Chapter Text
After rescuing Rukia, Ichigo had been at a loss of what to do. When the soul society have forcefully taken Rukia from the world of the living, he had a purpose: something to aim for and an excuse to develop his potential.
Even now, after the blood and carnage and the echoes of battles fought faded into history, he could still feel the undeniable thrum of his powers beneath the surface, whispering for him to discover more.
“Tsk,” things were so much simpler before Rukia and now…. Now he had the ever present pull to know just who he was… just how powerful he could become.
He sighed. Was that him talking or his albino look alike? He couldn’t really say. There were so many discordant parts of him that he had to contend with. Maybe he should try to understand them or maybe he could continue with his life before it was flipped 180 degrees around:
School, his friends, his bright shiny medical future.
A niggling voice appears from his inner world, “That won’t make you happy. You need more.”
“Ugh”
He walks home slowly whilst still in his reverie underneath dim street lights and a quickly darkening sky.
He was doing his duty as a substitute soul reaper was he not? Hollows had been small fry for him ever since his massive growth spurt in the soul society. It was child’s play for him and yet… yet something called to him, beckoned him with unyielding insistence.
“Ahh Kurosaki-san.”
A tall figure materialises suddenly from out of the shadows. His appearance is unmistakeable: green samue, black haori and a green and white bucket hat — the one and only, Urahara Kisuke.
“Mr Hat and Clogs, what are you doing here?”
Ichigo can’t think why but he looks almost predatory in this light. They’re about the same height, but there’s a dangerous glint to his grey eyes that he’s only seen in training.
He had forgotten just how dark it was as he headed home from school but now he could barely make out the man’s face from the shadow his hat was casting.
“I could ask you the same question, Kurosaki-san. After all, it is my shoten you’re outside.”
Ichigo balks as he realises he was so caught up in his thoughts that he’d absentmindedly brought himself here.
He rubs his head in embarrassment and mentally berates himself, “Oh- I guess I must have been too distracted and not noticed where I was going.”
Urahara slowly closes the distance between them.
“Is that so?”
“Erm yeah. Sorry, I’ll be going now. My sisters will wonder where I’ve gotten to. The last thing I want is to worry Yuzu”.
There’s an emotion that flickers in Urahara’s eyes that he can’t place.
The older man snaps open his fan to enigmatically conceal even more of his face.
“And here I was thinking you were paying me a visit.”
Ichigo suddenly feels a little too hot under the collar. It was always intense with his mentor, but now he felt like a very fascinating specimen under the microscope of his gaze.
He flounders for an excuse or an apology and just settles on the defensive.
“Maybe if I feel like getting dissected for one of your experiments, I’ll drop in sometime,” he snorts.
He quips back without missing a beat with mirth and strange omniscience.
“Oh, I don’t doubt that you will.”
He is soon though to replace his intense demeanour with the flippant one Ichigo is so accustomed to dealing with.
“Bye bye Kurosaki-san. Sweet dreams.”
And with that he turns his back and waves, leaving Ichigo to mull over what he meant.
As he gets back in, Yuzu rushes towards him and envelops his waist in a big hug, spatula in one hand and oven gloves in the other.
“Ichi-ni! I thought something had happened. Dinners on the table”.
He gives his sister an affectionate pat on the head.
“I had to stay behind and finish up homework. Sorry I didn’t let you know, Yuzu.”
And with that, all is forgotten as he tucks into his food with Karen and Yuzu.
He feels an all too familiar sense of unease though and asks, “Oh by the way, where is goat face?”
“Oh he’s—“ but Yuzu is cut off as his Dad hurtles before him in the air, his foot aiming for his face.
He ends up a sorry mess on the floor, limbs bent at unnatural angles.
Ichigo shakes his fist as a vein pops on the side of his head, “Honestly, what sort of father attacks his own son? And whilst eating with his family?”
Isshin has streams of tears running down his face.
“Oh my son, how you’ve grown! You’re able to deflect my attacks so easily. Masaki would be so proud!”
With that he proceeds to hug the floor to ceiling picture of his deceased mother.
“Pathetic,” Karen mutters.
It seems it was just a normal evening in the Kurosaki household.
After helping Yuzu wash up, he heads straight for his room and gets stuck in to his mountain of assignments.
It was awfully quiet without Rukia but Ichigo knew she was back where she belonged. He’d be lying if he said he didn’t miss her but killing hollows and school work, not to mention the ever present threat of Aizen and his next move were enough to fill his plate.
A very angry lion plushie soon made his presence known as he moaned at how bored he was waiting for Ichigo’s sorry ass to come home.
Oh yeah, and Kon as well.
“Shut up Kon, I need to get these assignments finished.”
And with that, he effortlessly punched the annoying mod soul into the closet where he could hear his muffled protests less loudly.
He doubted things would ever return back to normal.
———
Urahara Kisuke was busy constructing a reiatsu suppressing cloak when he had felt Ichigo’s spiritual pressure heading toward his shop.
Yoruichi had been teasing him about how obsessed he was about his work and how it was high time he found something or someone to finally rip him away from his infernal lab and shop.
Just because he feigned attention, didn’t mean he was actually listening.
“Ahh sorry to disappoint Yoruichi-san, but I am already spoken for!”
She is lying on the tatami, head propped up under her elbows as she coos, “Really and who is the unfortunate lady or gentleman?”
Kisuke can’t hold back the shit eating grin that forms as he sing-songs, “Why my research of course!”
She is torn between wanting to punch the smug grin off his face to erupting into laughter.
“Honestly Kisuke, you’ve not changed after 300 years.”
They both laugh as he retorts, “Neither have you.”
His tinkering is quickly put aside though as he feels the volatile and heavy reiatsu of his favourite student approaching.
They both give each other a look.
“It seems our favourite substitute soul reaper is out of sorts. You should talk to him, Kisuke.”
Kisuke sighs wistfully.
“It’s not my place to interfere. You know what Isshin is like. He’s already furious Ichigo got dragged into the whole Soul Society debacle and that he did so with my tutelage. He deserves a normal life.”
“Yes Kisuke, I know. But you know he’ll come for the boy eventually. What good will staying away do, when Aizen is hell bent on obtaining him?”
His spirit pressure flares dangerously as his composure cracks.
“I won’t let that happen.”
“Then go to him,” she insists.
He sashays out of the shouten, his mind dark.
He knows Ichigo will come to him when the time is right. After all, these things must happen organically. For now though, he simply observes.
In fact, he’s been observing for 15 years.
He’d known about Ichigo since he was born and the scientist in him was simply fascinated by what he was and what he might become. Kurosaki Ichigo was brimming with potential - no - he was potential incarnate. If only the soul society knew exactly who he was and what he was capable of, he wouldn’t have been allowed to leave the soul society alive.
He doubted anyone truly knew who Ichigo actually was. Not his father, not Yoruichi and certainly not the soul society. There was only one other person that knew aside he, and that was Sōsuke Aizen.
When he spots Ichigo, he’s lost in the mire of his thoughts.
Tsk… He should really get that reiatsu under control. No wonder Karakura town is the new Hollow candy shop.
“Ahh Kurosaki-san.”
The young man’s head snaps up out of his trance and regards him with confusion and then embarrassment once he finds out he’s been caught daydreaming and to his shouten nonetheless.
Maybe Ichigo really was waking up. He could read his thoughts like a book and knew it was only a matter of time before he succumbed; before he begged Kisuke for help controlling his powers. His subconscious it seemed already knew.
The thought of Ichigo Kurosaki begging for his help had a strange effect on him and he closed the distance between them.
“Is that so?”
“Erm yeah. Sorry, I’ll be going now. My sisters will wonder where I’ve gotten to. The last thing I want is to worry Yuzu”.
“And here I was thinking you were paying me a visit.”
He delights at the blush that creeps to his face.
“Maybe if I feel like getting dissected for one of your experiments, I’ll drop in sometime,” he says with that signature cockiness of his.
My oh my, if he only knew.
“Oh, I don’t doubt that you will.”
It has the desired effect that he wants. Kisuke has always been known for being enigmatic but in his defence, the young man wasn’t ready… at least not yet.
He puts on his signature saccharine cheer.
“Bye bye Kurosaki-san. Sweet dreams.”
And Kisuke doesn’t even have to turn around to know he’s staring.