Copyright Disclaimer: Why do you even ask?

A/N This is a new fanfiction and since this is the prologue, it can kind of slow and all.

Pairing: Ichigo X Rukia

Prologue: The Storm Begins

Ichigo was staring at the burning site. The whole lab went up in a great explosion, just after an apparent break-in. He was sweating in his black business suit, as the afternoon sun was blazing mercilessly. He sighed and returned to the rest of the group.

The building he was just staring was once a proud national lab, with a grand new building. That's where Project X--Ichigo grimaced, as he remembered he knew almost nothing about it-- was kept. Or at least, it used to be. Right now, the whole building was simply a huge field of flame and chunks of steel, concrete and whatever else hadn't burned or been vaporised.

Ichigo sped up his stride. Granted, he was quite tall, but then again he was nothing like Kenpachi or Chad from attack unit. Those two were human towers.

Police were everywhere, but Ichigo's black Hummer and his current partner stood out. Tatsuki, Ichigo's childhood friend and work partner, was standing next to the car, furiously talking to the police. When she spotted Ichigo, she shook the police man off and ran up.

"They really hate us. Seriously, what did DIA ever do to them?" groaned Tatsuki. Ichigo only smirked.

"Let me see...we didn't tell them what was in there?"

"Come on. You know better than me what our section chief would do to us if we did." Tatsuki continued to moan.

"...we get a flashy funeral?" said Ichigo, only to get smacked in the arm. "AUU!!! WHY DO YOU ALWAYS DO THAT?"

"Because you are stupid enough to get hit." Tatsuki smirked, looking down at Ichigo. He never worked out how she did it.

"Fine, fine. I scanned the area. The bloody X package was stolen. Now, if that shit goes off somewhere...Jesus...I don't know what we're gonna do."

That's when a black Bentley came to a sudden stop in front of Ichigo. The black metalwork shined in the sunlight, but the driver was invisible behind the tinted windows. The engine was still humming quietly. Seconds later, the driver's door silently opened. Black four inch heels came out first. Ichigo left eyebrow was still up, and Tatsuki was silently glaring at the newcomer. A petite woman in a black suit came out, her black hair tied in a ponytail. Her eyes were hidden behind huge sunglasses.

"And who you might be?" asked Ichigo. He was trying to remember if his boss said any more "friends" from the FBI or the CIA were coming around.

"Rukia Kuchiki, NSA Rapid Response Unit. Are you Kurosaki?" said Rukia in ice cold voice, walking up to the pair.

"Strawberry at your service, Kuchiki." Ichigo tried not to shiver. That voice was giving him the creeps. "What do you want here?"

"The project X. Have you found it?"

"God, so they did send us friends...no, it appears to have been stolen, midget," smirked the orange head. A vein popped in Rukia's temple. Ichigo's typical scowl was somewhat relaxed, almost like he was trying to change into a smile, but then he gave up.

"Excuse me?"

"Midget." Ichigo got punched by two people at once, only to double over in pain seconds after the hits. Even though he stomach was hurting like hell, he grinned. His remark hit home. Ice Princess wasn't very...icy right about now.

"I like you...Kuchiki," smiled Tatsuki "You hate Ichigo's guts as much as I do."

"...I agree" came from still bent Ichigo, still smiling. "People, you need to go to an anger management group!"

"I will ignore that comment.... anyway, Tatsuki, was it? What do you know so far?" Rukia stared at the black haired DIA agent.

"We know as much as you, dwarf," answered Ichigo, standing straight again.

"SHUT UP! AND I'M NOT A FRIGGING DWARF. YOU CAN'T STAND PETITE PEOPLE, OR WHAT?" shouted Rukia, taking off her sunglasses to reveal big violet eyes. Ichigo stared at them and got lost in their depth for a second... "ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING, DUMBASS?"

He glared at her. "SHUT UP, MIDGET! DO YOU SHOUT AT EVERYONE AND CALL THEM "DUMBASS" WHEN YOU MEET THEM?" shouted Ichigo.

"IDIOT! NO ELSE EVEN DARES TO GET ON MY NERVES!!!!!"

Ichigo smirked at that. He was enjoying himself, maybe the day wasn't so bad after all. "So you have no, friends....well, aren't you an ice princess?" Ichigo responded slowly, getting ready for another punch or a kick.

"Could you just shut up?" asked Rukia tiredly. This idiot was seriously getting on her nerves. She couldn't sleep last night and now she was too tired even to argue. Ichigo lifted an eyebrow.

"...Are you finished, guys?" asked Tatsuki in the background, sounding tired. "I wanna go home."

"Go home, Tatsuki. I'm going to stay and see what else I can get back to the office," replied Ichigo, chucking th keys at her. "Take my car back."

"Okay."

Little did he know that he was going to regret that later. A few minutes before, a shadow had crawled to the car, put something under the seats, then silently disappeared.

- - - - - -

13.30 NSA Washington Branch

Renji sighed. Ukitake was still angry at him for the stunt he pulled off during the melee weapon training....Couldn't people have some fun? His red hair was tied in ponytail, and he was glaring angrily at the piece of paperwork in front of him. The thick pile of paper seemed to be silently laughing at him. He blindly reached out for a cup of water, finding an empty cup. So now he was alone with a glass desk, piles of paper, a few office tools and a chair. Sun was blazing through the windows.

"Shit. Rukia gets all the fun!" he growled under his breath. Grumbling, he took off his blazer. Even the fan couldn't keep him cool in this heat. "Freaking sun everywhere! I feel like a steak on a frying pan..."

His desk was a mess as per usual. He hated his current job--reviewing all of the his and Rukia's major cases in last five years. Renji was only twenty-seven, like Rukia, but was already earning a salary that many CEOs would envy; but he still didn't escape paperwork.

"Mr. Abarai, could you please sign this?" said a voice behind him. He swivelled to find Momo standing there. Like Rukia, she was quite a small person; terribly shy, worked as Ukitake's finance officer. She could get annoying at times.

- - - - - -

Rukia lifted an eyebrow.

"How will you back there? Don't tell me you'll walk."

"You wish...I take a taxi or get a lift off someone," answered the tower in front of her. Damn, he was way taller than her, plus he had that ridiculous orange hair. God, did he dye it or something? "And do stop staring at my hair. It's natural so get over it!"

"..." the orange head smacked his face, hearing her dumb response. She knew she could be a bit more creative, but right now her mind was an empty space. "Could you shut the hell up? I'm thinking here!" finally her lips responded.

"Fine," muttered Ichigo." So, Miss Perfect, what's on the agenda?"

"And since when do we work together?" she snapped. That freak was getting on her nerves again. "I thought you wanted to ask people some questions? Or did you lose your printout?"

"Actually, I run out of questions ten minutes ago. So, any bright ideas, midget?"

"No, and stop calling me a midget! I'm not the one who looks like his head is on fire. I surprised the fire department didn't try to put you out!"

Ichigo stared at her. That was a new one.

"Touché, you win. What do you say we get back to my office? I want to know more about you and your whole operation here. How can I find the freaking thing if a bunch of NSA nerds are shadowing me?"

Rukia was getting really annoyed with the guy. Who does he think he is? "Says a guy from DIA. Army apes in suits, and let's go to my office!" she growled, annoyed. She was sweating badly. How could that Ichigo stand it? She preferred winter; seriously, it was way easier to get around everywhere.

"No, I'm not going anywhere near those guys. I have...traumatic experiences with them," smirked the orange head, slowly making his way to the other side of her Bentley. "Two, my office will be almost empty. Our staff isn't exactly numerous. It will be easier to work."

"Fine. Where is it?" sighed Rukia. She needed a coffee badly. All those policemen swarming around her, Ichigo and the car were annoying her; and they didn't seem to be doing much. They reminded her of ants you could find in a garden, flooding an area. The yellow tape was everywhere, and forensics seemed to have finally arrived. She jumped into the seat and started the car. For some reason, the engine's humming relaxed her. Slowly the orange haired idiot got into the other seat. She stared expectantly at the passenger.

"Fine. Where is it?"

"1st Empire Avenue," came the tired answer from Ichigo. He decided to take a nap. It was a half hour drive anyway, so he didn't see a reason not to. Hopefully Urahara wouldn't try to annoy the shit out of him again. The old pervert was quite weird, but then again he was a technology geek. He decided to look around the car. The seats were covered in black leather, while creamy coloured walls made a sharp contrast. Most of the interior, mind it, was black though. He hung his head back and was about to forget about the whole thing,when a quiet, pleasant voice interrupted him. Wait--pleasant, quiet and Rukia didn't fit in one sentence.

"So, what do you want to know?"

Ichigo violently lurched forward, surprised. The midget could be nice? He glared at her, as if trying to find the answer in her deep, violet eyes.

"What does NSA want from that lab? I though project X, or whatever you want to call, it is DIA's jurisdiction?" he asked in a conversational tone, trying not to annoy her and keep the calm. She looked so much more human without a permanent scowl, much like his.

"To be honest I have no idea. I was told some stupid clues and ordered to find that thing., but they didn't even bother tell me what Project X is!" Rukia said, staring at the half empty road. Washington highway 66 normally bustled with cars, but now it seemed to have hardly any. She pressed the gas pedal, accelerating to the speed limit.

"So everyone knows hardly a damn thing about this whole thing. Great..." Ichigo groaned aloud. He wiped his eyes with his hand and stared at the road. "Why is the road so empty? I never saw so few cars here."

"Beats me, carrot," smiled Rukia, watching Ichigo's face twist immediately into a deeper scowl.

"Shut up midget. I'm not the one ....WOAH!" Ichigo cried when Rukia suddenly braked. The road was barricaded with a burning... Hummer... and yet again it was surrounded by emergency services. "That...that's...that's..." stuttered Ichigo. Rukia then realized where she seen a black Hummer. Tatsuki! She quickly got out of the car and went up to the nearest policeman, pulling her badge out along the wat. Ichigo trotted behind her silently, his eyes wide, his mouth open.

"NSA. What the hell happened here?"

"It appears that someone aimed to hurt the person inside...they put a time bomb in the back. Tatsuki Arisawa--I believe that was her name--is still alive and seriously injured, but we got her to a hospital. The forensics still haven't got her, they're running some huge case down somewhere... at Zulla, I think," said the guy before quickly running back off into the madness.

"Fuck. You've got to be kidding. A building gets blown and city runs out of police?" swore Ichigo, staring at his once proud car. He was still shocked over Tatsuki."Can you drop me off at the hospital, Kuchiki?"

"Fine. But get to work tomorrow. She will live, you know," sighed Rukia, walking back to the car. She decided that dropping him off was the only thing to do. He wouldn't focus on the work at all. Yes, she probably would do the same if Renji was injured. Or would she? Ichigo silently walked behind her, his steps smaller than before. It was giving her creeps, as the carrot top couldn't shut up throughout this day, and now this. In silence, she turned the car back to the junction 200 yards back. The Bentley silently rolled on the road, the city streaming past its windows.

"You alright, Kurosaki?" she asked, attempting to be nice. She usually couldn't stop her sharp tongue from attacking people, but that could have something to do with her brother.

"Would you be alright if your best friend was just in a bombing?" snarled Ichigo. How could that bitch be so heartless?

"I guess not...sorry for asking, carrot! I was trying to help, but I guess not!" said Rukia, glaring at him, with renewed anger in her eyes.

He watched as the car rolled on the Theodore memorial bridge and finally, a few minutes later, pull over at the side of hospital's main entrance. Ichigo closed the Bentley's door, after leaping from the seat, and was about to walk off, when Rukia's voice froze him. "Will you need a lift later?"

For the first time in last twenty or so minutes Ichigo smiled "Nah, I'll just get my old man to get my R8 here. Thanks for the offer. See ya tomorrow, I guess," said Ichigo, turning round and walking off. Rukia sighed once he disappeared behind the door and got back into the car. She groaned. There was nothing to do, and she liked to work long hours. Her social life was kind of, well, nonexistent. If not for Renji, she probably would live at the office. She decided to drive around town and find this 1st Empire Avenue.

Ichigo wandered to the information desk, his scowl replaced by a worried expression.

"Tatsuki Arisawa," he said simply, his face looking blank without the scowl.

"Building 2, Floor 5, Room 567," answered the nurse from the desk, not even looking up.

"Thank you," he said stiffly.

Ichigo slowly wandered to the building, and then got to the right floor. The elevator was empty and silent, save for some music running from a small speaker in the corner. He swam through the corridor filled with people, trying to find the room. Finally. he noticed the right one, after a few minutes of useless strolling. He pushed some people by accident few times, earning him few gasps, only to be shut by his glare.

Tatsuki was lying in so many bandages, and had so many IVs and other wires connected to her, that Ichigo wondered if it was even her at first. Her usually smiling face was now asleep, peaceful.

"She is in deep sleep, but her injuries are mostly shrapnel and some minor burns," said a voice behind Ichigo, causing him to make a one hundred eighty-degree turn. "I'm head surgeon and doctor, Unohana. She will live," said an forty-odd year old woman with hair in a braid at the front.

"Good," said Ichigo. "When will she wake up?"

"Tomorrow, or the day after. We had to sedate her heavily," she answered in a soft voice. "She tried to move, causing bleeding. Ever since then, Isane injected her with a sedative."

"Ahh...right," Ichigo said hesitantly, staring at the woman.

"I suggest you go home, young man. She won't be up today."

"Right...damn I didn't know I was sending a friend to hospital..I never should let her drive the car," muttered Ichigo under his breath, looking guiltily at Tatsuki's unconscious body. He would have noticed the bomb sooner if he was with her.

"Mr....?" butted in Unohana, stopping his monologue. He was about to glare, when he realized what he was doing to who. Deciding it was a bad idea to annoy the doctor, who was taking care of Tatsuki, he looked elsewhere.

"Kurosaki. Ichigo Kurosaki, pleased to meet you....and thank you for taking care of Tatsuki," Ichigo answered, trying to muster a stiff smile.

"You don't have to thank me, Mr. Kurosaki. If you were there... do you have any idea how she avoided the major burns? We couldn't figure out what happened," said Unohana, while walking up to one of the machines and printing out some numbers that didn't mean anything to Ichigo. Ichigo scowled; his dad was doctor, and yet he didn't know the simplest things. Then again, his father spent most of his time, when Ichigo was around, trying to become a human bullet or simply attacking him. The old man was a complete idiot most of the time.

"Mr. Kurosaki?" interrupted his thoughts about his idiot father. He frowned and gazed at Tatsuki.

"I have absolutely no idea."

Unohana continued to stare at him.

"She probably noticed there something wrong and got out?"

He frowned harder. Why was that damn doctor so curious?

"Well, I need to go now. Goodbye, Mr. Kurosaki," came from Unohana as she walked away, probably to other patients.

"Shit." shot Ichigo as he sat down on a chair to think. Who hated him so much as to put a bomb in his car? The bastard was going to die a painful death -- that was all he knew. He groaned and sat there silently, trying to empty his head.

Rukia found the building. She couldn't lament the fact that she was almost out of fuel, because right now she was suffering from an attack of envy. The guy worked in a so much more modern place. The huge glass skyscraper was shaped in arc at one side. The setting sun gleamed at the glass. The parking lot appeared to be underground, the whole thing was surrounded by few trees and grass. Talk about a green workplace. Rukia absentmindedly looked at her watch, shocked to realize it was already eight in the evening. For some weird reason, her mind returned to the carrot top she met today. Her thoughts were disrupted by a Chappy tune. Rukia started to dig in her pursue. She picked out her phone, with Chappy stickers all over it. Her Chappy obsession got better of her at times. She flicked the phone open and put it on loudspeaker.

"Hello?"

"Hiya Rukia! How are you?" came the familiar voice of her partner, Renji.

"What do you want Renji? No shit, I'm tired, so hurry up already!" her voice was full of annoyance and exhaustion; she wanted to go home soon.

"Tsk, tsk, someone got up the wrong way today. Ukitake wants to see you tomorrow morning before you get onto the case."

"But why? Unlike you, I haven't given them reasons to get suspended." She allowed a deep frown to settle on her face.

"God knows. What you been doing to get so angry?" came Renji's voice, this time sounding somewhat worried.

"The strawberry I was supposed to work with took a day off, because someone blew his partner to hell," she snarled, irritated at Renji for no reason.

"....What shit did you step into now, Rukia?"

"The one that says X on it," she remarked, grinning to herself. Renji was probably frowning at the comment.

"Touché. This is some interesting job. On the first day, someone blows the shit out of one of the people on the case. Now I wish I didn't pull off that stunt with Zabimaru. Che." Rukia could hear a loud sigh, and her grin widened.

"Renji, you can't help but be an idiot. See you tomorrow." With those words, Rukia flipped the phone closed. She stared at the building for few more seconds and walked away. That's when her stomach grumbled loudly. "Damn. I need a bite."

She strode furiously back to her car and opened the door, slamming it behind her. She grasped the keys and started the engine. The on-board computer annoyed her with its constant flashing, informing her, yet again, that it lacked fuel. She sped off toward the nearest Kuchiki restaurant. Whatever she said, her brother's restaurants had great food. She hated her brother's guts in a way. He never even acknowledged her existence; and he was even worse than her, looking down at everyone.

She braked and got out of the Bentley, locking it behind her. She kicked the door open, dismissing the glare she got from the doorman. A young waiter rushed to meet her.

"How can I help you, ma'am?"

"Miss. A table for one" she groaned. Just because she didn't wear slutty clothes didn't mean she was old or married. Talk about stereotypical. She followed the waiter to a table in the corner; she sat heavily on the chair, tired from a rather chaotic day. Normally, yes, she did work a lot and even overtime, but she was doing something. Today, she basically drove around and did nothing. Nothing. She didn't like that one bit. She swiped dirt off her blazer, the damn thing got dirty so fast.. Then she noticed the waiter from before, watching her.

"Hello. I'm Hanataro," he said in quiet voice. Small, young and shy? She rose an eyebrow, realizing how much the boy must be bullied around. "What do you want to order, miss?"

"Rice dumplings and some red wine...pick one for me," she remembered what happened last time she visited this restaurant. An idiot tried to take some hostages. Honestly, people these days were really stupid. She started tapping her fingers on the table, only to be intruded by a plate of rice dumplings appearing in front of her with a small, porcelain glass of red wine.

"Enjoy, miss."

"...Thanks," she said absently, chewing her food slowly.

- - - - - -

Ichigo called his father a half hour ago. After five minutes of the utter nonsense his dad usually said, he finally got him to drive his car up to the hospital. Annoyed, Ichigo wondered what was taking him so long. After all he only lived in Karakura town, a small town near Washington. He was about to swear when an Audi R8 came to screeching halt in front of him. It was touching his knees. And it was his own.

"What that hell is wrong with you? You could have killed me!!!!!" He screamed, only to dodge a human bullet.

"ICHI...AUUU!" Ichigo didn't give him a chance to say anything, slamming his fist into his face. He scowled and snapped.

"Shut up, you old idiot!! Can't you ever leave me alone?"

"Don't be so mean to me, my son. Ohh, Masaki, I failed to make him into a decent person!!" cried his father, trying to desperately to crawl up to Ichigo.

"I SAID SHUT UP!" he turned round and got into the still running car. "Get in."

"Fine, my ungrateful son,'' replied Isshin, still making rather weird faces. Ichigo slammed his foot into the gas pedal; the car lurched forward as the engine roared. Without any trouble he got away from the city, and pressed his foot harder. The countryside whizzed around. Ichigo only slowed down as he noticed that he was entering Karakura. Sighing, he stopped by his dad's clinic. It wasn't anything special, just a neighborhood clinic.

"See you later, old man."

Pouting his dad got out from the car, and then his mad grin came back. Ichigo's eyes widened, knowing that his dad was back to normal.

"Hopefully, next time I see you, my son, YOU WILL BE MAKING GRANDCHILDREN!"

The scowl entered his face immediately. He drove off, ignoring the shouts behind him which sounded a lot like "GRANDCHILDREN", THIRD DAUGHTER", and "BECOME A MAN". He halted in front of his apartment. He seriously needed to move out. The new neighbour had...ridiculous amounts of stamina during night, the noise usually ruining his precious sleep. He always wondered if the man was somehow related to his dad.

Slamming the car door, he walked to the glass door. It was a normal apartment lot, though the doorway was great after the landlord decided to revamp it. He opened his door and scanned the place. It was as empty as usual. He put the expensive plasma TV on while undressing from the suit down to boxers and a t-shirt. He simply chucked it at the nearest chair, and collapsed onto his black leather sofa. His apartment was quite simple. In one room he had a gigantic glass desk with a laptop and that great comfortable chair. He probably left a cup of coffee there, as usual. His living room was a TV, black sofa and two leather armchairs. The rest of the room was filled with bookcases. His love for Shakespeare got better of him. He got up again.

"Fuck. I'm starving.": he scuttled to the kitchen. Unnaturally white, his kitchen was, like rest of the house, spotless clean and quite empty. He opened the fridge and grabbed a half-eaten burger. "Nothing like a burger."

He silently munched on the bun. The news-speaker was going on about Byakuya Kuchiki. That when it hit Ichigo. Wasn't that midget called Kuchiki?

"No way. No fucking way."

- - - - - -

Rukia got out from her Bentley. She had enjoyed those dumplings, and right now she was staring at her house. Byakuya insisted upon here housing being in Sereitei. She never quite worked out why. Her legs took her towards the door.

Opening the door wide open she strolled towards the Chappy armchair. She bought it few years ago, it was a limited edition. It helped her relax after a bad day. She thought about what happened there, trying to find some clue where to find the assailant.

Who is it? And what does he want? she thought, remembering the whole day.

Flashback

It was a wonderful morning. Rukia felt energy flowing through her body. She felt great as she was walking up to her office.

"Morning!" she announced happily as she opened the doors to her and Renji's office. Her Chappy cup was waiting on her big pine desk. The computers were already running.

"..." Renji stared at her. "Who are you, and what did you do with Rukia?"

"Dumbass, I'm here. I'm just feeling great." Smirking, Rukia answered to Renji's taunt. True, she normally wasn't that happy. She was about to sit down when a cold hand caught her shoulder.

"Got a job for ya', you know?" said a voice, which gave her creeps. It was Gin Ichimaru, head of tactical response "Someone had a blast, and you need to find out who." Rukia felt shivers travel up her spine. That man had those eyes that were almost always shut, and that sinister smile. He also tended to wear those weird white suits, standing out. She felt like she was handling a snake when talking to him. "Apes are already there. You will probably find the Strawberry there."

"Sir, excuse me, but who is The Strawberry?" she mumbled once she got her voice back. Gin smile widened even further

"Kurosaki Ichigo or something like that, don't worry you will recognise him immediately. He is kinda...visible, you know." The snake in front of her grinned and ruffled her hair. "Kira will give you more details, Kuchiki. Bye, bye!" he walked out, waving a hand at them. Rukia instantly felt better.

"He is kind of creepy, isn't he?" Renji walked up to her, trying to smile and failing.

"Yeah. I always wondered how he got into the agency." Rukia stared at the door.

"He is a genius and a sharpshooter," Answered Kira, walking up to them. " Kuchiki, come with me."

"Okay," She said softly, following Kira to his office. Once there, she settled comfortably into a chair. Kira walked up to desk and sat down on it, picking up a handful of sheets.

"I will be brief. The crime scene is a national science lab. It had what we call project X in storage. You need to go there and recover it, or try to find a way to."

Rukia sweatdropped.

"What is Project X?" she asked. "I kind of need to know what to look for."

"I don't know what project X is. They gave us that weird detector. I suspect it's a receiver connected to a tracker on this project-thing." Kira tossed her a small, cell phone like object. "The lab is just outside Gotei, near old army training... about as much as I know. Good luck."

"..."

Rukia was surprised at how vague this case briefing was. She didn't even know what to look for. "Yeah, thanks. I'm going to need it. See you later, Kira." She grinned and walked out.

"Take care, Kuchiki."

Rukia found her car. The Bentley Continental was comfortable. Probably the only thing she cared for besides Chappy, when it came to black metalwork matched her hair and clothing. It was unusual to wear anything besides black. She got in and drove out onto the main road, and for some reason she had a bad feeling about this whole case.

End of Flashback

Great. This is just confusing. I know nothing.

Rukia noticed the time on her clock. She needed to get some shut eye, pronto-- or she would be impossible tomorrow.

Slowly, dragging her feet she got to her room. She stripped and walked to her bathroom to get a quick shower. She came back. opened her wardrobe and got dressed into another Chappy related item: pajamas. After handing up her suit, she fell down onto her king size bed. She was praying she wouldn't get any nightmares tonight. Quickly, her heavy eyelids shut, and Rukia fell asleep, her face losing the scowl fully for once.

- - - - - -

Ichigo was dumbfounded. He didn't think that the maniac midget he was working with was the sister of the one and only Byakuya. He realized he was clutching the remote tightly and his fingers had gone white. Why did he even care? He could still annoy her. No one escaped Ichigo's tongue. Kuchiki or not.

He turned the TV off and walked off into his bedroom, and then to the bathroom. He got into the shower and let the hot water pour as he relaxed. Finally, he grabbed a soap and washed off all the sweat and dirt that stuck to him for some reason.

His mind came back to this morning.

Flashback

Ichigo, as usual, went to work late. Once he got there, he silently passed the entrance and the hall. He got into the elevator, listened to crappy music for few seconds, and then got out on his floor. He passed Uryu Ishida, tactical advisor, who was ridiculously skinny and quite tall.

"Keeping to your tradition, are you?"

"Really, Ishida? I thought I was simply being fashionably late."

"Beats me".

"No, Ishida, sews you." stated Ichigo only to receive a glare. Ishida loved sewing for some messed up reason. Ichigo teased him a lot about it.

Ichigo resumed walking, and he noticed Orihime running down the corridor. She was the best poison analyst, and she was also quite good with computers. Ichigo tried to avoid her. For some reason she always liked to join him, whether he liked it or not.

"Kurosaki-kun! How are you?"

"I'm alright Inoue, you?" Ichigo sighed inwardly. He will be trapped here for next half hour.

"Kurosaki, get in here, pronto!" disturbed Inoue's endless chitchat. They both turned to see the owner of the voice. Soifon was Ichigo's boss for some idiotic reason.

"Sorry, Inoue. See you later," said Ichigo, wondering what could Soifon want from him as he walked.

Once he entered the room and sat down, the doors slammed shut.

"You need to recapture a object only known as Project X," spoke Soifon suddenly, getting up and pacing around her oversized desk, and occasionally looking through her window.

"A lab was blown up near Gotei. We need to get the object, it could still be there." Soifon's pace sped up "Or it could already have been stolen."

Ichigo grinned. This would be too easy.

"Will CIA or FBI poking their nose in again?" he asked, remembering his last retrieval mission. Those damn FBI agents wouldn't give him a moment to think.

"Maybe." Soifon flashed what looked like a grin. Ichigo's frown deepened.

"NSA?" He prayed silently that they wouldn't pull anything off. NSA was extremely annoying, always against any idea that came from DIA.

"Ditto." His luck just run out. "Take Tatsuki. Now, roll out Kurosaki!"

He started his Hummer. This car, with its jet black paintjob, contrasted to his bright white Audi R8 at home.

"Tatsuki, get ready to work with geeks from NSA again, they could be there."

"Are you serious?" Tatsuki moaned.

"Hey, it isn't my type of joke to send a geek to follow us."

"True..."

End of flashback

Ichigo was drying his hair when he decided that he would annoy the geek tomorrow. For some reason, he hated her. He got into boxers and crashed on his bed, not bothering to cover himself with a blanket. His mind wandered off to random memories. His insomnia was getting on his nerves. He could never fall asleep, that easily could he?

"Kuchiki...." Ichigo muttered, clutching the pillow tightly for no reason, before he miraculously fell asleep.

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A/N Now, review. Byukuya commands you. Anyway, I don't want to get any extreme flames. I like constructive feedback, but not flames! On a lighter note, Tatsuki's ...accident... was never planned. It kind of, found it's way into the story, when I burnt myself while cooking. Not the nicest experience, you know:(. ... Expect Chapter 1 to be much better. Give me a break, it's been few years since I wrote a story or a fanfic. So be gentle.I don't need any more burns as it is :P

I don't know, when the next update will be. Full stop.

Hmm, oh yeah, This whole chapter was written while listening to "In Flames You Burn" and "Children of the Night" by Dream Evil. Great songs!

EDIT Special thank to x-silver-wings-x for beta reading this.