"I'm not scared. I'm content with my life. Meeting Renji and the others, adopted by Nii-sama, Kaien-dono's guidance, then Ichigo's attempted rescue. No pain, no sadness, no regrets. There is nothing for my heart to linger in this world. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. And goodbye." — Rukia Kuchiki.
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After the conversation between Byakuya and Rukia, the latter returned to her home after listening to what he had to say. Even after everything that happened, to Rukia, it still felt like she was stuck in-between a dream and her delusions.
The fact that her sister was alive, sick but still alive, and wanted to meet her so that she could apologize for abandoning her as a child sent Rukia into an emotional topsy-turvy.
All these years she had never thought of it as her sister abandoning her. She only thought of it as losing her sister when she was still a child. The emotions that came from it were two entirely different things.
And not only that but her dear sister which she only had fond memories of had married a noble and not just a noble but a Clan Head and then to top it all off he was a Shinigami Captain. A leader of one of the 13 branches all Shinigami fell under.
She was both overwhelmed and underwhelmed at the same time and it left her drained for anything else.
And then there were the children she'd spent most of her life and grew up with. What was she supposed to do? How was she supposed to even tell them when she was still having a hard time seeing herself as Rukia Kuchiki instead of just Rukia.
Her memories of Hisana were not tainted by Hisana's decision so she still missed her sister and would love to meet her more than anything but she knew that it wasn't just a meeting, Byakuya made that clear in no uncertain way.
"The only reason I'm not taking you back this instant is because I love her enough to care about how you feel."
It was a choice. One she would be presented with after meeting Hisana; live with her as part of the Kuchiki family, or go back to the family she'd found in the Rukongai.
Most would say that the answer was obvious but Rukia wasn't most people. She cared about the kids she had met and took care of for years to just walk away.
It was also the reason why she couldn't tell them about what she talked about with Byakuya. They would have pushed her towards Byakuya, forcefully if they had to, and would have kicked her out of the house and made her return with Byakuya. But that decision would not have been hers.
Byakuya gave her 24 hours to come to terms with it and she had until they arrived at the Kuchiki Estate and reunited with Hisana to make her decision. It shouldn't have been a hard decision, but to her it was. It was easily the hardest choice she has ever had to make in her life.
"Hey, Rukia, are you sure you're okay? That guy didn't say anything weird to you, did he?" Renji asked with unmasked concern.
She was too tired to answer him so she just gave him a nod, albeit a weak and absentminded one. Renji's frown deepened.
"Are you in any kind of trouble?" He asked softly this time. "You've been silent and moody ever since you came back. You're never this quiet and I know it had to do with the Shinigami."
Even the casual act of rolling her eyes at him required too much effort so she just groaned at him.
Renji was determined on being the insufferable this time around as he hovered around her and kept pestering her to tell her what it was, but she couldn't. Not yet.
All she wanted right now was to fall asleep and wake up the next day and then come to a decision hours before Byakuya arrived.
"I'm fine, Renji! Can you let me rest now?" It came out a bit more harsh than she intended but she was too exhausted to care that she ended up glaring down at him from her hammock.
They were the only ones here as the others had run out to procure some food from a lot of veritable sources, while some were huddled up to share what remained of the little they had.
Even with the little they had, they were always ready to share just so that the next person would be less hungry.
"I'm sorry, Rukia. A Shinigami Captain came looking for you. You can't blame me for being worried when you suddenly start acting like this."
Rukia sighed. An idiot, that was who Renji was, but one that cared even when he tried to show otherwise. But she was serious when she said she just wanted to rest.
She wanted to sleep it all away for now; the truths, the hurt, the emotions, the expectation, the choices – respectfully they could all go to hell until after she had her rest.
A soothing quiet fell over the cellar and as she closed her eyes to prompt the sleep hiding behind her eyes to take over, she heard Renji shifting in his corner.
"You're leaving, right? That man, he wanted to take you away, is that it?"
Her eyes were shut cold and her breaths turned shallow and soft. She didn't move, she didn't turn, she didn't acknowledge the question – she just pretended to have fallen asleep.
"Goodnight, Rukia."
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[POV: With Itachi]
What had once been a normal forest field had now turned into a battlefield, the resultant of what was Zaraki and Itachi's fight.
The deep gorges in the upturned earth made it look as if a cluster of small meteors had fallen on the poor land.
Zaraki had gotten so stoked with killing Hollows that when they stopped giving him the expected kick, he instantly turned to the only thing in his vicinity that could get his blood running just the way he liked it.
Itachi, the not-so victim, had to endure the onslaught of Kenpachi for hours and just when it seemed like the fight was about to tone down, Zaraki finally achieved his goal and had gotten Itachi fully invested in the fight.
What happened next was an escalation of never-before-seen proportions that made their earlier fights look like what it had been – the prelude.
Right now they were both sitting on a rock without the top half of their uniform which they had discarded somewhere during their fight so that it would not get destroyed.
"And here I thought you would have gone a bit rusty with how much you try to avoid fighting." Zaraki laughed loudly. He could hear the excited humming of his Zanpakutō resting against his shoulders.
"And I thought you would still be hacking your sword widely in hopes of hitting something."
The bigger man snorted and would have loved to go for another round but Itachi had put a quick stop to the thought. Just because he gave in to his passion did not mean he was about to overindulge like his friend, Zaraki.
"We should do this every once in a while. The Seireitei can get real stuffy and finding something that'll let you let loose off that edge is damn near impossible."
"Well that was fun while it lasted. A shame it had to end." He snatched his haori off the air where it had been floating, courtesy of Yachiru who stood in the air and let their coats fall down in a sway.
She looked smug and content as she watched them put their coats back on. Itachi getting fully invested in the fight was unexpected but was a pleasant and welcomed surprise. Two of her favorite people got to enjoy themselves as they fought each other and in her eyes that was way better than anything else.
"Spirits. What monsters." Was all Yumichika could say throughout the duration of the fight.
Ikkaku's eyes were alight with obsessive desire. That, more than anything else, was the goal he wanted to reach. He wanted to be the one in Uchiha's place fighting Zaraki Kenpachi.
"Damn! It's like the Captain got even stronger."
Yachiru upon hearing that pouted and shook her head stubbornly. "Baldy is a liar. Kenny has always been this strong. Kenny is the strongest."
What followed was a gusset of whining and name calling which featured numerous mentions of 'Baldys', 'liars', 'weak', and 'weak lying Baldys'.
The three of them landed in the ground with a petulant Yachiru raining stuffed blows down on Ikkaku's head.
Caw caw.
Everyone, except Zaraki, turned towards the calling crow that was slowly making a descent towards Itachi.
"I still don't know the deal with those crows. Are they part of his Zanpakutō, or are they tied to his special red eyes, you know since they also have red eyes?"
It was unclear who Yumichika was talking to but they all ignored him which made the flamboyant Shinigami start sulking in his own little color.
Under the eyes of everyone, the crow perched on Itachi's arm and stared into Itachi's eyes for a few moments before it cawed sharply and flew away. The crow did not fly for long as it gave a sharp caw before falling apart in a plume of feathers.
An indignant Yumichika pointed at the falling feathers and cried out conspiratorially.
"Did you see that, Ikkaku? I told you that they weren't normal crows. Normal crows don't burst into feathers or silently watch someone for hours without moving. They unnerve me."
"What's that, Tachi-tachi?"
Itachi bent down and took his hat from her head and wore it. "Nothing important. Just a simple task completed."
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