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IN NO WAY DO I OWN THE IDEAS FOR BLEACH! I CLAIM NO RIGHT TO THE CHARACTERS OR ANYTHING ELSE! THE ONLY THINGS I OWN ARE HIROSHI AND EIJI! ABSOLUTELY NOTHING ELSE!

The last thing that happened to me while I was alive happened when my family and I were taking a car trip; we were on our way to the airport near Karakura Town. It was the middle of the night and my parents were both exhausted. When they rounded a corner, a jet black car went speeding by and my mom swerved to avoid hitting the moron who had ran the stop sign. We spun out of control and were skidding towards a light pole at fifty miles an hour. I threw my body between my brother and the window right as we hit it. The car caved in around the shape of the light pole as shattered glass assaulted my face and torso. With my eyes closed, I screamed in pain as the shards penetrated my flesh and the impact crushed my ribs.

"HIROSHI!" my mother screamed.

That is the last thing I remember hearing in life.

I opened my eyes and was shocked to find myself standing outside the wreckage of the destroyed rental car. I walked forward as if I was in a dream and saw the carnage inside just as the faint wail of an ambulance could be heard. I walked around and was astounded at the amount of blood I saw. Oh no someone has to be dead for there to be this much blood. I looked in through the shattered windows and saw with relief that my mom and dad were still breathing; but my mom, who was driving, had her face gashed up and was unconscious. My dad was little better with a huge sliver of glass protruding from his arm and with his glasses warped and twisted on his face, but he was still breathing which was a blessing all its own. I moved to the back windows and saw my two brothers and two sisters in the back with various extensive injuries. My little brother, Eiji, was the only one conscious and there was a weird shapeless lump covered in blood and glass slumped across his lap. At first glance It appeared to be a large dog or something and then I remembered that there wasn't a dog with us in the car. I looked at my little brother and saw tears running down his face as he started nudging our older brother awake and I could hear his voice filled with terror, "Brother? Brother? Brother, please wake up. I'm scared so please wake up." I watched with a sense of horror as my little brother, his blond hair caked with blood (my blood I thought), kept on trying to rouse my unconscious older brother awake. He then seemed to notice the husk slumped in his lap and what he did next still haunts me: He screamed, but this was not a simple noise. This was a cry that reflected the fear, sadness, and horror of someone who saw the life of one of the people he loved slip away. He screamed and screamed and screamed until eventually his voice started to crack with overuse.

"Eiji, don't worry. I'm here. Just look, I am okay. That thing in your lap isn't me. It is some sick joke or something," I said and then was shocked when he didn't even react. I raised my hand to touch him and froze. With my hand out in front of me, I saw that it was slightly see-through with edges that blurred like a photograph where the person moves right as the picture is taken. A light tinkling noise came from below me, and I looked down and gasped in horror as I saw a broken chain coming out of my chest. It didn't hurt and it looked as if it had always been there right on top of my shirt, but when I pulled at it I saw that it wasn't just bound to my shirt. It was stuck to my body as if someone had stitched it there while I was not looking. Then, on a hunch I looked into the car's smashed rear view mirror and saw nothing. At that moment, it was my turn to scream. Not a tortured scream like my brother's, but a scared scream like you would hear from a kid whose parents had left him alone at a park without knowing it, leaving him scared and confused. As I screamed, tears sprang up without my knowledge and flowed down my face. I cried until the ambulance arrived and my family was carted up and finally was calming down as they dragged out my body and covered it with a length of cloth.

***Time Lapse***

I ran as fast as I could. I chased the ambulances carrying my family away from me, but I was not quick enough. Just as I rounded a corner the vehicles went out of sight and their wailing sirens bounced off the walls, making it impossible to figure out where they were heading to. I turned back around and returned to the wreckage as a coroner pulled up and the people picked up my limp body and carried it into the hearse.

I watched in shock as the hearse also disappeared around the corner and left me alone with the still smoking wreckage. I stood there for hours until the sun peeked up from the horizon and painted the sky a rose colored hue. Without consciously doing so, I started walking away from the sight of the wreck. I am dead. . . . I am dead. . . . I know it as I know the sun is shining, but if I am dead what am I still doing here? Shouldn't I be in heaven or something like that? I was raised to believe when we die we go to purgatory to be judged, and then we go to heaven or hell. Well, standing around wondering about it won't do me any good. With those thoughts in mind, I ran. I ran like I have never run before. I did so without running out of breath or feeling the familiar burn in my muscles telling me to stop. Well I guess being dead has an upside. I wonder if this means I don't have to eat anymore, or use the bathroom either. When I finally decided to stop running, I noticed I was at the park where Eiji and I would play just to kill time. I went over to the swings and was about to sit down when I thought, I'm dead so I probably won't be able to actually sit. With that in mind, I just sat down on the ground and closed my eyes to think.

My mind wandered throughout the day, and when I finally could not take sitting down anymore, I decided to walk around the block. I walked down the street and didn't even bother checking both ways. I'm already dead. What is the worst thing that can happen? I was in the middle of the lane when a car came speeding by. I flinched, but the car just kept going and went right through me without the driver seeming to notice the fact he had just phased through a fifteen year old kid. I was freaked out as I discovered this new ability. Me being my fifteen year old curious self, I decided to test it out. I went to a building wall and slowly raised my hand and applied a slow gentle pressure and my hand slowly started to go through the wall. I yanked it out; still startled by the fact I could do something like this.

I took this opportunity to distract myself from the still all too fresh memory of my gruesome death. I would run through people and walls and intentionally throw myself into the paths of oncoming cars. I walked through the park and even the animals did not notice as some random kid ran through the jungle gym and trees. I was sitting, coming down from the euphoria of being intangible when I noticed a dog sitting a few feet away from me. Unlike the other dogs and people, this dog seemed to notice me. I say this because it was staring right at me. I stood up and walked and noticed that the dog moved its head and kept me in its line of sight. I was a little confused at that and was about to approach the canine when its ears perked up and it turned its head to a sound that I could not hear. A low growl escaped its maw as it got up and sprinted toward whatever had gotten its attention. I watched it go, and almost before my mind could react; my body was following the dog as fast as it could this has been the only thing that could even sense my presence I am not going to let it get away from me without a fight.

As we reached a clearing, the dog stopped and checked the area for something I could not see. I stepped into the clearing and the dog turned with murder in its golden eyes. Just as quickly as it turned around, the look faded and the dog came over and started nudging at me and whining trying to get me to go back where we had come from. It had pushed me to the tree line when I heard a noise that to this day still chills me to the bone:

An ear piercing sound that was a mixture between a roar and a screech.

I froze when I heard the noise and looked back over my shoulder to see a huge bulk of flesh fall from the sky. It hit the ground and a dust cloud rose up around its feet and flew outward obscuring my view of it. I was just beginning to make it out when something shot through the slowly settling dust and pierced my shoulder right above where my heart would be if I was still alive. Instant pain went through my entire body as the thing dislodged itself from me. When it was completely out, my body crumpled and I hit the ground.

The dust had finally settled and the one word that went through my mind was demon. The thing's skin was a disgusting infected purple color. It had a tail that ended in a spear point, that's what pierced my shoulder, and it looked like a 20 foot tall version of a devil. It had two hands with five fingers each, but the all ended in claws. The same could be said for its feet. In the center of its chest was a hole that went through its entire being. It did not look like a wound but more like that was how it was born. There was no bleeding and it was a perfect circle. The overall worst thing was its face. There was nothing there but a mask and two pinholes of vicious red light that were focused on me. The mask looked like a cat's face, but more like a skull with no details but for blue lines slicing up and down the sides. The teeth were huge incisors that slid together perfectly, showing that they were easily capable of ripping flesh and bone apart. It opened its mouth and a line of drool slid down its chin and fell to the ground. This thing is going to eat me. I had no doubts about it from the look in its eyes and the drool coming down its face as it stared at me.

As it started walking toward me, the dog got between me and it and snarled at the beast. The demon brought up its hand and swatted the dog out of the way without any effort. It turned back towards me and it seemed to chuckle. I closed my eyes just as it was a few feet away from me. I don't want to be eaten, please someone help me.

"ROAR, Tenken!" a deep voice shouted.

A huge blade sprung up out of nowhere and sliced the demon in half. It started to dissipate into the air and had the appearance of a thousand butterflies flying away from a disturbed tree. The blade pulled back and disappeared into the nothing it came from. I staggered to my feet and fell, so I decided to crawl and try to make my way to the dog. I was halfway there when a giant hand grabbed my shoulder. I panicked and flipped over to see if another demon had appeared, but instead of a demon I saw a man wearing a helmet that covered his entire face and gauntlets that did the same for his hands.

"Who are you?" I asked the man who was practically a giant.

"My name is Sajin Komamura. I am here to help you," a deep voice replied from inside the helmet. I recognized that voice as the same one who shouted right before the blade cut the demon in half.

"Were you the one who sent the blade that cut the demon in half?" I asked.

"Yes, that was my blade, Tenken," Sajin replied. "You should stop moving you are badly injured and moving is just making it worse so -"

"Is the dog dead?" I interrupted.

"What?" he asked in confusion.

"That dog over there," I said indicating the still form at the base of a tree. "Is he alright?"

"Oh you mean Goro!" he said as it sunk in. "Don't worry about him he's tough. You, on the other hand, are in no condition to move."

"Fine, if you say he is alright, I guess I'll believe you; So what now?" I ask as I became more and more aware of the pain coursing through my body like a million tiny razorblades.

"Now, you close your eyes and let me treat your wounds," he said gently, yet firmly.

I did as I was told and closed my eyes. Almost immediately, my shoulder felt better and the pain was starting to fade away. As the pain receded, I did something I didn't even think possible for a dead person to do: I fell asleep.

***Time lapse***

I woke up when I heard people talking outside the room I was in.

"How did this happen?" a deep voice I recognized as Komamura's asked.

"I don't know for sure, but if I had to take a guess, it has to do with the boy's reiryoku being what it is. Upon analysis, we have figured out that his reiryoku is able to change and replicate other people's reiatsu," a kindly woman voice replied.

"So you are saying he sensed my reiatsu and basically copied it?" Komamura asked.

"In a nutshell, yes, that is what I am saying," the woman said in turn. "When you were healing him, his body noticed your reiatsu and duplicated it to speed up the healing process. Now, it is time for you to go and get some sleep. You have been here for two days worrying over what has happened. I know you feel bad for it, but there is nothing you can do. We have sent samples of his blood to captain Kurotsuchi at research and development for further study."

"Okay, but let me know when he wakes up. I want to be here to explain what happened and apologize to him in person," Komamura said with anxiety heavy on his voice.

"You go home and get some rest, and I will let you know. I promise."

"Thank you Unohona," Komamura said, and left.

As the sound of his footsteps receded, I sat up. The door opened and in came a woman with black hair braided down the front of her body, blue eyes, and a young pretty face.

"So you finally decided to wake up," the woman I could only assume was Unohona said.

"Yes, I just woke up," I said. "I don't mean to be rude or unfriendly, but who are you?"

"I am Captain Unohona, leader of the fourth division and head healer in soul society," The woman replied, "and don't concern yourself about that. It is only natural to be curious and wary of a complete stranger."

"Soul Society. . . . Is that where I am?" I asked in confusion.

"Yes, Soul Society is the place a soul goes once a person dies."

"Why didn't I come here the second I died then?"

"Sometimes a soul needs the assistance of a shinigami to enter Soul Society. If they die with heavy hearts or regrets they are hindered in their efforts to move on," Unohona replied with a gentle smile on her face that let me know she understood what it was like for me at the moment.

"Shinigami?"

"Shinigami are a race of spiritual beings that act as enforcers and psychopomps who all share similar supernatural powers. They are souls with a high level of innate spiritual energy, recruited from the ranks of the residents and nobility of the Soul Society. Shinigami use their Zanpakutõ, supernatural swords that are the manifestation of their owners' power, to perform soul burials on pulses. Shinigami also use their Zanpakutõ, as well as magic known as kidõ, to fight our arch-enemies, the hollows."

"So that thing that attacked me back there was a hollow?"

"Correct."

"I do have one final question though," I said getting to the point I was trying to get to from the beginning. "What were you and Komamura talking about out in the hall, about the whole thing being wrong with me?"

She looked shocked and then her smile came back, but a little more hesitant this time. "You will have to wait for Captain Komamura to return for an answer to that question."

"Is there something wrong with me?" I asked with a hint of panic in my voice.

"No you will live and not be handicapped in anyway, but. . . . ."

"But I will have to wait for Captain Komamura to get here to learn the rest?" I asked finishing her sentence.

"Yes," she said, "but you are more than welcome to come out and walk around for a bit if you would like."

"I would like that. Do you have a garden or some place outside? It's kind of stuffy in here and I would like an open space to think about all of this." I asked politely.

"Certainly; if you would just follow me, I will gladly take you there."

We walked through the building and wound our way through it until we found ourselves at a peaceful garden. After excusing herself and telling me that if I needed anything to just ask someone, Captain Unohona left me alone with my thoughts.

So I am dead, I am in a place called Soul Society where people act like samurai and cut monsters in half, and there is something wrong with me that I am not allowed to know about until the guy who saved me from becoming a snack for a twenty foot monster shows up. Well, I guess I can't complain about being bored.

I looked around me and noticed the scenery surrounding me: there were cherry blossom trees swaying in the wind; there was a small Koi fish pond in the center of the garden with an ornamental red bridge going over it; there was a stepping stone path leading back to the building where I was asleep for two days; there was also a large stone bench that I made myself comfortable on while waiting for Captain Komamura.

I occupied myself by trying to imagine what he was like under the helmet. Was he ugly or one of those narcissists that thought he was too gorgeous for mortals to gaze upon? If that was the case, what was with the gloves? With these thoughts in mind, a smile formed on my lips as I imagined what would be under that helmet. When I grew bored with that, I walked to the bridge and stared at the pond below. I was staring at the fish when something caught my attention; in the water I saw a boy about 15 who looked like me, but the eyes were golden like the dog who tried to stick up for me. The face had sharper angles and bones; no, that's not it. My face is the same, my eyes are just sharper. My mouth felt weird and I opened it to see what was up and gasped. My teeth were not like a regular human's; they looked like a dog's. I freaked out and assumed it was someone in the water mimicking me, but when I moved it moved, perfectly in synch with me. This is my reflection. I just stared and stared when something touching my hand distracted me.

I turned my head and saw a dog about the size of a lab with copper fur and strikingly gold eyes.

"You are the one who tried to help me when that hollow attacked," I said with a bit of confusion.

"WOOF!"

I reached down and patted its head. "I guess I should thank you for that," I said with a thin smile on my lips. I squatted down and scratched him under the chin and behind the ear where all dogs had their sweet spots and was gifted with a low growl of pleasure.

"I see Goro has taken a liking to you," a voice said.

"Most dogs tend to like me, and I them," I replied, moving my hands down to scratch his belly. I turned around to see who was talking to me when I saw Komamura standing next to me on the bridge. "Oh, hello Ko. . . . I mean Captain Komamura," I said, correcting myself.

"I see that you have been informed about me," he said.

"Not really, but I did learn you are a Shinigami Captain and that giant sword that wiped the hollow from existence was your Zanpakutõ," I said, remembering what I was told. Without really thinking about it, I looked back in the pond to see my reflection. That thing is me; what happened?

Following my gaze, Komamura said, "I see you have noticed what has happened to you."

"It was kind of hard to miss," I said, still in a bit of awe at my new appearance. "Captain Unohona said you could explain to me what happened."

"I guess I owe you that," Komamura said with a bit of sadness in his voice. He bowed his head a bit and turned around. "Come over to the bench and sit down, and I will tell you what happened."

"When the hollow attacked you, it pierced your shoulder and went all the way through. I defeated the hollow just before it ate you. When I finally got to you, you were making your way to help Goro-"

"WOOF!"

He continued on as if nothing happened. "I placed my hand on your shoulder and you flipped around with panic in your eyes. That is when I got a good look at your wound. I saw what the hollow had done to you, and I knew I wouldn't be able to bring you here in time; so I used some medical kidõ to treat your wounds, but instead of just healing your wounds, your whole body started to shift. I ceased treatment, but it was too late. You were already changed. I brought you here immediately, hoping for a way to help you get back to normal, but so far there hasn't been any success in doing so. I am so sor-"

"Thank you," I interrupted.

"Wha-," he started.

"If it weren't for you I would not have survived, and for that I thank you," I said with a smile on my face.

"But I turned you into a monster," he protested.

"A monster? Hmmmm. . . I don't see it that way," I said casually.

At this, he was startled.

"I always thought it would be cool to be like an animal, and it looks like I finally got my wish. Even if it was a bad thing, what is this compared to being allowed to live another hour or day?" I asked, the smile on my face growing bigger with every word.

He remained silent throughout my entire rant. "I do have one question. If it's true what you said about my body reacting to your treatment, what about you would cause this?" I asked; my voice tinged with curiosity.

". . . ." he just sat there without moving.

"Come on, it's a fair question to ask," I said with a mild pout on my face.

"You're right," he sighed. He looked around to make sure that no one was around, and very slowly he removed his helmet.