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I was wringing my hands in nervousness; this was going to be the day that I was supposed to go to the captains' chamber and face a trial for what I did to Shinta. This was not something that would require central 46, but the way I acted was not something that could be ignored either. At least that is what I thought. I wasn't told anything except to come here. I was escorted by the instructor who was in charge of overseeing the exam; she was also asked to be present during the "hearing" to add a witness testimony. No fair; she was actually allowed to know what this was about, while I am left in the dark about the whole thing. We were waiting outside when she asked, "Where did you learn that kidõ?"

"What? . . . Oh you mean Raikõhõ," I said as it dawned on me. "I don't have anything to distract me and no friends to hang out with, so whenever I felt lonely I would go to the library and read and study." I laughed without mirth. "Eventually, the librarian knew me so well that he let me know where to find books for my studies. He knew I was fascinated by kidõ and that it captivated me to no end, so he would lend me entire books filled with them. I would find a quiet place outside of Rukongai and I would train there without rest. Sometimes I would be late to class, and that was the main reason I was always asleep," I finished. Admitting my secret felt like a weight of my chest.

"So is that how you were able to stay in the advanced classes, and be at the top of your kidõ class without trouble?" she asked as it dawned on her.

"Yes, I have read Bakudõ spells up to number 88 and hadõ spells up to 68. Can I tell you something though? I never practiced Raikõhõ before. That was my first time using it.

Her eyes widened in surprise, "You're kidding me." She looked into my eyes and something in there made her say, "Oh my God you are serious." I nodded my head. "Wow, those kids were right. . ." she saw the hurt look on my face and rushed to finish her sentence, "I don't mean about you being crazy weird, that's not what I meant. I mean powerful. You are probably the only person ever in academy history to do something that complex and still have the energy to break through a high level kidõ like Tsuriboshi," she finished.

A white haired man came out and told us we could go in now. The Instructor was making her way in when I grabbed her sleeve and stopped her. "Can I ask you for a favor?" When she looked at me with a guarded glance, I quickly finished, "I wanted to know if you could tie this around my eyes so I don't have to look at all those people," I said, fishing out a black strip of cloth from my pocket.

She smiled at me and sighed. "It's kind of funny; you can do something that even some shinigami can't do, and you are afraid to walk into a room with a few people," she said as she took the cloth and tied it around my eyes.

"It's because of the things I did that I am here. Wouldn't you be scared?" I say, my voice shaking a bit.

"I guess I would," she said with a small chuckle and finished the blindfold.

We were lead into the captains' chambers with me gently holding the instructor's robe. When she stopped and stepped away, I stood where I stopped and waited for the hammer to drop. I stood there feeling all the eyes staring at me, judging me.

"Captain-commander Yamamoto may I ask what is going on here?" a voice said. It sounded rather young; probably around thirteen years old and definitely male.

"Shut up you insolent brat. You wait, and I am sure we will find out," a voice said. This voice was male and slightly nasal, and when listening to it all the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. I had no idea why, but I knew if I was ever alone with this man he would rip me apart limb from limb. I shuddered as I imagined the look of sick pleasure that would surely be plastered across his phantom face.

"Hey look Kurotsuchi, just hearing your voice is enough to make the kid shudder; can't say I blame him though," he ended with a bellow of laughter. This voice was also male, but he sounded bored and as if he would rather be out killing something than staying in a room for a meeting. This man scared me just as much as this Kurotsuchi person.

I tried to calm myself down, and it was working; but then a loud voice echoed across the hall and through my bones.

"ENOUGH!" it yelled. Once again, this voice was male, but it spoke with an absolute authority and everyone fell silent at that one word. Without a doubt in my mind, I knew this was Captain-commander Yamamoto. "We are here today to discuss an incident that occurred at the arena next to the squad three barracks one week ago. During the first duel between this boy, Hiroshi, and another boy, Shinta, this individual was making an attempt on the other's life. This was strictly against the rules and explained as well, right Hinato?" Captain Yamamoto asked.

The instructor answered immediately, "Yes Captain-commander. I explained that attempts on another's life were strictly prohibited."

"You were present during this fight correct?" Yamamoto asked.

"Yes sir, I was present for the whole fight from beginning to end," Hinato answered.

"I ask that you relay the events for all to hear, leaving out nothing!" Yamamoto said.

"Certainly; the two boys were at the center waiting for my signal to start the match. The other boy, Shinta, had a false start and rushed Hiroshi with his sword. Hiroshi easily dodged the attack, which infuriated the other boy, who then went into a flurry of slashes and stabs without any regard to the life of Hiroshi; who still managed to dodge all of the attacks. Angered even further, Shinta used a flash step technique he probably learned before joining the academy. Hiroshi was caught off guard and whirled around to attack Shinta, who had already preformed another flash step. This time, Hiroshi was able to keep up with it and even was able to throw in a counter attack. Hiroshi used hadõ 1: Shõ and threw Shinta against a wall, but the boy was well trained and used his feet to land against the wall and jumped at Hiroshi intending to slice him down the middle; once again without any regard for Hiroshi's life. Hiroshi then used the Shakkahõ spell and hit Shinta square on. Hiroshi Bound Shinta using Geki and launched himself into the air. Up until this point, Hiroshi had been a careful fighter; not once doing anything that could be fatal, but then something happened. His manner changed and," She stopped and seemed to recollect herself before beginning again." He became more feral and reckless. Hiroshi screamed at Shinta saying that he had driven him to hell and back. . . . And then he used Raikõhõ-"

She was interrupted by Kurotsuchi who said, "That is preposterous. No academy student knows or can even use that technique, and even some shinigami haven't been able to master it." He sounded like one of those know it all snobs who refused to admit there was something he did not know, and would probably hate it even more if it was proven he did not know.

"I assure you, I am not lying, Captain Kurotsuchi," Hinato said evenly. "You may ask all the students and the boys themselves if you like; and of course the Captain-commander."

"No more interruptions!" the Captain- commander boomed.

"Like I said, Hiroshi cast Raikõhõ and was about to reduce Shinta to a smoldering corpse, but before the spell had the chance to hit him, the Captain-commander cast a Dank?. Hiroshi had gone into a frenzy, and he dived down to spear Shinta with his Zanpakutõ. The Captain-commander threw up a Tsuriboshi to catch him. Once caught, Hiroshi struggled against it but then calmed down and turned around so he could talk to Shinta. Hiroshi had broken and was in tears as he asked him something I could not hear. Shinta said something and Hiroshi lost it. His spiritual pressure spiked and the Tsuriboshi was ripped to shreds. Hiroshi fell on top of Shinta and used his fists to beat him to a bloody mess. As a result, Shinta was sent to Captain Unohona. She will be able to better explain his medical condition," Hinato finished and she grew silent after.

After a few minutes of the silence, I could not take it anymore and slowly removed my blindfold. I kept my eyes closed until the light didn't bother me too much. I opened my eyes and looked around me. I was in a hall surrounded by ten people in captain's haori. I recognized Yamamoto right away. After that I recognized Captain Unohona. I looked to my left and felt my heart skip a beat as I recognized Captain Komamura, but he was not wearing his helmet. You could see his face just fine. Next, I noticed the small string with a mirror attached hanging from his sash. Some of the Captains gave some noises of surprise as they saw my eyes; the same golden dog's eyes as Captain Komamura.

One of the Captains who had not yet spoken asked, "Is this the boy from the incident three years ago?"

"Yes, this is Hiroshi Osamu from three years ago, the boy who possesses a very unique reiryoku that can imitate a person's reiatsu." Yamamoto explained.

I put my hand to my face just below my eye and ran my tongue over my teeth. I had become so accustomed to the changes that I hardly noticed them unless someone drew attention to them. Even the enhanced senses had become normal for me.

A smaller captain addressed me with a question. "When you were caught in the Tsuriboshi, what did the other boy say?" I recognized the voice as the child who asked why they were all here. He possessed hair whiter than snow and turquoise eyes. He looked like he belonged in grade school.

"I asked why he made it his mission to ruin my life, and he just smirked and said it was because I was peasant trash that had to be thrown out before I tainted anyone else. The comment itself wasn't what really set me off, though. It was the condescending look on his face; it said that he thought he was better than anyone, that he would gladly get rid of anyone if it meant that he could prove his own superiority. He was the kind of person I made sure to deal with before I died. When I was alive, one of my brother's friends had killed herself because of a person who had talked badly about her family after they had died, saying that if she weren't such a lousy piece of shit, they would still be alive. She believed him and killed herself that night. My brother and her friends were distraught over her death, and the little worm who caused it just laughed at everyone," I explained, remembering my little brother's depression and the satisfying crunch as I shattered the weasel's nose. "It was a stupid thing, but it struck a nerve and I finally had a way to put him in his place."

A tall man with an eye patch and spiky hair started to roar with laughter, "I've seen the kids medical charts. He will definitely have learned a lesson after that beating!" This was the man who owned the voice that sounded as if he were bored with the meeting. It seems that has changed.

Another captain spoke this time; he had not spoken a word until now. He had black hair with brown eyes and clips keeping his bangs to the side of his face. "Does the fact that the young boy came from a high noble family mean nothing to you?" he asked with a stern voice.

"Personally, I don't believe in noble families, only noble people. Noble families get by on the actions of their ancestors and get better opportunities just because someone did something in an earlier generation, or the family is known for something in particular. It is not fair to the people or the children to get special treatment," I said plainly.

"It is time for us to get back on track with the hearing," Yamamoto said. "We have a record that says you are applying for the experimental program at the academy. Is this true?"

"Yes, my instructors recommended me to do it and I decided to do it," I said a little hesitantly.

"I see," Yamamoto said. "Our records also say you are in the top of your class in kidõ, swordsmanship, and quick thinking."

"Yes, that is correct," I say, wondering where this is going.

Yamamoto thought for a bit and then came to a decision. "You will take the test on the original date determined on the pass and you will pass it or you will be forbidden to take the exam and will be expelled from the academy. Or you can drop the advanced courses and go back to classes with the people in the same year as you and take the graduation exam in seven years time, but the same rule applies. If you fail, you will not be able to retake and you must leave and live in Rukongai for the rest of your time in soul society. Those are your options and punishment for attempting to take the life of another student. That is final. Your position in your class is the only thing keeping you from exile. If you pass, we will discuss your penalty afterwards," he finished and slammed his cane down. "Dismissed!" he bellowed.

I bowed respectfully and turned to leave. I was outside of the hall when a nasal voice called, "Hiroshi!"

I turned and looked to see who was calling me. I saw a tall man walking toward me. As he got closer, I realized this was a weird man: he had white and black makeup, a weird hat that jutted out to the side, and when he smiled he had gold teeth with white gums. The middle finger on his right hand had a nail that grew out like a claw. "My name is Mayuri Kurotsuchi. I am the head of research and development. I was the one who studied your blood when you first came here," he said with a voice that tried to sound friendly, but was entirely too creepy to really work.

"Oh. . . Yes, I remember Captain Unohona saying she did that," I said, remembering the hushed conversation.

"Yes, I would like to study you in more detail if you would allow me to," he said, not unkindly. "What do you say?"

I was trying to figure out a way to say no and politely excuse myself when I heard a low growl. "Leave the boy alone, Mayuri," a familiar deep voice said. I turned around and was happy to see Komamura standing behind me.

"I wasn't going to do anything lethal, just some modifications," he said, trying to look innocent.

"Don't mess with the boy. He isn't even a shinigami yet and you already want him to be a test subject for you? I suggest you leave now." The last words came out as a quiet threat.

"Fine," he said, looking bored. He smiled and looked at me. "Let me know when you change your mind," he said cheerfully. A growl escaped Komamura's throat. Kurotsuchi looked at him and sighed, "Don't worry, I am leaving . . . for now anyway." I shuddered as he disappeared from sight.

We stood there and just let the silence envelope the air around us. I was having trouble keeping my breathing under control being so near to him.

"You look just like you did three years ago," was the first thing Komamura said.

"I could say the same to you," I said with a smile, all the tension gone. "No helmet?"

"Not anymore," he said.

"It's a nice change if you ask me," I said, still smiling. My eyes found the shard of mirror strapped to his sash. "You kept it? I asked.

He smiled a bit and fingered the tiny mirror. "I did."

"That's good to hear," I say brimming with happiness. The smile dropped from my face when I remembered where I had to go back to.

Komamura noticed. "What's wrong?" he asked.

"I have to go back to the academy and prepare for the test, which is two days from now and not to mention I have to study some more to make sure I know everything I need to," I sighed. "Well, I guess I should start walking before people figure I was executed," I said, trying to crack a joke to lighten the mood. I started to walk away.

"Wait. I can send someone from my squad to pick up your stuff and you can stay with me at the squad 7 barracks until your test." Komamura said earnestly. He seemed to be embarrassed by the quick and forward invitation and turned his gaze off to somewhere in the distance.

"I can stay with you?" He nodded. I smiled and said, "Thank you I would like that a lot."

We strode off side by side back to squad seven barracks. He actually invited me to his home to stay for a while, it may not be much but I am certainly taking it!