Title: The 87th District (Chapter V)

Rating: 'T'

Warnings: Story-wise, None. Spoiler-wise, everything.

Summary: After receiving numerous reports about disturbances in the area, Hitsugaya and Hinamori are sent to investigate. However, what they find is not what they were expecting. [HitsuHina]

Author's Notes: Ahh, a thousand apologies for taking so long to update guys! But they should become more frequent now. I'm sorry about the shortness of this chapter (and the cliff-hanger), next one will be extra long. Thank you so much to everyone who took the time to review it means a lot.

Btw, did you guys read the latest chapter?? There was a cameo of Hinamori, and she's wide-awake! I'm so excited! I know it might be hoping too much to see her in action again, but here's to hoping KT does all us Hinamori fans proud!

Rukia tread the path back towards the town square. It had been just a little over an hour since they'd all split up, and she had yet to find a single soul. No Mary Sues and definitely no signs of Renji or Ichigo.

She cursed under breath. When all this was over, she'd make sure to thoroughly trounce those two idiots for making her worry so much. She had tried tracing their riatsu, but was unsuccessful, which bothered her greatly. Normally Ichigo's spiritual energy was so vast, she could sense it through the thickest barriers—if she was standing close enough. However faint, however weak, she could still detect some small sign of it. Now though, nothing!

She raised a hand and ran it irritably through her hair. Now she would be lucky to make it to some shelter before the storm broke.

As if on cue, there was a fierce crack of thunder, before the skies opened up and it began to pour.

Swearing loudly, she started to run. Really, this was all she needed, she thought, as she hurried towards the town square, only to find it empty. This did nothing to lift her spirits. Where was everyone? They had agreed to meet in an hour. Deciding to wait, she took shelter beneath the veranda of a nearby shop, waiting for her friends to show up.

Five minutes passed. Then ten and still she was all alone. This meant the others had either run into trouble, or were actually in trouble.

Earlier, she had felt Hinamori's riatsu flare and then die down. At the time, she thought it was because she had won, but now she wasn't so sure. Gritting her teeth, she left her sheltered spot and hurried down the path Hinamori had taken. Sandals splashing in the murky puddles, she ground to a halt as she spotted a figure lying face down in the mud.

"Hinamori?!" Rukia gasped, as she hurried to the girl's side. Turning her over, she was shocked to see all the cuts across her face and body. Who could have done this? And to a vice-captain no less! Did these Mary Sues possess such terrible powers that they could so easily defeat a high-ranking shinigami?!

Glancing around, she sought some shelter, and decided the best place would be the apartment buildings. Though she didn't like to think of what her brother would have to say about her breaking and entering, the situation was desperate. Dragging Hinamori to dry ground, she could see the girl’s situation was grave. Rukia clenched her teeth, hoping her condition wasn't critical. Busting open one of the doors, she laid her down gently on the floor and began the healing process.

She was thankful they were only cuts and bruises; nothing that was out of her capacity to heal. She breathed a sigh of relief as the wounds began to mend, and was grateful that they didn't require the attention of Unohana or other high-ranking 4th Division members.

The storm clashed outside, as Rukia sat back on her knees, exhaling slowly. She resigned herself to wait until Hinamori woke up, as she searched the apartment for towels and clothing. Locating them, she proceeded to change the lieutenant into something drier, lest she catch a cold or fever. She wasn’t sure how long she was lying outside on the ground, losing blood, but it had to have been at least an hour, and that wasn’t good.

After transferring the vice-captain to the couch and changing out of her own wet shihakusho, she took a closer look around. It was a nice apartment, though it looked like no one had been here for a while, she thought, as she ran a finger along the length of the end table, leaving a clean streak in its wake.

Hmmm…she glanced around. The 5th vice-captain was unconscious, the storm was raging fiercely outside, and she was in here, with no one around to watch. There would be nothing wrong with simply looking around, right? After all, these Mary Sues were their enemies, and the more they knew about them, the better. Perhaps lying around here somewhere was vital information that could help them find Ichigo, Renji, and the others?

Convincing herself with that logic, she began snooping (no, not snooping, looking), opening up drawers and checking out cabinets.

An hour later and Rukia had yet to find anything that contained top secret information. There were the usual knickknacks she’d find in any home, music records, books, and photo albums. She had browsed through the albums briefly, only to find them empty. She had then checked out the shelves of books, and was surprised to find a thin black notebook pressed between two volumes. Opening it, she discovered it was a sketchbook.

She sat down on the floor, flipping through the pages, as drawing after drawing greeted her. They were surprisingly good, much better than her drawings, and she scowled upon this realization.

There were the usual still-life drawings of a bowl of fruit, another one of two tombstones in a graveyard. She arched a brow at this, surprised at the morbidity of the picture. Turning the next page, she found a sketch of what looked to be two couples, followed by a drawing of a girl that bore a strong resemblance to Hinamori. The next page depicted the same drawing, with a sword rammed through her chest. Rukia shuddered, as she cast a glance at the girl on the couch and then frowned.

Hinamori had an agitated expression on her face, and she could see beads of sweat lining her brow. Rukia wasn’t sure whether to wake her or not. She walked over, placing a hand on her forehead, but didn’t detect a fever. She moved her hand down to her shoulder, shaking it gently.

“Hinamori-san,” she called softly, but there was no answer. “Hinamori?” She repeated, shaking her again, but still no response. Whatever dream the girl was having, it was holding her tightly in its grasp. Rukia realized that the lieutenant would have to battle out her demons alone; as she sat down to wait.

-

Matsumoto walked gingerly behind Yumichika, as he led her through a series of corridors.

“Are you sure we aren’t lost?” She questioned, as she looked at the many paintings and statues lining the walls. She could have sworn they walked past that sculpture of a flamingo already.

“Yes, I’m sure,” Yumichika responded in an irritated voice. Matsumoto hadn’t stopped plaguing him with questions he couldn’t answer since she’d first coerced him into bringing her here.

Touchy. “So I don’t get it, why is their whole hideout underground? Do they even use all those apartment buildings, or are they just for show? And what’s with the writing all over them? Are they taggers or something? Oooh, I bet that’s what you’ve been doing with that girl all this time!”

“Shut up! She isn’t a tagger and I don’t know!” Yumichika exclaimed, turning around to glare at her. “Why don't you just make a list of questions to ask when we arrive?”

“Yeesh, no need to be so sensitive,” Matsumoto replied with a slight smirk. Taunting Yumichika was always fun. “You’ll get wrinkles faster. By the way, have you been dying your hair?”

Yumichika glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. “No, why?”

“Oh, so that must be a gray hair I’m seeing.”

“What?!” The 5th seat clutched at his tresses as he ran to the nearest mirror, checking them in a panic. “Where?! Where is it?!”

“Oh, wait, my bad. It was just the light,” Matsumoto amended, trying to keep her expression straight.

Yumichika threw her the dirtiest glare he could muster. Matsumoto had to fight down the laugh that was threatening to burst out of her.

“Here,” he spat, pointing to a door all the way at the end of the hall. “Go through there, you’ll find Ikkaku, Hisagi, and Kira. That’s where those three usually hang out. I’ll tell you now though, you’re wasting your time; you won’t be able to convince them to come with you.”

“I guess I’ll just have to try my luck. But wait a second, where are you going, Yumichika?” Matsumoto asked blankly, as she saw his hand poised over the doorknob.

“I,” Yumichika replied, drawing himself up to his full height, “Am going to have lunch in my own private sui-aaahhhhh!”

The door opened from the inside, and Yumichika fell in, landing unceremoniously on the floor.

“Oh, Yumi-san!” Matsumoto recognized Cissy’s lilting voice in an instant. “I thought I heard voices, but I wasn’t sure if it was you! I’m so glad you’re back! Are you okay, did you get hurt?”

“I’m fine, Cissy,” Yumichika muttered, running a hand through his disheveled hair as he stood up.

“Oh, good, did you get rid of that—“ she stopped as she spotted Matsumoto. “Oh, you brought her along.”

“Yes, her,” Matsumoto mocked, as she cast an eye over the Mary Sue’s choice of attire. Cissy was wearing the skimpiest little black dress she’d ever seen. “What, aren’t you happy to see me? Or am I interrupting something?”

Cissy glared, as Yumichika seemed to have finally noticed what she was wearing. “Cissy, Wha-why are you wearing that?” He asked in surprise.

“Don’t you like it?” Cissy pouted.

“Of course! It looks beautiful on you, and it complements your figure very nicely. The dark color also creates a stunning contrast with your ivory skin and blonde hair, giving you a very sharp look.”

Matsumoto reminded them of her presence before she had to sit through another bout of “You’re so beautiful” “No you’re so beautiful” exchanges between the two.

“Wow Cissy, really, where do you do your shopping?” She asked, knowing her presence was irritating the Sue more than she let on.

“Please,” Cissy dismissed her with a haughty tilt of her head. “I didn’t buy it, Uryuu made it for me.”

Matsumoto narrowed her eyes. “Ishida Uryuu? The Quincy?”

The Mary Sue nodded. “Yes, he has quite the divine taste, wouldn’t you say so? Maybe if you pay him a visit, he can do something about your horrible fashion sense.”

“Well, he obviously couldn’t do anything about your appalling attitude, so maybe I’ll pass.”

“You take that back! I do not have an appalling attitude!” Cissy glared at her.

Matsumoto crossed her arms. “No.”

“If you don’t take it back I’ll-“

“You’ll what?” Matsumoto asked with a smirk. “Make me?”

“Actually, Matsumoto’s going to leave right now, aren’t you?” Yumichika interjected, glaring at the vice-captain.

Matsumoto grinned. “What? And miss all the fun?” She let out a sigh as Yumichika gave her a death glare. “Well, don’t get too distracted, Yumi-san, because I might just end up knocking on your door later.”

“Goodbye, Matsumoto,” Yumichika growled, as he shut the door in her face.

“Have fuu~unn,” Matsumoto called, before sashaying away. She made her way down the hall, chuckling. The Mary Sue was entertaining; she should have had more fun with her. And Yumichika was too easy sometimes. Anyway, I better get the others so we can find Captain and get the heck out of here she thought, as she gripped the brass handle of the non-descript white door. It looks like shinigami aren’t the only ones who have gone missing.

Whatever it was Matsumoto may have been expecting upon entering, nothing, but nothing could have prepared her for the sight she laid eyes on.

Ikkaku, Hisagi, and Kira, some of the strongest members of the Gotei 13, sitting around surrounded by girls getting manicures. Manicures.

Matsumoto’s eyes went as round as saucers as she stared in disbelief at the sight of Ikkaku and Shuuhei with nail filers in their hands. Hell, even Kira had gotten dragged into this!

For a moment there was a pin drop silence, before everything exploded.

“IKKAKU?! SHUUHEI?!” She shrieked, as she stormed into the room, catching everyone by surprise. “Yumichika, I can believe,” she exclaimed, as she lifted Ikkaku by the scruff of his neck. “But you Madarame?! Just what the hell is your excuse?!”

Ikkaku began to stutter. Aside from being shocked and unprepared for the arrival of the 10th vice-captain, the fury in her eyes was rendering him speechless. “I-I-It’s…It’s…relaxing…?” He tried weakly.

Matsumoto narrowed her eyes before throwing him down hard on the floor, as she glared at the boys that dared to call themselves members of the Gotei 13.

“Manicures?!” She hissed. “All this time, all these weeks that you had disappeared, and we were all worried about you, you guys were busy getting your nails done?!”

“It’s-It’s not exactly like that, Matsumoto-san,” Kira hastened to say.

“And what the hell is your excuse, Kira?! Suddenly you decided to embrace your feminine side!?”

“He told you that’s not it!” Hisagi stood up to his friend’s defense, only to immediately quell under the infuriated gaze Matsumoto leveled him with.

“You know what?! Forget it! I don’t even want to know, you can all tell that to Yamamoto-sou-taicho when we get back! I’m sure he’ll be really glad to hear how you three couldn’t be bothered to send word of your situation because you were all too busy painting your nails pink!”

“We were not painting our nails pink!” All three of them yelled in unison, their cheeks coloring red.

“Listen Matsumoto, you-“ Ikkaku began, but was cut off when she delivered a right-hook to his jaw.

“Ow! What the hell was that for?!” Ikkaku cried. "Just what the hell is wrong with you?!"

“What the hell is wrong with me?!What the hell is wrong with you, Ikkaku! Kira and Shuuhei,” she pointed to the two. “I’m not so surprised at, they were always something of pathetic pushover wusses, but you—“ she gripped the 3rd seat with both hands shaking him hard, ignoring the other two males' indignant shouts. “What happened to you?! Have you been hanging around Yumichika too long?! Has he finally rubbed off on you?! Just how low have you sunk, Madarame?!”

“Oi! Oi! What are you getting so ticked off at me for?!” Ikkaku yelled, but Matsumoto cut him off once more.

“Where’s Hoozukimaru?! How come you don’t have him on you?! What happened to the guy who wouldn’t walk around without a sword, even if it was just a wooden one?! Huh?!” Matsumoto shouted in his face.

Ikkaku didn't seem to have an answer. He looked flabbergasted, as though just realizing that his sword wasn’t with him. Matusmoto let him drop in disgust, as she glared at the other two vice-captains.

“Where are Ichigo and Renji? And more importantly, where is Hitsugaya-taicho?!”

“C-Captain Hitsugaya is here?!” Kira asked, shocked.

Matsumoto narrowed her blue eyes, as she took a look around the room. The girls were all standing around, frozen and dumbstruck at the spectacle she had just made. Slowly, she turned to look back at the boys, and then at Ikkaku, who was still stunned.

“Captain Hitsugaya was kidnapped here yesterday. We came on a rescue mission to save him, but even more importantly, Captain Zaraki Kenpachi and Vice-captain Kusajishi Yachiru went missing along with you guys when you first came here. Where are they?”

“Perhaps I can be of some help.”

Matsumoto turned around. Standing in the doorway was a woman with long, lavender hair and large, pale blue eyes.

“My name is Chibi, and I believe I know the whereabouts of your captain.”

-

-

-

To be continued…