...I have no excuse. Well I do, but you don't want to hear it. So here's a chapter. There will be more on the way, I swear. I'm working on going through all of my stories and finishing them off as best as I can. Thank you if you waited patiently! I LOVE YOU. So yes. Here's a flashback.

Enjoy~

~Before the Trial

Rugged, high-pitched breaths cut the air as slaps of feet on concrete echoed. She could hear it behind her—the low chuckling. Shadows lurked in the corner of her eyes; she saw him everywhere. The dank, dull tunnel she was in seemed to press in on her, contracting like the inside of a snake. Another chuckle sounded, closer, and she held in a scream. She turned another corner and came to a halt as only a large concrete wall filled her vision. It was silent except for the slow drip of water somewhere off down the tunnels. Her eyes closed. Slowly, so slowly, she turned.

There he stood, grinning, knife in hand, already stained with her blood. Seeing it made her arm sting twice as much, but she ignored it.

"Finally caught up to you," he said, taking a leisurely step forward. She stumbled back, her palms colliding with the cold, slimy wall behind her.

"Ya've caused me a lot of grief, ya know," he said, tossing his black hair from his eyes, "The others don't even know we're down here. Just as well. More time to spend alone, eh?"

"I've already called the police," she began shakily, staring back at him, "They'll be on their way soon. So will my husband." His smile dropped, and his face morphed into anger and disgust.

"Why you stupid—" There were the echoes of voices far above them, and he cursed. She gave an inaudible sigh of relief, her shoulders slumping. He snarled and suddenly whipped a gun out of his jacket. The sound of the bullet ricocheted as her body fell to the ground, her orange air flying about her as blood pooled underneath her.

"Dumb bitch," he snarled. He heard the footsteps and yells getting closer and looked around before bolting back the way he had come. Winding tunnels filled with rats and a rank, overpowering smell led him in a maze. The shouts were everywhere, and when he turned a corner, suddenly there was a light right in his eyes, and a deep voice shouting in his ear.

"Drop the weapon! Get down on the ground, now!" Other footsteps surrounded him, and he slowly set the weapon on the ground, raising his thin hands above his head. The light left his eyes for a second and he blinked, his eyes meeting those of steel gray. He smirked.

"So yer tha one… I'd know tha' look anywhere. Tha' one of tha' poor bastard that jus' realized 'is wife is most likely dead." The other man's eyes hardened. Suddenly there were shouts from far away, and he began to move off as the criminal was forced to his knees, his wrists pinching in the cool metal. He growled and snapped after the man.

"Ya mess with me, Isshin Kurosaki… It's only a matter of time 'fore the rest git ya and tha' rest of your family!" Isshin paused with his back to him, before running off again.

"Get this scumbag out of here." Nnoitra hissed at the guy that said this, and was forced to his feet as Isshin ran off to find his wife.

"They're going to pardon him, Urahara, I know it! Even if they don't, the most he'll get is a few years and probation—"

"Isshin, slow down," Urahara attempted to calm him, "Everything will be fine. I'll handle it." He glanced over at Yoruichi, who looked up at the same time and caught his eye. She nodded in understanding and gracefully stepped off of the stool in the shop, grabbing the keys off the rack.

"I'll be back before dinner," she called. Urahara nodded, and she disappeared.

"Sir, Ms. Yoruichi is here to see you."

Byakuya looked up from the papers on his desk as the beautiful woman entered. He stood and extended a hand.

"Ms. Yoruichi. I am still wondering about the day you will tell us if that is your first or last name."

She smirked as she shook his hand in a firm grip.

"We'll be waiting for quite a while. Hey, maybe when all this business is done and we're old, we can grab dinner sometime."

Byakuya sat back at his desk as she took the seat across from him, and rubbed his eyes.

"Yoruichi…"

She waved a hand, smiling.

"It's just a joke, cowboy, calm down. Now we need to talk."

"Obviously. What is it he needs now?"

Yoruichi's face turned serious.

"Nnoitra. He's a part of your gang, isn't he?"

"I am not a gang leader, Ms. Yoruichi—" he scolded. She rolled her eyes.

"Yes, yes, you know what I mean," she continued, leaning forward, "The one lead by him. You've managed to piss them off royally."

"Your point?"

"Well," she began, crossing her legs, her amber eyes probing, "You and Urahara are partners, are you not? And this… gang of yours knows all about him. And his friends. I assume you know who Isshin Kurosaki is."

"I've watched the news."

"Then you know that his wife was killed by one of the members of your gang, the one you managed to piss off."

"What is the point in all this, Ms. Yoruichi?"

Yoruichi stood and placed her hands on the desk, leaning dangerously close to his face.

"The point is," she stated lowly, "You are the closest thing we have to a connection with that gang. The one connected to them—Nnoitra—is going to get away with murder. He's already got the jury convinced that he'd thought she was someone coming to attack him, and the prints on the knife were washed away—"

"And what do you suppose I do about this?"

There was a pause.

"We need to get rid of him."

Byakuya leaned back in his chair and shook his head.

"That's not something I can do."

"You lead and aid the majority of the police force," Yoruichi pushed, "I know you have strings in places only you and Urahara know about. There has to be something you can do."

Byakuya shook his head again.

"Nothing that will not be caught up in the news or with the gang. As you said, Aizen's gang already is not happy with me since we caught them stealing my shipments last month. If something happens to one of their members, the fingers will point directly to me, and I will not allow them to touch my family or my business."

"Byakuya—"

"Ms. Yoruichi, I'm very busy, please—"

Just then there was a soft knock on the door, and talking immediately ceased. Yoruichi leaned back as Byakuya cleared his throat.

"Come in."

The door opened slowly and a young girl peaked in, with dark black hair and large black eyes.

"Rukia," Byakuya began icily, "What are you doing here?"

Rukia observed the two suspiciously, and Yoruichi gave her a little smile.

"Hisana wanted me to ask what you wanted for dinner…" she stated slowly. Byakuya raised an eyebrow.

"She could have called me."

Rukia hadn't taken her eyes off of Yoruichi.

"She said your agent wasn't letting in any calls. Should I come back later?''

"No, no. Tell her whatever she makes is fine."

It was quiet and Rukia nodded, saying a good bye to her dad and casting one last suspicious glance to Yoruichi before leaving, letting the door close softly behind her.

Yoruichi sighed and turned back to Byakuya.

"I understand," she said, "but I can't think of that monster on the streets again."

Byakuya rubbed his eyes again.

"I know. I'll see what I can do."

Yoruichi smiled.

"Alright. Take care of yourself, nyeh?"

Byakuya nodded and walked her to the office door. She turned to him at the last moment and smiled.

"And tell Hisa I said hi, huh? I haven't seen her in a long time."

"I will."

Yoruichi shook her head, smiling.

"No you won't."

Byakuya was silent. Yoruichi reached up and softly placed a kiss on his cheek.

"Bye, bye, Bya," she whispered in his ear. In a moment she was gone through the door and Byakuya blinked. It had been a long time since he had been accustomed to that. His eyes then dropped down to Rukia's, who was looking up at him with arms crossed.

"Is there something I should know about?" she asked, her heavy brows drawn in in a worried frown. Byakuya shook his head.

"Nothing right now. But in these next few weeks, we'll have to see."

Rukia's face grew more confused, and he simply turned back to his office, leaving her to frown and figure out what exactly was going on.

Sora looked up at the man in front of him, matching his face with the picture on the file in his hands.

"So… Nnoitra? Is that how you say it?"

The other man scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"Like it matters ta you."

Sora rubbed the back of his head.
"Yes, well… I'm Sora Inoue, your probation officer. Though I suppose they already told you that."

Nnoitra didn't respond, instead busy scraping the edge of the table with his chipped nails.

"Well, I have to say, you seem different than you did in the trial, haha." Sora's pathetic chuckle died off as Nnoitra smirked at him.

"Ya well, I won, didn't I? That's all tha' matters."

Sora cleared his throat.

"Um, I guess so. So, I was just going over your file…"

Nnoitra leaned forward, and Sora had to force himself not to lean away.

"Ya got a family, Sory?"

"Sora."

"Hm? Ya got one?"

Sora forced a smile and nodded.

"Yeah, a younger sister, Orihime."

Nnoitra chuckled breathlessly.

"Well, I'll give ya a hint… Hide 'er. If yar goin' in ta' this business… there's no way she's gonna be safe. Especially now tha' ya' got me."

Sora's face turned a little red, and Nnoitra waived a hand.

"Nah, don't be afraid a' me, I ain't gonna do nothin' to 'er. But the rest of 'em? Well, now tha' ya' 'ave me, you and yar sister are fair game."

A shiver ran down his spine, and not for the first time he wondered if he should have taken this case.

"He's dead, Urahara! They'll think it was me! They'll come after us—"

"Just hold on, Isshin," the older man stated, voice level with seriousness for once, "They might not think it's you. Just calm down."

"I was the person he talked to. He knew my name, Kisuke. They'll be coming for the rest of my family next."

Urahara glanced at Yoruichi, whose eyes were glued to the small T.V in the corner of the shop. A fan spun lazily, making it hard to hear what it was saying, but the images on the screen were enough to tell what happened; Nnoitra was dead, and not by accident.

Urahara hung up with Isshin a few minutes later and Yoruichi turned to him.

"You think it was Byakuya?"

Urahara shook his head.

"No. It would have been much cleaner. It would have been put as a disappearance, not a murder—make it look like he got away. This was on purpose. Someone was sending a message."

~Before His Death~

Nnoitra growled at the silver haired man before him, who had a lazy smile on his face.

"It's your fault! I got caught because ya sent me out by myself—"

"No one told you to chase that woman, Nnoitra. But we're not mad about that."

"Yah? Then what the hell is tha' gun for?!"

Gin raised the gun and looked at it, as if he had forgotten it was there. He turned back to Nnoitra and shrugged, still smiling.

"We can't allow you to let any of our secrets slip, Nnoitra. There's no telling what you've told them already."

"I haven't told them anything—"

"I believe you," Gin said almost genuinely, except for that thin, sly smirk on his face, "But he doesn't." He raised the gun and pulled the trigger before Nnoitra could open his mouth, Gin tucked it away as his body fell to the ground. Flipping his phone open, he typed in a message and sent it before stuffing it back into his pocket and strolling away.

God,

It's done.

-Fox

"I'm not going to stay here—"

"Yes you are."

"Let me help!"

"No."

Rukia followed her brother down the hall, glaring at his back.

"You can't keep me locked up forever!"

"Until it is safe, I will do what is necessary."

"Byakuya, I can be fine on my own."

Byakuya turned on her, making her jump to a halt.

"You do not know what they are capable of," he stated lowly, "I'm now doubting whether I should have told you about them at all."

"But they won't be after me," she stated.

"You are my family," he snapped, "Even if they do not think it was I that killed their member, they are still severely angry with me, and use any means to get back at me. That's why you are staying in headquarters under supervision until further notice."

Byuakuya walked off again, and this time Rukia simply let him.

"Or maybe you think I am," she muttered, before stalking off, beginning to formulate a plan.

"Ulquiorra…"

The green eyed teen snapped his attention to the brown haired man in front of him.

"Yes, Lord Aizen?"

"It seems Grimmjow has decided to attempt to… leave us. Would you be so kind as to persuade him to come back? The ticket for the subway train he will be on is in your room."

Ulquiorra bowed.

"Yes, Lord Aizen."

As soon as the raven-haired man was gone, Gin stepped out of the shadows, smiling after him.

"So are you really going to let Ulquiorra be trapped down there with them? He is one of the most loyal we have."

"Yes, and I have no doubt he'll survive. He's resilient. And besides, if anyone can get poor Grimmjow to come to his senses, it's Ulquiorra." Gin chuckled.

"Ironic, since they hate each other." Aizen simply smirked for a moment before waving a hand at Gin.

"Go get the others. We have a lot of work to do."

Figured everything out yet? ;) I hope so! More to be discovered! After all, they're still trapped, many still injured... Will they figure out the connection in time? Find out next time! muwahahahahahahaaaa