Inaba had taken control of the Precipice World, which prohibited Asa and the rest of the Shinigami from returning to Soul Society and remained stuck in the World of the Living. While most of them went their own way, she felt tired and needed to rest for the day. Urahara was accommodating Nozomi, the mysterious girl Inaba was after, and she didn't want to bother him. So she contacted Tadashi and asked if she could stay at his place; and he agreed instantly. While he was excited for her to be visiting him in his home after so long, he suspected something happened that made her stay in the World of the Living instead of returning to Soul Society. Nevertheless, he still openly welcomed her and was willing to help her if she needed any. Though she'd arrived at his home that was nearby Ichigo's place, he was very hospitable and tended her needs as she tried to accustom to the alien surrounding.

"Here you go, Asa-nee!" he said excitedly while serving a bowl of stew. "My special nikujaga. I'm sure you haven't eaten it for a long time."

"You're right." she said with a smile. "I miss this a lot. I still remember how good you were at cooking."

"Well, I still am!" he boasted with a thumbs-up.

"Let's put that to the test, shall we?" she challenged playfully before putting her hands together. "Itadakimasu." Using the porcelain spoon provided, she took a sip of the stew and hummed in delight. "It's still very good!"

"Told you so!" grinned Tadashi. Just then, they heard the doorbell ring and he stood from the floor. "I'll get it!" He left the dining room and headed towards the wooden door. Once he unlocked it, he swung it open and was stupefied to see who had rung the doorbell, prompting him to point his finger and yelled, "W-What are you doing here, Byakuya-nii?!"

"Such foolish question shouldn't be asked." remarked the said man with his arms crossed over his chest. "I'm here to stay for the night."

"Yes, I know that." responded the Visored in an impassive voice. "But I don't remember giving you an invitation to stay here."

"Are you not going to let me in?" pushed Byakuya.

"I don't have enough room for us, though." said Tadashi.

"Will you not sacrifice your bed to me?" suggested, or rather, ordered the Captain.

The younger man's left eye twitched out irritation before he heaved a sigh and finally gave in. After all, it's pointless to argue with someone as stubborn as Byakuya. "Fine." he said. "You can stay over." He stepped aside to let the "guest" enter. "But don't blame me even though I've warned you."

But it was already too late. When Byakuya entered the second hall, which happened to be the dining room, he halted in his tracks and his eyes widened with surprise. Sitting at the chabudai in the middle of the room was Asa, who was still adorned in her Shihakusho and her hair was maintained in the bun he'd tied earlier that day. Her sheathed Zanpakutou was laying beside her on the floor. Upon hearing his footsteps, she looked up and was equally surprised to see him.

"Byakuya." she muttered before a small smile formed on her face. "I didn't expect to see you here."

"Asa." was the only thing that escaped his lips.

At that moment, an annoyed Tadashi walked into the room. "Jeez, can't you at least settle down instead of barging straight into the dining room?" he questioned after heaving a sigh. "Anyway, you came at the right time. Asa-nee and I just started having our dinner. Would you like to join us? I've made some nikujaga."

"Do whatever you like." answered Byakuya before taking a seat across Asa, folding his arms across his chest.

Blue lines formed all around Tadashi who had an emotionless expression. "Can't you be more straightforward with your answers?" he grumbled before entering the kitchen.

Asa giggled at their exchange. "This brings back memories, doesn't it?" she stated. Byakuya had a small smile on his face before it quickly disappeared to maintain his stoic expression, giving a soft grunt in agreement.

It still felt like yesterday for them when he and Tadashi had this sort of exchange. As long as they were on duty as Shinigami, Tadashi respected Byakuya as the Captain of the 6th Division, and regardless of what conflicts happened between them, they remained professional and tried not bringing in personal feelings into these matters. But behind closed doors, it was a complete 180 degree. Whenever Byakuya and his wife visited the Sasaki Manor for dinner, the former would begin bickering with Tadashi, who was equally stubborn as him. Byakuya would find ways to get whatever he wanted no matter how trivial or petty it was, especially when it came to what he wanted to have for dinner, and Tadashi either nagged at him or grumbled while having to entertain his request. Michiro, Asa and Hisana would laugh sheepishly at the exchange; not that they were complaining, though. It was pretty entertaining to watch them behave like children after a long day of work.

Few moments later, Tadashi walked into the dining room with a tray carrying two bowls of stew. "Here you go." he said while placing a bowl in front of Byakuya. He then put the tray away and took his seat between the two Shinigami. After saying "itadakimasu", the two began digging in.

"So, mind telling me why are you here?" asked Tadashi while looking at his guests. "Don't get me wrong. It's not that I don't like your company. I'm just surprised that you didn't return to Soul Society instead." The two Shinigami exchanged glances with each other before Asa began telling him the whole story, about people went missing in the Precipice World, Ichigo's imprisonment, and the situation that led to the Shinigami who went through the Precipice World remain in the World of the Living. When she finished, not only they'd finished their food, his comment was, "Why is it that the interesting stuffs happen after I've been exiled?"

She gave him a sheepish smile. "I'm not sure if that's the right thing to say." she said with a sweat drop on her temple.

Tadashi chuckled. "I'm just kidding." he assured before getting up on his feet to clear up the table. "Well, it's getting late. I'm sure you both need some rest for whatever is gonna happen. Since Asa-nee is going to occupy the guest room, I guess I'll just let you sleep on my bed, Byakuya-nii."

"That won't be necessary." he suddenly said.

Tadashi stopped what he was doing and looked at him. "Huh?" he responded. "But if that's the case, where will you sleep? I'm pretty sure you'll use Senbonzakura on me if I offer the floor."

"Who said the floor is the only option left?" questioned Byakuya. "I'll be sharing a room with Asa."

"Wait, why?" asked the young Soul, who was getting more confused.

"Is it wrong for me to share a room with my lover?" said the Captain. At that moment, Tadashi felt like everything came to a screeching halt. He turned pale and his jaw dropped; he looked so shocked that one would think someone had slapped him across the face. "Just send in another bed. I don't think she's comfortable at the thought of sharing one with me."

"O-Okay." was all the Visored could say.

Once Byakuya left the room, Asa looked at Tadashi with worry. He was probably the only one who didn't know about her relationship with Byakuya, and mainly it because he was Michiro's brother. He may have been the one who pointed out the signs of Byakuya's affection towards her, but because of that factor, she wasn't sure how he would actually take it. Would he think she'd betrayed his brother by loving his best friend, whom also lost a beloved one?

"Asa-nee, you can stop with whatever you're thinking right now." he suddenly said, snapping her out of her chain of thoughts. When she turned her head to look at him, she was surprised to see a smile on his face. "In fact, I'm glad that you're starting over with Byakuya-nii."

"Tadashi..." she trailed off, loss for words.

The said man noticed her expression and his smile stretched further. He put the last bowl on the tray and pat her shoulder. "I'm happy for you, Asa-nee." he said genuinely. "And I'm pretty sure Aniki is." Giving her shoulder a little grip, he took the tray and went back to the kitchen to wash them.

Asa stared into space for a moment before a smile flickered across her face as well. She looked at where she last saw him and thought, 'Thank you, Tadashi.' Using her hands to help herself up, she grabbed her Zanpakutou and went to the guest room.

When she arrived, Byakuya was sitting in an Easy Pose on one of the beds that was on the right side of the room, with his arms crossed over his chest. He had removed his Captain's haori, the Kuchiki Clan scarf and kenseikan, and his fingerless white tekko, neatly placing them on the nightstand.

"I see you've made yourself comfortable." she noted playfully, to which she received a low grunt as a response. With a giggle, she closed the door behind her and went over to the other placed on the opposite end, leaning her Zanpakutou on the wall before sitting on the edge of the bed.

"You're still wearing it." noted Byakuya suddenly. Asa looked up with confusion, and finally understood what he meant. She smiled at him as her hand reached for the gold kanzashi to remove it, letting her hair cascade to her waist, and place it on the nightstand before laying on the bed.

As soon as her head touched the soft pillow, she stared at the ceiling and let her mind wander; thinking of the events unfolded that led her to this situation. But then, worry suddenly struck her. What would happen to the others in Soul Society? Will her grandfather be okay? Are the servants safe from the Reigai? So many questions were bombarding her mind, which was soon interrupted when she heard Byakuya calling her name.

"You're worried about something." he noted.

Asa was silent for a few moments before tilting her head to look at him. "I am." she admitted. "I'm worried about everyone else in Soul Society. What will happen to them now that it became part of Inaba's territory? Will they be alright? Will Ojii-sama and the servants be alright?" Her head tilted to her left, returning her gaze to the ceiling. "I hope the Reigai don't harm them."

It was Byakuya's turn to stare at her for a fraction before letting out a humph. "Fool." he scolded lightly. "If you let yourself worry over problems you can't solve, it'll bring no merit to you. Just focus on what you can do now, and that's resting as much as you can."

Byakuya was right, thought Asa. She shouldn't worried about Soul Society so much. At the moment, besides resting, she needed to know who Inaba was and how was he able to trap the Shinigami in the Human World. She hadn't received that sort of information so there was no point in planning anything.

"You're right." she said softly. Tilting her head once more, she smiled at him and said, "Thank you, Byakuya." She turned around, letting her back face him, and closed her eyes. "Goodnight." Whether he responded or not, she wouldn't know, because she had already dozed off.

The following morning was when everyone had to gather to find out what happened before they could solve the issue. Tadashi was preparing breakfast for the three of them, and like usual, he began bickering with Byakuya who insisted that his fish should be cooked in a certain way he liked. Asa could only watch the scene with a sheepish smile before she went over to help out with the cooking. Finally, they were able to settle down and have a scrumptious breakfast together.

Once they were done, Byakuya and Asa used Flash Step to get to Kurosaki Clinic, where everyone else had gathered. They went inside Ichigo's room, where the sign "Shinigami Imposter Crisis Committee Headquarters" was pasted on his door.

"Alright, we will now begin our Shinigami Imposter Crisis Meeting." said Renji. "With your permission, I will be your host."

"Hey!" grunted Ichigo, which caught the Lieutenant's attention.

"Huh?" he responded when he saw him gritting his teeth in anger. "What's the matter, Ichigo?"

"Do you even need to ask?!" he snapped and glared at every Shinigami present in his room. "Why're we in my room?!"

"Now, now..." said Renji in attempt to calm him down.

"Too many interruptions!" said the annoyed Kurotsuchi. "Get on with it." Ichigo heaved a sigh as he gave up arguing, allowing the Captain to speak. "The mastermind is Inaba Kageroza, 7th Seat in Squad 12 and a section chief in the Department of Research and Development. He controlled and studied the Precipice World. In other words, he's a Precipice World specialist. This Precipice World incident was planned entirely by Kageroza. He manipulated time in the Precipice World so that we would be met by the Cleaner, he confined us there, and sent back Reigai versions of the Captains to Soul Society. If left unchecked, the entire Gotei 13 will be under his control. How aggravating!"

"Kageroza." began Ichigo while sitting with his elbows resting on his knees. "He lured me to Soul Society by manipulating the Gotei 13. During that time, he tried to capture Nozomi. What is he planning to use Nozomi for?"

"In all likelihood, that girl holds some huge secret." assumed Rukia.

"For example, he may have hidden something inside that girl's body." added Asa, which triggered the memories of Rukia having her Hogyoku forcefully removed by Aizen on the Soukyoku Hill in Ichigo's mind.

Clenching his fists tightly, he muttered, "I won't allow it. I'll never let something like that happen again!" Asa merely stared at him before the meeting adjourned once everything had been discussed inside the room.