In another part of Seireitei, 10th Division Captain Hitsugaya was walking with his Lieutenant, Matsumoto Rangiku. Both of them noticed a few missing people when the execution was about to begin: Hinamori Momo and Kira Izuru.
So he decided to look for them, especially Hinamori who had just lost her temper when she saw Renji got injured after Captain Aizen's death.
"Captain, where do you think Hinamori went?" Rangiku asked her captain, her expression was slightly dark.
While her Captain had a deep relationship with Hinamori Momo, she also had a slightly complicated relationship with a person that her Captain suspected: Ichimaru Gin.
Rangiku didn't know what to feel in this situation. Everything seemed to be warped in a thin layer of lies.
"I have some guesses. We have tried to find her anywhere but we can't. She's hiding from us." The white-haired captain answered.
"But where?"
"At a place we haven't visited yet." He looked toward a building at the center of Seireitei, a prohibited place that not even a Captain could enter easily.
Central 46's compound.
His guess was based on something Hinamori said before she disappeared.
She had been acting strange ever since she lashed out after seeing Renji got injured. As a result, she was put in a prison for a night.
At that moment, Captain Hitsugaya felt pity on her, commanding Rangiku to give Momo the last letter found in Aizen's quarter, thinking it might help to clear her mind.
When he visited her later, however, she didn't say anything and stayed silent, her eyes dark and gloomy. However, it was clear that she was not depressed or anything. Instead, it looked like she was contemplating something.
The white-haired boy decided that he couldn't let her be alone in the prison, and let her free. Only for that to lead to this situation. She was gone and he could only search for her everywhere, trying his best to locate her.
But he was unsuccessful. And now he was searching the forbidden compound in hope to find her. If not, he would ask why she entered this place in the first place.
As he walked forward, his expression became grim. The guard that was supposed to stand by in front of the entrance were not there. No one stopped him from entering the meeting room.
Bad feelings crept up as he got closer to the building.
When he arrived, what greeted him was a scene he had never thought he would witness.
Corpses of the members of central 46 laid around the meeting hall. Each of them were cut down with a sword. Dried blood painted the walls, showing how long these bodies had been here.
"What... happened here?" He muttered in shock and looked around.
Nothing made sense.
But the scene he saw here told him one thing.
"They had died for a long time."
Tracing his finger over the dried blood, his expression darkened. If this was true, then why does Soul Society still receive any order from them in these few days?
Something strange had been happening behind his back.
"All these orders we received after the first one were false."
A realization hit him like a truck. Even Rangiku was surprised by the sight, her eyes widened in shock.
And then...
"Captain Hitsugaya."
A soft, familiar voice reached his ears. He turned his head to the side, noticing a figure of blond-haired man with green eyes, standing near the wall. He looked at them with a cold expression.
"Izuru!" Captain Hitsugaya yelled out and approached him, "Why are you here? And what happened? Did you... do this?"
Instead of answering his question, Izuru used Shunpo and ran away.
"Damn." Hitsugaya clicked his tongue and looked at his Lieutenant, "We need to go after him, Matsumoto. He might know the truth."
"Understood." She nodded her head and both of them chased after him.
The three Shinigami disappeared from the room, leaving only the bodies behind.
A few moments later, a girl stepped inside anxiously. Her expression was hard as she saw the dead bodies on the floor.
"What... is this?" A soft murmur escaped her mouth.
Her name was Hinamori Momo.
She walked further into the meeting hall and looked around.
Central 46's members, the ones that had ordered Rukia's execution, the one who had given Gotei 13 orders, all died in this room. Blood covered the entire place and it looked really dark and grimy.
"What... is going on? They're all... dead."
Suddenly, she remembered something that she read a while ago. Her face paled as her eyes widened. Her heart thumped faster.
Could it be?
"No... Toshiro seemed shocked and Izuru was already here before them. What happened here? If the letter was true and Toshiro killed Captain Aizen... But perhaps Izuru was the one doing it? I don't know... Captain Aizen..."
She muttered to herself, trying to come up with a conclusion. But nothing came to her.
And at that moment, footsteps reached her ears and her body stiffened. She looked toward the entrance and saw someone that she knew.
"Hello, Momo."
Ichimaru Gin appeared with an unsettling grin on his face. He, who should've been in Sokyoku Hill, was here. In Central 46's compound. Right beside the massacre of all the leaders of Soul Society.
Her heart was filled with fear as he looked straight into her eyes, looking calm as always.
"Captain Ichimaru?"
"Yes, it's me." He answered, "It seems you're confused. Follow me, everything will be revealed to you soon."
Hinamori Momo didn't trust this man. She knew he was not an honorable person. In fact, her instinct screamed at her to run away.
However...
"Don't worry, I am on your side. I was, after all, Captain Aizen's former Lieutenant."
When he brought that name, she couldn't help but be swayed. The Captain she looked up to the most. A person she loved the most. Her eyes became glassy as she stared at him.
"I have a place we need to go." Ichimaru continued with a serious expression, his eyes closed, "We have a lot to talk about. Follow me, Lieutenant Hinamori."
Looking straight at his figure, Hinamori decided. She would follow him to find the truth. And if what the letter told was right, she would get the answer she wanted from Captain Ichimaru.
"Yes."
With that, she disappeared with him. Both of them were heading somewhere, deep inside the compound.
***
While everyone was fighting and scheming, Ichigo ran through Seireitei to escape. His destination was Rukongai, a place where he would meet with the rest of his friends and regroup, before leaving Soul Society.
"Damn." The orange-haired teen muttered as he jumped from roof to roof. "It looks like the whole place is looking for us."
"Yeah. It's bad. We're like the criminals in this situation. And I'm the convict." Rukia muttered in his arms.
Right now she was held like a princess after complaining about her uncomfortable position a few minutes ago.
"I don't care. We'll break through whatever they're sending to stop us."
Rukia nodded her head in agreement.
However...
"I can't allow you to get away." A cold voice stopped their track, causing Ichigo to halt his movement, landing on the ground.
In front of them, standing with a sword unsheathed in his hands, was Renji. He looked at Ichigo with narrowed eyes, making Rukia widen her eyes in surprise. She struggled in Ichigo's arms, trying to free herself.
"What are you doing here? Go back, Renji. I can't allow you to harm Ichigo!"
"What I want to do is not your concern." The red-haired lieutenant answered in a cold voice, "You can say whatever you want, but I will do whatever I believe in. I will follow Captain Kuchiki's order and-"
"Catch, Renji."
Ignoring Renji, Ichigo threw Rukia at him with full strength, causing him to catch her in a reflex. She screamed in surprise when she was suddenly thrown away.
"Take care of her. Bye."
With that, the orange-haired teen turned around and ran away, leaving a stunned Renji and Rukia behind. His body disappeared into the distance, leaving the two of them alone in an awkward atmosphere.
Rukia looked at Renji with a betrayed look, "What... happened?"
"Cough, Cough. Sorry, I just want to put on air." Renji scratched his cheek, feeling a bit guilty, "I was trying to look cool, you see... To surprise you and all."
The black-haired Shinigami couldn't help but facepalm when she heard his answer.
"You idiot."
"What did you just say?!"
A heated bickering started between the two. The air became awkward as both of them tried to defend themselves.
In the middle of their argument...
"Yo."
Ichigo suddenly reappeared in front of them.
Both Renji and Rukia stopped and looked at him with wide eyes.
"I forgot to say, Renji is on our side now. Well then, bye."
With that, he turned around and disappeared again, leaving them dumbfounded. They stared at the spot he had been, before shaking their heads.
"What's up with that?" Renji asked in a surprised tone, looking straight into Rukia's eyes.
"Beat me. I am also confused." She shrugged her shoulders. "Anyway, are you here to rescue me?"
"Something like that. You can call me your hero and savior, I won't complain." The red-haired lieutenant grinned, looking at her with a teasing glint in his eyes.
She couldn't help but smile, feeling happy at this fact.
"You really are an idiot, you know that, right?"
Renji, seeing her expression, smiled and retorted.
"Look who's talking."
They looked at each other, feeling nostalgic.
A second later, Renji turned serious and looked at the direction of Rukongai.
"Let's go. We'll meet the rest there." He said.
Nodding her head, she answered with a serious expression on her face.
***
Returning a few minutes ago, Shirou arrived at the place he had promised.
4th Division barrack.
There, Captain Unohana and her Lieutenant had been waiting for his arrival. Isane looked worried when he showed up with wounds all over his body and about to treat him, but...
"Don't worry, it's mostly healed."
While Avalon had no instant regeneration without his connection to Saber, it still enhanced his regenerative ability. More so when he was in this world where Reishi was abundant in the air, making him feel powerful.
It wasn't as great as being connected with Saber, but he would be fine with it for a while. The injuries that he had received from the fight had mostly closed, leaving him with some cuts that would be gone in an hour or so.
"More importantly, Captain Unohana..." Shirou trailed off when he remembered the promise he had with the Captain. His lips stretched into a thin line as he looked at her.
She had been waiting for him.
And Shirou didn't forget the promise. In fact, he would be glad to fulfill it, though a bit worried about what the future had to offer to them.
"Yes, I remember the promise, Kurosaki Shirou." She nodded her head in understanding, "Follow me. There is only one place where someone can hide themselves."
Activating her Shikai, a large manta ray-shaped creature formed under their feet and carried them toward their destination.
It was the Central 46's Compound, the place he was forbidden from entering.
A place that no one was supposed to ever enter.