A/N I'm sorry about the several month long wait for this chapter to come out. I was too busy to write, and whenever I did write, I experienced so much writer's block that I had to rewrite this multiple times before I was finally satisfied. I'm not sure if this is as good, so please forgive me if this isn't written as well.

As for this chapter, Keitaro's zanpakuto will be revealed...

Now without any further delays, here is the next chapter of Keitaro, the Shinigami.

------------------------ Chapter 4 Welcome to Heaven Part 2 - Zanpakuto

Haruka Urashima was a temperamental woman, always prone to bouts of anger, especially when it came to her mysterious age, which no one knew and would never dare to ask. She was the manager, owner, cook, and waitress of the Hinata teahouse, situated in front of the inn.

It was a small but humble teahouse, which rarely saw customers. The Hinata inn was infamous, especially from its reputation….or rather…its tenants' reputation. Well, the sight of seeing males flying through the air at the speeds of rockets is quite fearful.

Some days, Haruka felt like quitting her job, closing down the teahouse and spend the rest of her life vacationing with the money she had from her old archaeological days. But then, she remembered a certain shop owner who hadn't seen a customer since his shop had opened. It was a reminder that no matter how much crap she would go through, or what life would dump on her, that Urahara Kisuke would always have it worse.

And that uplifted her spirits quite a bit

Right now, Haruka's teashop had a group of 3 customers, who were laughing and joking around with their tea. And it was really starting to piss Haruka off. Especially when they tried hitting on her.

"Ne, Haruka-chan! Come join us for a drink!" one male patron boisterously yelled.

Just now, the flirting was getting to Haruka, and now, a vein was pulsing on her forehead and she was barely restraining herself from unleashing all hell on the customers. In fact, she was already whispering to herself "The customer is always right. The customer is always right."

"Hey, Haruka-chan! I have two tickets to a concert that someone of your age would like!" One man said cheerfully. His companions, however, gasped and suddenly shot back 50 feet away, shaking and trembling.

For the man had just broken the law of never mentioning Haruka Urashima's age. And now she hovered right above him, all hell about to break loose.

"Someone….of my age….huh?" the very fires of hell burned in Haruka's eyes. The man continued, oblivious to the impending doom.

"Yeah! It'll be perfect!" the man smiled. His friends however, were already beginning his funeral preparations. The man finally noticed something wrong once he saw the horror that was Haruka's angry eyes. "….Haruka…chan?"

Haruka didn't say anything as her fist impacted with the bottom of the man's head, sending him rocketing into the sky. There was a slight sparkle in the sky as the man disappeared into the atmosphere.

If Naru's trademarked punch or Motoko's infamous ki attacks could be seen as powerful, then Haruka's punch would have been godllike. The combined powers of the pervert hating brunette and kendo girl paled in comparison to the unleashed fury of Haruka Urashima. The poor victim got to experience this first hand as he was sent all across the world, where he got a nice view of the 7 Wonders of the World and was never seen again.

Haruka calmly returned to wiping the table. The man's companions gawked at her, as they trembled in pure fear..

Another casualty of Haruka's age.

Haruka turned her attention on the remaining people and gave the evil eye so scary that even the devil would have cried in fear.

"So, would you like anything to order, customers."

"No…no…thanks for tea!"

After nearly wetting themselves, the scared customers threw down some money and darted out of the teahouse, not even checking the amount of money left behind. Haruka sighed, her mood spoiled. She grabbed the money and placed it in the cashier, and returned to her daily task of leaning on the counter with a bored expression while smoking from her ever present cigarette.

"These things are going to kill me one day…" Haruka gazed at her cigarette. She had tried to stop several times, but smoking had become something of a habit. She knew it was unhealthy, but she didn't care; she'd rather have the lung cancer than just spend the rest of her days sitting in the teahouse without something to smoke. Yep, life was pretty boring.

It had been several months since Keitaro had died. The Hinata Inn was still dreary and depressing. Haruka though the tenants would've gotten over his death by now, but apparently they felt more about their male manager than they let on. Haruka had long since gotten over it; she had lost many comrades in the years, and she had already long since closed off her emotions. That was why she was slightly annoyed that the tenants were still moping about it.

After an hour, no more customers came and Haruka sighed. Well, since no one was coming…

"I guess I'll close shop early. I have to check on the girls anyway." Haruka said out loud to nobody in particular. She put out her cigarette and took off her green apron bearing the title "Hinata Teashop" and hung it on a nearby hook.

After locking up the shop, Haruka took a brisk pace and walked into the city, taking long easy strides and keeping her bored expression. After walking for almost an hour, she arrived in a desolate area of the city, and ended up at her destination. She arrived at an old shop, which was crumbling and falling apart. It was located in the back alley of some street, away from the public view.

This was the Urahara shop, home to a self proclaimed businessman who had never had any business ever. Haruka sighed and lit another cigarette. It had been a long time since she had been in this shop. Urahara Kisuke was an old comrade of her days before archeology.

Out in the front porch of the shop, Haruka spied a young boy and girl, who were busy sweeping the front stoop. Apparently, the boy was bullying the younger girl.

"But…Jinta-kun…"

"Shut up, Ururu! If you want to clean so much, than keep on sweeping! But I, Jinta, will leave this dusty old shitty shop and get into the Major Leagues! Believe it!"

Just as Jinta said these words, a huge giant of a man walked up behind the kids, Ururu and Jinta. The giant wore a pair of small glasses, and had a scary face He stood over 6 feet tall, and was extremely muscle bound. This man was the assistant shopkeeper for Urahara shop. He was named Tessai.

"Oh? Do you think of our proud, wonderful little shop as dusty, old, and shitty? Is that so, Jinta?" the giant dangerously whispered. It was obvious that he was really proud of the shop. Jinta blanched and nearly fainted. Just as Tessai was preparing to punish the boy, Haruka stepped in.

"Oi, is Kisuke here at this dusty old shitty shop? I need to see him." Haruka calmly said. Tessai's glasses cracked from the pure fury he was feeling. He rounded on the newcomer, preparing to deliver some terrible torture.

"You!" Tessai started but then saw who the person was. His attitude took an abrupt 180 degree turn "H-h-h-Haruka-san! What a pleasure to see you here…"

He nervously laughed as he tried to ignore Haruka's terrible gaze.

"So, is Kisuke here?"

"Yes, the owner is inside…l-l-l-let me show you inside…" Tessai nervously said. He tried to look small but failed miserably. He led Haruka inside the old shop while Ururu and Jinta stared. They had never known anyone who could make the assistant shopkeeper so shaken like that.

"What was that about?"

Inside the shop, Haruka examined the dusty shelves which held many outdated and very strange products. The shop lacked the modern interior of a convenience store, and seemed more like something in the Feudal Japan era. The design was similar to Haruka's traditional style tea house, except it was much less pleasant.

"Hmph. Still running this poor excuse as a store huh?" Haruka offhandedly said. Tessai twitched but merely responded with "Yes."

The pair continued to tour through the store silently until they arrived in the back. Inside one of the back rooms, a floor hatch was opened, revealing an inky blackness. Tessai motioned for Haruka to climb down and Haruka obliged. After Haruka climbed down, Tessai followed after her. The two didn't exchange words.

At the bottom of the ladder, an amazing scene greeted them. Beneath the Urahara shop was an enormous cavern large enough to fit several stadiums. The cavern consisted of rocky ground with many boulders, a simulated blue sky, and enough light to make the cavern as bright as day, though the light source was mysterious. How this enormous space could be there was unknown, but the cavern was Kisuke and Tessai's greatest pride. But today, their greatest pride was completely scarred. There were enormous craters and huge lines cutting across the earth. Destroyed boulders scattered their rocks everywhere.

Right in the middle of the training ground was a pair of figures facing each other. One figure was Urahara Kisuke, founder of the Urahara shop. He stood calmly and held an elegantly decorated katana that was very wide. The blade was curved more than normal and a crimson ribbon dangled off of the sword. Kisuke wore a pinstriped hat, green clothes and a pair of traditional Japanese sandals. He was quite a mysterious man, always seeming to know more than he let on. Otherwise, he was a jovial laid back fellow, always acting with a care free attitude. He was currently facing his opponent, which turned out to be Motoko.

Motoko was dressed in the usual shinigami uniform. She held her zanpakuto in front of her, panting with exhaustion and struggling to keep herself from collapsing. Sweat trickled down her forehead in tiny little beads and dirt covered almost her entire body. Her zanpakuto was strikingly similar to her sword given to her by the Shinmeiryuu, Shisui, and it had a wooden grip and no tsuba or guard.

The two stared each other off for a moment. Motoko tensed up, trying to cover any holes in her defense and tried to circle around Kisuke. Kisuke however was completely relaxed, lazily holding his sword forward, barely keeping up with Motoko's movements. Then, out of nowhere, she leapt forward, swinging her sword forward.

Kisuke easily dodged the sword by leaning backward. Motoko continued to attack, sending a combo of various thrusts and swings. Kisuke dodged each attack with apparent ease, keeping his grin on his face. No matter what way Motoko swung at him, the sword never hit. This continued on for a while before Kisuke finally took mercy on the tiring Motoko and blocked her blade. Then, without hesitation, he suddenly went on the offensive.

Motoko desperately dodged and blocked Kisuke's attacks. Every time their swords came in contact, she was pushed back several feet and nearly forced her to the ground. Every time she dodged a strike, Kisuke's sword would continue forward and completely decimate the earth, creating an enormous crater.

"Motoko-san, your movements are too similar to kendo style. In a battle between shinigami, kendo has no use at all. You're not using your reiatsu to enhance your strikes and you always hesitate to attack." Kisuke called out as Motoko dodged yet another powerful slash. "At this rate, you might die you know."

Damn! If only I could use Shinmeiryuu techniques…but a shinigami can't use ki. Motoko thought as she ducked under a horizontal swing and then leapt up in the air to avoid the follow up attack. Kisuke suddenly chuckled.

"You're probably thinking that you can win if only you could use ki and do your special Shinmeiryuu techniques." Kisuke mused. Motoko was surprised. It was as if he could read her mind… "But you know, Motoko-san, just thinking about what you need to win won't help. It's not what you need; it's what you can do. If you can't use one thing, then adapt and use another. Adapting in a battle can decide whether you live or die."

He's right, but it's easier said than done. What can I use to win? There's nothing I can do! Motoko barely dodged yet another monstrous attack and rolled on the ground with the rubble and dust from the ensuing damage covering her with more dirt.

Kisuke paused for a while, allowing Motoko to catch her breath. He calmly told her "You're getting better."

Motoko looked up and glared at Kisuke "Well maybe if you taught me how to learn my zanpakuto's name…"

Kisuke pulled a fan out of nowhere and covered his mouth. "Ho ho ho, how can a simple businessman like me help you learn such a complicated thing?"

"I'm not sure if you should call yourself a businessman. Hopeless idiot, more likely." the voice of Haruka echoed through the underground cavern. She suddenly appeared next to Motoko and Kisuke, her bored expression and lit cigarette present.

"Oh, if it isn't Haruka-san!" Kisuke cheerily remarked "It's been a while! What brings you here?"

"Nothing that really concerns you.." Haruka plainly stated. Kisuke tried to speak once more, but Haruka abruptly changed the subject and turned to Motoko. "How goes the training?"

Motoko looked down and humbly replied "I am improving by a slight amount, but it is not satisfactory enough."

"I see." Haruka gave a slight smile, the only type she would give. "Do your best. I believe in you."

"You see, Motoko-san, even Haruka has faith in you!" Kisuke added in "and she never has faith in anyone!"

"What do you mean by that, Urahara…?"

"Eh! Nothing! Nothing at all!" Kisuke smiled again and waved his hands around. Haruka said nothing; she simply hurled a rock she had picked up from the ground. There was a crashing sound and then screams of pain.

"Next time he gives you trouble, give me a call." Haruka calmly said and took another puff from her cigarette. "Really, that guy is annoying."

"Y-yes, Haruka-san." Motoko politely said. "Thank you for coming out all this way to see me."

Haruka waved it off "Don't worry about it. I was just bored and had nothing better to do. I just felt like checking up on you and seeing how you were doing."

The two chatted for a while with Haruka often leading the conversation and Motoko usually replying only with "Hai." After a while, Haruka turned to leave. "Then, I'll see you later, Motoko." With a lazy wave, she was off. She climbed back up the ladder as the two resumed their training.

It had been quite some time since Motoko had obtained her Shinigami powers. Perhaps a few weeks? Well, Haruka didn't quite remember, nor did she really care. The rest of the Hinata girls had long since recovered and had most of their memories removed of the incident. Though Haruka was quite interested, how on earth did Motoko come by Shinigami powers? Oh well, that wasn't something that she could figure out.

Haruka sighed, as she recalled how Motoko was after the whole incident with the Quincy and the hollows. It was quite depressing...

------Flashback-------

Haruka opened the entrance to the Urahara shop. It had been about 3 days since the whole Quincy incident. Haruka was quite worried, though not as much as most normal people in her position would be, as she hadn't seen any of the tenants of Hinata inn for 3 days. The moment that she felt like she had free time, she hurried over to the Urahara shop.

She was greeted by Urahara Kisuke, who grinned and gave her a cheerful greeting.

"Why if it isn't Haruka-san? What can I do for you today?" he stood up, waving his fan. Haruka glared at him.

"Cut the bullshit. You know perfectly well why I'm here. How are they?" Kisuke's carefree demeanor instantly changed into much more of a serious one. It was quite unsettling, as the serious Kisuke was quite mysterious in the way that he seemed to know what would happen.

"All of the girls have damage to their souls. The hollow was right about to eat them. All of them are unconscious, and they will need a few days of healing before they can awaken. There is no immediate danger to their souls however." Kisuke said. Haruka let out a breath she hadn't known she was holding. "However, that Shinmeiryuu girl who awoken her powers in the fight is quite a wreck right now."

"Why?"

"She's the only one who's awake. All she does is sit in the room, watching the other girls. She refuses to talk, eat, sleep, or even move." Kisuke said, his eyes boring into the gaze of Haruka.

"Don't worry. She's always been like that. Motoko always puts the blame on herself for things out of her hand. I'll talk to her." Haruka said. Kisuke nodded and he stood up. She followed him out of the room to the large room where the Hinata tenants were resting.

Motoko was a mess. She hadn't showered in a long time. Her hair was unkempt and her eyes shrunk. She gazed longingly ahead, as she watched the Hina girls sleep. Haruka sighed. Motoko was reduced to almost nothing...

Haruka stared at her for a while. Motoko did nothing to acknowledge that she even knew she was there. Finally, Haruka couldn't stand it anymore. She stalked right up to the sitting form of Motoko and slapped her right on the right cheek.

The sound echoed throughout the store, and made many flinch. It was quite a strong slap. Motoko, shocked, fell to the ground with surprise etched on her face. It was the first bit of emotion she had on her emotionless face in a long time. Motoko stared at Haruka shocked, and with small tears forming in her eyes.

"Haruka-san...what was that about?" Motoko asked bewildered, as she nursed her stinging cheek.

"Don't fuck around with me! I think you know perfectly well what that was about!" Haruka said, her eyes narrowing. Her voice was frightening "What has the great Motoko Aoyama become? The Motoko I knew would've retaliated if I just hit her like that."

"But...Haruka-san..."

"You're despicable. Look at what you've become! You're a wreck."

"But, I failed to protect them! Because of me, they are in this condition! Because I was too weak." Motoko indicated the unconscious forms of the Hinata girls. Haruka glared at her.

"But it was because of you that they still live. When will you stop living in the past? When will you begin to accept what's happened and look onward to the future?"

"I can't! Keitaro trusted me with their lives, and look what I did. I couldn't..."

"YOU DID EXACTLY AS KEITARO WANTED YOU TO DO! YOU PROTECTED THEM, DID YOU NOT? YOU SAVED THEIR LIVES, DID YOU NOT? YOU DEFEATED THE HOLLOW AND SAVED EVERYONE, DID YOU NOT?" Haruka roared. Her furious state was a sight to behold. No one could dare stand up against her in such a state, not even the might Aoyama. Motoko flinched as Haruka continued. "My cousin would've wanted you to live! He didn't die just so you all could mope around and become ghosts!"

Motoko gasped. "Haruka-san, I'm sorry...about Keitaro..."

Haruka took a deep breath and calmed herself down. Her voice returned to normal. It had been a long time since she last lost her cool, Haruka mused. "It's alright. I've already accepted his death. You know, its not the first time for me to lose someone precious..." Motoko looked at her quizzically "but you know, he's probably in Soul Society right now."

Haruka changed the topic and returned her focus on Motoko "I know that you think you were responsible for all of this. You weren't. You did brilliantly Motoko. Continue to live. Continue to train and grow stronger as a shinigami. So the next time, you can protect them again and continue to do so. That is what my cousin would've wanted you to do."

"H-hai..."

"Good. Now go clean yourself up. You're a mess. I'll get Kisuke to train you to be a shinigami. He's a good teacher for those kind of things you know."

"But Haruka-san...how do you know about shinigami, Soul Society, and hollows?" Motoko asked confused.

Haruka thought about this for a while and then gave a enigmatic grin. "That...that's none of your business."

--------------End Flashback-------------

Haruka had a slight smile on her face as she returned to her teashop. Motoko was indeed growing. Maybe she could become a great shinigami...

Haruka opened the door to her teashop, and took her usual placed behind the counter. She was smoking once again, her bored expression once again present. It was another boring day behind the counter... But today, something felt different. It was as if somewhere, something was taking place...

------------

"Are you ready, Keitaro?" The zanpakuto avatar said. He was a man, dressed in a dark business suit with moderately handsome looks. His expression was purely serious. In the background was Keitaro's soul, or what it looked like. There was a burning Hinata Inn and Tokyo University in the background of a seemingly endless sky blue now scorched red. It represented the fact that he was currently being ripped apart by a hollow in the real world.

"Yes." Keitaro said in a serious manner as well. The two stared at each other before yelling in unison.

"JAN KEN PO!"

Yes, Keitaro and his Zanpakuto were playing rock, paper, scissors. Keitaro put out a rock. His opponent put out paper.

"Ahh... Keitaro you really suck at this... that's my 30th consecutive win..." the zanpakuto remarked. Keitaro sweat dropped.

"Can you explain to me why we are playing rock paper scissors?" Keitaro asked. The zanpakuto smiled.

"Well, I was hoping that you would like to have a little fun...it's kinda boring here by myself." the man joked. Keitaro face faulted.

"What's with that? I might be dying and that's all you care about??" Keitaro screeched in a comedic manner. The zanpakuto gave a hearty laugh.

"Well Keitaro, when you attempt to find my name, it'll be quite dangerous. You'll be putting your life on the line. I'm just trying to help you relax before that." the man said in a much more serious tone. "but I guess we've had enough of the play time. It's time, Keitaro."

Suddenly, the zanpakuto and Keitaro both were completely dead serious. The zanpakuto looked directly into Keitaro eyes and said "Now, you have a chance to turn back. You may have a chance to break out of the hollow's grip, albeit a slight one. But if you fail to find my name...you will end with a fate worse than any hollow."

"I'm not turning back."

The zanpakuto smiled "Good. Then let's begin."

Without warning, flames erupted from the zanpakuto avatar. Keitaro was hurled away as enormous pressure sent him flying away. Fire scorched the air and the earth. Intense heat, as strong as the sun, flowed from the flames surrounding the zanpakuto avatar. For a moment, Keitaro saw and felt the most intense flame he ever experienced. It was enormous, the tips of the hot fire already engulfing the size of the Hinata Inn. It burned off of nothing; there was no fuel, just pure flame. Keitaro stumbled back as waves of heat washed over his body.

He was in awe. He was so amazed that he hardly felt the scorching heat at his skin. If this was in the material world, he would've melted already, but this was his soul. Still, the heat would be unbearable should he focus on feeling it.

The dancing flames before him was enormous. Red hot fire wrapped around a small human-like being encased in the hot flames. It was no longer possible to discern the figure hidden amongst the waves of heat. It took all of Keitaro's weak willpower to keep him from yelling and backing out of it.

"Keitaro Urashima, are you ready?" the voice made Keitaro tremble to the bones. He fell to his knees, as the deep voice almost commanded him to fall to his knees. It was like the distant rumble of thunder.

"A-a-a-are you m-my z-z-zanpakuto?" Keitaro asked in awe and fear. The being nodded.

The great beast spoke. He motioned toward the burning Hinata Inn in the background. "Inside there is an object. An object of great desire to you. Find this object, and bring it to me. Then my true name shall be revealed."

Keitaro nodded and tried to stand. But the intense energy from the zanpakuto made him fall back down. After several long minutes, he finally mustered the strength to stand. He walked shakily as he stood before the burning Hinata Inn. Keitaro took a deep breath and then ran into the fire.

The majestic being looked on with great interest. "Can you do it Keitaro? Can you brave the flames and fight the danger? Can you save yourself?" the being looked around, as more fire engulfed the two buildings inside Keitaro's soul. "If you should not, then this entire world will burn along with what's left of your humanity."

-

Keitaro stumbled through the burning wreckage. The inn was almost exactly how he remembered it, except of course it was on fire. He stumbled through the living room, the room where Kitsune usually sat and bet on the horse race. Right now, the entire room was torched black. Burning debris fell from the ceiling and almost crushed him.

It was hard to focus. The fumes were getting to him. But what hurt the most was the memories. Keitaro could only watch as the precious inn, full of his memories, burned down around him. Along with it were thousands and thousands of Keitaro's happiest moments in his life. A small salty tear fell from his eyes as he left the living room.

He came to the kitchen, where Shinobu once dominated. The dining table, where everyone once gathered around was reduced to ashes. Everything else was ashes. Ashes and fire. Keitaro avoided the many fires burning the floor, and leaped over a pile of burning wood to the next room. As he left, he could've sworn he heard the sounds of Shinobu cooking.

The hot springs had become a literal pool of fire. The water inside the once happy spring was now replaced with burning logs and smoke.

Every room he went to was the same. It was all burning. Keitaro then climbed up the stairs to the second floor, where he knew everyone's rooms where. His first stop was the rooftop. The place brought so many memories of him seeing Shinobu hanging up laundry, Motoko practicing kendo, or just a few tenants sitting there, watching the sun set. Right now, the entire rooftop was inaccessible. He went back down to the rooms, desperate to find that object and get out of this place.

Danger was everywhere. Everywhere was flames. Falling debris nearly crushed him wherever he went. Kitsune's room was completely demolished. Only small bits of empty melting sake bottles were left. Shinobu's room. Shinobu's favorite dolls were ashes now, along with what was left of her room. Motoko's room. The once clean and organized room was full of fallen burning debris. Her decorations of the Samurai armor and the scrolls with the characters written in them were strewn about the floor. Su's room. The jungle within was now burning down to nothing. Here the flames were the most intense as Su's prized inventions exploded.

Finally, the last room. Naru Narusegawa. Keitaro slid open the door, and felt a curious sensation as though he was prepared to get hit with a Naru Punch. Here, memories rose anew. Here was where he, Naru, and Mutsumi studied together. Here was where Naru lived, the girl of his dreams. Now, the room of his beloved was now destroyed.

Wiping his tears away, Keitaro entered the room in search of the object that the zanpakuto had wanted. CRACK! A part of the ceiling collapsed and pinned Keitaro to the ground. He screamed as the heavy wood crushed his leg. He struggled to get out, but it was too heavy. After a long time, he gave up. He laid on the ground, the inn burning all around him.

"Heh...I guess it's over then..." Keitaro felt the strength leaving him. "Sorry girls...I couldn't do it... I couldn't even be a shinigami..."

He closed his eyes, waiting for the inevitable. What he didn't expect was the familiar voice of someone he didn't expect.

"Baka. Why are you giving up? What happened to the stubborn ronin who failed 3 times to get into Toudai? Are you always going to need our help?" the soft voice of Naru Narusegawa flowed into Keitaro's ears. He opened his eyes. Surrounding him were the tenants of Hinata.

No, not them exactly. They seemed more like ghosts... ghosts of his past drifting from his memory, or just an illusion caused by the fumes of the fire.

"Everyone..." he smiled. They smiled back. They reached out a hand. Keitaro tried to grab it, but they were too far away. Too far... "NO!" he screamed as they began to fade away. He had to do something. He had to reach them. If only he could push off the logs...

Utilizing the last of his strength, he tried to push off the debris. With a sudden burst of inexplicable energy, he manage to free his legs. He fell back to the ground, panting heavily. He looked around for the girls, but they were no longer there.

Keitaro shakily got back on his feet. His head was disoriented and dizzy. What was the object that the zanpakuto wanted him to find? He looked around Naru's room, something that would've been instant punishment before. It was then he found it.

It was the only unburned object in the room. As he touched it, he felt a feeling of nostalgia and excitement tug at him. This had to be it. He picked it up. Hurriedly, he scrambled out of the room and down the stairs, avoiding more flames on the way.

He was almost at the entrance to the building when it began to collapse. Just as he ran outside, the doorway collapsed along with a good quarter of the inn. Keitaro grinned as he tiredly ran back to the patiently waiting zanpakuto.

"I got it..." he collapsed. He held out the item. It was a photo book, holding a collection of photo stickers of Keitaro by himself. But on one of the pages, he wasn't alone. It was a photo of him and Naru together, the first time he had ever taken a picture with a girl. It was one of his fondest memories of his time with Naru. It was at that moment that he felt as if Naru could've been his promise girl. It was that moment that Keitaro first developed his feelings for her.

The zanpakuto stared at the picture for a while before nodding and accepting it. "Congratulations. You are worthy of learning my name. Through fire, you have braved danger to get this. But remember this, even if you would not have gained anything in return, I am certain you would have gone through twice the danger just to save your precious memories contained within this picture."

The zanpakuto avatar handed the picture book back to Keitaro, who accepted it bewildered. The fire burning Toudai and Hinata Inn within Keitaro's soul had intensified and was now on the verge of completely reducing the buildings to ashes. The once clear blue sky was now completely blood red.

"Now listen carefully, Keitaro Urashima. Open your ears and listen to me. My name is..."

----------

"Haininaru, Houou Enkou!"

Flames erupted from Keitaro as the tentacles that once captured him was burned away. Reiatsu flooded the area in massive torrents as the hollows in the area howled. Suddenly, all attention was on the figure wreathed in hot flames. Keitaro Urashima stood in the center, dressed fully in the black shinigami uniform. In his hands was a zanpakuto, shining brightly in the heat.

The hollow that had almost eaten him roared in pain as the fire burned it. It tried to attack Keitaro, but every time its tentacles neared him, the flames intensified.

Slowly, but surely, the erratic reiatsu became more controlled and the flames surrounding Keitaro disappeared altogether. All that was left was Keitaro with a nondescript zanpakuto held in his hands. The released form of Keitaro's zanpakuto was normal, with a long slender blade, a golden square-shaped hand guard, and a long red grip. The only special part about the zanpakuto was the shiny blade, which shone more brightly than any metal should.

The huge hollows, angry and thirsting for his blood, surrounded him. They were eager to rip him apart, and would've done so easily, whether Keitaro could release his zanpakuto or not. In fact, it would most likely require a 3rd seat or higher shinigami to take on all of the huge hollows surrounding him. Keitaro was certain that he had no chance to win. But he wasn't going to go out without a fight.

He summoned his spiritual energies around him and collected his frantic mind, attaining a high level of focus and meditation. He prepared for a fight, but something unexpected stopped him.

"Ikorosu, Shinso"

A quiet voice echoed throughout the area from somewhere behind the large amount of hollows. Suddenly, without warning, a bright ray of shining white light shot through the air and sliced through the hollow to shreds. The bright beam swerved and took out nearly all of the hollows in one deadly swoop. The surviving students could only stare in awe as the large force of hollows were exterminated within a matter of seconds.

Keitaro stared as the beam of light totally devastated the hollows and slaughtered every last one of them. Once the hollows were defeated, the beam of light receded and eventually returned to its source.

A silver-haired man wearing a white haori bearing the kanji character for "3" on its back over a black shinigami uniform was busy sheathing his zanpakuto, which had just been reverted from the long deadly ray that had just annihilated the hollows. His long silver hair almost completely covered his eyes, which were slitted so much that no once could see his eyes. He was smiling widely and seemed as if the grin on his face was completely removable.

This man was Ichimaru Gin, Captain of the 3rd Division of the Gotei 13.

Keitaro suddenly felt the horrifying sensation of snakes wrapping around his neck. He felt inexplicable fear as the man's unyielding amused gaze swept over the destroyed area. Something about the man unnerved him. There was just something off about him.

Next to Ichimaru Gin was a blonde haired man who was obviously his lieutenant, the vice-captain of the 3rd Division. He was named Izuru Kiba and was known to exhibit an undying loyalty toward his captain.

"That's a lot of blood, how scary." The Shinigami captain continued, remarking the huge splatters of blood where the academy students were slaughtered by the hollows. His grin never faded "That's quite a sight, but I think I've seen this before."

"Who the hell are you?" One of the braver students yelled. Only a few of them had ever seen a captain or recognized them. Most of the were glaring at the newcomer, while those aware of his rank cowered and shook in fear and awe.

"Who am I?" Ichimaru quizzically asked, his grin widening even more. His reiatsu briefly flared, allowing the people to sense that this man was on a completely different level if not world. "My my, where are my manners? My name is Ichimaru Gin, Captain of the 3rd Division. Nice to meet ya'"

He gave a cheery wave and his grin seemed more unsettling then ever. The students all gasped and gawked at him at this revelation. They seem to have froze in place, observing the vastly more powerful spirit entity before them.

"Y-y-you're a captain?" several students muttered in sheer disbelief.

"Why, don't I look like one?" Gin casually said in his odd Osaka dialect. Some shivered. "My, some of you don't seem very grateful I'm here. Ahh, just when I decided to lend a hand just out of kindness."

As the uncomfortable silence ensued, several portals opened, revealing shinigami squads, mainly from the healing-oriented 4th squad. Soon, the entire area was full of shinigami, who were busy providing aid toward those injured.

In the confusion, Ichimaru Gin noticed Keitaro, who was standing alone amongst the crowd. He walked up to him, his smile widening as his gaze fell to Keitaro's new zanpakuto. Keitaro instinctively braced for an attack. Fear seemed to shake him inside out.

"Amazing, that's a pretty zanpakuto you have there. How did an academy student like you get their sword so early?" Ichimaru curiously asked, as he bent closer to examine Keitaro's blade. Keitaro flinched as the horrifying aura of Ichimaru's pressure closed on him.

"I'm not sure..." Keitaro stuttered, his voice failing him as Ichimaru stood up to his full height and seemed to stare through his closed eyes.

"Interesting... Very interesting... What's your name?" Ichimaru asked in a very unpolite way, though in a very commanding way fit for a captain.

"Keitaro Urashima." Keitaro nervously said. His voice was so quiet that Ichimaru had to strain his ears to hear it.

"Keitaro Urashima eh? That's a funny name. I won't forget it." Gin's grin grew wider as the two stared off. Keitaro, being the shorter one, was trembling nervously as he struggled to find something to break the enormous tension between him. Gin, not affected in the slightest, just casually waved "Ja, I'll C'ya later then."

With a flutter of his captain's robes, he swiftly turned around and graciously exited the area with the air of someone exceedingly powerful. Almost immediately, Keitaro collapsed to his knees, struggling for air. He took several deep breaths to calm his nerves and after a long time, he managed to calm his frantic heartbeat and the adrenaline coursing through his body. His hands shook uncontrollably.

"W-w-what was that?"

Keitaro had heard about the terrifying power of captains, but he never expected it to be so fearful. Later on, he would go back to this moment and wonder, just what kind of dark things lay hidden under Ichimaru Gin's smile?

-----

Keitaro strolled through the halls of the academy. It was the day after the training incident. Several of the surviving students were in the infirmary, some had quit trying to be shinigami altogether, and some, like Keitaro, were on break from normal academy activities.

Though he had suffered little damage, Keitaro was still subject to being stuck inside the school infirmary all day long.

Placed within his belt was his newly formed zanpakuto. As a student, Keitaro was one of the few who managed to receive his zanpakuto before graduating. Therefore, he was subject to quite a lot of curious stares.

A zanpakuto was the very soul of a shinigami, literally and figuratively. Without it, a shinigami was nearly powerless. It was the very core of a shinigami, something that separated from those worthy to be a shinigami or those who are not. At graduation, those who could discover their zanpakuto were shamed and became part of the shinigami reserves, who were the powerless shinigami used for only the most menial tasks.

To have someone discover the zanpakuto within weeks of entering the academy...was unheard of.

Right now, Keitaro had been summoned by the headmaster of the academy, who wished a meeting with him. As to why, Keitaro could only guess that it had something to do with him releasing his zanpakuto. Which reminded him, he had yet to test out whatever powers it had or learn how to use it.

He slid open the sliding doors leading to one of the many meeting rooms within the academy. Behind the doors was a dimly lit room. At the far end of the room were several figures. One of them was the headmaster of the academy. 4 of them Keitaro did not recognize, but seem to be exceedingly rich due to the fancy clothes they wore. However, with a lurch, Keitaro recognized the last person sitting in the room.

It was the former owner of the Hinata Inn, Grandma Hina.

-

"Granny Hina!!?" Keitaro stared at her in shock, unbelieving of the image his eyes were sending. But there could be no mistake. The small figure of the old woman could only be the one and only Granny Hina. She was dressed in a very formal kimono and held an expression of amusement and curiosity. "What are you doing here? HAVE YOU FINALLY DIED, OLD HAG?"

"How rude! I'm only several hundred years old, much less than Yamamoto-kun." Hina said with a joking manner. Hina, unlike her relative, Haruka, did not mind comments about her age.

"WHAT?"

"Oh did I not tell you are bout that? I'm sorry, it must've slipped my mind." she chuckled merrily as she indicated for him to sit on the cushion placed in front of her. He did.

"Why are you here? You can't be dead can you?"

"Just as dead as my grandson sitting before me." Hina said, her eyes twinkling in amusement.

"Then..."

"Allow me to explain." Hina stood up and motioned toward one of the silent figures behind her. They handed her a sheathed sword, dark as night, and then bowed. Keitaro instantly recognized the sword as the Youto Hina, the Cursed Hina blade which was said to possess a dark spirit within and was one of the Urashima family heirlooms.

"Former Captain of the Gotei 13, Hina Urashima, at your service." With a dramatic bow, Hina held out the cursed sword before her horizontally "And this is my zanpakuto, Hyoukyo"

"Hina-obachan, y-y-you...you were a...a captain?" new found respect and awe filled Keitaro. As an academy student, the very mention of an existing captain would respect into them. "B-b-but how?"

"Well, I've never really bothered to explain my youth have I?" Hina chuckled "Let's start with the beginning. Our family, the Urashimas, have well... are one of the noble families of Soul Society."

Keitaro's jaw dropped.

"I'm...from a noble...family?"

"Partly. Several hundred years ago, I retired from the captain's position and received permission to reside in the material world as my retirement and lived with my relatives there.You see, centuries ago, half of the Urashima family split. One half moved to the material world including my own children who are your parents, while the other half stayed in Soul Society. I guess that's where you come in anyway." Hina said casually, picking at a few strands of her hair "Then I heard that you died, so I hurried back to Soul Society as fast as I could and tried to locate you within Rukongai, but it was quite difficult to find you. But then, the academy came in contact with me and revealed that an Urashima had enrolled at the academy. That's when I finally found you here."

Keitaro was still quite confused, but did get the basic idea. But he would've never thought that his seemingly normal boring family could really be one of the noble families of Soul Society.

"Well then, I guess I forgot to give you a present for you last birthday, so take this." Hina handed Keitaro her zanpakuto, which he now knew the true name was Hyouko.

"Are you kidding? I can't take this!"

"Don't worry about it. I don't need to use it in the human world, and you need it more than I do. By the way, that zanpakuto is very special so take good care of it? You can use it as long as its soul accepts you as its new master." Hina grinned and literally shoved her zanpakuto into Keitaro's hands, who struggled futilely.

Hina looked at her grandson with a sort of maternal pride. He was a nice guy, always generous and helping people. He would never lash back no matter what, unless someone whom he cherished was in danger. No matter what sort of punishment he took, he would always look to the next day with a smile and though he may not have any confidence for himself, he always had confidence in those around him, no matter how rotten or hopeless they should be. He was very humble and modest, and would never take anything good for himself, because he always wanted others to have it.

And now, he was to be more than he could ever be in the human world.

"And here." Hina reached behind her "This is your final gift."

Her arms came up with a long black shinigami uniform folded neatly in her hands. She graciously offered it to Keitaro, who stared at her in wonder.

"What is this?"

"A shinigami uniform. You're going to need it."

"What on earth do you mean? I'm still an academy student."

Grandma Hina smiled mischievously "Didn't you know? Anyone who descends from a noble family is guaranteed a rank amongst the shinigami without having to take a Gotei 13 entrance exam or graduation exam."

"What's that mean?" Keitaro asked. Hina sighed. Her grandson was always a bit slow.

"Get ready Keitaro, because that means you are now a Shinigami."

--------------------To be continued...

A/N Once again, sorry for the long wait. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and that it didn't disappoint you.

As for Keitaro's zanpakuto, I will only reveal its name for now. Its power will be a surprise for a future battle. And yes it is a fire element zanpakuto

The name for it was chosen after I thought it out after reading the numerous PMs and reviews people sent to me suggesting zanpakuto names (some quite overpowered...). One particular PM gave me the idea that I should give it an element. At first, I was trying to go for a luck-based zanpakuto but cancelled that after I couldn't think of a good plausible zanpakuto using luck; besides I didn't want Keitaro to be some over-powered figure in battle. I chose for Keitaro's zanpakuto to be a fire element after finally realizing that a zanpakuto doesn't necessarily have to reflect off of the personality of its user. Most zanpakuto in the real Bleach weren't exactly based off the character, which was a problem for me until I realized it. So I decided on a fire-element that will have a twist with its abilites (to be explained later) because Keitaro didn't need some complicated, over-powered, zanpakuto with the way I plan to write battles. So most of you might be surprised, pissed off, or hopefully satisfied with the current zanpakuto. For those who aren't, I tried to compensate by having Keitaro use 2 zanpakutos (one from Granny Hina). So I'm sorry to those who expected more from Keitaro's zanpakuto, but I wasn't going to give him too much power.

As for how Granny Hina fits in the story...well it was just to help Keitaro become a shinigami faster without too giant of a plot hole.

Here is a short description of the zanpakuto I made up.

Houou Enkou - Keitaro's fire-element zanpakuto. Its name means either "Phoenix Flame" or "Phoenix Halo" I will go into detail on its power later. Rest assured, it will be unique for a fire-element and will involve a random factor in some way. Its release phrase is Haininaru or "Reduce to ashes"

Hyoukyo - Hina's zanpakuto given to Keitaro and also the Youto Hina in the canon LH manga. It means "Devil Possesion" or "Curse" Details will be explained in later chapter, but it will have a similar power as it did in the LH manga.

Voting for fights will end at the start of the Soul Society. Several fights are already decided on, while others are for you guys to decide.

So, I hoped you enjoy this chapter. Please leave a review on your way out.

Next chapter, the girls discover their true powers...and who are those two shinigami who appeared out of nowhere and what do they want with Rukia?