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This article, Towards the Future: Answers and Questions, is a side-story entry in Bleach: The Coven War, set during the Prologue. The chapter takes place the day following Towards the Future: Human World Investigation, and features Kenji Hiroshi and Shūhei Hisagi as the main characters, with Van Satonaka and Kenji's patrol team serving in a minor role.
This chapter is the penultimate entry in the Towards the Future side-story.
Kenji greeted the morning with an air of apprehension. Their night investigating the scene where two members of the 9th Division had been killed by unknown means had yielded no additional clues. Mikado had been correct when she pointed out that there should be a trace amount of lingering reiatsu -- the fact there wasn't suggested that whoever was responsible had actively covered up their involvement.
Which meant they weren't dealing with a Hollow as he had originally hoped. No. Their target was something altogether more intelligent.
"Umm, Mr. Kenji? Oh, sorry! Kenji?" Mikado asked him. "Do you really think the disappearances have something to do with former Captain Kuchiki's death?"
No wonder she was hesitant. Ace and Kichō failed to grasp the seriousness of their discovery last night, and continued on in the belief that what they where dealing with was routine. Mikado grasped the situation in a much broader sense, and Kenji was glad to see it. He sat himself down at the table of their small apartment and adjusted the armbands on his left bicep to a more comfortable position.
"Honestly? I don't know what to think at the minute."
He didn't mean to be deflective or even vague. He was merely quoting fact. What they where dealing with wasn't routine, unless you where a member of the 2nd Division. The only reason they weren't investigating this was out of deference to Hisagi -- the 9th Division wanted to avenge their fallen colleagues.
Kenji continued, still sounding unsure himself.
"We've discovered nothing thus far that suggests a connection to the assassins, but we've also found nothing suggesting Hollow activity either. I do know however that whatever killed our men here was sentient; enough so to cover its tracks, at any rate."
She looked frightened and he couldn't blame her. She was a student -- her biggest worry right now should be exams, and whether or not she was going to muster the courage to ask out her crush. Not fretting over assassins powerful enough to kill a fucking Captain!
He returned to his feet at that point and squeezed her shoulder reassuringly. "Look, it might not reassure you very much, but I'm not without my own skills. I'll look after you and the others. Just keep an open mind and keep your guard up. We'll get to the bottom of this."
"Yes, sir."
And thus began another day of investigation and patrol. He even disregarded the fact she called him 'Sir'.
It turned out that the details surrounding Van's "special assignment" had been somewhat exaggerated. It didn't take him long to pinpoint the source of the "revolutionary rumours" -- two hours flat in fact -- and when he kicked down the door of Momoko's home he found her and several other unseated officers and students crowded around a rectangular table playing a role-playing game with dice and sheets of paper.
Several startled faces turned to look at him in unison. Van chuckled at the thought. Sadly Hisagi did not share his humour.
"Apparently they've been playing a game popular in the Human World, something called Dungeons and Dragons." As Van explained this Hisagi's face remained expressionless. "Momoko reworked the rule-book to apply to Shinigami and Soul Society, and the scenario they've been playing through involves a revolution in Soul Society."
Hisagi let loose a long sigh laced with irritation. "How did this role-play of theirs get mistook for a real revolution?" Because he sure as hell didn't see how one could jump to that conclusion.
Van chuckled. "They've been whispering about it in Kei's bar for the last two weeks! They felt they'd be seen as geeky if they talked about it openly, hence the cloak and dagger meetings. Someone overheard them though."
The tone laced with sarcasm and the mocking air Van bore showed well that he thought this was hilarious. Hisagi looked thoroughly annoyed which did nothing to stop Van.
"Okay, look. Consider this: Bear in mind now that half the Seireitei's still jumping at shadows over the attack on our Division, not to mention the not-so-small fact that a Captain -- I say again Captain -- got nailed to the nearest door. I think its safe to say that things can get blown out of proportion. So there you have it mon acting capitaine! A bunch of kids throwing dice. That's one revolution quashed, and I'm out the price of a door. You've been billed for that by the way. Now, as much as I enjoyed the diversion, can you give me real work now?"
Hisagi hid his annoyance masterfully.
"Unbelievable! Go and join Kenji and bring Momoko with you."
Van found it hilarious: the kid was with the 9th Division hardly any time at all and already she had drawn the ire of its leading figure. Hardly what one would consider an ideal first impression.
"That I can do."
It was hard to believe that that had been a conversation between an acting-Captain and a 6th Seated officer.
Night came all too quickly. What was supposed to be a quick and easy investigation however quickly turned into something particularly serious.
"Something's wrong here." He concluded as he watched the scene unfold below him. Ace was struggling to keep a Hollow at bay, and it seemed he was standing over Kichō. "That Hollow shouldn't pose them any threat."
"Kichō!!" Mikado screamed.
"Hold your horses kiddo." Kenji even yanked her back. "You jump in their half-cocked you'll only make it worse. Watch and learn."
Time to act.
Kenji accelerated into the fray, his body emitting a noticeable spark of electricity, as he sliced through the mask of the attacking centipede-like Hollow whose mouth was barely being held back by the Zanpakutō of Ace. The Hollow reared back and roared in pain but before it could even attempt to flee through a Garganta, Kenji made a gun by putting his hands together and extending his index fingers. The result was a simultaneous casting of Byakurai and Shakkahō; the former penetrated its mask between the eyes, whilst the latter was driven into the interior of its skull on the back of said Byakurai.
The result? Charred Hollow brains and one threat dispatched.
"You okay?" He asked of Ace.
"Yeah, Kichō got tagged though. It looked bad."
Kenji flash-stepped past Ace and approached the downed Kichō. Thankfully it was Ace's inexperience talking; she was indeed wounded, but it was nothing that Kenji couldn't handle. He knelt beside her and concentrated healing Kidō into the palms of his hands, which promptly glowed with a green light. Minutes passed quickly and Kichō was soon conscious and whole once more.
"Thank you, sir."
"It's Kenji." He reminded. "And you're welcome. You guys wanna fill me in on what happened here?"
He had a fair idea already though.
Ace stepped forward immediately. "It was my fault, sir. We've been patrolling all day, and I thought I could catch forty winks before getting back to it. I didn't sense the Hollow and Kichō got injured protecting me."
Kenji's reaction was very different from what Ace was expecting. He didn't look angry or start to shout; instead he was very calm, and quiet. He was like the favourite uncle who had to occasionally reprimand their niece or nephew; not because he wanted to do it, but because it was needed to curb stupidity.
"How did you feel when you realised she'd been hurt because of your mistake?" Kenji asked at last.
"... Like shit, sir."
"Then you've learned your lesson." Kenji concluded. "If you should think about falling asleep at your post again, remember this moment. Now, because Kichō is alright and because you're still a rookie, I won't mention this in my report -- as far as official reports go, it didn't happen. In exchange you promise to do better, or believe me I'll come down on you like a tonne of bricks, and I'll make what I did to that Hollow look tame. Are we clear?"
"Yes, sir!" Ace even saluted.
"Drop the sir shit!"
"Come on, Kenny, you can't expect him to follow that order when you basically just threatened to vaporise his puny brain!"
Van Satonaka and Momoko dropped from an open Senkaimon in the sky. Kenji looked at his old friend with mild irritation.
"I thought you had a special assignment?"
"I did." Van's reponse caused Momoko's cheeks to flash crimson. "Though I promised a kid I wouldn't talk about it unless I got reaaaally drunk."
"Then why are you here?" Kenji asked.
"I asked Hisagi for real work. You always get all the fun assignments so he sent me to you."
"Nothing fun about this, sir." Ace chimed in.
"Aren't you on probation?" Van asked. He even shushed him. "The adults are talking."
That earned Ace the laughter of Mikado and Kichō and he was looking thoroughly deflated.
"Right, right, enough ball-bashing." And Kenji even pointed a warning finger at Van. He then proceeded to bring him up to speed with their investigation. "We could use your expertise actually."
"Of course you could." Van opined. "After we're going for some curry though."
"Agreed."