On the edge of reason

She frowned, her teeth digging into her lower lip as Kiriko stared pensively at the westward wall of her office. That particular reiatsu was hard to ignore, even suppressed as the Captain Commander was on a daily basis. It was even harder to ignore in her own domicile, invading the security and peace of Kiriko's inner palace. Scrunching up her shoulders, she let a quiet tension spread across her face, an angry besmirching scowl that threatened her normally placid features. That man! Why did he seem to never cease in his pursuit of annoying her? First he acted like a fool, then he tried to lay himself bare to get her trust, and now this? Destroying public property instead of knocking like any well-mannered soul would do?

Did he think to draw out her ire by harming that which belonged to her? Well, if so, the Captain Commander had succeeded. Kiriko did not take kindly to such ugly displays. Stalking towards the door, she brushed past the courier who had been rushing to inform her of the event, leaving him staring at her in her deathly wake. Sensory limitations such as walls and other barriers had stopped being a hindrance several months before, and after taking on the mantle of Penance it had become even easier to pin point the myriad of energies floating around her. It lent a certain credence to the previous rumors of her being omnipresent, and it suited Kiriko's taste to maintain that image even now. It was easier to dissuade betrayal when your subordinates believed you would know what they were planning even before they did.

Tugging at her long sweeping sleeves, Kiriko straightened the dark red material with an impatient huff. Despite her irritation with this new development, it wouldn't do to meet the Captain Commander in anything less than full attire. Not that Kiriko went anywhere without being impeccably presentable, but hours sitting at a desk had a way of wrinkling even the most well-ironed cloth.

Her breath misted in the chilled air as she exited the Command Annex. Following a narrow path, she twisted right, then left, and finally straight before coming into the inner sanctum of the Second division's enclave. There, standing peaceably amidst the debris, was the target of her wrath. He hadn't even so much as distanced himself from his paltry display of strength and there was no guilt in his demeanor, or those staring eyes. Kiriko frowned again, a twist of her lips as she glided forward.

Her eyes were sharp and bladed as she cast a dismissive glance at the crater in the ground, “Are you a child, Captain Commander, here to beg for some praise for your show of strength?” Ine Kenshou had never been strong. Kiriko's own inner battles with her physical prowess had forced her to compare herself early on to the best and the brightest within Seireitei, and she had always know that his true weapon was speed. Even at her weakest she hit harder then him. So what was he doing, and why? This seemed all too petty for the wily intellect she had spied within him the last time they met.

“I'm afraid that kind of display won't win you any accolades here, perhaps you should go back to the First if you are looking for compliments and pats on the back,” she spoke idly, her tone cold but almost absentminded. She was still trying to figure it out... Why come here in such a flashy manner? And why draw the attention of everyone in the Second instead of just Kiriko? Unless he intended some sort of public display? And how could he benefit from the eyes of the group when dealing with Kiriko? Was Ine about to call her out...? Surely even he must realize that she wouldn't be cast down without a fight, not even by the Captain Commander himself. And especially in front of her men.

Shifting closer, she eyed him with that particular brand of piercing insight that she was so well known for. Leaning in, her words were as harsh as ever even hushed, “If you wanted a fight, you should have just said so, Ine-soutaichou.” That simple, that direct. Well and so, this would be interesting wouldn't it? Kiriko tilted her head upward, her shoulders squaring as she stared at her opponent. He was here to test her, but not in the way she had first assumed. She hadn't had a good spar in a long while, certainly not since becoming Penance. It would be nice to stretch her arms and see what fit where now that she had overcome her past weaknesses. Enjoyable, almost fun, and she could see the same emotion reflected back in the man's aura. Who would have thought.

Kiriko had never really been one for small talk, she didn't much care for the pretense of this man's visit or even whatever words he had wanted to say to the collective now gathering around them. Ine wanted a public scene, she would give him a public scene. There was no indication, nothing telegraphed, one moment she was leaning in to whisper her words and the next a brilliant purple aura enveloped her entire body as Kiriko surged into movement. Shunko flames flickered and snapped at the very air, crackling their way into fierce competition with the oxygen that surrounded her.

The lights flickered, revealing sharp hollows and dark crevices where once there had only been muted flesh, and in the space of an exhalation Kiriko was suddenly thrown into relief, her shadow cast long behind her as she flew forward. One step, two steps, pivot; Kiriko darted towards Ine, her weight forward thrust, until she suddenly spun on her left heel and threw a high kick towards the Captain Commander's ribs. Letting the momentum carry her, she threw her body along that forward track, her foot curving down and her body spinning towards the Shinigami's back as she lashed out with a double fisted punch, aimed at the unprotected kidney. Strikes with the intent to cause harm, but mainly pain. This was just the beginning after all, there was no reason to show all her cards when he hadn't even shown one of his. A smile carved its way across her face, breathless and free, as Kiriko realized that a fight was really just what the two of them needed to figure out their relationship to each other.

WC: 1078 | GP: 21 | Total GP: 21
 
Stats:
Reiatsu: 360 || 450
STA: 162
 
Power: 90 || 150
Precision: 140 || 170
Defense: 90
Speed: 40

Action One: Kick to Ribs hitting at Power 190 [150+20+10+10 || Base+Hakuda+RP+Insight] and Precision 260 [170+15+10+5+60 || Base+Hakuda+RP+Insight+Shunko]. 

Action Two: Punch to the back hitting at Power 190 [150+20+10+10 || Base+Hakuda+RP+Insight] and Precision 260 [170+15+10+5+60 || Base+Hakuda+RP+Insight+Shunko]. 

STA Cost: Basic Strike Cost = Basic Action + Shunko Upkeep - Hakuda Master Effect = 1 STA x 2

Current STA: 160/162

Kenshou felt her coming, taking her time yes, but she was coming. Her arrival was marked with her off hand remarks to him and his character. Kenshou smirked, it was not often he found one who was someone who could even back their banter up with him. This would be quick, it was not a regular spar but rather to see if she could back her words up from their last meeting. If she could push him at all then she would be fine, but if she could not he would have to find another who could help her if need be.

It did not take long for her to make the first move, a kick to his torso. She was fast, as fast as himself in fact. He was barely able to dodge the kick, even leaving a cicada after image behind he felt the crack of his ribs. Several had been broken and many were fractured, his left side lit up with pain. Before he even finished getting out of the way, she had punched the after image. It collapsed around her fist and vanished almost as quickly as it had appeared. Kenshou had been right to choose her back when he became Captain Commander.

He paused a moment as he was sure that Kiriko was already aware of what had happened and where he was. He looked at her and locked his eyes on hers, she was unlike any of the others here, she was a shinigami in every definition of the name. Her loyalty to her duty was unwavering. He bowed head and upper body ever so slightly to her.

"I had to be sure that you could back your words up with the actions if need be. I needed to know that you could carry out the orders I gave you when we last met, Chinda Kiriko I apologize for such a brash entrance."

There would be no more games, no more testing, there would only be respect. She had earned that and she had earned it beyond any doubt in his mind. She was unlike any other shinigami he could think of, she was his equal and that was no easy task to accomplish. If she weren't so set on being the captain of the second he would have taken her to be his own lieutenant.

"Kiriko, we may have had our difference played the games testing each other, but that ends today. You might not realize it but you are the first one in a long time to land a blow when I did not allow it. That in itself is a feat and with it you've earned my respect, you are one I am proud to call a Captain of the Six Court Guard Squads."

Kenshou felt the bones in his body, he was sure some had punctured some of his bits inside his body. He would need to have it healed, being hurt like this would not do him any good. It was odd though, for so long only one man had been able to touch him and in truth he really was not a man, he had become something more. Whatever broken being he had become it was not of importance to Kenshou, for now it was time to solidify what would happen to the Gotei on his departure. Kiriko would be a good leader and one that would do good for the Gotei.

"Now what would you say to a nice conversation over some tea, or may something a little stronger to numb the feeling of broken ribs." Kenshou smiled, there was no hard feelings or ill will in his voice. He reached to his side with his hand and could feel the bones shattered in a few places. He had been through worse that was for sure, but it was nothing to scoff at. Kenshou was not sure if there was any being alive that could match Kiriko for the speed of her strike and the force at which it was applied was nothing shy of equal amazing.

Kenshou began to walk away from the battlefield towards Kiriko's offices, he had seen a many second division captains. He remembered where the old annex was. A long time ago Jackknife, Nasake, and himself had come here to get further orders after being attacked outside the Rukongai. Simpler times, when a competition might just be, how many hollows you could pick off before they all were gone. Now, now his words and decisions could affect the balance of worlds.

It would surely spread, the Captain Commander had clashed for a brief second. The Flash God had been touched, not just touched but hit. This would only add to the story of what had happened, it would be embellished and it would be the talk for some time. The long hallways, twists and turns, before he finally arrived at the annex, Kenshou waited silently for Kiriko to enter before him and invite him in. 

1,342 Total Words - 26 GP

The air was fluid as she cut through it, her body moving and shifting and breathing into existence as Kiriko slammed full-force into her opponent. The slanted ground made for tricky footing, but she was perfect in her form, skirting the worst of the rubble and coming up at an unorthodox angle to send a spearing blow towards the Captain Commander. That had been the first lesson she had learned in the Second. If you're not strong enough to take someone on from the front – be quick and smart and you can surprise those who expect a certain type of combat within Seireitei.

She had never been good enough for the headlong approach. Striking from the shadows had been the only way to survive in the beginning. Now it was just habit. Apparently Ine had been expecting something different from her though and she smirked grimly as shock registered in his eyes right before his form blurred and bled into space. Refusing to stumble as her fist rocketed through plain air, Kiriko used the forward momentum to thrust herself towards the after-image. Did he think she would be fooled by that sort of parlor trick? While it had been impossible to read his intention from body language alone, his reiatsu hadn't been as tricky, and Ine was known for one thing above all else – it didn't take a genius to know he'd try to escape close quarter combat with her.

Spinning, she let her senses range outward, ignoring what her eyes were telling her with that stupid shadowed clone. Once she caught tail of the right reiatsu, she lunged, eyes snapping open, just in time to see Ine gingerly tapping his ribcage and staring at her with that hint of startled shock. Well damn. It only took one glance for her to see that the fight was all out of him, drained like her own elation as he turned serious and canted his chin in her direction. The closest she was going to get to recognition apparently.

Kiriko was in motion though, and contrary to her illustrious reputation there was no one she knew who had enough control over their muscles to just halt a forward onslaught when there was so much force behind it. Not that Kiriko accepted the limitations of humanity, not anymore. With the blink of an eye the flickering purple flames were snuffed out of existence, her shroud of kido energy suffusing into space as the air crackled with latent powers. Carefully executing another pivot, ensuring that she wasn't about to roll her ankle in the attempt, she spun with her center of gravity shifted downward in order to expend the power behind her lunge. She still ended up mere feet away from her target, hands fluid and straight – no reason to waste a PR campaign either, she'd decided, and had completed her full-stop with her fist only a few inches away from her opponent.

“Damn it, Ine-soutaichou!” Kiriko wrinkled her nose, flicking her hair back over her shoulder as the tension bled from her utilitarian form. “I was going to enjoy myself,” she murmured, just to the two of them, everyone else too far away to hear what was being said. The wide-eyed faces of her cohorts was enough to cause Kiriko to give each and every man and woman there a sharp glare until they scrambled to away and returned to their jobs.

Eying the musing way in which he poked at his side, she realized she must have actually done some damage simply judging by his range of easy motion. Or lack thereof. The man kept the pain from his face though, and she admired him for that. Raising a hand, she flicked her fingers, and one of the nearest Shinigami broke away from the group that had proceeded to repair the hole in their courtyard.

“Send for Natsuki-san,” Kiriko commanded, not bothering to look any closer as Ine offered his paltry excuses for another stupid idea and began walking towards her offices. Damn that man to Hell and back. He really did irritate her.

Stalking after his back, she tried not to think too much about what he'd said in the aftermath of their little tussle. It wasn't a real fight, so that word seemed fitting. Proper even considering the effort they'd put into it. And how much the two of them resembled squabbling children who'd finally had it out. She hated him even more for the warmth that suffused her limbs when he spoke of his respect for her. Hated him for making her feel this way when she had sworn to never let a man's pride or respect sway her ever again. And yet, the words, as cursed as they were, fell over her like a balm.

Had that been the issue all along? She had wanted him to respect her, to trust in her power? And Ine had always held back, just that much, with his insouciant nature and his witty retorts. Damn it but they might just be beginning to mend their relationship, and she really was getting used to being angry with the Captain Commander...

Striding into her office, she flicked the door aside and gestured for Ine to enter. Casting a callous look over the nearly empty room, her eyes lingered on the bay window and the single piece of inked art behind her desk. Everything else was cleared away and that was how she liked it. No reminders of who else had sat in this office before her. Nothing to linger from the past.

“I would offer you a seat, but there is only one chair in here. And I'm not certain you should be sitting anyway until you get those looked at,” she spoke over her shoulder, stepping into the room and clearing a few folders off her desk. “Natsuki-san will arrive soon, he has been trained in Kaido, more so than my average man. He functions as our medic with the less serious injuries or the more... secret ones.” 

WC: 1006 | GP: 20 | Total GP: 41

Kenshou waived his hand as he entered her humble office, the sparsely decorated place was a stark difference from when Roddo, Eon, or Noaruji had been captains. It was odd to think of the fact that in his time in the Gotei he had known about half a dozen captains for the second division. It seemed a cursed fate for those who took the job, they did not last very long.

"I won't be needing your medics, it isn't my first set of broken bones and I doubt it will be my last. I do believe though you're the first person in quite some time who was able to lay a hand on me without me letting them."

Kenshou sat down and could feel the pain shoot up through his body as the ribs adjusted in the broken state, pressuring his internal organs some. Nothing he could not heal off himself or simply let time mend. The pain was simply a way of telling him that he had been right in trusting Kiriko.

"Such a vile and wretched filthy world we live in, beings beyond comprehension using souls as nothing more than a toy to enact their anger and rage. Have you ever realized how lonely it is to wade along, losing students, brothers, sisters, everything you have?"

Kenshou thought of those he had lost, the ones most dear to him; Artix, Hikari, Rose, and Maki. Most of them had died, but all of them were gone. Beyond his reach and he had often wondered why he had not allowed anyone to fill that void in his life. Someone he could trust, someone he knew would be at his back when he needed them most.

"It made me think that fate was something more, a higher power who was evil in every form of the word. A vile being who did nothing more than make us suffer for the decisions we made and the ones that we could not, but lately I've thought that maybe I was wrong. Maybe instead fate is nothing more than the predetermined rules of our human nature."

Kiriko, she was unlike the others in the Gotei. She may not openly show them, but she had emotions buried underneath that stone face of hers. Her line of duty had taught her to erase those emotions, as to not let them betray her. Kenshou had learned to harness his and to channel them in his battles.

"Now more than ever I feel as if I am no longer adrift, like I've found a rope while being underwater and I have finally pulled myself to the surface, the murky and wavy water no longer distorting my view of the world."

Kenshou finally knew what it was that he needed to do, he knew what was necessary for the Gotei and himself. He had thought that just forcing those who could take leadership by doing nothing would work, but in reality they had disappointed him far greater than he thought their failure would. The lacked the direction, the drive, the strength to be what they needed to be.

As such he would have to prepare the Gotei and ensure that it became stronger than ever. The first thing would be to ensure there were adequate defenses in case someone like Tova ever showed up again. As of right now, maybe together Kiriko and himself could stop such a person but the rest of the captains were useless. Kenshou would ensure that the balance was maintained beyond anything and those under his command would be able to carry out that mission. The middle path had led him here, to ensure that balance was kept.

Kenshou knew that if anything the thing he had to do first was to clean house. He could no longer accept things, because his predecessor had simply willed it. It was time to rid the Gotei of the abomination that was Jomyaku Umi. He had allowed such a blatent disregard for everything go on long enough, this man if he could be called such was nothing more than a rejected experiment of that monster Tova.

"Kiriko, it's time rebuild the Gotei into something greater than before it broke. I'm going to need someone who I can trust to help me, can you be that person?" Simple and direct, it was all he needed with this woman. Flattery and fancy words would have been lost on her ears. She was not the same as Allessandra or Junko. No Kiriko was much more like Maki, a soldier who needed orders. Yes they both had made and one was still making a good captain, but they both lacked something. Kenshou needed to figure that out before he was able to finish the plan he had started so long ago.

He needed to know what it was so that when he left her to replace him, he could trust that the Gotei would be fine and would no longer need him. He hoped that she would eventually be able to join him in his grand scheme of things, but there would be a time where she would become the next Captain Commander and he had no doubt she would do fine, but he expected more and wanted her to flourish. For that he needed to know why he had failed with Maki when he had left her in charge of the fifth.

902 Words - 18 GP

2,244 Total Words - 44 GP

 Kiriko watched blandly as the Captain Commander walked behind her desk and sat in her chair, something inside of her raging at the slight in the very same way as her face remained absolutely blank. He was her superior officer and deserved every respect. That was what protocol dictated. And yet, she had become so used to be in charge in this room. A room she had begrudged in the beginning the same as the haori on her back. For him to just waltz in here, even after she’d struck him such a blow, and remind her tacitly of their power dynamics that remained with or without her physical superiority…

That man… she could almost admire him for his audacity. Certainly the anger that would have resided in the pit of her chest had anyone else done what he did was less, a flicker of constant flame that seemed to only embolden her thoughts. If this was reconciliation, if this was his way of telling her he trusted her, she knew she should push for more. Should demand more.

And yet… The same trap she fell in again and again was the very same trap that was so delightfully appealing. Trust. Power. Regard. Here was a man offering her the same as many had before. And here she was so ready to accept it. So ready to ignore the outcome of all that had come before Ine-soutaichou. The outcome that had dogged men she had believed in far more than this one.

But there wasn’t any room to maneuver. She realized that too as the man eased slowly into her chair, letting his body adjust to the pain. Kiriko hated to be trapped like this, trapped between her own desires and her logic just as much as she was trapped between orders and fate. She let him talk, ignoring the words as the wind that they were, her mind unraveling her own questions.

To ally with Ine… To truly ally with him as she had not quite done before. To commit her all to his side. It would give her protection, power even, the power to do what she wanted to do. What she needed to do. And yet it would mean being tied to another again. Being beholden to another. Having to answer to Ine at the end of the day. But wasn’t she already in that position? Didn’t she already have ties that held her back from full freedom? At least if he trusted her she would have increased her power base. At least if he trusted her she would be allowed into his mind in a way that their petty games had prevented thus far.

Kiriko knew that her goal of purging this world of all its sins was a long one. She was nowhere near ready to do it any time soon. Slowly, slowly she had been moving the pieces around the board. But she now knew that it would take more than herself. And that it would be like swimming upstream the more she tried to resist and fight against the Captain Commander. If she confided in him… if she told him what she knew… Could they become allies?

His gaze bore into hers, and she looked directly back, a small frown twisting at her lips. “Ine… I told you before. Tsukimiya-taichou put you in charge and I trusted his word. Despite our mutual dislike I have done my duty perfectly. I already am on your side and I have been.”

She cocked her head, the frown turning into a wry smile, “But you know that, don’t you. You’ve known that. And you’re not asking for my obedience, are you? You want something more… Loyalty beyond the conscription of our hierarchy. So I’ll say what I said once before, I believe in a better Seireitei, I believe in a better world. I will be there with you so long as your goals are in line with my own, and the moment you falter, the moment you begin to work towards something different…” she trailed off, shrugging daintily. “I already told you, if you fall to that beast within you I will take you out. And if you fall to the beast within men, if you fail to hold the betterment of Soul Society as your primary goal, I will take you out.”

“That’s all there is to it.”

It wasn’t a declaration of devotion. Not in the way that Ine had been fishing for. She wouldn’t become his slave. She wouldn’t set aside herself for anyone. Not ever again. But she could be his ally. She could be his partner. Her terms were simple enough, and if he had not been lying they would be the same as his. So long as he worked towards that dream, towards repairing Soul Society, she would be at his side. And if he faltered, she would maintain that dream, even if it meant removing him from the picture. That was what it meant to hold a shared ideal. To be equals in that hope.

That really was all there was to it. Kiriko was simple like that. Black and white. If he pushed for more, for total devotion, she would turn away, knowing that the Captain Commander was not what she believed him to be. Not what the world needed him to be. If he accepted her terms… Well, that would be interesting. And mutually beneficial to both of them, to stop this ceaseless bickering and come together on the one thing they both agreed on. On the one thing they both had power over. 

WC: 937 | GP: 18 | Total GP: 59

It seemed that Kiriko still had something to learn, maybe she had not learned as much from Kyousuke that he had believed. She still seemed to think that their own goals were something they were allowed to have. He really could not blame her, since he himself had been under the same impression when he had been captain of the fifth before he had been chased away from the Gotei. Once he had accepted his position as Captain Commander he had realized that it was not about his division or his own personal beliefs. He had to set that all aside in order to ensure the survival and strengthening of the Gotei.

It had been for this reason he had allowed the divisions to stagnate, he had wanted those who would prove themselves and take the position of captain to step forward. Ideally it would have only been a few weeks at most, but it had taken months. It worried him that so few had been willing to step forward and to simply take such a position. It may have been a lack of intuitive or maybe they had expected him to simply place those in his favor in such positions.

"Mutual dislike? My dear Kiriko I don't dislike you and never have. In fact you remind me of a lieutenant I once had, I rather was fond of her too." Kenshou wondered where her journey had taken her, Maki had been something special and had she been around he was wholly sure she would have been his successor. The path of if's was a dangerous place, it was simple to let the what if's consume you.

"You seem to be making one mistake though, we don't get to put our goals ahead of the Gotei's best interest. That's all we are and all we are allowed to be, you need to understand that more than anyone else in the Gotei. When I am gone and this mantle of authority passes on, you need to be ready to make the hard decisions. You need to be able to go against your personal desires and to set aside any morals you hold dear. There is only sacrifice in your future, the sooner you accept that the better."

Kenshou wondered if maybe she was incapable of doing such a thing, but it was not like there were any better choices to replace him when he was no longer here. That time was coming, sooner than he preferred, but that was simply the way it had to be.

"You have courage and I can respect that, but it won't do you any good. Neither courage or respect will do you any good without the single ultimate truth. You could ask me what that truth is, but I can't deny you that journey. Eventually you'll find it and when you do, you will be left with the decision of what to do with that. Will you reject it? Will you accept it? I can't say what I will do when I'm forced to confront that issue and who knows what you will do, but you will be tested one day."

Kenshou had seen many before him tested and so far he had never seen anyone come back from that, they had all fallen and shown in the end they couldn't handle the truth. They may have worked around it danced the line, but they had all failed. It would come a time when he was truly alone and without family that he would look deep within, the place he dared not to go in his own soul. He would walk that path and confront her, he would answer her question and there would be consequences. He only hoped that day was many centuries away.

2,874 Total Words - 56 GP

Kiriko shifted, her perfect stillness shattering as the proud woman let her shoulders drop. Leaning back, hip against the door, she stared at Ine, trying to see what it was that he thought she had missed. What it was that he had sought so hard to hide from the rest of Soul Society. She could see that same quiet fervor in him, beneath the gaudy casing. She could see the quiet river of dedication that had become his blood. See the walls of Seireitei that had become his skeleton. She saw too much at times, and yet never enough. Never enough to understand someone completely, down to the last drop of reiatsu. As skilled as Kiriko was with her powers of insight, she could not read minds, and Ine remained a dangerous enigma.

“You misunderstand me,” she huffed, letting a moment of irritation color her tones as her hand cut through the air sharply. “I do not have a personal goal. I do not have personal morals or obligations. Those things do not matter and I shed them long ago. I understand what we exist for, perhaps the Second is the best place to understand that truly, for we have always believed that we fight for something beyond us. That we transcend the personal to do what is needed.”

“I know that lesson. And I know sacrifice.” She who had sacrificed everything. It was painfully ironic to be called out on this now as if he hadn't even been listening. But no one saw the reality she saw, no one had ever looked at her and saw what he knew to be herself. The shadow of guilt. The mantle of penance.

“That is why I said what I said. I will follow you so long as you remember that lesson yourself. The Gotei needs a leader, not a man. If it is you, or me, or anyone else, those specifics do not matter. Only the work that that person does, the sacrifices they make, the dream that they enact. And we share that dream Ine-soutaichou, that dream for the future of the Gotei. For the future of the world.”

She closed her eyes, speaking from an inner place in perhaps her first break of protocol between the older Shinigami and herself. “It isn't about wanting, or even about dreaming. It is about seeing that future, being so close to it that you can taste it, and knowing that you will do anything to get there. The Gotei will survive, but more than that, we will become powerful again. We will remember our roots, and surpass the weakness of history. The balance of the world depends on it. The innocents depend on it. The future depends on it.”

She opened her eyes, pushing off the door and standing tall and straight. “The Second is ready. We have been ready, striving to show the rest of the divisions what it means to be prepared. Now it is time to stop letting the children play at being adults and finally find the Shinigami who will lead their divisions into that future.”

WC: 515 | GP: 10 | Total GP: 69

It seemed that maybe Kiriko was finally accepting of the situation they had been thrust in, he by Kyousuke and her by his own hands. She had taken the mantle of his successor, not only was that simply her fate but it was something he doubted she would reject. Her ideals were strong and rigid, possibly too rigid. A chance that she could adapt if needed, the most rigid code was good for keeping one's self on a path. The problem was when a bit of pressure was applied, the rigid code would snap and who knew what would be left when that happened.

Kenshou stood up, it was obvious they had come to an agreement of sorts, possibly they had even forged the beginning of something more than being superior and subordinate. Time would tell if Kiriko was a good ally, or someone waiting in the shadows to twist a blade in his back. He figured it would only be appropriate to give her something for the trouble she did put into breaking his ribs.

"You know, if you get any stronger I might actually be able to fight you without holding back. Would be nice to be able to practice with my Bankai, I'm afraid it may get rusty if I constantly have to hold it back constantly."

A small tease and a reminder that even today, he was still holding back something from her. It was good to constantly keep those around him pushing themselves harder and if she was to replace him she needed to be an unstoppable force that nothing would ever be able to get past. She would have to be the sword of the Gotei.

He walked to the door and paused for a moment looking ahead it was a wonder that right now they were enjoying such a peace, it seemed that they had come to an understanding. Kenshou did have one final question for Kiriko, one he did not expect her to answer right away.

"Freedom, Justice, Honor, Duty, Mercy, and Hope. Which one of those do you think fits you and your division best? Think on it, give me an answer someday. I'm interested in your thoughts on the matter."

Kenshou knew his thoughts on the words, each one was the embodiment that all Shinigami had. But each individual held the pull of word more than the rest. It was often why they ended up in the division they did. He wondered if Kiriko was as straight laced as she appeared or if she was something different internally, if after all her dedication to the second if she had not been better suited elsewhere. Funny thing was even if she had been better suited elsewhere like he had, it did not mean that she would have turned out like she had.

Kenshou himself would have been better suited for the second, killing in a single stroke and never being seen. He would have excelled at the kind of work they often found themselves in, but by a twist of fate he ended up in the fifth and he had become the shinigami he was because of those he met along the way. He stepped away from her door and headed back to his own division, at a simple and leisurely pace.

3,425 Total Words - 67 GP