Bleach Fan Fiction ❯ By Design ❯ Chapter 1

By Design

By: eternalsailorsolarwind AKA youkai_girl

 

Disclaimer: Bleach and all of its characters are owned by Tite Kubo, his Japanese publishers, and Viz. I only play with them for grins and giggles.

 

A/N: Ichigo's powers are less an accident than something Urahara planned. Urahara POV.

 

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Kurosaki-kun­ droned on and on about chance, his powers, and destiny, while Urahara listened with half an ear. It was one of his erstwhile student's favorite topics, and the former scientist was sure this was Speech #19 on it. Kisuke hid a smile behind his teacup as the scowling young man continued his tirade; he could recite all of them from memory.

 

“Of course it was just an accident of fate, Kurosaki-kun,” he interrupted politely as the orange-haired substitute Soul Reaper paused for breath. “But didn't you promise to pick up some groceries on your way home from school for your sister?”

 

His reminder has the desired effect, and the son of his oldest friend hurried out the door. Once alone, he placed his teacup on the table and frowned down at it. Urahara was one of two people who knew the whole truth behind Kurosaki Ichigo and his astonishing shinigami powers. Who knew that those powers were not an accident, or what most people thought of as “destiny.”

 

They were part of his master plan; he had contrived their appearance in this generation.

 

In themselves, Ichigo's powers were perfectly normal - had he been born in Soul Society. In the Living World, they were virtually unheard of (outside of popular culture, that is). In fact, Kisuke had spent decades - generations - arranging marriages to create offspring that had high levels of reiatsu while still among the living. He used the Quincy clan system as his model. It was a highly effective one.

 

After all those patient years carefully sculpting several family trees, Isshin arrived as planned and on schedule. Urahara introduced the former captain - now very much in hiding - to several women with a high spiritual pressure latency potential. Nature took its course, and in due time Ichigo was born. Kisuke still remembered being knocked back a step the moment Ichigo's reiatsu exploded from him with his first wail. Everything had been going according to plan.

 

“And then comes the `demon Murphy',” muttered the shop keeper in disgust.

 

That was the last time anything went right. Isshin, instead of training his son to use his powers, allowed them to run wild. The result being the death of his wife Masaki after trying to save Ichigo from a threat she couldn't even see - a Hollow drawn to the boy's enormous spiritual pressure. Neither his wife's slaughtered body nor his traumatized children changed Isshin from his chosen course: keeping his family away from the coming storm.

 

My own fault, I suppose, thought Kisuke. I never took his driving need to protect into account. Like father, like son.

 

Ichigo had been drawn in anyway, though the boy's lack of control still gave Urahara nightmares. In order to keep him alive, the former captain had been given no choice but to turn Ichigo into a Vaizard. Explaining to Isshin - after his son left for Soul Society - what his pure bullheadedness had caused was not on his list of Ten Favorite Things to Do in the Living World. At least it had the desired effect of getting his old friend back on track where their original plan was concerned. Small comforts.

 

Standing up, Kisuke took his dishes into the kitchen. “Sorry, Ichigo. I'm afraid I'm not done with you yet. But there's too much at stake to leave you to chance.”