Juushiro appeared just beyond the frozen cave entrance. The wind whistled outside, banging on the wall in front of it. The wall of ice didn't break. Cold silence issued inside. Nothing stirred. Juushiro sighed deeply and withdrew Sougyo no Kotowari, laying his zanpakuto on the ground before him, showing that he was no threat. He waited then took a step forward.
Juushiro appreciated beauty and Hyourinmaru's powers had turned what once was a dark cave into glimmering sculptors of ice. The reflective light of his sheathe danced among the sharp stalagmites and stalactites like some kind of fairy or living fire. Lumpy boulders were nearly invisible in the dim light, altered and shaped to blend in with the sleek icy walls. However, for all its beauty, the stillness permeating the surroundings affected Juushiro more. He could sense nothing of Toshiro's reiatsu.
With the chill of foreboding growing in his heart, eyes on a symbol carved into wall nearby, a mark he knew very well, he sighed deeply.
"Hyourinmaru, I invade your sanctuary not as a warrior but a friend. I beseech you to tell me what caused this tragedy. Try to calm your rage with the tale and pass your revenge onto another's hand, to rest with your master."
Sensing the solemn respect from the shinigami, Hyourinmaru appeared before Juushiro, not in human form, but in his true form, the dragon god of ice and water. "Look upon my master and tell me who you think caused this."
Juushiro followed the dragon as he led them deeper into the cave and towards.... Toshiro's tomb. Even through the protection of the ice, the crimson bloodstain on his chest was plain. With no other signs of a struggle on his young body, it stood out like a brand, not as Aizen's defeat of Toshiro in battle but a swift, painful and ultimate betrayal.
Juushiro lowered his head. "How many lives will you soil and ruin, Sousuke? How many will you change, destroy their bright light?"
Was Kita the stubborn girl he had met but twice finally gone? Carrying a horrendous burden, she still had fought against her capturer. Until now. Wasn't the proof of that before him? Kita was broken, gone. Only what Sousuke wanted remained.
Kaien's face, twisted and horrific from the hollow that had defeated him, swam before the captain's eyes, replaced a moment later by Hinamori's tearful, frenzied gaze before Yamamoto Sensei had forced her back into blissful sleep. A terrible scream echoed in his ears. A warm smile from a sliver haired girl as she squeezed his hand. Toshiro's wound remained.
Juushiro took a deep breath and spoke, faltering, the answer the dragon had asked for at the entrance.
"I see one. fatal. blow, and I know from Tsukiro's dream interaction with her- that Kita shared the caved with him. I am... sorry, Hyourinmaru. Death like that... to be killed by one you trusted.. no one should have to go through it." He let his hair cover his eyes. "And I have seen too much of it recently."
He didn't know how long he stood over Toshiro's tomb, silent and miserable. When he did raise his head, he turned to his guide once more. "Please lower the storm, friend. There are others outside... who tried to help him... and especially one who should say farewell."
Farewell, Kita Miyamoto. When I take Sousuke's life, I will... do what must be done. For Soul Society and for yourself.
I am sorry, Toshiro Hitsugaya. We didn't come for you soon enough. Forgive me.
He hoped Kisuke had the courage to ask for the details he knew must be asked. He didn't know if he could do it.
