Prologue: Arrival

Karakura Town hadn't changed much since the Winter War against Aizen and the Arrancar. Not that it mattered to him anyway. He was here on a mission and the sooner he completed it, the better. He stood on the top of a telephone pole, the town shrouded in the darkness of night below and around him, dotted with a few lights from late night dwellers, who have yet to gone to bed, or from stores that stayed open for most of the night. Sighing, he took out his Shinigami Cellular Phone and contacted Soul Society.

"This is 10th Division Captain, Toushirou Hitsugaya," he said softly. "I'm in."

.:x:.

"You summoned me, Captain-Commander?"

"Yes, Captain Hitsugaya," the old Shinigami said, looking up from what he was reading on his desk. "Come in."

The young 10th Division Captain closed the door behind him and walked up to stand before the desk of Genryuusai Yamamoto, Captain of the First Division and the Captain-Commander of Soul Society. He made a formal bow before straightening and waited for Yamamoto to speak.

"You are wondering why I summoned you, Captain Hitsugaya."

"Yes," Toushirou replied.

The old Shinigami nodded before standing and walking towards one of the large windows of his office. "A report was brought to me," he said, "telling me of a powerful reiatsu located somewhere in Karakura Town. It has only been sensed a few times and in periods so short that before it can be tracked, it vanishes." The Captain-Commander turned and looked at Toushirou. "I want you, Captain Hitsugaya, to go into the real world and find this reiatsu and retain it, or destroy it, if possible. We cannot have a reiatsu that powerful in the real world. I cannot believe it to be a human's, so it could be anything from a Hollow to an Arrancar that escaped death during the war. Also, we know that there is a chance that a follower of Aizen is still out there, and we don't what this spirit power to fall into their hands."

Toushirou nodded and said, "Understood, but one question Captain-Commander."

"Go ahead."

"Why send me?" he asked. "There are plenty of others capable of the mission, so why are you sending me?"

"You know Karakura Town the best out of anyone in Soul Society, besides perhaps Ichigo Kurosaki and Rukia Kuchiki, who are both in the real world now anyway. I felt that if anyone could find the powerful reiatsu quickly enough, it would be you."

Toushirou looked at the Captain-Commander and nodded. "Alright," he said, "I'll go."

"Then you are dismissed."

.:x:.

"Captain?"

Toushirou looked around to see Rangiku Matsumoto standing on a rooftop not far away. "Matsumoto," he said, acknowledging her with a nod.

"Can you sense anything?" his lieutenant asked.

Toushirou shook his head and said, "No, not yet. I guess we'll have to give it time until we feel it flare up."

"Hmm… wonder how long that will be…"

"Who knows?" Toushirou said, sighing. He jumped down from his perch to land on the ground below, Rangiku landing beside him. He'd grown a little taller in the three years since the Winter War, but his busty lieutenant was still a head taller than him. "We'll head for Urahara's shop, and get our gigais, and then we'll go from there."

"Right," Rangiku said, nodding. Then the two Shinigami shunpoed in the direction of the shop.