Chapter Text
Karin bit her lip, glancing down at the Soul Reaper uniform she was currently wearing. “You sure I won’t get in trouble for wearing this?”
“You’ll be fine, the Captain Commander doesn’t care about… this kind of stuff,” Urahara had returned to send Ichigo and Karin out into the Soul Society. Ichigo could’ve sent her herself, but the man had insisted, saying that he needed to go to the Society anyway, and they caved in. Karin grabbed her brother’s hand and a small bag containing toiletries and other essentials.
“Kay, let’s go!” They marched in together, quickly passing through the precipice world and entering. Karin’s eyes widened as she looked around the bright blue sky and fluffy clouds. The grass was wet, and there was a lot of mud, but it was very beautiful. She breathed in clean, unpolluted air.
“Karin?” Ichigo’s voice rang out and she looked at him.
“Yeah?”
“Let’s go.”
“Okay.”
“…”
They walked at a brisk pace, Karin looking around curiously, Urahara quietly talking to Ichigo about Yoruichi and the kids. And so, they reached the gate relatively fast, waving to Jindanbo, who allowed them to pass quickly. He opened the gate and the three scurried under, thanking the large man.
A group of men went out to meet them, visibly relaxing when they saw Ichigo.
“What’s up, man?” Ichigo yelled, exchanging a handshake with the man in the front. The man was well tanned, with shoulder-long black hair. All the men were wearing black uniforms.
“Ichigo!” He had a slightly high-pitched voice and a nice smile.
“Hey, Hanataro! How’s it going?”
“Great, actually.” Hanataro looked at Karin and Urahara. “These lovely-looking people are…?”
Ichigo grinned and said, “This is Karin, my younger sister. Oh, and the man now running away is Urahara, former captain of Squad 10.” He sighed. “Actually, umm… can you do me a favor and run her over to the Head Captain? I should be meeting with Zaraki, actually…”
“Yes, of course!”
So Ichigo hurried off on his way, and Karin got to be acquainted with the man. She learned that he was Hanataro Yamada, co-Third Seat of Squad 3, and was one of the people in Ichigo’s stories.
“Ichigo talks about you a lot,” Karin said. “He says you’re a goodhearted scaredy-cat.”
Hanataro laughed nervously. “Oh, really…”
They reached the building and he led her up to the Captain’s room, but he was quick to warn her about the man. “He’s old but scary, so be careful!”
She reassured him quickly. “Oh, I’ll be fine. I’ve faced much worse.”
Karin entered the room.
“Hello? Are you Mr. Genryusai Yamamoto?” Karin said in a loud, confident voice to the man right in front of her.
“… and you are?” The old man, with his white hair and beard, asked her.
“I’m Karin Kurosaki, younger sister of Ichigo Kurosaki and daughter of Isshin Kurosaki,” Karin said, “I… have a request.”
The man peered down at the girl. “Kneel,” he said.
Karin obeyed and asked him, “I would like to be a Soul Reaper.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Why?”
She sighed. “As you know, Brother Ichigo is going to college, and the ones suited to protecting Karakura Town are old and away.” She paused. “I’ve already been taking care of the Hollows around, and-”
“Sure.”
Karin blinked. “Wait, you mean-”
“You’ll have to go through some paperwork, of course, but that’s it. Oh, and you need to choose a captain, too, but I’ll get Captain Abarai to deal with that. Okay, you’re set! I want you to find Renji Abarai, Captain of Squad… Three, and,” He paused, scribbling some words onto a scrap piece of paper. “tell him that Genryusai Yamamoto of Squad One wants him to show you around.”
In approximately a minute, Karin was handed the note, given a vague set of directions, and pushed out the door.
“… what the flip was that…” Karin was completely speechless. She thought she’d have to give a formal... she didn’t really know, an audition? A speech? Well, she hadn’t expected it to be so easy, but she supposed she was a Soul Reaper, now. Blowing the bangs out of her face, she tapped the shoulder of a tall, blondish-orangish haired girl with long wavy hair.
“Excuse me? Do you know where… Renji Abarai is? Umm… the Head Captain told me to find him.”
She laughed. “Yeah, yeah, sweetie. What’s your name? I’m Rangiku Matsumoto.” The lady grabbed Karin by the hand and started dragging her, talking as she walked. “I feel bad for Renji. You know, he’s a fairly new captain, so the Head Captain makes him do all the work. He’ll be… less enthusiastic pretty soon.”
They walked quickly, Matsumoto talking about ranging from “Bro, wtf” to “I kind of understand what you’re saying.” Karin nodded her head, like she understood, and made a mental note in her head to seriously question Ichigo about the difference between beer and cider.
They reached a building, and Karin was surprised by how… big it was. It was a skyscraper, practically. In a city with such… rural town vibes, she was surprised to see how modern it looked.
“Go ahead,” Matsumoto said, “and have fun!”
She waved goodbye and Karin reluctantly waved back.
“Oh boy, this is going to be fun.”
She had never met Renji Abarai, personally, but the way he acted around her, it was like they had been childhood besties since… forever.
“Hi! What’s your name?” He prompted her with questions, all while casually stabbing papers in a inhumanly fast speed with his stamp. He seemed to be busy, so Karin was reluctant to ask him for help, but when she did, he immediately agreed. “Sorry to ask you when you’re so… busy.”
“Not at all!” Renji grinned with an adorable golden retriever energy. “Sorry, Hisagi must be rubbing off of me. I took way too much work for other people, and now I have loads of work to do.” He sighed. “But a walk would be nice, it’ll clear my head! Okay, I’ll finish this stack and let’s ago!” He said the last part like Mario, and Karin internally cringed.
“Let’s ago? What’s up with that?” She asked.
He smiled. “It’s apparently an otherworld phrase, from this character called Mario.”
She faked a smile. “Yeah… I know.”
Karin stretched as Renji finished stabbing the papers with his stamp. Just as he stood up, a girl of about 18 walked into the room, her short black hair slightly curling at the edges.
“Hey.” She said to Renji, then asked, “Who’s this? Wait… Karin!”
Karin’s eyes widened in shock. “You’re… Rukia?”
The two ladies stared at each other, surprised. Karin vaguely remembered when a girl named Rukia had stayed in their house for about a school summer. She was weird, but charismatic. That girl, Rukia, looked nothing like the girl standing in front of her, though. The girl in front had short black hair that was a bit spiky and messy. “Rukia” had been quirky and funny. But the girl in front of her looked serious and refined, quiet.
“Wow, Karin, you’ve grown! And look at your bangs! Aah, they’re so cute!” Rukia squealed, and now Karin knew it was Rukia.
“Miss Rukia! How’ve the last few years been treating you?”
“Lovely, just lovely.”
Renji stared at the two so casually conversing. He whispered to Rukia, “Babe, how do you know her? She told me she was a new Soul Reaper and the Head Captain-”
“She’s Ichigo’s sister! Oh, Renji, you’re so silly!” Rukia reached up and patted his head affectionately. “Where are the two of you going?”
“He was going to show me around Soul Society,” Karin said.
Rukia’s eyes sparkled. “Oh, can I come?”
Renji and Karin looked at each other and shrugged. “Sure,” they said.
