Yuzu stares at her sister wide eyed, feeling the tremors that shake the Shiba estate, Karin also returning the look that her twin is giving her. Their aunt Kukaku chuckles to herself seeing the girls' reaction to the tremors. "That was probably your brother." The one armed busty woman responds, laughing as some dust drops down from the ceiling. The twins turn to face Kukaku, both still wide eyed at the prospect that it was Ichigo. The black haired woman stands from her seat on the floor, she pulls the crimson slightly provocative robe tighter to herself as she stands from her seat on the floor. She grabs another cigarette before igniting the tip using her prosthetic arm.

"So, who'd have thought that your brother and his friends would come to his aunt of all people for help to attack the seireitei. I should have seen the resemblance to Isshin the moment he walked in." Kukaku says managing to divert the twins' attention from the tremors that shake the soul society.

"Ichinii did what?" Karin asks, shortly after she does so, their uncle Ganju erupts through the doors of the estate house on the back of his pig.

"Onee-sama!" He shouts as the pig banks a hard right, skids past the opening into the living room. He crashes into several pots and pans that span the storage space near it causing the twins to shudder hearing the clattering noise.

"For fuck sake Ganju what the hell?!" Kukaku shouts as she watches a wok roll into the living room. "I thought I told you to keep that fucking pig outside damnit! There's mud on my carpet!"

"There's earthquakes! The whole place is shaking!" He loudly shouts groveling at his sister's feet. This prompts her to kick him in the face full force, sending him out an open window.

"It's Ichigo causing them you idiot!" She yells back, the twins seeing where her brother and Dad get their aggressive interactions from. "I'm surrounded by idiots. Kaien was the only sensible one around here, and now that he's gone I'm stuck with that clown and my good for nothing brother who vanished for 25 years and shows up with three kids." She grumbles. "Literally five seconds after meeting Ichigo those two got in a fight. Something about an argument they had in the west Rukon. So, want to know how your brother fought heaven?"

"I still find this hard to believe, how does the afterlife look like feudal japan... and why does it suck?" Karin asks, though Kukaku just laughs.

"It sucks if you're not a noble or a soul reaper. The Shibas were a noble family but after Kaien died we kind of fell out of favor. However we are really good at making fireworks and all sorts of things that explode." Ganju boasts but Kukaku just glares at him.

"Get that fucking pig out of my house damnit!" She roars before beaming her other sandal at Ganju. "Growing up around an older brother or several makes you tough huh?" Kukaku asks but both twins shrug at her.

"Ichinii isn't like Dad or Uncle Ganju. He's actually pretty over protective. He threatened to beat up a boy at my school because we got assigned to a project together and he was over at our house." Karin explains prompting her aunt to laugh.

"Guess he really lives up to his name huh? Anyways, Ichigo showed up here a few days after entering soul society to rescue Rukia." Kukaku begins as she beckons for the twins to take a seat on the pillows on the floor.

Ichigo wouldn't wake up for several hours after his duel with Zangetsu, the taste of blood still fresh in his mouth. The throbbing pain in his stomach is still present from where Zangetsu had stabbed him but that isn't what's bugging him. The words that Zangetsu had told him are still echoing through his mind. "Ichigo, I'm not the enemy here. Sure I might be a hollow or I might not but I am your Zanpakuto. I am Zangetsu, and I don't care what that old bastard says otherwise, he isn't me. He isn't Zangetsu. I'm me,and I refuse to let you be weak! I refuse to let you die because I'll die. I refuse to play horse to a king that's weaker than me!" He is Zangetsu? If that's true then who is the old man? Why does he claim to be Zangetsu as well? The pain in his side is still too distracting to keep his thoughts straight. Though once consciousness returns to him fully Rukia's name now takes the place of the questions he had regarding what his sword spirit had told him.

Looking beside him he notices that he's not alone in this room, Captain Hitsugaya and Kuchiki are both present having just slid the rice paper doors open. Lieutenant Isane was already in the room by his bedside making sure that the reishi IV that was attached to his elbow was functioning properly. "Lieutenant Kurosaki." Toshiro greets noticing the orange haired man had just awoken. "Captain Unohana had asked us to check up on you, Rukia is already awake but she's still recovering much the same as you." he explains. Ichigo groans as he pushes himself to a more seated position though Isane almost immediately grabs his shoulders to stop him from moving.

"You don't need to get up." Byakuya says as he pulls a seat next to the desk at the side of Ichigo's medical cot. "Captain Hitsugaya and I have been asked to get your side of the story, we felt your reishi spike all of a sudden and it became so intense that it began to drown anyone lower than 3rd seat in rankings. We had to evacuate half the seireitei after you hollowfied. This time it was several magnitudes stronger than when I fought your inner hollow."

"I remember Rukia's hollow telling me that Hiyori stabbed her in the shoulder... that's all about I remember. After that I woke up in my inner world and fought him, the entire time he kept claiming that he was Zangetsu..." Ichigo explains with Hitsugaya taking notes about the experience. "What happened when I was out?"

"You almost killed Me, Shinji, Kensei and Love. When we arrived your hollow had already broken out of the kido that Urahara and Hachi had tried to keep you under. However your hollow didn't attack at first, it stood over Rukia as she too hollowfied. While her face was completely covered by the mask her body wasn't and was changing physically to resemble a humanoid fox. She didn't move at all when you broke yourself and her from the Bakudo spells. When Renji got there, he saw your hollow over her and believed that you were going to consume her. He activated his bankai and attacked you. That's when Rukia attacked him, she grabbed the red sword and threw it at him like a rope dart. It was strong enough to stab clear through one of the bones of Hihio Zabimaru like a piece of paper." Byakuya explains, "I find these powers distasteful however the power available to you and Rukia, as well as the rest of the vizards cannot be denied."

"We'll leave you to rest and recuperate Kurosaki, and captain Unohana is permitting you to be moved to Rukia's room so that you may see each other." Captain Hitsugaya says as he leaves the room. "Captain Isshin has asked that I swing by the Shiba estate to check on your sisters, do you want me to say anything?"

"Yeah..." Ichigo responds, taking a deep breath and trying to will the pain to subside. "Tell them that I know they might be scared, but no matter what happens to me, no matter what I look like, hollow or not, they don't need to be afraid of me." He says, with Toshiro taking a mental note of Ichigo's message.

"It may be a good idea to at least show them an artist's rendition of what your hollow mask looks like. That way if you ever have to hollowfy in front of them they wont fear you." Isane recommends, before holding up the red and white mask itself and handing it to Ichigo. "It reformed when you were unconscious and while it was over your face the majority of your injuries healed much faster."

"Are either of you a good artist?" Ichigo asks, though Byakuya doesn't answer. Instead he produces a piece of paper and quickly draws out a surprisingly good version of what the mask looks like. "You're a lot better than Rukia is at that."

"Don't tell her you said that." Byakuya responds before handing the note to Toshiro allowing the younger man to exit the room. "Lieutenant, can you allow us to speak privately for a moment?" Ichigo's heart sinks when he hears Byakuya say this.

"Yes captain." She responds, "However I have to as-"

"I do not intend on hurting him, it is merely about an earlier conversation we had."

"Yes sir." She responds before bowing and exiting the room.

"Is this about..." Ichigo begins.

"Yes." Byakuya responds. "You and I have already spoken about you taking up the mantle as her protector since I feel myself no longer fit to do so. If this is how you see fit to protect her life and her happiness then you have my blessing to court my sister." Ichigo is shocked to say the very least, he was dreading this conversation with Byakuya about revealing their relationship. Even if it is in its infancy. "About a century and a half ago, I met a beautiful woman wandering the west Rukon districts while I was on a patrol as a 3rd seat at the time. She had a newborn baby attached to her back in a silk sash. I saved them from some local thugs wishing to harm her, cutting those heathens down where they stood. That woman was Hisana, and the baby with her was Rukia. I took the two of them into the Kuchiki estate, but the elders forced us to make a decision that I still regret to this day. They forced me to choose one of them, either to marry Hisana or adopt Rukia. At the time, I was as brash and hot headed as you are, my young friend, but I chose Hisana. That decision forced her to abandon her sister in an orphanage in Inuzuri and it pained her till the day she died. The woman that Rukia has grown up into looks nearly identical to her sister, and I've failed Hisana too many times now to be able to call her my sister. Had I been a stronger man, I would have thrown away everything, my name, my clan, my life as a shinigami, to be with Hisana and adopt Rukia as our daughter. Like we should have all those years ago."

"Hisana would want you to be happy, Byakuya." Ichigo responds, "So would Rukia, and you did your best to honor Hisana's memory. People make mistakes, and you're still her brother, don't give up on yourself just because you made the wrong choice."

"You're wise beyond your years Kurosaki." Byakuya responds. "Now that you are courting Rukia, the elders will need to be informed. When they're told that you are the oldest male heir of clan Shiba, that's worth anything," he gives a chide to Ganju at this, "It's likely they'll push to have the two of you arranged to be married."

"So there's no taking my relationship with Rukia slow is there?" Ichigo asks.

"Not likely, but I probably will be able to convince them to wait until after the war with Aizen is over." Byakuya finishes his statement, standing on his feet and beginning to walk to the door. "When this is all over," He says, turning back to the man dating his sister. "If you and her are blessed with a child, like Hisana and I weren't, if it is a girl. I would wish for her to take the name of my Hisana. To honor her memory." Ichigo doesn't get a chance to respond as Byakuya vanishes in a slight burst of Reishi.

"Hey." Rukia says as Isane and Hanataro help her walk into the room that Ichigo is in. "How are you feeling?" She asks Ichigo, he notices that the white kimono that she normally sports when recovering is now crimson red, along the base of her kimono, and the base of her sleeves, are patterns of white snowflakes.

"I got stabbed, blown up, slashed and thrown through a building by the face." Ichigo responds. "Plus I had a long conversation with your brother and Toshiro about the fight and what your brother wants with our relationship." He responds, groaning slightly as he turns to face her.

"Fun, I got a massive cero shot at me, blown up, thrown through trees, shredded by ice blades... and kissed." Ichigo raises an eyebrow at the last part. "It wasn't another man Ichigo, it was my hollow."

"Now I'm just more confused. Mine punched me in the face."

"Sounds about right," She smiles slightly, Ichigo noticing that her lips are now adorn with red lipstick and her nails are red as well. "Captain Unohana says we'll be able to leave tomorrow, but Renji, Matsumoto and Hisagi are coming by later tonight along with the vizards to drink Sake with us." She winces slightly still feeling the pain from her fights with Hiyori and Hoakita. Noticing this, Ichigo slides over in the cot he's laying in and extends a hand beckoning for her to join him. Isane and Hanataro leave the room shortly after assisting her into Ichigo's cot. The injured man wrapped his arms around her and gently embraced the Kuchiki princess. "What did Nii-sama say?"

"He told me of how he met your sister, that he should have adopted you... and that your grandparents or whoever the Kuchiki elders are will want us to get married." He explains, Rukia tilts her head into his shoulder feeling his warm touch. "He did request something from us before he left."

"What's that?" She asks.

"If we have a daughter, when all of this is over, he asked that we name her after Hisana." Ichigo responds before taking a deep breath. The embrace of the petite soul reaper soothes the pain in his body.

"When this is over, when Aizen is dead, and everything is peaceful again." She says as she too feels her pain ebb away. "I'd like that... but I'm not gonna be a stay at home mom." She insists.

"Of course not," Ichigo teases, "You'd get bored." The two of them laugh at this last statement as they fall back asleep in each other's embrace. Sleep is the key to heal the body and spirit.