13 Chapter 13: Aftermath!

Ichigo began to wake up after passing out on Sokyoku Hill. As he opened his eyes, he was immediately hit by a ray of sunshine coming through from the nearby window. After a few seconds, his eyes had finally adjusted allowing him to open them fully. He began to look around the room trying to figure out where he was. The walls of the room were white, the sheets on the bed were white, everything was white. It was all so familiar to Ichigo, it reminded him of his dad's clinic. It was then he realized that he was in a hospital. He looked down at himself examining for any injuries or for reasons why he was in a hospital but did not find any. He then looked over at the bedside table and saw his sunglasses sitting on top of it, he took them and put them on before he got out of the bed and began to stretch his legs, arms, and back. The entire room was filled with the sounds of Ichigo's joints popping in and out of place. Ichigo then sighed and spoke to himself.

"Now to figure out where am I," Ichigo said to himself.

"You are in a hospital in the Soul Society, master," said Alucard startling Ichigo. Ichigo nearly jumped out of his skin when he heard Alucard's voice.

"Damn it Alucard, you scared the crap out of me!" Ichigo yelled.

"My apologies master, it was not my intention," Alucard said. Ichigo sighed once again before he spoke.

"It's ok, Alucard," Ichigo said as he sat on the edge of the bed. "Why am I in a hospital?" Ichigo asked. Alucard chuckled a bit before he replied confusing Ichigo.

"Well, master, you may have a vampire as your zanpakuto however, you still need your sleep," Alucard said making Ichigo raise his eyebrows in confusion. He was about to question what Alucard meant but Alucard spoke before he had the chance. "If you recall during your training in that cave Yoruichi took you to, all you did was train for five days. You did not take any breaks, nor did you sleep for those five days. So, after your fight with Aizen, your body finally had enough causing you to collapse," Alucard said in an amused voice. Ichigo chuckled as he ran his fingers through his hair before he asked Alucard another question.

"How long was I out?" he asked.

"Three days," Alucard said. Ichigo did not say anything at first, he just sat there staring at the wall in front of him for a minute before he screamed out.

"Three Days?!" he yelled out in shock. Alucard sighed before he spoke to Ichigo.

"Are you done?" he asked causing Ichigo to regain his composure. "If you are, I think it is time we discuss the situation we are currently in," Alucard said in a serious voice causing Ichigo's smile to disappear and his face to take on a more emotionless look.

"Are you saying that these soul reapers captured us while I was sleeping?" Ichigo asked.

"No, quite the opposite really," Alucard said confusing Ichigo. "They are treating you and your friends as heroes in a sense," Alucard said. Ichigo did not buy it, he knew that soul reapers had too much pride in them for them to acknowledge him and his friends as heroes. So, he made a note to keep his guard up.

"Where are my friends?" he asked.

"I do not know," Alucard said causing Ichigo to sigh. Before Ichigo could say anything the door of the room that Ichigo was in opened and in walked the female soul reaper of Ichigo saved from Byakuya's attack. She entered the room holding a notepad giving Ichigo the indication that she was a doctor or a nurse of some sort. Ichigo sat there staring at her waiting for her to say something but instead, he noticed her face turned red and she immediately turned away from Ichigo puzzling him. Before Ichigo could ask what is wrong with her she spoke.

"I-I'm sorry, I should have knocked before I entered," she said confusing Ichigo even further.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Ichigo asked. Isane did not say anything she only hid her face while pointing at Ichigo's torso making him look down at himself only to notice he was not wearing a shirt.

"Oh, my bad," Ichigo said as he looked around the room for the top of his shihakusho. He found it on the same bedside table that his sunglasses were on and quickly put it on. "Okay you can turn around now," he said causing her to turn around while blushing.

"Umm, I'm glad to see you are awake, Ichigo-san," Isane said while trying to avoid looking Ichigo in the eyes.

"Yea, so am I," Ichigo said before there was an awkward moment of silence between the two. Ichigo finally had enough decided to break the silence with a question. "So, I take it you are my doctor?" he asked. Isane looked up at him for the first time and smiled before she replied.

"Oh no, Captain Unohana was the one who treated you. I just helped her and checked up on you when she was busy," Isane said. Ichigo nodded before he spoke again.

"Well, thank you anyway," Ichigo said with a smile causing Isane to blush some more.

"It's nothing, I was just repaying you for saving me from Captain Kuchiki's attack," she said. Ichigo chuckled a bit before he replied.

"Come on now," Ichigo said getting her to look up at him. "I couldn't let someone as gorgeous as you die," Ichigo said with a smirk on his face. Isane for her part did not know what to do or say. She stood there with her face beet red staring at Ichigo before she turned and ran towards the door while she spoke to Ichigo.

"I-I'll go get Captain Unohana and your friends!" she said as she disappeared through the door. Ichigo stared at the door with his eyebrows raised before he started chuckling to himself.

"Hmm, I didn't even get her name," he said in an amused voice. Ichigo could hear Alucard laughing in his head.

"Well, aren't you smooth with the ladies, master," Alucard said before he started laughing at Ichigo again.

"Shut up Alucard," Ichigo said making Alucard laugh even louder. Alucard finally stopped laughing and spoke to Ichigo in a serious voice.

"I thought you weren't going to trust the soul reapers," Alucard said.

"I'm not," Ichigo replied confusing Alucard.

"Soo, want to tell me why you were flirting a few minutes ago with that soul reaper?" Alucard asked. Ichigo chuckled as he sat down on the edge of the bed before he replied.

'It can't hurt to have a spy in their ranks,' Ichigo said in his head causing Alucard to chuckle at his master's cunningness. "Plus, she is kind of cute," Ichigo added. Before Alucard to reply the door of the room opened again and in came Ichigo's friends along with Captain Unohana, who Ichigo remembered meeting on the bridge to the Repentance Cell, along with the soul reaper from earlier.

"It is nice to see you are up, Ichigo-san," said Captain Unohana. Ichigo smiled at her and was about to reply, but before he could Orihime launched herself at Ichigo and began crying into his chest.

"Kurosaki-Kun I was so worried about you," said a sobbing Orihime making Ichigo gently pat her on the head as he spoke.

"There, there Orihime. I'm fine, I just need some sleep," Ichigo said in a soothing tone trying to calm her down. Orihime looked up at him teary-eyed and spoke.

"A-are you sure?" she asked. Ichigo smiled warmly before he nodded his head yes. Ichigo then looked at Captain Unohana and spoke.

"So, I take it I can leave?" he asked.

"Yes, yes you can," she said with a smile on her face. Ichigo was about to get up and leave but before he could Captain Unohana spoke once more. "Right after Isane runs some more test on you just to make sure you are okay," she said causing Ichigo to sigh and sit back down. "You know Ichigo-san," she said getting his attention, "you shouldn't use that technique if it puts that much strain on your body," she said confusing Ichigo for a bit before he finally figured out what she meant.

"No, it's not like that," he said surprising her, "It wasn't the technique I used that caused me to pass out. I passed out because I hadn't slept in five days," Ichigo said making everyone's eyes widen in shock. Uryu was the first one to break the silence.

"God you are an idiot," he said earning a chuckle from Captain Unohana. Ichigo looked over at him with a bored expression on his face and spoke in a bored tone.

"Oh Uryu, you're here too," he said causing a tick mark to form on Uryu. Ichigo then looked over at Chad and spoke in a cheerier tone. "Oh, hey Chad!" he said getting Uryu angrier.

"Why do you sound so happy to see him!" Uryu yelled. Ichigo looked over to him and spoke in his bored tone again.

"Hmm, oh sorry Uryu did you say something," he said causing Uryu to yell out in frustration. Ichigo and his friends' fun was interrupted by Captain Unohana when she spoke.

"Okay, it thinks that is enough fun," she said getting their attention. "It is time for Isane to run some tests on Ichigo. So, I am going to have to ask all of you to leave for a few minutes," she said earning a nod from each of Ichigo's friends before they all turned to leave. After they left, it was just Ichigo and Isane inside the room. Ichigo took on a smirk on his face before he spoke to her.

"Soo, what test are me doing, miss I... sa...ne," Ichigo said making sure to pronounce every syllable of Isane's name causing her to blush.

"U-um, we are going to test your blood pressure and your reflexes," she said. Ichigo chuckled before he spoke again.

"Didn't know dead people had blood pressure too," he said earning a giggle from Isane.

"You will find out that they're not that different from those who are still alive," She said as she began running the tests on Ichigo. After about five minutes Isane had finished running all of her tests on Ichigo. She made her notes on her notepad before she looked at Ichigo and spoke with a smile. "Well, everything seems fine Ichigo-san. You are free to go," she said. Ichigo smiles at her and stood up before he replied.

"Please, just call me Ichigo. I hate formalities," he said. Isane blushed a bit before she spoke in a shy voice.

"Okay, Ichigo-sa...I mean Ichigo," she said. Ichigo smiles and extended his hand to shake. Isane extended her hand as well and shook Ichigo's hand with a light blush on her face.

"I guess I'll see you around," he said while still holding on to her hand. Neither of them had seemed to realize that they were still holding hands until Isane seems to have noticed and quickly let go of Ichigo's hand knocking him out of his daze. Both of their cheeks took on a slight tint of pink before Ichigo awkwardly said goodbye and walked out of the room leaving Isane there in the room. The thing that neither one of them had seemed to notice the entire time was that Captain Unohana was peeping at them through one of the windows with a smile on her face.

'Well, Ichigo Kurosaki, my Lieutenant seems to have a crush on you,' Captain Unohana thought before leaving to head to the Captain's meeting that was scheduled. As Ichigo left the room he saw his friends were standing there with Yoruichi waiting for him.

"Hey, Yoruichi, what's up?" Ichigo asked as he walked towards the group. Yoruichi turned to her student and smiled before she replied.

"Well, well, well," Yoruichi said with a smirk on her face. "You're looking well Ichigo," she said causing Ichigo to smirk.

"Yea I know, almost makes you wish you were a lot younger doesn't it," Ichigo said causing a tick mark to form on Yoruichi's forehead. She quickly got her emotions in check not giving Ichigo the satisfaction of seeing her angry.

"Are you free to go?" she asked changing the subject. Ichigo chuckled a bit before he replied.

"Yea, I'm free to go. Just let me say goodbye to Rukia and then we can leave," Ichigo said as he began walking off to the exit of the hospital but was stopped by Yoruichi's voice.

"Don't bother," she said causing him to stop and look at her. "She is meeting us at the senkaimon," Yoruichi said as she and the group walked towards Ichigo. Ichigo nodded his head before he spoke.

"Well then, let's go," he said as they walked out of the hospital and headed towards the senkaimon. After walking for about five minutes the group arrived at the senkaimon and saw Rukia, Renji and Jushiro were already there.

"About time you showed up strawberry," said Renji with a smirk on his face. Ichigo looked at him with a bored look on his face and spoke.

"Huh? Who are you again?" Ichigo asked while looking at Renji.

"Hey! What do you mean who am I?" Renji shouted angrily. "It's me Renji!"

"Oh, didn't you die or something?" Ichigo asked again causing Jushiro to chuckle while Renji's jaw hung open. Ichigo then looked at Jushiro and spoke. "It's good to see you again Jushiro," Ichigo said with a smile.

"Same here, Ichigo," Jushiro replied before he reached into his pocket and pulled out and small badge and handed it to Ichigo. "This is for you," he said he handed it to Ichigo.

"What is it?" Ichigo asked as he examines the badge.

"It is a substitute soul reaper badge," Jushiro said getting Ichigo's attention. "Over the centuries, there have been a few other instances where substitute soul reapers have been deemed useful. They too have been given this badge as proof of their status. You can use it to become a soul reaper whenever you wish. It makes getting out of your body a lot easier," Jushiro said. Ichigo did not trust it and made a note to ask Kisuke about it when they get back but for now, he will take it.

"Thanks, it is an honor to accept this," Ichigo said. As he said that he could hear Alucard laughing his ass off in his head. Jushiro smiled happily at Ichigo before he spoke.

"Now if you would excuse me, I have a Captain's meeting that I am late for," Jushiro said before flash-stepping away. Ichigo then turned towards Rukia and spoke.

" So, I heard you're staying here," Ichigo said. Rukia smiled and nodded. "Well, I guess I'll see you around Rukia," Ichigo said as he and his friends turned towards the senkaimon to leave.

"Yea, I guess so," Rukia said in a soft voice as she watched them walk through the senkaimon. "Thank you, Ichigo," she said as they disappeared.

*Captain's Meeting*

All of the remaining captains of the 13 Court Guard Squads stood in a horizontal line facing the head Captain. The atmosphere in the room was tense because the subject they were discussing was Ichigo Kurosaki.

"Are you sure it is safe to let someone as powerful as him go Head Captain?" asked the captain of Squad 10, Toshirō Hitsugaya. Toshiro is a short boy, with turquoise eyes and short, spiked, white hair. He wore a standard sleeveless captain's haori with a green sash around his shoulders, held together by a round, star-like clip. The sash holds his Zanpakuto's sheath in place on his back and is tied to it at either end. The head Captain looked at the youngest Captain and spoke.

"Ichigo Kurosaki is not a threat to the Soul Society," The head Captain said surprising everyone there. It was odd for the head captain to trust someone so easily, but before anyone could question if he spoke again. "And even if he was a threat...I doubt there is anything we could do about it," the head Captain said causing every captain's eyes to widen. The senior captains could not believe what they were hearing. Yamamoto, the strongest soul reaper that ever existed just said they could not do anything to stop Ichigo.

"What do you mean by that old man Yama?" asked Shunsui in a serious voice instead of his usual jovial one.

"I highly doubt that Ichigo Kurosaki has any idea on the matter, but when I saw his Zanpakuto's ability on Sokyoku Hill I realized something. When it comes to Ichigo Kurosaki, that is a matter that I am outranked on," the head captain said surprising everyone once more.

"So Ichigo is working for Central 46?" asked Jushiro. "I highly doubt that" he said as he answered his own question.

"No, not Central 46..." Yamamoto said before pausing to open his eyes for the first time all meeting and looked at the captains before he spoke again. "...Think higher than that," He said cryptically confusing everyone for a bit before all of their eyes widen and their jaws hung open.

"But that would mean..."

*CHAPTER END*

THAT'S ANOTHER CHAPTER.

AS A HEADS UP I WILL BE DOING THE BOUNT ARC MAINLY TO SHOW ONE OF ICHIGO'S ABILITY. SO, LOOK FORWARD TO THAT NEXT CHAPTER!

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