"Ichi…go…" his father stared at him for a moment before frowning as Ichigo fell down screaming. "YOU'VE GROWN WEAK MY SON! YOU DIDN'T EVEN TRY TO BLOCK THAT PUNCH! YOU HAVE MUCH TO LEARN" Isshin leapt into the air aiming his foot at his son, only to be caught in mid air by a VERY pissed off Karin.

"I'm embarrassed to be related to you goat-chin. You're attacking guests who aren't even insi…" her words die on her lips as she sees her brother laying there rolling around holding his jaw screaming at his father. "Ichi-nii…" She started crying and jumped on him, holding him around the waist.'

He stopped screaming when he felt two slender arms wrap around him. He put his hand on her head and smirked. "I'm sorry Karin. I didn't mean to leave you alone. I know it was hard on you without me here." Her crying had turned into incoherent sobs, with them laying there in a little pile on the steps, the ladies stepped around them to enter the house, intending to give them a moment to themselves, until Yuzu walked around the corner just in time to see someone standing holding Karin, and her crying.

"Karin-chan, don't get too excited about your boyfriend coming over, it's not like daddy is going to embarrass you or anything. At least no worse than he normally does." Just as she finished her sentence, Karin turned to look at her, and she got a good look at the face of the man holding her. "Ichi-nii…" she collapsed onto the floor holding the wall and started crying. "I thought you were dead… why didn't you come home if you weren't dead…" Ichigo sighed and sat Karin down only to pick up Yuzu and hug her too.

"I'm sorry Yuzu. I left you both alone while I was gone, and I'm very sorry that you had to go through that. I promise that I'll never leave you like that again." Rukia, Kiyori, and Neliel were staring at the family reunion with mixed reactions. Rukia was smiling at the family fun, Neliel looked upset that they seemed to have forgotten her, and Kiyori just stared, unable to process for a moment that THE Kurosaki Isshin could be that ridiculous around his family and be so serious as a soul reaper.

Renji was about to say something when a hand snaked out of the shadows, clamped over his mouth and pulled him away. "Stay out of this one freeloader-san. It's a family moment, and before you bitch about the Zero Division not being family, in a way she is, so let's go back to the shop, and wait for them to call us." Yoruichi spoke softly into his ear as she was shunpoing across Karakura town. Renji just sighed and let it all happen, knowing that they'd be beating down the door to Urahara's soon enough to open a Senkaimon to travel to Soul Society with.

Back inside, Ichigo wasn't faring as well as he'd hoped, since he was being assailed by crying girls, a recovered father who seemed to be out for his blood, and Neliel who was trying to smother him with her enormous… endowments. Kiyori was the only person not taking part in the scene and was getting rather annoyed at everyone pretending she didn't exist. She cleared her throat once, with no effect, so she did it again louder, only to hear, "Kiyori –fukutaicho, if you could give my son a few more minutes with his sisters, I'd appreciate it a lot. 5 years without their brother… a few more minutes before you tell him why you're here isn't going to change much, is it?" She blinked at Isshin who had somehow disengaged himself from the family and was standing behind her looking as serious as she'd ever seen him.

"Hai, Isshin-Tai-" he put a finger over her lips to stop her and shook his head sadly.

"I don't deserve that anymore, and you know it. I let Masaki die, and for that, I'm not fit to take that mantle and title back. When you tell Ichigo all the things you need to tell him, give him enough time to digest it all before you give him the offer they sent you to give him. He's still fragile after losing his mother when he was 9. Being 20 doesn't change that for him." 'But that girl sitting across from him might.' Isshin thought to himself as he watched as the family scene was winding down to a more livable level.

"Ichigo, I believe this young woman has something to talk to you about. I'll take Karin and Yuzu out for Ice cream while you talk." With that he gathered up the girls and walked out of the house. After the door shut Ichigo heard a faint "I want grandchildren soon!" He sighed and shook his head as his father.

"Well, I suppose I should introduce myself first. I'm Mitsugi Kiyori. Fukutaicho of Zero Division. I was sent here to ascertain the whereabouts and status of Kurosaki Ichigo. The Spirit King wishes Ichigo to live a long healthy fruitful life, but after the Winter War against Aizen, he fell off the radar until very recently. I was selected for this mission due to my experience in the living world. I've been stationed here for nearly 21 years. During that time, I've kept tabs on Kurosaki-san, and his family, sending regular reports to the Spirit King's realm, and receiving instructions on how to proceed during especially difficult times." She spoke quickly and crisply, as if she was trying to gain momentum to say something more important.

"I don't get it though. The Spirit King wants you to keep tabs on me? What makes me so important that the fukutaicho of Zero Division needs to watch me for 20 years? If you can't tell me that then I don't want to hear anything else you have to say." Ichigo looked very serious for once, and something about his demeanor was different than the normal Ichigo of 5 years ago.

"The alias I used while here on Earth was Ochi Misato." She smirked a little. "Didn't you find it a little odd that you were never punished for missing so much class? A normal teacher would have failed you for half the absences and "bathroom breaks" that you got away with. I used my status as a teacher to keep a very well maintained set of notes on you, your development of power, and your personality, all of which interested the Spirit King very much. He was interested in you because you are the only male son of Kurosaki Masaki, his daughter. You are the surviving heir to the throne."

Ichigo sat and let the news sink in, that his mother was the daughter of the Spirit King, and that he was the heir to the throne if the old king died. While he was pondering the things that a 20 year old ponders when they're told this, Kiyori stands up, bows and says "I'll take my leave now. If you need to ask any questions, I'll be at the school. You can drop by anytime." With that, she walks out of the room and they hear the door shut. He looks up at Rukia and then over to Neliel, and sighs deeply.

"How am I supposed to react to being told I'm the grandchild of the Spirit King? I barely know anything about soul society, even after all this time. I'm just glad that Gramps isn't dead I suppose. Otherwise I'd be stuck as… the…" he sighed again and dropped his head into his hands. "There isn't anyway to pretend I didn't hear that is there… no matter how I look at it, I'm a noble in soul society now. I guess Yuzu will like this, since she'll be a princess now. Neliel, could you give me a minute… I need to talk to Rukia alone for a minute." As Neliel left, Rukia turned to Ichigo and gave him a questioning look. He smiled at her and for the first time said what he's wanted to say since he saved her at her execution. "Rukia I.."

A/N- So its been a while since my last update, and I'd like to say I have a good excuse. All I really have to say about it is that I'm back in action, and I'll be updating regularly, and also I'm going to be starting a new time travel fic where post war Ichigo returns to his body pre war. I'd like your opinions though about when to put him back into his body. I have 4 major times that stick out in my mind. Number 1 is before Rukia shows up, number 2 is during the Menos Grande incident, number 3 is during rukia's capture and number 4 is during his urahara training before going to soul society. The reason I separated the last two times is the difference between Rukia being captured or not, and whether or not Ichigo spreads destruction across soul society. So anyway, reviews= love, and leave me a note on which time you think is the best one for that. Oh, one last thing… cliff hangers are a bitch aren't they? ^_^

-Linq