Hey guys,

Here is a new story. Jackie Estacado is about the same age as the regular cast; about 15 years old.

Special thanks to my beta ABitterPill.

Hope you like it.

Bleach Chapter 1: The New Student

It was a relatively dreary morning, but then again all mornings are dreary for a high school student...especially Wednesday mornings. Kurosaki Ichigo was an excellent example as he was bored out of his skull. Despite a very good sleep the night before, he was on the verge of collapsing all over his desk. A sharp drive into the ribs jolted him back to reality.

"Pay attention you slacker." The orange haired teen turned to see the attacker willing to give him a piece of his mind, only to see a petite spiky haired girl, standing in the grey school uniform with very judgemental eyes.

"Oh it's just you, Tatsuki." Ichigo rolled his eyes and plonked his head on his hand, the elbows on the desk keeping him vertical.

"Don't just say 'oh it's just me' you sloth!" Tatsuki said, a small smile crept upon her lips, "You should pay attention." Ichigo just rolled his eyes in response.

"Why should I?" Ichigo's monotone voice made him sound as it he was about to fall asleep. "We don't do that much, and what we do is not that interesting. Nothing new happens, so who cares?"

"Well this should cheer you up." Tatsuki said, Ichigo thought about, normally he would tune her out by now but he did not want to get hit again so he half turned to stare at her. "We are getting a new student."

"And?" Getting a new student this late in the semester was admittedly odd, but nonetheless that was boring news, he should have guess that Tatsuki was bluffing.

"He is from the United States." Tatsuki said it with a tone of triumph, as if she knew that would get Ichigo's attention. She was right; Ichigo propped up and thought about, Tatsuki had his complete attention.

"America? By himself? Now, THAT is interesting." Ichigo thought the prospect of meeting someone from the US would be a unique opportunity, not many American students come to Japan. "Is he some sort of exchange student? An army brat?"

"No actually," Tatsuki smirked and turned to face the door to their class, "he is coming to be a student of his own free will; uniform and all, Ichigo."

An American student coming to Japan...willingly, Ichigo thought, students I encounter are here against their will, but by choice? That's a first. Ichigo mused about it, maybe this new guy could help us brush up on English slang,that would certainly be helpful.

Ichigo was interested and was about to pry Tatsuki for more info when an intruding voice sounded throughout the classroom.

"Oh my god! Did you hear about that new student coming! An American to boot! This is going to be hilarious!" Ichigo turned to the source of the voice and narrowed his eyes in annoyance. Asano Keigo was easily one the laziest people in the entire school, and although Ichigo does distance himself from the prankster, he is one of Ichigo's good friends.

"What will be so 'hilarious'?" Ichigo asked, Keigo, more than happy to show off took the stage.

"Are you kidding? Everyone knows that American's can't speak Japanese! I can't wait for him to introduce himself." Keigo smiled a childish grin. "He will sound like the biggest idiot in the school."

"I'm pretty sure that is your position." Tatsuki mumbled as she slowly walked over to another group of students.

"Huh? What did she say?" Keigo pouted, this was normally the time when he would turn to his semi-trusted colleague Kojima Mizuiro who at that moment was texting furiously on his phone. "Curses Mizuiro, weren't you listening?!"

"I'm sorry Asano-san." The small boy spoke without even looking up. This further resulted in Keigo reacting as if emotionally wounded, though in a comical sort of way. Ichigo sighed as he stared out the window. He began to wonder if the little girl that only he could see was alright. After those thugs kicked over the flowers he left for her, she seemed unusually distraught. He did his best to console her, he even bought her a fresh bouquet.

Thugs...

"Alright class, take your seats." Ichigo's thoughts were interrupted by the familiar sound of their teacher Ochi Misato. "As you may know we have a new student in class today." She turned to the door and gestured as the new student to enter.

Ichigo took the time to watch the new student to enter the classroom, he looked relatively unkempt. His hair was tangled and messy and the uniform looked like a very well used hand me down, remnants of food and ink stains were dotted around the blazer.

The boy was tell yet thin, but there was an obviously a very strong body hidden behind the clothes. The one thing that stood out was his hands; there was a kind of rough tinge to the skin colour, the kind you would get after hard labour, or significant experience in violence. Ichigo knew this as he had hands were very similar to the foreigner, a time spent defending himself from his insane father and school hoodlums.

His smooth features were obviously Italian in origin and reminded him of Tony Montana from Scarface and a variety of other American mob films. Apparently he was very handsome, not from Ichigo's opinion but rather the consensus from practically all the girls in class.

Ichigo smirked at their reaction. It seems that Mizuiro might have some competition.

Half of the girls changed their body language from bored to incredibly interested, even flirtatious. The other half's cheeks turned a deep crimson (including the teacher's), obviously daydreaming thoughts that Ichigo chose to avoid thinking about. Tatsuki was in the latter category.

Wow, if Tatsuki is mesmerised then he must be...what do they call it...'hot'. The only girls who were not mesmerised were Chizuru (for obvious reasons) and Orihime. Strange, I suspected Chizuru, but Orihime? Could they be together?

"Well, do you want to introduce yourself?" The teacher politely asked her new charge as she fidgeted with her glasses. Ichigo could hear a slight snigger from Keigo, who sat directly behind him.

The boy nodded. "It is nice to meet all of you. My name is Jackie Estacado. But please, just call me 'Jackie'...suffixes confuse me."

0o0o0o

The quiet sniggering that belonged to Keigo suddenly stopped. Some other students raised their eyebrows; that was perfect Japanese, all the way down to the accent.

The boy's brown eyes slowly gazed around the classroom. He carefully yet quickly securitized each student. Ichigo felt the boy subtly glance in his direction and had a feeling that Jackie, whoever he was and wherever he is from is well versed in the horror's that are 'real life'.

"I'm from New York. I only arrived a week ago." Again, perfect Japanese, he even managed to successfully use modern slang. Keigo surprised stare quickly delved into a scowl. Alright, let's see how you react to conversation.

"So what are you doing here, Jackie?" Keigo could feel several pairs of female eyes dart from their dream boy to him, the word 'die' seemed to be their intended message.

"I was getting to that." Jackie quipped. "My uncle recommended a change in location. I chose Japan; he accepted."

"And why Japan?"

"I hear the girl's are prettier." Jackie winked. "For once the rumours were right." All the girls giggled at the compliment, some blushed even harder.

Well, I don't think he'll be without company. Ichigo mused. The guy is very smooth, must be a New York thing.

"Well Jackie-kun. Would you take your seat?" The teacher smiled.

"Thanks. Again, just call me 'Jackie'." Jackie went near the back of the classroom looking for a spare seat, even though it was apparent that a lot of the female students were willing to move around so that he can be closer to the front.

"Well class. Shall we get to it?" Their teacher readjusted her glasses as she turned to the board. "Everyone turn to page three..."

It was not lost to the majority of the male students that although they were complying with Ochi-sensei's direction, the girls were busy preoccupied with their new classmate.

Yeesh...I don't know whether to praise him or pity him.

0o0o0o

At lunch break, as expected, a majority of the girls swarmed around the new foreign student. Most of the male students did not take the attention too personally; new male foreign students are treated like royalty like their females counterparts, at least for the first few weeks. The opposite effect occurs when a pretty female student shows up.

"Jackie, you must come along to the netball tournament next week!" A petite brown haired girl did a bashful turn. "I could show you around."

"Oh really?" A noticeably taller blonde jibed

"Ladies please." Jackie revealed a Cheshire grin. "I'm not going leaving anytime soon and there is plenty of me to go around." The girl's sighed euphorically, love hearts might as well have popped out of their heads.

"Smooth operator..." Mizuirio calmly observed when he took his eyes off his precious mobile phone. He almost seemed to enjoy no longer being the target of the opposite sex. Then again he already had a harem all set up so he had nothing to worry about.

"Oh please, he is just some arrogant foreigner who thinks he can do what he wants." Keigo was still reeling from the fact that he was showed up by this Estacado.

"That is not a nice way to treat a new classmate." Tatsuki gave a venomous glare.

"I don't think a woman's opinion is allowed to influence a man's in this particular instance." Ichigo was busy staring off into empty space, so he did not see the glare turn from venomous to outright murderous.

"What did you say?"

"Oh please, I saw the way you look at him." Ichigo replied nonchalantly. "We all know you want to jump his bon-" Ichigo did not feel the kick to the head at first, but he did feel himself hitting the floor at break neck speed.

"Ow!"

"H-how dare you?!" Ichigo's long time friend did her best to hide her embarrassment. It was not working. "I-I admit he cute! But that is it!" Keigo could not help but laugh at Ichigo's misfortune, but quickly shut it when Tatuski threatened to lay him out right next to the orange haired boy.

"I must admit that his accent is perfect though it has a slight 'gangster' feel to it." Mizuirio commented as if the major threat of violence on both his friends never happened to it. "It sounds strangely...'yakuza'."

"Yakuza..." Ichigo looked up from the floor. "Thought it sounded familiar."

"So what? He is a gangster now?" Keigo mused.

"I have never heard of a thirteen year old white guy being part of yakuza."

"Me neither." The small group of friend turned to see none other than Jackie Estacado, casually smiling. Ichigo never heard him coming. Speak of the devil...

"What are you doing here?" Keigo sounded like a prosecutor at a murder trial. Tatsuki nearly kicked him in the face but seemed to stare at the foreigner dreamily.

"My ears were burning." Jackie grinned.

"What?"

"Oh sorry, an American expression. It means I thought you were talking about me." Jackie's stare seemed to be almost bore into the adamant Keigo. "It seems I was right."

Ichigo decided to admit it rather than deny it, by the sounds of it he was there for a little while. "We were curious about your accent."

"Gangsta, huh?" Jackie said 'gangsta' in English pronouncing it like something out of a movie based in Los Angeles.

"Yeah, it is not something that a newbie from America should sound like."

"I had a hell of a teacher."

"Really?" Ichigo's ears pricked up. "Who?"

"A local who was kind enough to give me a piece of his mind." Jackie almost sounded pleased with himself. The euphemism was lost on the group, must be another American thing.

"A week in Japan and you are already speaking like a pro?" Keigo seemed incredulous.

"I am a fast learner."

"Apparently." Ichigo did not have to guess that a fight was about to break out between Keigo and Jackie. He also did not have to guess who would win. Keigo may have missed it, but Jackie's posture indicated a very experienced fighter.

0o0o0o

Ichigo and Chad were walking along the main canal. The sun was beginning to set, and the weather was beginning to drop.

"So Chad you are doing really well in class," Ichigo sighed, "better than me. I thought I had you in that last test."

"Almost." Chad nodded. "Keep studying and you'll get there."

"Ugh, I hate studying." Ichigo scratched the back of his head.

"Hey! YOU!" Ichigo and Chad looked into the canal. They saw four people surrounding a much smaller fifth in the middle. "You little shit! We have looked everywhere for you."

"Thugs..." Ichigo's fist clenched. He was about to walk down when he felt a massive hand clamp on his shoulder.

"Ichigo, look at their arms...their tattoos." Chad whispered. "These are not some school thugs. They are full blown yakuza."

"So what?"

"'So what?' These guys are serious, my grandfather had to deal with these guys and they play rough." Chad shook his head. "If we try and help, assuming we win, they will find us and possibly kill us."

"Really? So what am I supposed to do, just let them get away with this?" Ichigo smacked his friend's hand away. "I don't run. Neither do you."

Chad reluctantly nodded. "I'm going to regret this." They began to trudge down the wall of the canal hoping to grab them by surprise.

"Where is Tagamoki?" One of the tattooed men grabbed the one in the middle by the scruff of the neck. "You were the last person who saw him! We know it was you, now tell us where he is or you will not leave here alive."

"Listen guys, just take it easy." The small man spoke calmly. "I don't know where Tagamoki is."

"Wait a minute... that voice..." Ichigo narrowed in on the small man being held up, only it was not a man. It was a kid their age and... "That's Jackie."

"Jackie? The American?" Chad frowned. "What is he doing here? Why is he involved with yakuza?"

"I have no idea." Ichigo shrugged. "Still, we have to try and help him."

"You are a liar!" The yakuza leader yelled. "Now you-oof!"

Jackie kneed him in the groin, and took the moment to run into the one of the sewer entrances in the wall of the canal.

"Get him! Kill him!" The three yakuza surged into the dark after him, the fourth one hobbling behind. Ichigo and Chad ran up to them, one of them was injured, three on three made for good odds.

"You're a dead man!" The leader cried out.

However, the response they got was a soft chuckle. "Speak for yourself." It stopped Ichigo and Chad dead in their tracks, no one sounds that cocky unless they have something up their sleeve.

The sounds of footsteps were the only thing that interrupted the silence. "Hey I got him! Wait... WHAT?!" A blood curdling scream echoed out of the sewer tunnel, which sent shivers up the students' spines. "GET OUT! GET OUT!"

A lion's roar burst forth with the sounds of knives scraping against the ground. Muzzel flashes were seen in sync with gunshots. One by one the screams died until there was only the sound of their panicked leader. "No! NO! Wait, I won't tell anybody, I swear! Just let me walk, you'll never see me again!"

"No I won't." An unpleasant tearing sound followed by a scream was the last things the boys heard before the sewer fell into silence. While Ichigo was still stunned, Chad had heard sounds like that before. He knows what just happened.

"...oh fuck." The large man grabbed Ichigo by the shoulders and tried to pull him back onto the main road. "Ichigo, we have to move. Ichigo, can you hear me?"

"What the hell just happened?" Ichigo resisted. "We can't just walk away from this."

"Listen to me!" Chad grabbed by the collar and pulled him up to his height. "We have to move now!"

"Ichigo...Chad...what a surprise." The two close friends froze in place. "What precisely are you doing here?"

They both looked as the boy known as Jackie stepped out from the sewer drain a notable blood stain off the cuff of his blazer and across the side of cheek. Ichigo and Chad did not have to geniuses to realise the blood was not his. Jackie Estacado stared at them with cold, black eyes. A frown quickly turned into a sinister smirk. "I am getting sloppy. Witnesses are nasty business. Isn't that right Chad?"

Ichigo's fist clenched only for Chad to yank on his collar again. "Ichigo he just killed four armed yakuza. We run, now!"

Ichigo reluctantly agreed and hightailed after his friend at great speed leaving Jackie alone in the middle of the main canal. He rolled his eyes in annoyance. "Great..."

0o0o0o

"So tell me again from the beginning." The police sergeant spoke with as soothing a voice he could muster. Another police officer walked in carrying two cups of water and handed it to the two youths.

"We were walking down the main canal. We saw four people with gang tattoos intimidating Jackie Estacado. He lured them into a drain and then he killed them." Chad explained.

"Look kids," the officer smiled, "I hope you can appreciate the fact that we find it a little bit difficult to believe this. A thirteen year old American boy, managed to take down four people without a scratch and all in a matter of seconds."

Chad grunted as he tried to clarify. "Look officer, I know we might seem crazy, but this is not a joke."

"So you saw this with your own eyes?" The sergeant was furiously taking notes. Ichigo took a moment to appreciate their dedication. It was policy to take anything serious even if it was two kids, which is why the city had one of the lowest crime rates in the area.

"No we heard the guys screaming, gun shots." The officer partially froze and put his pen back down on the table.

"Gun shots?" The officers seemed a little more attentive, guns are tightly regulated. Thugs cannot simply get guns. "I find that to be very unlikely."

"Look!" Ichigo slammed his hands on the table. "This guy, Jackie Estacado killed four people, maybe a fifth one."

"A fifth? How do you figure that?"

"They were looking for someone." Chad said. "Some guy I can't recall his name. Ta...Taga-something."

The officers paused briefly and stared at each other. The one that was standing, likely the superior turned to them. "Was it Kata Tagatomi?"

"No."

"Misato Takakumi?"

"No. No it was Tagamoki or something like that." Ichigo explained. Chad nodded in agreement. "The name was Tagamoki, but I don't know his last name. He disappeared or something and Jackie apparently was the last one to see him or deal him."

The two officers looked at each other again before one of them left the office with a hurried look on his face. The remaining officer took as seat and stared hard at the two youths, the glimmer in his eye told Ichigo and Chad that they were not in a joking mood anymore. "Sit. Please."

It was an order if Ichigo ever heard one. But nonetheless he complied. "You believe us?" The officer stared blankly at Ichigo with lips pursed, after what the teenager presumed was some internal conflict the officer spoke.

"There is a person called 'Tagamoki' who is of interest to us." His words and tone were carefully structured. "He disappeared a week ago. We have not found him despite thorough searches."

The other officer along with several others came through the door with a large bind booklet. Opening it revealed a series of tattoos other forms of identification. "Would you kindly identify any marks these yakuza had?"

Again, it was obviously not a question, but Ichigo and Chad complied. What happened next was a grilling of information not seen since Ichigo watched American police movies. A simple reporting of a crime took a whole evening of questions, identifying pictures. No, no, no….wait…no, no. By the time they found him all four souls who got into confrontation with the American, it was evening.

"That's him, that's the last guy." Ichigo was pleased with himself, the pictures of certain culprits clearly meant something to the police. After what seemed an eternity of silence, the lead officer pulled out a pen and paper.

"What did you say the guy's name was?"

"Jackie Estacado, he goes to Karakura High School."

"Well, Ichigo-san, Chad-san, thank you for your time." The officer scribbled down the information. "I will have one of my people drop you home."

0o0o0o

On the way home, Ichigo and Chad decided it would be best to keep what they saw between themselves and the police. The police seemed genuine but Ichigo wondered what form of action they would take.

He found out the next day.

The new foreign exchange student disappeared, he just did not show up the next day.

Many girls were heart broken, many men seemed grateful. Ochi-sensei resisted the not-so-subtle prodding by students with phrases such as 'I don't know' and 'a personal matter.' The answers were weak and scripted, as if she was coached by someone.

It was less than a week before Jackie Estacado vanished completely from school circulation, only the most dedicated of fangirls still making reference to him.

By two weeks, Ichigo completely forgot about Estacado.

Three weeks, Ichigo was bumming out wondering how to deal with the upcoming exams.

0o0o0o

"I love having family dinners again, we should do this more often." Yuzu grinned.

"I think I would be tempted if a certain someone would not attack me the moment I set foot in the house." Ichigo glared at the certain someone, who did his absolute best to feign emotional wounding.

"Ichigo, I'm hurt!" Isshin pouted. "How could you say such horrible things about your father?!"

"Easy, you're completely nuts!" Ichigo growled.

"I barely attack you at all!"

"You tried to kick me in the face when I got home an hour ago!"

"Maybe, but it is for your own personal development!" The Kurosaki elder grinned. "Besides I did not attack you the moment you set foot in the house."

"Yeah," Ichigo groaned, "you allowed me to take off one shoe before that!"

"Aw come on," Yuzu exasperated, "can't you guys go once without fighting?"

"No they can't." Karin snarked, eating dinner as if the shouting match was not taking place. The shouting-soon-to-be fighting match was halted due to the doorbell ringing. Ichigo, eager to blow off steam and not ruin dinner rushed for the door.

"I'm coming. I'm coming." Ichigo turned the handle and opened the Kurosaki household.

Only to stare into the black eyes of Jackie Estacado.

"Hello Ichigo." Jackie smiled. "How have you been?"

0o0o0o

A/N: well guys there is the first chapter done.

Hope you enjoyed it.