Admiration (Bleach Fanfic)

Death of a Shiba (Part 1)

Bankai training was to say the least, time consuming. It also caused problems with the fact that there was no place quiet enough to really truly meditate. On top of this, Toshiro kept getting smart remarks from Hyorinmaru about the boy being to serious for his own good, to which Toshiro would remark out loud, to Kaien's amusement, that Hyorinmaru needed to be more serious about the task at hand.

Two years passed, and while the training was time consuming, Toshiro found himself growing closer to not only his captain and the third seat of his division, but also to the upper three in the ranks of the thirteenth division. Ukitake tended to overload him with the sweets, however… Hitsugaya couldn't help but find the man's heart in the right place.

The training sessions were held weekly, and the small white haired boy never missed a single one. Of course, he never missed anything and was known for being on time for everything, and too many a persons surprise, Toshiro had the tendency to frown upon anything he felt was childish. His mannerisms… most of the time, proved to be better then a good deal of the adults with them.

Thus, one day when Toshiro was headed off to train, Isshin spoke up. There was a serious tone in his voice that was normally not there. "Hitsugaya… I don't think that you should go and train at thirteenth division today."

"Taicho… I always go and train over there?" the small boy turned to the man, noting the somewhat sad look on his face. "If I don't go now… I'll be late."

"Toshiro… I really need to talk to you about something before you go… no… you aren't going," the taicho stated firmly.

"Can you give me a reason to not go?" Toshiro stated, becoming irritated with the man.

"I am still thinking of a way to word it without upsetting you," Isshin stated, setting his paperwork down.

Toshiro's eyes narrowed, and he crossed his arms. "Since you can't give me a reason right now, I am leaving, as Kaien will be angry with me if I am late."

The small boy suddenly shunpooed out of the room, his reiatsu suddenly undetectable, causing Isshin to curse. "There is a reason that you shouldn't go over there today! Damn it! How am I going to find you now before you get over there?!"

M

As the small boy arrived at the division, he noticed that the aura of the place suddenly seemed different then usual. All of the division members seemed tense for some reason of another. They were also whispering about something, but when Toshiro got close enough to hear, they shut up and gave him a wary look, even though he had been coming for some time now. This made him feel like he was back in the Rukongai again, an outcast.

He slowly moved along the wooden floorway, stopping first at the garden where he and the other second always met. The man wasn't there, which caused some confusion. He also felt that someone wasn't telling him something, so he maneuvered to Ukitake's quarters, to see if the man was feeling well enough to explain what was going on.

Kiyone and Sentaro though stopped him as he walked up to the room. "Taicho is not feeling well today…"

"I don't even know why you bothered to come…" Kiyone snapped. Both of the division members had very upset looks on their faces.

"The way everyone is acting, it seems like I've done something wrong," Toshiro protested, the temperature dropping suddenly.

The two were about to open their mouths to rebut him, when Ukitake's door opened. "Shiro-chan… didn't your taicho tell you?"

"Did you order for me to not come today?" Toshiro suddenly bowed to the man, worry spreading across his small face at the sadness he saw in the eyes. "I don't understand why taicho had to think of a way to word that. I apologize for intruding."