The Noble Art of Shunkō [Closed/Zâbel]

The synchronicity in her life of late was rising to ridiculous proportions in the most baffling way. It was as though once determining that she had to break free from her self imposed prison, that some sort of dam had been breached within her life to set the whole world in motion. While before she had literally boxed herself into a corner of stagnation, since raising her head from her laboratory the leads and options for her to pursue seemed to be endlessly multiplying.

While she dressed for this new encounter, she ticked off the events in her mind. Captain Fugikagi had dumped the Quincy research project in her lap literally seconds after she had decided to give up on her Resurrection Research and reclaim her life so that she could effectively contribute to the Gotei's overall mission. She reached for her boar bristle hair brush from the night stand, pausing to look at herself in the mirror before putting her hair up in her usual configuration. She wasn't so much as looking at herself in the mirror as she was examining the events of the last few weeks.

The flier advertising the Kidou Club meeting seemed like ample opportunity to deal with her antisocial tendencies. There was nothing more stimulating than to engage in intellectual discourse, explore new avenues from which to examine one's work, though certainly she was completely out of her element in a group setting. Normally when she engaged in conversation that piqued her interest it was always a one on one situation. Forging new habits was the point, however. Running into Moriya there, of all people, had certainly provided a challenge to her resolve. That was something she could never have anticipated.

Upping the instances of coincidence, something she was finding a bit hard to credit these days despite all the hypotheses out there concerning chaos theory, was the presence of the very man whom Rania has also tasked with the Quincy research project. Ok, she had to admit, not some mild altering instance for the fliers had obviously gone everywhere if one even managed to reach her isolated region of the Fourth. Even so, the presence of the Captain Commander's arrival added further weight to the suspicion the universe was conspiring to punt her into action. Minor details both and no real evidence of divine power at work, at least not without all the rest coming into play.

She had struck out to gather field data on the Quincy's destructive power in Karakura Town, only to have a defective Jigokuchō lead her to Paris. Here she did find a suitable specimen to observe in action only to come face to face with just how ill suited she was in combat. Not a huge secret by any stretch of the imagination, but it certainly had been rubbed in her face. This made her break out of her bubble even further to undergo the indignity of seeking help from Nagato. She still ached from his tutelage but he had indeed referred her to another to broaden her opportunities for instruction in the martial arts.

Li Yingfeng. The name had not been totally unknown to her, remarkable and she made a lifestyle out of being reclusive and obsessed with her own pursuits to keep up on all the FNGs over the last 4 centuries. Immediately though she recalled he had been hanging with that Shinsei Madarame at the Kidou Club, clearing quite at ease with one another. Naturally she had investigated the man just as she had done when Rania told her she would either be collaborating or in competition with Shinsei.

At first she had uncovered nothing that set off her investigative mind. His Academy records showed he was possessing of intellect, was prone to being morally ethical, and showing remarkable talents in Hakuda, though his creative nature lead him toward developing Shunko. It surprised her that he was not assigned to the First, but instead served in an auxiliary capacity. Even so his attendance at the Kidou Club had not been cause to set off her sense of coincidence. That actually happened through a roundabout inspection of other files.

Doula, had been tasked to compile all recent Quincy encounters into a file for her review. The incidents had been varied in severity but only further served to corroborate the up-rise in their threat to the balance. That was when she noted that Li had been listed among those in the file.

She frowned reading through the report of the encounter, realizing that even one who was training in the military arts had not walked away unscathed against these horrid creatures. The warrior had actually been hospitalized for a couple months and been in a coma. A quick calculation made her realize that he had only been out of hospital a couple days at the time of the Kidou meeting. Where he had been in close conversation with Shinsei. That is what teased her sense of investigation into high gear.

After getting overly intrusive into his activities. Of considerable interest were his works within the Rukongai. Massive as it was, it was no surprise she had not encountered him there, in fact it was rather nice that she hadn't had to calculate yet one more coincidence into her analysis of the situation. She even got a list of his recent library habits and realized that he was either launching an investigation of his own into the Quincy, only natural to study your enemy so that next time the encounter would go more favorably. She smiled quite approving of this logical approach. However, once again she was shaken by the realization of how the world had been calling her to attention and her deaf ears had refused to hear.

The man had acquired a Quincy Artifact, and it was housed within the Fourth at this very minute, the report of its acquisition sitting in her interdepartmental box of missives totally ignored. Her incompetence over the years offended her in ways she could barely articulate. Naturally she had taken a proprietary hand with the researcher charged with investigating the device assigning he and the artifact to her personal laboratory and research team.

Team. It was hard for her to think in terms of group efforts, she had just been so rigidly driven toward her own goals and certainly in her own skills, that she had withdrawn from the wealth of resources around her. Looking in the mirror she put the hairbrush down deciding not to put her hair up into her usual style after all. That kerchief wearing woman, she was not an Officer of the Gotei but a midwife and gadget maker of the Rukongai. It was beyond time for her to fulfill her role as Shinigami.

Coming to the First Division, she had been escorted to the Dojo where she was to meet with her new instructor. She slipped out of her zori, setting them upon the mat for shoes, and slid open the door, bowing to the room, before stepping over the threshold and moving across the floor in her tabi socks. At first her arrival had gone unnoticed, seemingly, for Li was running through what looked like a series of choreographed training forms. So it was that as she stood to the edge, waiting to draw the attention of this Li Yingfeng. She began to see a pattern to the moves, and when he came to the end of yet another iteration, she called out to him in greeting, “Good afternoon, Li Yingfeng. Thank you for agreeing to meet with me today.”

Word Count: 1268

Feng focused inwards as he performed the traditionally routine focusing on perfecting each movement, every punch, every kick and even every step. Deviation from the planned drills could not be allowed in the slightest, a foot slightly not in proper alignment, a shoulder too high or his posture imperfect. These were flaws that he battled against. Weakness had plagued his past. He had to fight it.

Weakness had led to the death of his friends, his followers, and his purpose.

A burning caravan. Corpses littered the area. Attackers and defenders, all dead, supposed friends on both sides.

Weakness had almost led to his own death at the hands of the murdering woman.

The white haired witch, glowing white-blue shortbow in hand, drawing back her weapon’s string and firing those destroying bolts of power.

Weakness, his weakness, it was all his fault. He had to be stronger, stronger than his past and stronger than himself. Perfection through repetition was the way. He just had to push himself further, better, to be more accurate and to be quicker, to be stronger…more perfect. He was already on the way. His meeting with the Captain-Commander at the hospital had been almost like divine intervention. Not only had he finally been assigned a division and not just any division but the First itself. Then she’d thrown him a bone when it came to Shunkō, the art he was pursuing with all his ability and her few words had been enough. The man had realised he didn’t need to wear his Shunkō or let it soaked into his bones He needed to do both. It would form over his flesh both rising above and sinking below. Well the idea was far from perfect but it had been enough, he was now capable of a full body manifestation of the technique and could use it without hurting himself.

‘Thank God. If I had to go and ask the healers of the Third to fix the burn marks on my forearms one more time they might have killed me themselves.’

He was beginning another set of Pī Quan forms when a voice pulled him from his ruminations. Turning he saw a familiar face and turned to face the short, and admittedly pretty, woman. As Feng stopped moved the red spiritual energy floating around him broke away and floated off like a warm breeze.

“Officer Kohara.” he greeted with a pleasant smile and a polite bow. “Welcome to the First Division Training Grounds.” he said referring to the area where all the First’s Dojos were built.

“It is no problem, of course.” he said straightening back up and waving away her gratitude. “After I got your friend’s message I was able to request this area. I would hardly be living the values of the First if I did not support your quest for self-improvement.”

He chuckled softly at his own words he sat down in the middle of the floor cross legged before gesturing to the ground in front of him. “Please join me Ma’am.”

Whether or not she agreed to sit down he would continue. “Now the letter was a little vague beyond referencing your wish to experience some training with empty fist fighting styles. I can certainly show you bits and pieces, either formal Traditional Arts or other bits and pieces I’ve picked up over the years.” he informed her thinking back to everything he learned in the Rukongai.

“Unless you have a particular area of interest? I would be happy to comply.”

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WC: 587
Total WC: 1482
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"Officer Kohara, was it?", she mused over his formality. She supposed it was appropriate but it was not something she really ever gave much weight, these titles and modes of address. Her grandfather would have been horrified at such heretical thoughts and no doubt would have regaled her about how the Gotei was a military organization, not a social club. She had to acknowledge that she had been lax on too many things and it as time to round out her existence with the same critical attention to detail she put into her research.

Clearly he was dedicated to perfection, for she had seen very little deviation in his movements while he was running through the forms. At first she had been reluctant to accept the referral at Nagato's suggestion, but it was crucial that she broke free of her old destructive habits and formed those that would promote growth.

Her hand came to her collar of her Shihakushō, curling her fingers inward, as she bowed her head slightly in response to his bow. Upon hearing his assurance that he was fine with the request for training, she smiled casting her eyes to the floor before moving to sit in Seiza before him.

Once she was comfortably seated upon the floor, her hands folded upon the tops of her thighs, she looked upon his face once more as she listened to his words. Yes, she could well believe that Nagato had been vague about her needs for she had not known him to be flowery in his words. She had of course considered what she would discuss with Li today and what she would not.

"I am most fortunate to benefit from the wisdom of your experience. My current needs far surpass my own skill, sadly. Perhaps Nagato would disagree, but I find that there just are times when drawing your sword and beheading your enemy is a rather counter productive way to handle the situation at hand." She paused in her speech to smile upon him as she stated the obvious, "I will never be able to overpower", she smirked slightly before saying, "just about anyone over the age of 12 years. What I need is a field of training that helps me to compensate for my physical weakness when facing a much larger opponent."

Word Count: 386 + 1268 = 1654

Feng smiled at the woman and she spoke and his head bobbed in acknowledgement as she made her points.

“I agree.” he told her “I prefer to fight with no weapon as I believe it gives one greater control.”

Holding up his hands, still smiling, he pushed his palms outwards towards Zâbel. “With these hands I can knock a man out.” he told her before clenching them into fists “Or I can break bones and kill.”

Holding up a finger “However you will always be in a weaker position than a man with a weapon...well at least until you reach a certain high level of mastery. Steel is more dangerous than flesh and bone. Even a knife in the hands of a thug can cripple a great fighter...although the rules are more flexible for beings such as us.” he admitted.

The man went silent for a moment. He still hadn’t put a top on and it was easy to see the countless scars over his torso and arms in stark contrast to his unmarred face. Placing his hand gently on the ugly scar on his stomach his smile turned a little sad. “I was once run through by a man with a spear. In terms of martial technique he was nothing compared to me but, well, weapons are great equalisers...or perhaps force multipliers.”

He shrugged slightly “There are other benefits though. Aside from the ability to hurt you’ll always be in a better place for self-defense, even if you aren’t carrying a weapon. More than that you’ll have a strong body, be fitter and tougher. Something weapons training doesn’t always gift you with.” he told her. Many weapon training exercises didn’t train the same variety of muscles nor where they often as cardio intensive.

“As for compensating for physical strength, I can certainly help you there.” Feng said with a chuckle as he gestured at himself. His body was clearly exceptionally toned from decades of intense physical training that never deteriorated due to his unaging form. “Despite how I appear I actually lack the extreme physical strength that many of our colleagues have. It’s simply not something I’m gifted with and it doesn’t increase that much no matter how I train.”

The man shrugged “Technique trumps power and as Soul Reapers we have ways around such weaknesses.”

Pushing himself to his feet he dusted himself off with a smile. “Enough of that though. Let's get started, shall we?" he asked.

He wasn’t going to question if she still wanted to learn. For one she’d come this far so he should at least give her a chance but more than that she’d never know unless she tried.

“For now nothing fancy. Simple Hakuda like they train at the Academy.” he said dropping into a common and generic fighting stance, one hand held close to his face while the other arm was extended slightly forward.

“Throw a few combos at me, don’t worry about hitting me and don’t stress too much about getting things perfect, just try and use what you remember from the academy.”

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WC: 513
Total WC: 1995

Sitting across from the man, he immediately began putting her reservations aside. Zâbel was not without her desire for discourse, in such things she was quite capable of finding enjoyment, she just never devoted any attention or gave it a priority in her busy schedule. That did not mean, when given the opportunity to exchange ideas and have focused conversation about a topic, that she couldn't wait to get away; quite the opposite was true. Getting carried away by a lively interchange for hours on end was just a gift she hadn't given herself often. Usually when she did, however, it revolved about solving some scientific inquiry; this was completely different.

He extended his hands, palm upward, her eyes drawn to his upturned palms, and her back stiffened between the shoulder blades. Sitting up a bit straighter, she realized that he meant literally. Her thumb stroked over the back of her hand, through the muscle along her thumb joint all the way to her wrists. She had a fairly strong grip; her hands were not weak having worked with hand tools nearly all her life. Her hands unclasped from one another to let her fingers curl into lightly folded fists as she listened to him speak. What she desired was to use her tools effectively for another purpose.

Her focus followed his finger as her drew it upward, his point appealing to her sense of logic. She was going to have to be aware of the strengths and weaknesses in what she would be training from the outset. Setting her eyes to his, she nodded in agreement. It was amazing how beings so capable of such destruction could be so fragile.

Her finger twitched slightly when he drew attention to the spear wound for there was that within her that would seek to reduce the scars, something that always seemed to annoy her. It just seemed like inferior Kaido to her. Given their numbers the wounded were lucky to receive treatment, let alone be left inactive long enough to heal completely. Obviously he had received numerous wounds, his shrug made it seem like it was old hat to him now.

When at last he had finished laying out what she could hope to gain, going so far as to reassure her that despite her frail stature she would benefit from the training, he requested that she show him what level of skill she possessed. Rising to her feet, finally broke her attentive silence."Do not worry about there being anything fancy here to contend with", she commented while falling back into the ready stance of the side facing cat stance. Like Li her hands would rise in alternate positions staggered between guarding her chin and her mid section, though her lead hands would not be so forwardly positioned as his own.

At first she moved to the right in a slow arc sizing up his form before striking out with a few exploratory punches toward his face. As her right arm reached out she kept the alignment straight shooting from the shoulder before retracting to her initial guarding pose again. At full extension, her wrist would roll over so that at the moment of contact the flat of her fist along the back of her knuckles would be the point of impact. Even as she threw her repeated punches she kept changing her position in relation to his own trying to find an opening to exploit.

Word Count: 576 + 1654 = 2230

Feng effortlessly slapped Zâbel’s flurry of punches aside with ease. “Good! Not bad at all.” he told with a gently smile.

“The Neko Ashi Dachi? You are not as much a novice as your friend made you out to be.” he told her still simply defended himself with ease. “I imagine you must already be a diligent student of the martial arts.” he added.

So she knows the Cat Stance, that’s not something a beginner uses so she must already have been studying empty hand combat. The stance was extremely versatile allowing the user to throw jabs, front and twist punches, front kicks, roundhouse and back roundhouse kicks. The cat step also allows the fighter to close the distance with smooth and quick movements like, well…like a cat. Of course it was easy to get wrong, putting too much weight onto the bad leg and leaning back too far would make the fighter far too off-balanced. Something he was not sure that the woman had overcome yet.

As one of her punches came in the man parried with the back of his wrist before swiftly snaking his hand over her forearm. With a tug he pulled her past him while turning with the woman and as she was thrown past him he slapped his palm lightly into her back, not hard enough to cause injury but enough to illicit a loud cracking noise and to push the already off-balance woman away from him.

“Remember to maintain your balance though no matter which stance you take. Your enemy can use your momentum against you. Throws, sweeps, trips and locks will always take advantage of such vulnerability.”

Using Shunpo he flickered as Feng moved at high speed in a circle around her before coming to a stop. “Always keep moving. You don’t want to remain too stationary. The best action is to be aggressive, keep up the offensive but don’t throw yourself mindlessly at the enemy either.”

Feng dropped into Santi, the traditional stance of Xing Yi Quan, and shot forward in a quick linear movement as he closed the distance between them while his fist shot out as he threw Beng Quan at her. The crushing fist was launched in unified movement with his body, the blow being driven upwards with the muscles of his rear leg and torso out through his striking arm. It’s devastating speed and power give it the potential to simply blast through your opponent’s defences. However Feng was careful to measure the distance and would stop his fist inches from her flesh before returning to his normal stance. He just wanted to see how she blocked a direct attack.

---------------------------
WC: 444
Total WC: 2439

His approach to training was as different from Nagato's inasmuch as the men were different themselves. She was not sure that she liked one more than the other. For starters, she didn't have to guess at what Nagato was thinking. He was blunt, insensitive, and used taunts to impel her to action. It worked well with her stubborn tendencies to uproot her from being too passive in battle and take a more aggressive approach. However she realized that were she of a defeatist mentality she would have left their initial session long before receiving the benefits of his training would bring. Yinfeng here, well he smiled too much.

Even as he was slapping away her punches, he complimented her skill way too much. She could easily credit his word as true, for Nagato would certainly not acknowledge she had any measurable skill at all. Zâbel was indeed only a novice and certainly had not been diligent in her training by any means. "What do those smiles and overly polite words conceal", she had to wonder.

Predictably though he would step up his game and reveal just how untrue his assessment of her skill truly was. Looking as though he placed very little effort into his actions, he redirected her punch with but the back of his wrist, flipped his hand in a gesture he had no doubt performed countless other times, and captured her arm in his grasp. She had to quick step her way through the tug that followed as her balance was destroyed in order not to be pulled over onto her face. The sharp crack to her back was only further proof of how far his skill outdistanced her own being able to follow through with the combination with ease.

Recovering her balance after only a couple steps, Feng was already speeding round her form and delivering to her more instruction exemplifying yet another difference in the styles of her two instructors. Ishikawa was content to show her her weaknesses forcing her to think and discover the solutions through necessity, while Li seemed to be providing critique and advice while showing her her vulnerabilities. Two different approaches, both equally required to impel her toward improvement.

At last the man dropped out of the flash step to assume his fighting stance. She noted it was very similar to her own and yet the displacement of his center of mass was obviously better aligned to manage the fluid movements that soon followed. She was not used to so rapidly translating instruction to immediate action, to incorporate into her technique, but she would try. Remaining stationary was wrong. Although she began side stepping to put his direction into action, those long strides of his swiftly brought him within striking distance forcing her to block his attack.

She shifted the bulk of her weight to her rear facing leg, and drew the knee of her left up before her rapidly as she pivoted on her right foot with a quick shift of her pelvis. Her hands still poised to block incoming strikes to her face and mid-section, she took the blow from his fist to the thigh then rapidly unbent her leg striking out toward his head with the flat of the top of her foot twice in succession.

Should he attempt to snag her ankle, she was poised to lunge her weight forward off her back leg and drive a triple strike for his head with her fists in left right left succession, the final to lower if she could manage, toward his throat. Naturally there would be a fall in such an event, but thinking one move ahead was about all she could manage at the time.

Word Count: 618 + 2230 = 2848

Feng watched her block his blow with surprise and had to wonder. She claimed to be a novice and as did her friend and yet she was responding with defences and blows that Feng would expect from a much more experienced warrior. After all he was an expert, some would say a master, in Xing Yi Quan but the woman had stopped one of the quickest punches in his repertoire. More than that she took the blow directly to the leg without being phased.

‘Are both she and this Nagato man trying to deceive me? But why? What would be the benefit in such a thing?’

As she threw a kick at his head he ducked under her series of kicks before slamming his palm into her ribs to put distance between the two of them. His smile faded as he pondered what she was doing. Why come for lessons if you’re able to throw out such a series of attacks in a short period of time.

“It’s strange. I have to admit I had expected someone who hadn’t trained since the Academy but you’re fighting like someone who practices more than that. Using the Neko Ashi Dachi, even if not to an perfect level, would make one believe that you have some more recent training or at least experience with. Then deflecting my Beng Quan and immediately retaliating with your own kicks.” the man shook his head. Even as he spoke he kept circling the woman, carefully staying in the Santi stance as he did so.

“It is surprising. I had planned to be showing a much less experienced and skilled student.” he admitted with a chuckle as his smile returned “Being able to switch from defence, a completely effective one, then straight into a double kick? That’s the stuff of fighters.”

Shrugging slightly he shot towards her again “I suppose we should step the tempo up then.” he suggested.

Coming in again with the linear footwork of Xing Yi he darted straight towards her, this time his boot flicked out at knee height aimed at her right leg however the blow was nothing more than a distraction. It didn’t need to connect to fulfil its purpose. Transitioning into a punch he threw his left palm at her face with the intent of blocking her line of sight for a moment before pulling it back before it made contact with his opponent’s face. He then stepped in extremely close, going low, he came back up with his right fist rising in an uppercut aimed at Zâbel’s jaw.

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WC: 428
Total WC: 2867

Certainly deception was not part of the plan. Unknowing how Nagato would have described her skills behind her back, where she could not become complacent through an ill placed compliment, she certainly had not heard praise as to the level of her ability. Her own assessments were genuine, regardless. Zâbel gauged her skill as insufficient to her needs to be effective in a combat situation. She was vulnerable in so many ways, all brought on by the all her wasted time where she had trivialized the need for martial arts. It was no wonder that Houwang was always hurling heavy fruit at her head. When she got a notion, it took quite a great amount of effort to dissuade her of its validity.

Overcoming her shock that the combo had not ended in disaster, for indeed she fully expected him to snag her leg and pull her off balance again. Or at least when she tried to kick over his arm, exposing ample amount of muscle to harm’s way, that he hadn't struck with a blow to immobilize her leg. Not only were his mannerisms and instruction different, but his holding back from causing her injury was unexpected too. That skill alone was far above her own, for she was unsure she had the control, had she landed a blow to the head as planned, that she would have been able to make it a sparing tag rather than a full on strike. She might have learned and retained the speed and flexibility to execute such a maneuver, but there was no control or true skill involved.

"You flatter, or at best, tease me sir. We both know that had you chosen to you could have had me flat on my back from exposing myself like that with my kick", she said as she switched her stance so that her right side was now leading rather than her left as before."But no, though I am not a fledgling, I am far from being a fighter. I am very much aware of how the enemy has the power to end my overly long life." Nodding to him once her words fell silent, the promise to step up the tempo more than fine with her, the Kohara focused on moving and keeping herself from becoming a stationary target.

To evade was always the best defense, "just don't be there to take the punch", she could hear her grandfather say. So when his kick came, launched at her leg, she transitioned again, dropping the right back and swinging to the left facing stance. His foot passed by her side but there was no time to make a strike at the offending appendage entering her personal space, for his fist came up demanding her attention. Instinctively she drew her right arm straight upward from her mid-range guard, presenting the muscled part of her forearm to absorb the blow and protect the fragile bone hidden beneath.

She had fallen right into the ploy, her own arm now blocking half her field of vision and exposing her diaphragm for attack. Only the strike did not land, nor one to her open stomach. Instead a flash of motion came from his right as he narrowed the gap between them pressing his body into her space. Her left angled downward, turning upon the axis of her elbow in an attempt to block his strike, but she was too late. The target was not her stomach but an uppercut to the chin.

She took the blow full on, the pain translating through her skull as her jaw was percussed upward into her head. The jarring effect was startling and she was just glad that she was not one who fought with her tongue between her teeth or she would have bitten it clean in two. She staggered backward seeking distance between them with but one step of her left foot before attempting to lash out at his hips with a front kick from her right foot. Using her legs, having the longer reach over her arms, her intent was to push him back and out of her space.

Her weaknesses were surely being revealed to him one by one, if he but took the time to examine her actions clearly. She seemed to lack the ability to anticipate his moves, to effectively use her defensive posture effectively...having blocked with the right and totally opening up her mid-section, and she simply had not mastered the simple process of breathing. The woman was growing winded because each time she struck out, she held her breath.

Word Count: 766 + 2848 = 3614

Feng blinked in confusion as his blow struck true. While he might not have been expecting her to completely void his attack he had expected she would manage some sort of deflection or partial avoidance. The woman’s skill level was all over the place. One minute she was blocking punches and firing out rapid kicks, the next she seemed winded and barely able to predict an attack.

‘She’s not breathing properly either. Her posture is a mess…is she tired already? Does she have the theoretical knowledge of what she should be doing but simply hasn’t conditioned her body enough to be capable of it?’ he wondered silently.

His attention was stolen however as the woman attempted her retribution. Her foot kicked out at him, perhaps hoping to distance the two fighters, but the man caught the in the book of his arm and pulling it upwards, hoping to unbalance her further he swept her remaining leg out from under her. As she crashed to the ground Feng took a few steps backwards letting her catch her breath and pick herself back up without interfering.

“I think you’ve a lot of talent Officer Kohara.” he said to her “I think your mind swiftly comes up with practical and realistic tactics but your body is failing to respond swiftly enough to your demands. You’re also not breathing smoothly enough, try not to hold your breath as you move and strike.”

He straightened up for a moment to clasp his hands behind his back. Smiling he shook his head slightly. “That can be rectified through body conditioning and martial training. I can help you with that if you’d like. Basic stances, strikes, counters and exercise regimes to help strengthen your body while improving flexibility.”

It was probably time to show her why she’d been sent here by her friend. Why he’d chosen Feng, of all the martial artists in the Gotei 5, to help the woman. Why Feng was a better choice to train her than Nagato himself. A technique that despite her reportedly long lifespan that she’d yet to see due to it only being a few years old and the rarity of the Shinigami who’d learnt it. Her talent of Kidō and a need to improve her physical strength would allow her to match even members of the Fifth in terms of martial prowess once she learnt to throw a good punch and, perhaps more importantly, how to take one.

“Alright there was a particular technique Hakuda technique that your friend wanted me to teach you Zâbel. It’s something you might be interested in. You’ve probably heard of it before, it’s called Shunkō. It was developed through the melding of empty hand skill and various types of Kidō. In tends to vary from user to user depending on how they developed it or what they needed it for.”

Nodding towards the woman he unclasped his hands from behind his back. “The best way for me to explain it would be to show you how it works first. Then if it’s something you’re interested in we can discuss further or you can ask me a few questions.”

“So…as part of this demonstration I would ask you to hit me with your best blow. To show you the sheer power of the technique I need you to do your best. Perhaps use your sword? I’ll leave it up to you.”

He sunk into Santi once more and his aura began to glow around him like a thin red haze, it began to grow in intensity slowly become more akin to a fire and heat began to pulse from the man. This wasn’t Shunkō, not yet, but he was letting his spiritual power flow freely as he prepared to use the technique.

------------------------------
WC: 630
Total WC: 3497

Soon enough he discovered her flaws, she had not the endurance nor the stamina and it was her years of neglect that was to blame. As the world literally tilted on its side, and she was spilled onto the ground, she hoped he could manage to make an analysis, formulate a training regimen, and save them both further field tests. Her head had pretty much had enough banging around, first from his fist to the chin and now off the dojo floor.

Rising to a sitting position, she rubbed the back of her head and listened to his comments.She set her hands into her lap, while her breathing readjusted itself to normal and nodded her head. "I am afraid that is a terrible habit I got into while I was studying with my family. Having devoted myself to research, however, I never kept up with the training long enough to retrain myself out of it", she replied, though that certainly was the short version. No need to go into a whole recitation of the last hundred years or so.

While he spoke about how body conditioning combined with martial training would improve her technique, she pushed up from the floor and regained her feet. Having a regular schedule, a methodology that she could follow, was only common sense causing her to smile. "I will gladly accept any teaching you are willing to offer", she said. This was important and she wasn't afraid to put in the work, though she certainly had been reticent about even going to Nagato for training. She was glad that she had made herself do it anyway.

She shifted her shifted her weight as she tested her joints and leg muscles for signs of injury, but it appeared she had not come to harm during the fall. When he began to speak of the Hakuda technique, however, she stilled her motions noting that now it was 'Zâbel' rather than Officer Kohara. Listening, she recalled mention of this Shunkō in the files Doula had compiled and nodded her head. Something to compensate for strength? She was all for that.

As he requested her to attack him so that he could demonstrate its effects, she nodded her head and moved to square off from him. Then he suggested she use her sword? Blinking as she considered this drawing of her weapon against an unarmed man, she shook her head at her own foolishness. "If you are sure, Li", she replied with a similar level of the familiar. Placing her hand upon her Zanpakutō, she drew her Chokutō and held it off to her right side pointed at the floor. Even when walking out of uniform in the Rukongai, her spirit weapon was ever at her side.

The glow of his Reiryoku flowed freely about his form and she examined this through her own perception ability. There was a fire within him that he kept concealed, kept close to his form until he willed it to release. "No", she corrected herself mentally, "not a release, just a lack of restraint. Where did this fire originate? What is he trying to control?" She twisted her wrist adjusting the grip upon her blade and distributed her weight between her legs. "Mystery upon mystery."

He had requested her best, but surely he didn't mean for her to release her Zanpakutō. That was a given. She started her advance across the short span between them, not worrying about finesse or having to parry a blocking attack. He would counter with the Shunkō or she would be using her Kaido real soon. Her sprint was rather short lived, a matter of three paces, her sword came round to clasp the bottom of the hilt with her left hand and in a two handed swing she leveled her blade for the jointure of his neck and shoulder above his left arm.

Word Count: 648 + 3614 = 4262

“Please call me Feng.” he responded with a smile. So excited for this next stage of the training he’d accidently slipped into a more informal tone. Luckily the Officer had seemed pleased enough with the change and he’d escaped reprimand.

He watched her draw her weapon with a flicker of envy, the unusually shaped Zanpakutō meant that the woman had achieved Shikai. Meanwhile Feng’s weapon was still a Asauchi, nameless and without a Spirit. It was also absent, as usual he’d left the useless length of steel back in his room. A swell of bitterness flickered up within him but he pushed it down. He didn’t need the damn thing, his fists were enough.

Focusing on the moment he watched Zâbel readjust her grip and stance. Feng took a deep breath which he released steadily, he focused on his careful breathing causing that visible Reiatsu of his to dim and glow in rhythm with his breaths like a living flame. His heart began to race slightly with excitement. This was one issue he’d discovered since evolving his Shunkō, he was almost addicted to it’s use. The reason was quite simple, for all his kind smiles and soft words Feng was a Martial Artist and he loved to fight although he disliked hurting others needlessly. However deep in his core, repressed beneath a century of denial there lay a violent core to the man, one that burned as brightly as his passionate fever for the fighting arts.

Feng’s gaze sharpened as she moved, swiftly clearing the distance between them and then her blade began to move in that deadly arc towards that vulnerable area where the neck met the shoulder.

“Shunkō.” he whispered.

It started, as it always did, along his back. The power exploded from there as the red lightning ran across his entire body. Wild lightning exploded off in every direction grounding itself against the floor as the air hummed with energy. Feng’s hair, specifically his long queue, initially rose straight up into the air above him pulled upwards by the static force from the sudden explosion of power before it began to fall back down.

Despite how obviously potent the technique appeared this was nothing compared to how it felt for Feng. For him it wasn’t just giving him more power but rather it made him feel like reality itself shifted. It didn’t bring him to the center of reality but rather made him the center. Megalomaniac nonsense which he suppressed as swiftly as it came but the fact that such urges could be induced from it was proof of the psychological risks induced by drawing on such arcane strength. Feng’s body was filled with Kidō and that was the source of the ability’s vast potential. It not only cloaked his flesh and filled the air around him but it was had soaked straight into the fibre of his being, through flesh and bone.

All of this occurred in a fraction of a second. A powerful release of energy.

Feng’s eyes followed the blade cutting through the air towards him. Strange. Such a razor sharp blade that could end his life in an instant and yet it seemed utterly unthreatening. It appeared to be moving in, almost, slow motion towards him.

Feng’s stance had him leading with the left foot and it was the arm on that side that was partially extended before him with the palm pointing outwards towards his opponent while the right hand hovered just above his waist. The man flexed the extended hand and the red lightning condensed around the entire limb. His arm moved in a blur as he smashed his left forearm into blade deflecting it with many times more force that he’d have been able to through using his mundane muscles. The cutting edge of the Chokutō was unable to pierce the power rolling along his skin.

With that dealt with he slid his right foot forward and his right hand exploded out in a palm strike straight towards the woman’s face. He pulled the blow long before it struck. It took a real effort of will not to land the blow but he knew what a horrible wound that could inflict. Despite that, even with the distance between his hand and the woman’s face the power of his Shunkō carried across the gap. Not enough to wound, he was forcibly restraining himself after all, but it didn’t stop a rush of static filled hot air filled with his Reiatsu from buffeting her.

------------------------
WC: 751
Total WC: 4248

Her blade descended toward his neck, each of her arms aiding in the momentum of that swing which she knew if it landed unopposed would render him a near fatal wound. Trusting in his ability to reveal his art, she did not let up or flinch away during the falling arc of her blade but committed herself to the demonstration. The whisper of his activation word seemed to echo over and over in her mind.

The manifestation was more than she had realistically expected as being possible. Her files had not really explained the technique so it was a complete witnessing of something new for the ancient woman. Later she would try to explain her impressions in her personal journal, but for now she just immersed herself in the raw experience without her usual analytical analysis.

Even before she was struck, she could feel the hairs upon her arm and the nape of her neck raising in reaction to the storm of energy that suddenly came into being. That fire of his Reiryoku transformed, blossomed, raged its crackling bolts of energy with all the fury of his pent up restraint. Her sword struck true, that could never be denied, and the force had not been absorbed but recoiled right back upon her.

The impact was electrifying, no searing like flame, pain and numbness all rolled into one colossal strike that she had not even seen him make; the speed of his intercepting arm had been masked taking the blow rather than his neck. She scarcely felt the hilt being torn from the grasp of both her hands to be impaled into a wooden beam of the dojo running from the ceiling to the floor. It reminded her of those reports people on earth made about blades of straw being forced into wood posts like nails by nothing more than the force of a tornado's passage.

It was not until he pierced her with his gaze, targeting her for his attack, now that his defensive move had been made, that she saw what was reflected there in his eyes and this merest glimmer of what he held in check within him made her run cold with fear.

His retracted arm began to advance and she knew that he could not hold back that hunger, could not possibly have the mastery of restraint in that condition to pull his punches this time. This was it and she had no hidden release to put into play, her Zanpakutō was across the room quivering still from its impact into the beam.

Pulling upon her Reiryoku she sought to construct a barrier release but the fire was upon her; it was much too late to save herself now. Her unbound hair flew away from her features, her clothes plastered against her form in the force of that gale that she somehow stood upright within, her weight having shifted forward to lean against the torrent of his force. Watching him in horror, but the slightest fraction of time until she was forced to clench her lids shut, her heart thundered in her ears as she realized he had done the impossible. Even then he had managed restraint.

The instant the force washed over her, she sank down onto the floor on unsteady legs, much like a puppet whose strings had been cut. Her right hand thrust outward to palm the floor, her arms quite numb yet from being disarmed, until she rested upon her hip, with her legs bent to the side. She opened her eyes and looked at him blinking in utter silence and amazement. The slightest twitch of her upper lip set into motion as a grin spread across her face. Then the woman had her own moment of release as soft laughter spilled from between those lips to fill the room. "Oh yes, Feng", she used the address he had given her leave to employ, "teach me this Shunkō."

Word Count; 656 + 4262 = 4918

The lightning continued to spark and dance around Feng, it slowly dwindled in intensity before vanishing altogether leaving a thin layer of red spiritual energy drifting around the man before that too vanished. The man slumped slightly as he finished deactivating his Shunkō, once the energy left him he felt drained and exhausted. His technique was still far from perfect being entirely too tiring to use and not yet fully under his own control, in truth the demonstration had been dangerous and possibly unwise.

‘All’s well that ends well.’ he assured himself silently.

Smiling at the woman’s good nature, glad that she’d taken everything in stride without growing angry or upset as Feng had discovered you could never predict how others would react to losing even a training exercise. Soul Reapers had entirely too much pride in his opinion. Dropping down to the ground across from her Feng lay back on floor, grimacing slightly at the warmth of the wooden floor realising that his Shunkō had caused put too much energy through the floor. Glancing at scorch marks on the dojo floor not to mention the beam the pillar that currently had Zâbel sword driven into ti.

‘Eh… I’ll find a way to make it up to them.’ he thought considering the officers he’d have to inform of the damage.

Stretching out he heard slight clicks in his shoulders, strain had been put on his body from letting so much power flow through him. He smiled as he sat back up to face the other Shinigami. “I’d be glad to. Although I’m still a novice myself in the use of such a technique, I couldn’t maintain it for much longer than you saw to be honest.” he chuckled “A few weeks ago and I couldn’t even manifest a full body manifestation.”

Considering for a moment he decided to use the western way of explaining names, family name after the first as it seemed to be what a lot of his colleagues were used to.

“To get started with I’ll explain a little about the background of the technique. Shunkō was developed a few years ago by the Former Captain Commander Kiriko Chinda, before she was even Captain of the Second I believe. As far as I’m aware there have been two other masters of the technique although I may be incorrect. One was the former Captain of the Second, and Kiriko Chinda’s protégé, Hi-to… Kohara” he said slightly trailed off as he made the connection for the first time. “Are you…?” he tilted his head slightly. Was she related to the man? One of the most powerful Shinigami in recent history.

Shrugged he continued “Anyway. The third person I know of who has mastered the technique is our own Captain-Command. Now each Shunkō is as different as the people themselves and are developed depending on what the people are looking for.” he informer her with chuckle. “Trust me. The vagueness of such things made it a nightmare when I was trying to develop my own way of using Shunkō back at the Academy.”

Placing his hands on his knees he pondered how to continue the explanation. “I don’t know the specifics of these techniques. Such things aren’t available to a newly graduated Shinigami like me. I have heard that Kohara’s used Kaidō with his version but he was supposedly one of, perhaps the, greatest Kaidō practitioner in the entire history of the Gotei. I’m not sure how that worked however. Perhaps it passively healed him? I have no idea.”

Snapping his fingers he realised the most obvious way to explain things “Shunkō is Kidō applied to one’s body to give destructive power as well as being able to help you protect yourself.” he explained “So your version of Shunkō will depend on what branch of Kidō you use as the basis for it’s development.”

Pressing a hand on his chest he grinned. “I used Hadō. My Shunkō is entirely based on offence, at least right now.” he told her. The man hoped that once he gained greater mastery that he could start to imbue a more protective element into his technique but that’d have to wait until the future.

“More specifically…” he started holding out a hand to the side his face took on a look of concentration. "Ye lord! Mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man! Inferno and pandemonium, the sea barrier surges, march on to the south! Hadō #31. Shakkahō.”

A ball of red energy appeared in Feng’s hand, glowing with destructive potential but he did not release it instead allowing it to remain sitting upon his palm.

“I used one of the most common spells from amongst the Shinigami Arcane Arts. It was easy to use for my experimentation and so, in time, it became…” he trailed off letting his Shakkahō vanish as red lightning momentarily rippled over his hand before it too dissipated. “… my Shunkō”

Gesturing at the woman across from him he continued “You will have to decide the starting point for your technique yourself but I will help you with what comes next.”

-------------------------------------
WC: 859
Total WC: 5107

Sitting there, all too conscious of how things could have turned out completely different if the man's control had wavered for even a fraction of an instant, Zâbel observed as he allowed the technique to dissipate. It was hardly surprising that he appeared to be drained after such an expenditure of energy, even so she frowned as she set her calculating eye upon him. "Perhaps it took too much out of him", she mused as she watched him lay back upon the floor of the dojo. Even so, he didn't appear to be in any distress, just drained.

Shifting from her hip, she sat upon her shins before trying to brush her hair out of her eyes. His admission to his level of expertise accounted for the fatigue, but it also confirmed any suspicion she had about how intensive her training would have to be. Hard work was not something she was a stranger to, she just need to direct it in other areas besides her research. To become passionate about developing herself instead of paying off some Karmic debt to a man that had been dead for 128 years. The mores she confronted this colossal waste of her talents, the more insane it seemed.

Thankfully Li went on to explain about the development of Shunkō sparing her from the temptation to become bogged down by the immensity of those years, at least until he mentioned her uncle Hi-to. Talk about an abysmal wasting of her available resources. Inhaling deeply, she seemed to become obsessed with an invisible strand of hair that refused to stay out of her face.

"Yes", she said softly, her mind going back to the time when her grandfather Ryu had adopted the young man into the Kohara Family. There was only about 90 or so years difference in their age, with her 'uncle' being the younger of the two. He had gained in skill while she had basically remained inert; Hi-to Grandfather of Kaido, Zâbel...Ghost of the Rukongai? She chuckled dryly at the numerous instances of irony there. To travel down that rabbit hole would only undermine her resolve to move forward. Her family was gone; Ryu and Kenji killed by Espada, Hi-to literally vanished, and Moriya unapproachable. "My father and he were brothers." She smiled finding there was no need to delve further into her lineage. She only hoped he was under no preconceived notion that the Kohara name conferred any inherent talent for excellence, despite the coincidence of Kaidō being a focus for her as well. The two were not likely to manifest Shunkō in the same manner.

Fortunately, for he had not probed her about her illustrious uncle, he did not seem to hold that erroneous assumption. Freed to focus upon his descriptions, as he discussed his own manifestation of the technique, nodded her head finding a certain logic in his words.

Once he had activated his Shakkahō, letting its red glow play about his hand before dispelling it once again, she shared her own focus a bit reluctantly. "I too am a practitioner of Kaidō, with a lesser skill in Bakudō. The benefits of either route is something that will have to be weighed against the potential drawbacks." She pushed herself to her feet, and crossed the room to the beam where her Zanpakutō was embedded. "I don't suppose there is any way to determine the better route other than to tread those paths?", she questioned him a bit hopefully.

Word Count: 580 + 4918 = 5498

Feng chuckled softly flashing her another smile, he was filled with them really. "If the Former Captain of Squad 2 and the Grandfather of modern Kaidō is your uncle then I imagine the potential for greatness lurks in your blood just waiting to be let out!" he stated in a somewhat dramatic fashion. "Perhaps since you share both heritage and skill it would be worth a look casting your gaze back to look at records of his own skills functioned? Admittedly such things would likely be exceedingly difficult to find, accurate data on someone's private techniques never mind a Captain... a Captain of the Second at that would be practically impossible to locate if such a thing exists." he paused pondering "Perhaps request the files from the Second itself? If such a thing exists anywhere it'll be there. Even if not perhaps an old comrade or protégé will hold the knowledge somewhere."

Shrugging he left it at that. It wasn't Feng's way to nosy into the business of others but if anyone was due such information it was Zâbel who shared the name Kohara. If the Soul Society was anything it was feudal and as such it respected heritage and famous names such as those held by the respected Captains that held the highest ranks of duty and honour in the Gotei.

Turning his attention to her other question he silently pondered for a moment before speaking slowly. "I am obviously no master myself but from what I understand in general you Shunkō will be similar in fashion to mine. It may look different, the details may vary and the method of activation might not be the same but in general it'll be a circuit of Kidō around your body increasing your offensive power. However once you reach mastery your personal variant of Shunkō will... hmm... mature? Yes I suppose that is good enough. Mature or perhaps become more refined. I believe it is as this point you will begin to demonstrate unique traits. Perhaps if you used Kaidō as the base it would let you heal yourself, regenerate wounds or even let you heal others while you have it activated without having to actively weave a healing spell. If you were to use Bakudō then maybe it would shield you from harm, let you defend yourself in a more effective manner."

Feng sighed softly and shook his head slightly although his smile remained, soft and warm it was his usual gentle expression. "I am afraid this is all theory, I don't know enough to say if this is true. However if it is then later, when you are powerful enough, you should be able to bring in secondary traits. My own will be very destructive however I do plan on trying to weave Bakudō into the mix once I have the power, although I'd rather fully mature my own Shunkō before trying to tackle such a complex task."

Splaying his hands out in front of him he turned the gesture into an exaggerated shrug raising his hands up, palms facing the roof. "There are so few adepts of this art it is hard to know. Even the Captain-Commander herself admitted to me that she wasn't sure if she'd grasped the true nature of the art from her mentor although I imagine she is being humble. She is the Captain-Commander after all for a reason."

Placing his hands on his knees he tilted his head slightly. "Is there anything else I can help you with today? If not I should probably go and report the ahh... marks we've left on this hall." he added looking a little embarrassed. "Perhaps next time we will train outside."

For he had no doubt there would be a next time. Feng was glad the woman seemed willing to pursue the difficult path of developing Shunkō, not just for the sake of the art itself but it would also give him a rather compatible sparring partner.

-------------------------
WC: 656
Total WC: 5763

A bit of apprehension settled into the pit of her stomach when Li spoke of greatness lurking in her blood. But as he continued she did have to admit the possibility of records concerning Hi-to's techniques may well exist. Certainly if she ran across something like that she would devour every page eagerly. Even so, she was done with chasing down the remnants of her family and cautious about trading one obsession for another.

It was fine if she never found such lore, for there had already been a Hi-to; why even attempt to mold herself into his model? The ability to perform Shunkō would be drawn from her own strengths and weaknesses rather than those of her uncle. Nodding her head she said in reply, "I am sure Hi-to's insights would have been exceedingly beneficial. I will have to look into your suggestion and inquire after any records that may be available, for a rare chance is better than none at all." If such things existed they would be a blessing, if they did not that would also be a blessing. It was with her own spirit she must connect, after all.

Her eyes drifted to her Zanpakutō embedded in the post, the corner of her mouth lifting up into a slight smirk as they did. No doubt Houwang would be less than pleased if she just left him there. When Li began to speak again, she turned slightly toward him and let her mind soak up the information he was giving, leaving the quandary on how to extract her blade alone for the moment.

"It is odd to think of Kaidō being used to injure. Are you saying that if I use it as the basis for my own Shunkō that in its infancy, if you will, it will have its direct force applications as with your own?", she said with a note of wonder in her voice. It was true there were destructive applications for Kaidō, things of a gross negligence and unethical nature to the healer inside her heart. Even so, without causing harm to others surely she could take advantage of bolstering her own capabilities to recover from damage taken.

Her hand came to her face and she rubbed at her bottom lip while lost in thought. So it was with a bit of delay in her response that she at last said, "The lack of masters will certainly cut back on the learning curve of those who wish to practice the Art, however I think that with this particular one there is only so much another can show you anyway." She smiled as he drew attention to the condition of the dojo turning to give the hilt of her sword a light caress.

"Outside does seem to be a good idea Li. If you would linger around a while so I may retrieve my Zan before you go, then I will just head out afterward. Thank you for agreeing to teach me, once again. I look forward to meeting with you in the future for further instruction", she concluded with grin. Very conscious that it may not be procedure to leave someone outside his division unattended in the dojo, she proceeded to extract her sword and would shortly afterward leave so he might exit as well. By the time she arrived back home she was pretty inspired by the opportunity the day had presented and grateful not only to Li for taking her on but Nagato for recommending the man to her.

// Exit Thread

Word Count: 588 + 5498 = 6086