Volume 25: The Cast Assembled

[anchen82]

Chapter 49 - Break Out?

*Click*

A groan escaped Apashi's lips as the metallic click of the cell door swinging open awakened the girl from her sleep. She peered up at the entrance with a blurred vision from her still groggy eyes. "What's up?" Apashi asked nonchalantly. "Another interrogation?" Her eyes squinted as she tried to make out the form of the person at the door.

"Ah, good morning to you too Kuga-dono," Naisho said with a smile as he entered the cell. "How are you feeling there?" he asked while turning to another Shinigami who stood guard by the door. "It'll be about five minutes," he said to the guard.

The other guard nodded and closed the door behind Naisho, locking it shut as he walked off. "I'll be back in five."

Apashi sat up on the bed as she rubbed her eyes, but the familiar voice already let her know who had entered. She sighed softly and stared at the floor when she finally finished. "So it'll be you again? What's on tap for today?"

"Actually, things will be a little different today." Naisho grinned as he noticed Apashi's gaze turn up to him.

"Oh? How's that? Couple extra hours this time?" Apashi quipped as she stared up at the man.

Naisho smirked at the girl and rolled his eyes. "Yes, that's exactly what it'll be. I think a good fourteen hours of interrogation is in order." He watched as the slightest smile might have come over the girl's lips but her body slumped against the wall. The last two weeks had been trying for the girl he could tell. It is proper protocol though Naisho thought to himself.

The man reached down and slid his arm around Apashi's and pulled her up to her feet. "Up and at 'em, it's a bright and sunny day," he said as he smiled at the girl.

"Ugh, you make it sound like we're going to the park or something," Apashi groaned as she got onto her feet. She reached down and picked up the two pictures that had been next to her on the bed and tucked them into the right pocket of her pants.

Naisho laughed as he pulled the girl toward the door. "We could do that if you want."

"Eh?" Apashi murmured as she looked up toward the man. "What are you talki-"

"I told you today would be different didn't I?" Naisho said with a grin. "Want me to bust you out of here?" The man's smile seemed almost as devious as it was serious.

Apashi's brown eyes widened and trembled almost to widen further at the man's word. "Y-you can't be serious. That...that would be crazy..." The girl's voice paused though and pulled her arm away from the man as she spun away to face the wall away from the man. Apashi bit her lip softly as she actually considered the option.

"Don't you want to see her? Kanzaki-dono?" Naisho paused for just a moment after he spoke the name, peering over his shoulder as he noted as Apashi lift her head just slightly at the mention. "I do too actually, although it may not be an option for me. But I'd like to know what is going on around here. The whole incident. There was just something wrong about it."

Apashi's hands tightened into fists as she clenched her eyes. "But...to bust out? That's...aren't I-"

"There's no telling how long you might be in here. Weeks? Months? Years? I'd like to mention by the way..." Naisho's eyes peered down the hall from the cell where he noted the guard returning. "That the guard is coming back. You have, oh, probably about fifteen seconds to decide."

Apashi spun as she heard the sounds of footsteps approaching from the hall. "I-I do want to see her..."

The guard slid the key into the lock and began to open the cell door while Naisho smiled and waved from behind the bars. "I do believe that is a yes then? Hehe, today really is gonna be different, eh?" The man grinned and from underneath those long brown bangs his eyes seemed to light up. The gleam off Naisho's Zanpakutou could be barely seen as it flashed from his sheath up between the bars with the tip just a hairbreadth away from the guard's throat.

"W-whaaaa, don't kill me!" the guard screamed as he leapt back and fell onto his rear. The guard trembled and grew pale as he managed to back away from the Zanpakutou's tip, but his body shook with fear as Naisho pushed open the now unlocked cell door.

"Yamete!" Apashi shouted as she leapt out and grasped Naisho's gi from behind. Her fingers tugged at the fabric.

"Yare yare, we already started though," Naisho cheerfully replied as he took a step forward, dragging the girl's feet on the ground.

"N-no, stop! Don't!" the guard pleaded.

Apashi arms leapt out to wrap around Naisho's upper arms and around to his chest, trying to stop the man. Even despite her efforts though she felt Naisho's right arm rise and she clenched her eyes tightly together, not wanting to watch if Naisho did not stop. "Yamete!!" she yelled. And then in an instant Naisho's armed cut downward.

"Haa...ahhhhhhhhhh," the guard's voice screamed and then it stopped dead.

*Drip*

The sound of something dripping came from in front of Apashi. Most likely the sound of blood as it dripped off a sword. And then there was a soft thud as the guard's body slumped onto the floor. "NOOO! STOP IT!" Apashi screamed as her arms became like a vise around Naisho's body.

"Hehehe..." Is...is Naisho laughing about this?

"Haha..." Huh...wait, that's not Naisho's-

Apashi's eyes flashed open to see a piece of watermelon between her and then back of Naisho's head. "Care for some watermelon?" Naisho asked cheerfully without turning back.

"K-kisama!" Apashi yelled at Naisho as she released her grip on the man and then pushed him away forcefully. The guard on the floor took a bit of some watermelon as he attempted to suppress his laughter. "You too!" Apashi yelled at the guard on the floor as she pointed at him.

"Nice job," Naisho said as he gleefully took a bite from the watermelon.

"Haha, well you did most of the work," the guard said. "Although you cut it a little close on the stab through the cell bars..."

"Gotta make it seem real." Naisho began to laugh and was joined by the guard's laughter, before he turned toward Apashi. He spat the seeds into the nearby garbage before he began to speak, "I said today was gonna be a little different, didn't I?"

Apashi grabbed a watermelon slice angrily and planted herself on the floor with her legs crossed Indian style. "Baka!" the girl shouted right before she dug her face into the watermelon and nearly devoured the red fruit in an instant. "And...arigatou..." she said softly after she swallowed the watermelon.

 

[anchen82]

Chapter 50 - Lions and Tigers and Gigais, Oh My!

Naisho finished the slice of watermelon and tossed the shell into the garbage. He peered down at Apashi who sat with her feet crossed on the ground, still chomping away at the watermelon. "Heh, well...when you finish with that we can get to the serious part for today."

"Jerk," Apashi replied as she tossed her watermelon shell into the bin. The girl bounced to her feet and rolled her neck once and then quickly she followed Naisho's lead down the hall as the guard followed behind the two. "So. What is REALLY in store for today?"

Naisho didn't reply but after a few minutes he stopped in front of a double door, and with both hands he pressed open the two doors. Inside the lit room were gigais of various shapes, sizes, ethnicities and so on. "The decision was made that you were a good enough Shinigami that they want you kept around. But, you are completely unsuited at the moment to be leading anyone."

Apashi raised an eyebrow quizzically at the statement. "So...?"

"So, you are once again an unseated officer of the 11th division of the Gotei 13," Naisho replied as he scanned the room.

"That's not so bad..." Apashi said with a shrug. She stopped for a moment as she examined the room and its surroundings while wondering why she Naisho had led them here.

"And you are to resume missions immediately," Naisho continued as he took a few steps toward the back of the room.

Apashi shrugged casually once more as she trailed behind Naisho. "I can live with that."

"With the first being assigned by me," Naisho replied as he stopped and planted his hands on his hips. His eyes still seemed to be searching for something in this room, but Apashi couldn't tell what. As far as she could tell the only thing in the room was gigais.

Apashi stopped with those words and a sense of annoyance and dread filled her soul. "Fantastic..." she muttered as she rolled her eyes and sighed. "What's it gonna be, garbage duty or somet-"

"Kanzaki Haruka," the man interrupted. He stopped in front of a gigai and peered at the body as he resumed, "Her last known location was in Tokyo, Japan. Her reiatsu was spotted there for at least a week, although we were not able to track an exact position. However, yesterday it disappeared entirely."

There was a slight screech as Apashi's feet suddenly dragged and stopped on the floor like concrete. Her brown eyes blinked as she tried to understand the situation. "You mean...you mean you were serious about Haruka? About finding her?"

Naisho seemed to ignore her questions and continued onward. "It is believed that she is using a gigai to suppress her reiatsu and attempting to hide among the living. If she remains in the gigai she can potentially remain unnoticed forever." The man paused for a moment and his hand pressed against the skin of a gigai before continuing. "As Shinigami we can not interact with the living. And we can't make a mistake in revealing ourselves to a living person, even if we think it is really Haruka in disguise."

Apashi nodded this time in agreement with the words. "That's true," she said before she paused to gulp. "But what can we do then?"

"We believe we have isolated where Haruka might be located. The fact that she stayed in Tokyo for over a week before acquiring or using a gigai makes us believe that she most likely will stay there for a time." Naisho rubbed his chin in thought for a moment. "I believe...and I could be wrong...that when she was living, she lived in Tokyo. That may be why she chose to live there of all places."

"I...I think I remember her saying that too," Apashi said. Her hands clenched tightly as some of those memories came back to her. "We used to talk about it because-"

"Because if I remember right, you were also from Tokyo. Isn't that right?" Naisho removed his hand from the gigai's skin and pushed both of his hands into his pant's pockets.

"H-hai..." Apashi stammered. Her eyes drifted to the floor, as she seemed to fall into a moment of contemplation. "So...you want me to go back to the living world? And try to find her?"

"Bingo." Naisho turned over his shoulder and flashed his white teeth as he grinned widely.

Apashi shook her head in bemusement. "There are millions of people in Tokyo. How can you possibly expect me to f-"

"Funny fact..." Naisho said as he turned around fully so that he wouldn't have to crane his neck over his shoulder the whole time while he spoke. "Do you know where her reiatsu seemed to spend a lot of time while we were able to track her?"

"W-where?" Apashi questioned as she took a step forward. The girl gulped nervously as she eyed the man.

Naisho grinned in his classic way as he saw the nervousness on Apashi's face. "Inagakuen Sogo."
"Usso!" Apashi shouted. "You've got to be kidding! How? Why?"

Naisho shrugged at the questions. "I don't have an answer for you Kuga-dono. All I can say is this is what we know. But it is my belief that she is at that school." Apashi folded her arms underneath her breasts and bit her lip while she lapsed into thought. "Kuga-dono?" he asked, but got no response from the girl who seemed trapped in her thoughts.

"So what do you want me to do?" Apashi asked softly. "Naisho-san?" she asked softly when she got no response from the man. Her brown eyes peered up to find the man, with an amused expression on his face, as he sat next to some rather endowed female gigai. A vein on Apashi's forehead bulged against her skin as she clenched her right hand into a tight fist. "Hentai..." she whispered. Apashi waved her fist angrily and then roared at the man, "Stop that, Naisho-san!"

"Huh? Eh, what?" Naisho said as he looked around for a moment. "Oh, ummm, Kuga-dono. Erm did you say something?"

Apashi shook her head as she restated her question, "What do you want me to do about Haruka, Naisho-hentai?"

"Eh, n-n-no, I wasn't what it seemed like, Kuga-dono!" Naisho shouted as he waved his hands in a futile effort to blow away the problem. Finally he cleared his throat as he decided that perhaps the most efficient way to handle the problem was to move onto another subject.

"Well, the plan is this. You are going to use a gigai, and interact with the students and people at Inagauken Sogo. I believe with some detective work you will be able to find Haruka. At worst...you'll just be a Shinigami covering the area of hollows, and that's ok too."

"So is the reason you led me in here was to give me a gigai for this mission?" Apashi asked. "I don't see any gigai that looks like me though.

"That's because you won't be using a gigai that looks like you. You will be using..." Naisho paused for a moment and then pointed at a gigai. "That one."

Apashi's eyes bulged and wanted to pop out of their sockets as they followed the man's finger to the gigai. "N-no way!" Apashi screamed as she shook her head wildly, but then she stopped and her eyes widened before she began to burst into laughter. "Oh **** you, I get it. This is another one of your stupid jokes isn't it Naisho-san? Haha, you almost got me again..."

"Eh..." Naisho's eyes seemed to widen with Apashi's statement. His finger still pointed at the gigai.

"So where's the real one?" Apashi asked as she wiped a tear from her eyes from laughing and stood up straight after having doubled over at the waist.

"No...it really is that one..." Naisho stated. "You need to be well disguised. To not appear at all like you look like really...and...maybe this was a bad idea..." The man gulped and he let his arm fall to his side while sweat drops rolled down his cheeks. And then he turned and began to run as fast as his legs could carry him.

"Kono Yarou!" Apashi shouted as she chased after the man.

 

[anchen82]

Chapter 50 - The Cast Assembled

A pot of water steamed on the stovetop overlooked by Kyo as he waited for the water to boil while the slab of dry, uncooked ramen waited to the side. "Ah, nothing like ramen for dinner," he said as he peeked at the tv nearby. All around his apartment were clothes, paper, and electronics that littered the floor. "Ah, it's ready."

The slab of ramen plopped into the boiling water while Kyo began to whistle, his eyes watching the clock as he waited for the three minutes to pass.

Ring

"Eh?" Kyo muttered as he reached for the nearby cellphone on the kitchen countertop. He flipped it open and spoke, "Moshi moshi. Erm, yes, that's me." His free hand reached for a set of chopsticks as he began to stir the now softer and loosening strands of noodle.

"Oh, Mori-Kouchou. How are you tonight?" Kyo asked as he set aside the chopsticks and then covered the pot to let the noodles cook for a little while on their own. "That's good. Yes, I'm fine as well, just about to eat dinner actually."

"Ok," Kyo said after a few moments, and nodded affirmatively out of practice. "Yes, a transfer student is ok. Uhuh. Yes." He continued to nod to no one in particular in hopes that the conversation would end soon so he could get back to his dinner. "I underst-W-wait, what did you say?!" Kyo's face seemed to turn pale as his mouth hung open and he spun away from the stove toward the window.

"Say that again, I think I might have a bad connection, but what I heard couldn't be right." Kyo walked toward the window and waited a few moments before he turned his mouth away from the phone to let out a loud sigh. "But why me? Erm, but...I see. Ok. Bye bye." Kyo hung up the phone and stared out the window with a displeased expression on his face.

The loud sound of bubbling and water hitting the floor finally pulled Kyo's attention away from the window. "Oh, **** it!" he shouted as he whirled toward the stove where the water had boiled over and overflowed from the pot. As quickly as he could he turned the fire off while moving the pot to an unused spot on the stove. "Great...just great..." the young man mumbled as he saw some of the noodles had fallen to the floor out of the pot as well and an overall mess covered his stovetop.

~*~
Next Morning

Mai thumbed through her textbook in feigned interest as she waited for class to start. It had been a week since the school year had started, which also meant it had been a week since Kyo had begun teaching her class. Mai had managed to do a fair job of playing down the incident, although there were still more than a few classmates who gave her peculiar looks. And that every single seat in front, behind, and to the side of her was empty. But Mai didn't really mind, it could have been worse she mused, and she had managed to avoid any incidents since then.

"Ohayo gozaiiiimasuuu," Kyo said as he entered...well more like he dragged himself into the room. Did he go and get drunk last night or something? Mai pondered as she eyed him. Her eyes quickly turned to the people who had followed Kyo into the classroom though as none of them had a familiar face.

"Ohayo gozaimasu," Mai and the rest of the class replied as Kyo took his seat behind the desk at the front of the room.

Kyo's lips were in his usual grin but his eyes hung half closed from what looked like lack of sleep. "Today class I'd like to introduce four new classmates for you. They are all transfer students from different schools. And they all happen to be joining our class. Today. Yes..." His voice drifted off slightly as Mai recognized the look on his face now more as a combination of exasperation and disbelief than just tiredness.

Four? Mai thought as she looked over the four students who had followed behind Kyo when he entered the classroom. That's pretty crazy.

"Umm, so. How about you four introduce yourselves..." Kyo said. He shrugged and pointed at the student closest to himself. "You, how about you go first. And then we'll just go down the line."

The pink dyed hair girl to Kyo's immediate left took a step forward and then bowed to the rest of the class. She stood back up that caused her well developed busom to jiggle, and then smiled to the rest of the class while folding her hands behind her back. "My name is Ku-er-oda...Kuroda Ayumi. I enjoy bird watching and counting stars at night. I am very glad to be here and hope to be friends with you all." She closed her eyes and smiled genuinely as wide as her face would allow to the class before taking a step back.

"Very good Ayumi-kun," Kyo said, before he nodded to the second student, a dark-haired boy, to go ahead and proceed.

"Um, hello everyone..." the boy said as he bowed deeply to the rest of the class. "I'm Maximillian Narumi, but umm, you can just call me Max I guess..." Mai noted the boy's slight blush as she placed both of her elbows on her desk and propped her face up with her hands. "I...like to play ice and roller hockey..." Mai smirked as she saw the long bag the boy carried slung over his shoulder. He even carries around sticks during class? I wonder how long the school will let him get away with that one. Sorta cute though. The girl sighed as she noted the boy's sort of sloppy brown hair that spiked and hung low over parts of his eyes.

Max stepped back with the rest of the transfer students as he finished speaking and the next white-haired girl stepped forward before Kyo even bothered to ask her to. "My name is Flair," she said. "My hobbies are...none of your business. As for my likes and dislikes, I like acting and money, and dislike having to answer questions about myself. Thank you." Mai rolled her eyes after the girl turned around so sharply that her white hair flew up behind her from the spin. Lovely, Mai thought.

"Okay," Kyo said as he looked over the rest of the class. "Well, um you there on the end, your turn I guess."

"Hai," the short purple-haired girl said as she stepped forward. Mai's eyes followed to the girl's rather large backpack the girl wore, that seemed to be a bit much for the girl to be carrying. The small girl adjusted her glasses for a moment before she continued, "I'm Yamizaka Iori and I most of all I really like to read." The small girl beamed as she said the words. "I also like to draw, and play soccer and softball. Oh and shopping, and talking and..."

Mai's eyes started to droop as Iori continued to talk enthusiastically at the front of the class. She's...never mind... Mai thought.

"My favorite color is purple. Oh yeah, did you know that-"

"Um...yes..." Kyo eventually interrupted after several minutes. "Thank you Iori, we...kinda need to start the class soon though..." The man was slightly flushed as he sat at his desk rubbing the back of his neck.

Iori quickly stepped back with an embarrassed expression on her face. "Ah, I'm so sorry Hatori-sensei, it's just I get so excited sometimes, and just keep talking and talking. Like this time when I-"

"Hey, you," Flair snapped. "Didn't he just say we need to get this stupid class started already." Kyo had a slightly perturbed look at the girl having called his class stupid, but he let it slide in the sake of time.

Oh dear, I'm doing it again aren't I, gomen!" The small girl's cheek's showed the marks of a deep scarlet blush.

"It's ok Iori-kun. Alright, can you please all take a seat, just take any free seat," Kyo directed.

The four students slid through the rows of the class and went to settle into an available seat in the class. Mai took a quick survey and then sighed. This is going to be a BAD year her brain whined as the four students settled into the seats directly around her.