Guts? What the fuck is wrong with you? That piece of trash needs nothing like that. I mean, he’s lost all his pride now, along with what little sanity he had left. You have to be pretty fucked up and desperate to want to sleep with one of them.” He grinned, looking at Ichigo with dirty eyes. “I bet you didn’t even do the fucking. Bet you rolled over like a good little bitch.”
Ichigo’s eyes snapped back to the man, dangerously narrowing. “What was that?”
“You heard me, mutt! You’re one of those type of people who act tough, but in the end, their just a bitch who needs a good fucking. Am I right, trash?”
Ichigo disappeared from sight for only a second, and the next thing the shinigami knew, the orange haired prisoner had his black kimono tightly gripped in hand. “Is that so? Want to test that out? I’m getting kinda tired of listening to you two yap like fucking Chihuahuas.”
The two made a grab for their Zanpakutous. “Teme! You’ll pay for that! Who are you to call us dogs?!”
“I would drop your hands if I was you, or you’ll find yourselves in your own cells.” Ichigo looked behind the shorter Shinigami to see Renji leaning against the wall. “You two could get in a lot of trouble being here unauthorized.”
Ichigo dropped the shinigami, watching them scramble off, mumbling a ‘sumimasen* Fuku taicho’ as they left. The teen tsked and walked back to his futon in the corner, settling into his slumped sit against the wall. Renji approached the cell doors, staring sadly at the orange haired Shinigami. Uncomfortable silence hung between the two for what seemed like hours until one spoke.
“If you are looking for an apology, Renji, you might as well move on. I told you already there isn’t anything for me to apologize for.”
“Bastard…”
“We have established that. What do you want?”
“Ichigo… why? Why did you… what possessed you to want to sleep with a fucking Arrankar?!”
“I told you already, I don’t know.”
“And I said that wasn’t good enough! You must have some reason…”
“Nothing you’ll like.”
“So you aren’t telling me anything because I won’t like it? Too late for that, Ichigo. I already hate this situation. I just want to know what’s going on in that thick head of yours.”
The teen was silent for a while, and Renji considered pressing the question again, but he finally spoke. “It wasn’t like I wanted to in the beginning. I hated him. He nearly killed Rukia, fucking treated her like a rag doll.” His voice was low, with almost no emotion. “We fought constantly, like we should, but it was subtitle. We were trying to kill each other, but at the same time we weren’t. It started to be just weekly sparing matches that involved a lot of name calling like we were middle school kids.” He made a sound like he was holding back a laugh, shaking his head. “I wouldn’t have even noticed the way things were going until he kissed me. More like… tried to gnaw my face off. We were angry and in the middle of a fight, and he suddenly pushed me against a wall.” Ichigo’s face started to turn the colour of his name sake. “After that, I was pretty pissed. You don’t just go around fucking kissing your enemy like it’s an attack or something. He acted like there was nothing wrong with it and smirked at me like he always fucking does.”
“I see you picked up his foul mouth then... I am guessing.”
“Shut up. Do you want to hear this or not?! I can stop at any time-.”
“No, continue…”
“Yeah… as I was saying, I was livid. Pissed at him, and pissed at my self for realizing we had formed some type of twisted friendship. We wanted to fight each other, and we wanted to continue to do so. That’s why we never actually killed one another. And well… it just happened. I don’t know how or why and I don’t want to figure out the logics behind it, but it just happened. He never used to say the whole night, but last month I woke once and he was still there, and I thought nothing of it. From there he did it on regular bases, like it was a step up in our relationship… or whatever the fuck it is.” Ichigo’s eyebrows furrowed. “We still fight and argue uncontrollably, so no one would no the difference. And if he hadn’t of been so stupid, you never would have caught him. I am pretty fucking sure not even Aizen knows about it, or he wouldn’t come all the time.”
“He’s pretty fucking stupid? Ichigo, in case you haven’t realized, you’re pretty stupid yourself. He tried to cover for you back there, you know that? Said he’d eaten your soul or whatever and had gotten lazy and fell asleep. Something about your soul being fat because you’re such a pussy or whatever…”
“Bastard…”
“So what… that’s it? That’s all you’re gunna tell me?”
“What else do you want to know Renji?! I told you everything I feel you need to know, even a little more then I am comfortable with!”
“I wanna know why it was him and not some one else! Why you didn’t tell me what was going on in your life Ichigo! I thought we were friends!”
“There are some things you don’t tell your friends Renji! This was one of those things…”
“What? Just because he’s a guy? Because you willingly let him take you? Because he’s an Espada?!”
“Because I knew you’d fucking judge me just like everyone else!” Ichigo was on his feet now, stalking towards the red head angrily. “I’m the same fucking Ichigo I always was. I haven’t become some sort of loser just because I love Grimmjow!”
Renji stared wide eyed at the teenager, who had stopped talking and suddenly gone pale. “…What… did you say?”
“Nothing-.”
“No, I mean it. What did you just say?”
“None of your business Renji!”
“You love him..?”
“It was a slip of the tongue, you bastard! I meant lover, just because my lover is Grimmjow.”
“No, you’re wrong. You said you loved him.”
“Well I don’t! He’s an arrogant cocky bastard that only cares about him self and the things he owns, and he’s just a good… well yeah… and I hate him! How could I love him? We fight constantly, and I am pretty damn sure he hates me too. He rarely ever calls me by name…”
“And yet you call him by name, and if I am not mistaken, you also called him ‘Grimm’. He seems to have a nice nick name for you too, berry.” At the name, Ichigo’s face suddenly lit up bright red. “Sh-shut up! That’s none… Shut up Renji!” He turned away from the Fuku taicho and sat back down, trying to ignore him.
“Ichigo… listen. You have to think of something that could make your punishment a little less heavy. Do you know anything about what Aizen is doing? Or anything on the other Espada?”
“No. We don’t talk about that shit. The only time ‘Aizen’ comes out of his mouth is when ‘is a fucking douche bag’ follows it. Grimmjow hates that bastard just as much as we do.”
“Then why does he serve him?! Why doesn’t he just leave-?”
“And go where Renji? Soul Society? Like hell Yamamoto would ever allow that. And if he stayed with me, he’d be an easy target, as would I. It’s better to serve some one you hate and get over your fucking up situation, then try to figure a away out and get your self killed.”
“Have you fuckin’ given up?! When have you ever rolled over and done what you were told?!”
“About five months ago, when I first started sleeping with the bastard.”
“That’s a sick joke Ichigo. You really have sunk low.”
“Go to hell Renji, I don’t need your pity. I’ll take whatever Seireitei dishes out as a punishment.”
---_---_---_---_---_---_---_---_---
“And you promise to tell me right away what the verdict is?”
“Yes, Rukia… we have gone over this already. I will tell you as soon as I know.”
“I am serious Renji. I feel horrible about this mess. It’s Ichigo I mean… he saved my life more then once, and how do I repay him? Turning him in for sleeping with an Arrankar?!”
“Rukia, you barely told Hitsugaya-taicho anything about the situation. It was that retards fault for letting it slip.”
“But if I hadn’t of said anything in the first place… Ichigo wouldn’t even be in this situation!”
“He would get caught. Like I said before, Ichigo is horrible at hiding anything. He was bound to screw up some time… its better that we caught him now before he made it worse.”
“How could it possible be worse Renji?!”
“I… don’t know.” The red head looked down at the floor boards. “I just know that… If Ichigo listens to what I have to say, his punishment might lessen. We should try everything we can inside the boundaries of Soul Society’s laws.”
“Renji…”
The Fuku taicho looked up, putting on a fake smile. “Don’t worry Rukia, everything will come out ok.” He turned away, heading towards the orange haired shinigami’s trail. His fake smile dropped, forming a grieving frown. “I hope…”
---_---_---_---_---_---_---_---_---
“What… did you just say?!”
His voice seemed to come out cracked, like he had been yelling a lot. It shot through the silence in the crowded room, and Renji didn’t seem to care that he had spoken out of line. Yamamoto-Sotaicho looked at the red head, face sullen and lifeless.
“Listen carefully Abarai because this is the last time I will say this. The prisoner, Kurosaki Ichigo, is found guilty on all counts of treason, and is hereby stationed to be executed in 5 days.”
“Excuse me for my insubordination sir but, isn’t that quite a harsh punishment for a boy? Isn’t there anything he can say to lessen his charges with?”
“What do you suggest, Abarai Fuku taicho?”
“Maybe he knows something about the Espada. Can’t we at least question him first?!”
“He didn’t wish to speak with us earlier, and I fail to see why he would want to now. But if you think there might be information to be gained, you have 5 minutes.”
Renji turned to face Ichigo, who was looking at the ground. “Ichigo! If you wanna save your ass, now’s the time. If you know ANYTHING that could be of use, tell us now!”
The teenager didn’t look up at first, seemingly acting like he was ignoring the red head. But finally he raised his head, smiling softly. “Sorry. I told you already. The only time Grimmjow ever mentioned Aizen was when he was cursing his name. From what I gathered, there are very few who actually like Aizen… the rest just follow in fear. I’m sure that doesn’t help much…”
“But… do you know of any of the Arrankar’s weaknesses?!”
“I will tell you this. I don’t care if you want to believe it or not, but it’s the blunt truth. From my experience of fighting with Grimmjow for the past couple of months, I know that the Arrankar are pretty much just like us. Besides the fact that they are hollows, they are limited to what they can do. None of them are invincible. If you stab them in the gut, its gunna hurt. If you cut off an arm, they are going to loose that arm. I don’t know of any of their weaknesses or strengths, other then what you already know.” He looked at Renji, face gone serious now. “And for what its worth, put a hole in your chest and glue a mask to your face, and you shinigami could pull off a mean Arrankar.”
Renji heard a voice, he guessed it was Soifon, yell, “Bastard!” but he ignored it. “Ichigo… this isn’t the time for you to be jokin’ around! You’re being punished with death if you don’t come up with some sort of information!”
“And I told ya I don’t have any. I told you all I have to say, and I wasn’t joking. Most of you Shinigami could be mistaken for an Arrankar… what with your personality disorders and insane lust to kill things.” The teen looked over at Kenpachi. “Zaraki would fit right it.”
The 11th division Taicho grinned. “Zat so… Kurosaki?”
Renji was about to retort an insult, but was cut off by Yamamoto dropping the end of his staff on the hard ground list a hammer once again. “Your five minutes is up Abarai, and all we have learned is Kurosaki’s opinion on Shinigami.”
“But… we learned that the Arrankar don’t like Aizen… doesn’t that help-.”
“Hardly. And if you interrupt me once more, you will find yourself earning a punishment as well.” The red head closed his mouth sourly. “Now, as I was saying, Kurosaki Ichigo… you are to be executed in five days. Until then, you will be held in the Senzakyuu*. From there you will be moved to Soukyoku hill for the execution. However, since your last visit to Seireitei, we have not fixed the scaffold you destroyed and the Soukyoku it’s self has not been rebirthed. Therefore, until the day of your punishment, we will be determining the way of your execution.” He nodded to the Senzakyuu guards. “You may take him now. This trail is dismissed.”
Ichigo felt himself being tugged to his feet, a small grin forming on his lips. ‘Soukyoku hill… how nostalgic…’ He looked up at Renji, but the red head wouldn’t look him in the face. He sighed as the guards pushed him out of the room. Trudging past Rukia who waited patiently at the 1st division’s gates, he gave her a weak “gomena*…” and continued on.
Watching him pass, Rukia looked back at Renji with wide eyes. “Where are they taking him?! What is he condemned to?”
The red head looked to the ground. “He’s headed for Senzakyuu, and in five days he will be executed n Soukyoku hill.”
“Executed?! But the Soukyoku was destroyed! How-.”
“I don’t know.”
“What do you mean you don’t know?! Were you paying attention?!”
“Yes! I am saying I don’t know because he didn’t tell us!” He growled. “I stood up for him and almost got a punishment myself, and all he does in return is make jokes.”
Rukia looked back at Ichigo, who was almost out of sight. “Some one… needs to tell his family. They can’t just kill him without telling Isshin-san and his sisters!”
“Rukia, we can’t. What the hell would we tell them? ‘Hey yeah about Ichigo… yeah he’s a Shinigami. Also, he is kinda scheduled for execution in a few days for sleeping with the enemy. Sorry we couldn’t tell you sooner!’? Yeah, because I’m so sure that will go over great.”
“Well we can’t just do nothing!”
“Who said we are gunna do nothing? There is some one we can tell…” He started off in the direction of the gate leading to the human world. Rukia called after him. “Renji! Where are you going?!”
“Goin’ to go see a man in a hat and clogs.”
(Link to part two)