Bleach Fanstory 3: The New Order

Bleach and all of its characters are owned by Tite Kubo. Any original characters that appear in this story are my own creations.

Synopsis: This is the sequel to A Bleached Honeymoon, which was a continuation of Bleach After the War. It is not neccessary to have read the previous two works, but it helps for people who may find some of the situations featured unfamiliar. As the second part of the New Order trilogy, it will directly cross-over with another upcoming story, Shinigami Academy, and each story will reference the other on certain occassions.

Chapter 1: Homecoming

Kurosaki Ichigo stepped through the official Seireimon of Seireitei, glad to be home at last. After a grueling three week trek across the real world, Soul Society now seemed even homelier than ever.

"I think we've got something catching up to do," he said. The woman by his side couldn't agree more. She was Kuchiki Rukia, Lieutenant of fifth division, but more importantly, happily married to Ichigo. She was still in a state of bliss after what she and Ichigo went through on the beaches of Hawaii. The two hundred or so Shinigami that formed the division were also more relaxed and lazier than usual, having spent their time living with the normal humans. Some of them still wanted to stay there for longer.

As the entire fifth division finally entered through the Seireimon, they were greeted by several of Soul Society's most powerful Shinigami. Unohana Retsu, Captain Commander of the Gotei 13, stood in the centre alongside her lieutenant Kotetsu Isane. Flanking the commander on both sides were the captains of 6th and 13th divisions, Kuchiki Byakuya and Shiba Isshin. Ichigo and Rukia were both delighted to see their faces again.

"Welcome back Captain Kurosaki," Unohana said. "I'm sure you and lieutenant Kuchiki have a lot of information to discuss." Ichigo nodded. "But I also know that the two of you must be tired after spending so long in the real world, so for the rest of today you can relax and recuperate in your quarters. The captain's meeting won't be convened until tomorrow."

"Thank you Commander Unohana," Ichigo bowed. Unohana stepped aside and allowed Ichigo and Rukia to walk past. As they did so, Ichigo ordered his squad to return to the barracks first. He and Rukia however, stopped alongside Byakuya and Isshin.

"How was the real world son? Did you enjoy it?" Isshin asked with a sly grin.

"Oh you have no idea," Ichigo grinned back. Isshin saw through his words and suddenly broke into a laugh.

"So that's what took you so long to get back," he chuckled. "Well, I'll be sending greetings to Rukia-san real soon."

"Huh, what do you mean?" Rukia asked. Both Ichigo and Isshin were too embarrassed to answer.

"Please, have some sense of decency Isshin," Byakuya cautioned, before looking at Rukia. "I am pleased to say that the Shiba manor has been fully refurbished and is undergoing its final touches. Within a day or so it will be ready for you to move in."

"Thanks a lot for that Byakuya. But I prefer to stay in the division quarters for the moment, at least until we settle down," Ichigo said. Byakuya and Isshin nodded, and after a final set of greetings, Ichigo and Rukia were allowed to return to their division headquarters.

Upon arriving at the front gates of the barracks, Ichigo stared up at the ying and yang sign, the new symbol for the division. When he and Rukia entered the grounds of the division, they were pleased to see that not much had changed since they left it. As they walked through various sets of buildings to their residential quarters, they were greeted by numerous squad members who had just finished settling in. Ichigo reached the door of his office and walked inside. He headed straight for the captain's desk and sat upon it.

"Ah, it feels nice to sit in this chair again," he said. "I almost forgot I was a captain during those weeks when we were on holidays."

"Well, at least you have something to remind you," Rukia said. "All I have is my lieutenant badge." She began packing away some of the stuff she had brought over from the real world. Ichigo however saw the huge pile of papers stacked upon his desk and sighed. Maybe it isn't so nice to come back after all, he thought. For the rest of the day he and Rukia sorted through the pile of paperwork. Most of the documents were requests from the Shinigami Academy. As the new headmaster of the school, Ichigo had the final say on all applications. Unfortunately this also meant that all of the applications made to the academy were sent to his office. As a result he had received more than a thousand applications. As he signed each of the forms he gave them to Rukia who placed in a big black box. When he finished going through them all she packed the box up and ordered a squad member to take it down to the academy.

"Phew, all of the paperwork is done!" Ichigo exclaimed. He looked at the clock on the wall. "Three hours sitting there sure does kill."

"It's not as bad as having to stand for three hours," Rukia moaned as she walked over to the bed. Just as she lay down she felt a stinging pain in her abdomen.

"What's the matter Rukia?" Ichigo asked as he sat beside her.

"I feel an excruciating pain around my waist for some reason," she replied. "It's coming from inside of me."

"An internal pain?" Ichigo was confused. Then he remembered the joke his father had said to him when they returned back. "Maybe you should get yourself checked out by the fourth division."

"What, you want me to get examined by Tessai and Hachi?" Rukia asked, exasperated. Ichigo suddenly had images of those two burly guys touching her in sensitive spots.

"Okay, maybe that isn't such a good idea…" he mused. "I know, you could ask Unohana-san to check you out."

"You want me to speak to the Commander?" Rukia asked. Ichigo nodded.

"After all, she was the former captain of fourth division and no doubt she and Isane would know what is wrong with you."

"Alright, I'll go and ask her tomorrow." Ichigo kissed Rukia in the cheek and covered her with a blanket. He however didn't feel like sleeping yet. As the sun slowly set upon Seireitei, Ichigo walked out into his division's gardens and had a little stroll. As he did so, he spotted someone standing outside the gate. When he opened the gate for a peak, he was suddenly greeted by a sharp sword in the face.

"Long time no see, Ichigo," Kenpachi said with a devilish smile. Ichigo was so taken aback that he fell onto his rear end.

"Kenpachi! Why are you here?" he asked.

"I just stopped by for a greeting, that's all. I heard you were back, so I couldn't resist coming over to have a spar with you." Sweat bands started appearing on Ichigo's forehead when he heard the word 'spar' come out of Kenpachi's mouth.

"Eh, sorry, I'm kind of worn out from my trip and I'm not really in tip top shape," he half-lied. "Maybe next time, okay?"

"Tch, fine then," Kenpachi turned around.

"Say hi to Rukia-san for me will you Ichi?" Yachiru suddenly popped up and asked. Ichigo nodded for a bit and watched as the two oddballs from the eleventh division walked off.

"That was close," he said to himself. "Kenpachi is the one guy I hate to fight against." Discouraged from staying outside, he returned to his office and began writing a series of notes in preparation for tomorrow's meeting.

When Ichigo woke up the next day, he saw Rukia had already gone. She must have gone to see Unohana-san, he thought. After putting on his captain's haori and snacking on some rice balls, he headed for the first division barracks. Upon arriving at the gate, he was greeted by the captain of eighth division, Abarai Renji.

"Yo, Ichigo, I heard about what happened after we departed," Renji said.

"Yeah, it was quite a rollercoaster for us," Ichigo said. "But Rukia and I had a great time in Hawaii."

"Really? What did you do there?" Ichigo looked around and saw that the other captains who had gathered didn't pay much notice. Then he whispered into Renji's ear.

"You what?" Renji stammered. Ichigo asked him to keep his voice down. "So you and Rukia finally did it huh? Well, I guess this finally removes any chance I had to claim her for myself."

"Ha, it's not like you had much of a chance anyway," Ichigo teased. Renji was briefly ticked off by the insult, but then cooled down and grinned.

"I don't really care though. Marriage is too much of a hassle for me to ever go through, plus I've already done 'that' heaps of times anyway," he gloated.

"What, you mean you've had sex lots of times?" Ichigo asked in complete shock.

"Why are you surprised? Lisa is my lieutenant after all, plus you know how much a sleazebag the former captain Kyoraku was."

"Oh right." Ichigo remembered how much of a pervert Lisa was. "I'm guessing you and her have done it several times already." Renji nodded with a stoic expression.

"You won't believe what we get up to. And usually we do something every time." Renji's words make Ichigo feel sick inside, for it brought up images of all sorts of potential acts that a pervert like Lisa would enjoy.

"I don't want to hear anymore then," Ichigo said. Renji laughed and patted him on the shoulder as the two of them walked through the division's gate.

Soon, the remaining captains had all arrived. They sat down on a circular table, which had thirteen chairs. When the twelve captains were all seated, Captain Commander Unohana herself walked over and sat in the central chair.

"I thank all of you for coming here on such short notice," Unohana began. "As you know, over the past three weeks a number of major events and discoveries occurred in the real world. Captain Kurosaki, may you recount what you saw on your mission?" Ichigo nodded and began telling the story of his mission. He avoided mentioning parts that solely concerned Rukia and himself, only focusing on the important events. By the time he was finished, most of the captains were shell shocked. Some, such as Mayuri, Kensei, Rose and Love, had some knowledge of what Ichigo discovered, but none of them could comprehend the sheer scope of Ichigo's story.

"There you have it, the full extent of how Aizen Sousuke planned the formation of the Arrancars and the creation of the royal key," Ichigo said. "But what's more important is the fact that there are potential followers of Aizen's beliefs out there, whether it's in Soul Society or in the real world. Unless they are hunted down, they can easily cause trouble for us."

"I agree completely," Captain of the fourth division, Tsukabishi Tessai said, "I've seen what hollowfication gas does first hand, and the prospect of a group of people with access of it presents a dangerous set of circumstances."

"What do you suggest we do about it then?" Captain of the tenth division Hitsugaya Toshiro asked. "Even though we're back up to full strength the Gotei 13 does not have the members to patrol every corner of the real world. Just deploying a force to cover a Jureichi such as Tokyo would stretch our current resources." Some of the other captains, such as Kenpachi and Soifon, nodded.

"Captain Hitsugaya raised an important question: what needs to be done so that we prevent someone like Aizen Sousuke from ever arising again?" Unohana asked. "As the events of the past five years have shown, the Gotei 13 has been too reliant on its captains as its prime military strength. The loss or defection of even a few captains would present a serious blow to us. Of greater importance is the return of civilian control of Seireitei. Soul Society has been under military rule for far too long. As such, from today, we will begin returning the government of Seireitei over to a civilian body." Upon hearing Unohana's words, some of the captains, most notable Kensei, Rose and Love, objected vehemently.

"Are we going to let the Central 46 or its reincarnation take control of everything again?" Kensei said. "All of you here should be well aware of the mistakes and the abuses of power that were made under their rule. They were willing to exile captains like Urahara and Tessai, and were prepared to send me, Love, Rose and Shinji, captains who were unfortunate victims, to death!" Kensei realized he had overreacted, but his sentiment shared by many.

"Captain Muguruma has a point to make," Byakuya noted. "The Central 46 had a rather sketchy record in terms of decisions, and some of its laws were questionable. An example would be Kuchiki Rukia's execution. Even if Aizen Sousuke had not masqueraded as the Central 46, such a decision would have raised serious questions of morality. Thus I believe that a civilian body should not be given the absolute power over laws." Byakuya's words carried far more weight than Kensei's, given that he was the head of the Kuchiki clan.

"If the Central 46 is too corrupt a body to replace, then what other options do we have other than keeping military rule?" the captain of second division Soifon asked. For a while, the entire room was silent. None of the captains had a good alternative suggestion. All of them were so accustomed to the old order that they couldn't think of something else. Ichigo however, had been thinking of the ideas he had jotted down last night as he listened to the other captains. When it was clear that no one else was willing to put forward a suggestion, he started talking.

"May I suggest an alternative to the Central 46?" he asked. The other captains along with Unohana listened attentively. "As a former human in the real world, I've had experience with how human governments function, and judging from what I've seen of Soul Society, the human governments have much better laws and are also much more democratic. From what I gather, the Central 46 was like an oligarchy, wasn't it? A group of judges and nobles who had the supreme power to make laws judgments. Any decision they made was absolute, not even the Gotei 13 could refuse to follow their orders. Such a system of government would be considered totalitarian in the real world, and most human countries abolished anything resembling it long ago."

"Your words are of great interest, Captain Kurosaki," Unohana said. "May you explain exactly how human governments function." Ichigo looked at Isshin, at Tessai and at the Vizard captains. All of them silently nodded, as if they knew what Ichigo was talking about.

"Well, it is kind of simple. Most human countries are democracies. They are ruled by the common people. People elect their leaders, and though these leaders make the decisions, the people are free to disagree with them. If a government is perceived to be corrupt or tyrannical, both the people and the military are free to overthrow them and install a new government. To put the example in Soul Society, imagine if the ordinary citizens of Rukongai had a voice in the running of Seireitei. If they could choose leaders that could govern them, leaders that are concerned with the interests of the people, and not with their own petty interests. From the moment I first heart of Soul Society, I imagined it to be a place like heaven, where everyone was equal. Now though, Soul Society is more like a feudal society, with the noble families enjoying the highest status, the Gotei 13 divisions acting as individual military forces, and the Rukongai being nothing more than downtrodden peasants. All of this can be changed if instead Soul Society were to look more like a democracy."

"I would like to add to what Ichigo has said so far," Isshin said. "The system of government he is talking about is a representative democracy. Both the average people of Rukongai and the nobles of Seireitei would have the opportunity to elect representatives that not only serve their interests but would then form the governing body of that would run Seireitei. This body would have the power to make laws, but its decisions will not be absolute. There will be another of checks in place to prevent the body from abusing its power. Annual or regular elections can be held so that if the people dislike the current government, they remove it and replace it with a new one. A separate body of judges similar to the Central 46 but without their former status can be created to administer the laws but also to keep a watch on the government. Finally the Gotei 13 can remain a standing military force that can take over the government and install military rule if the situation demands it."

Ichigo was happy that his father was able to elaborate on what he had said. Those who had been in the real world for a long time, such as Kensei, Love, Rose and Tessai, were delighted at the idea that Kurosaki son and father had proposed. The other captains however had mixed reactions. Some, such as Hitsugaya, Kenpachi and Renji, struggled to comprehend the whole thing. Others, such as Byakuya, Mayuri or Soifon, fully understood the system of government but had serious issues with it.

"I commend the two of you for suggesting such a well thought out alternative to the Central 46, but I think it would be too unworkable in the form you laid out," Byakuya said. "Seireitei and Rukongai are too different for both to be run by the same government. The citizens of Rukongai are more concerned with their own interests, whereas the nobles of Seireitei at least have some concern for the wider world. In addition, where would the Gotei 13 fit in such a government."

"You bring up a good point Byakuya," Love said. "But I believe there is a way we can compromise. You do know that Urahara is busy reconstructing Karakura Cho at the moment. I don't know what he's going to turn it into, but given that it is situated in the middle of several Rukongai districts, it could serve as the seat of government for the Rukongai citizens. Meanwhile, we could bring the Central 46 back, but this time each of the judges should be elected by the nobles and the Shinigami. Their decisions will not be absolute but rather be adjudicated by a separate body of judges as Isshin suggested. As for the Gotei 13, it can be mobilized during war time and emergencies, but in peace time, why don't we let it continue to function as a bureaucracy? I'm sure all of us would get bored once conflict dies down and there's nothing to do."

Love's suggestion was taken well by the other captains. Ichigo thought it was a nice way of altering a human world democracy to fit into Soul Society's convoluted structure.

"It appears that everyone here agrees with the model that has been jointly proposed by Captains Kurosaki, Shiba and Aigawa. But there are a lot of steps that need to be done to make such a model work," Unohana said. "First, a group of captains should work together to come up with a draft paper version of the model. Then it must be put forth to the rest of the Gotei 13 and the nobles of Soul Society. Finally if all goes as planned, the citizens of Rukongai need to be educated and informed about the model. Doing all of this will require a level of organization and commitment that Soul Society has never seen. Is each of you ready to make the commitment to ensure it works?" Unohana looked at her fellow captains, who all nodded in agreement.

"Now, there's another issue that needs resolving before the meeting is adjourned. As Captain Kurosaki outlined in his report, the real world is still full of spiritual activity, and there may be individuals out there still sympathetic to Aizen Sousuke," Unohana said. "The current military strength of the Gotei 13 is indeed insufficient to handle everything in the real world. As a solution, there should be a exponential increase in the number of Shinigami, from the current number of two and a half thousand, to roughly ten thousand within fifteen years time. Such an increase would require the Shinigami Academy to expand its recruitment and accelerate its training schedules. Captain Kurosaki, are you capable of handling such a task?"

"Of course Captain Commander," Ichigo nodded. "I was contemplating such a thing, given that we've received so many spirits with high spiritual pressures recently. I will order the staff at the academy to implement a five year program that will enable recruits to join the Gotei 13 as soon as possible. These graduates will still need to be trained and supervised once in their divisions however, but it is a great way to boost up current numbers in a short time."

"Very well, each of you should take in what has been said at this meeting and start organizing your divisions for this new order," Unohana said. "With the passing of Aizen Sousuke, Soul Society finally has a chance to correct the mistakes of the past and become stronger and better than before." With that Unohana adjourned the meeting and dismissed the captains. As Ichigo headed out the door, Renji came up alongside him again.

"Man, you sure kick-started something big," Renji said.

"Well, given what we've been through, a return to the old days is out of the question isn't it?" Ichigo asked. Renji nodded.

"Man, anything would be better compared to the Central 46, or Aizen's reign again. Mind you, we're all going to be working our asses of to ensure this idea gets transformed to reality." Ichigo nodded with a smile. He bid Renji goodbye and headed for his division quarters.

Upon returning to his office, Ichigo saw that Rukia was sleeping in the bed again.

"How did the meeting go Ichigo?" Rukia asked.

"It was great, a lot of things happened," he replied. "But we can discuss them later. I'm more concerned with what happened with your check-up." Rukia's face suddenly turned a bright red. She hesitated, unsure of what to say.

"Well, um, I spoke to the Commander who arranged for Isane to do a thorough inspection," she began. "Insane was really nice and guided me along nicely. She did some tests of my blood, my reiatsu, my spirit energy and my internal body."

"And what did she discover?" Ichigo asked. Rukia fell silent for a moment.

"Ichigo, I think I'm pregnant."

Notes: People who haven't read A Bleached Honeymoon may be shocked at the sudden twist at the end, but for those who have it's a natural progression of the conclusion of that story. Far from being a cheap plot device, Rukia's pregnancy and the future children she will give birth to is something I've planned on doing since After the War. Rukia and Ichigo are not the only ones who will experience major relationship changes. Lots of characters will be the subject of pairings, but some of them will be a surprise to shipping fans!