[BSD-RP] Soul Society: Central Seireitei

[BSD]

Katsuo stood silent and listened to the slander of words from Mukuro, painting him out to be a traitor… he shakes his head quietly… has nothing he written about made any difference in the evolution of the Gotei 13… his fears about this were soon coming to fruition when the person he believed in most gave him an unsettling glare with his golden eyes. Somehow, he knew what was coming next, but nothing could prepare him for it, and quite honestly, nothing Higen could do after could cause the young Oda even more pain.
”Let it be known to all that the Oda have no involvement in this, if I must stand before Central Forty-Six to prove this I shall. These are the actions of an individual and so I shall cast judgement upon said individual for his crimes, his slight against my Clan, and for endangering the lives of my Clan. Katsuo, I strip you of the Oda name, the gates of the Oda Manor will forever be locked and barred to you. You may think this judgment harsh as you do all things in the Seireitei but we Oda do not and will not mingle with criminals and traitors. We faithfully serve the Gotei Thirteen with all of our being. From this day forward you are now known as Katsuo Toshiyuki, return to your original last name. You will no longer act out false notions of ‘justice’ in the Oda name, should you act out it will be in your name, alone.”
Orphaned. Alone. Abandoned. A traitor. Soon possibly, stripped of rank from Higen…. He could feel it all coming. He looked to the ground he was still standing on, but found his knees weak… his brother wanted him dead… no… Tenzen wanted him dead… he was no longer Tenzen's younger brother… he was nothing but a street rat again, to his family he would be nothing anymore… he fell to the weight of what it all meant, and suddenly wondered what would become of him now? Would they put him back in Southeast District 89 to let the angry people from the kototsu attack one hundred years ago have him… no friends… no family… and soon no job… was Honoka happy… being friends with her had ruined his life… all of this for trying to help…. Suddenly getting Eikogitsune back and going back to work was less of a concern. Perhaps there was still hope for Saiko… yes… Katsuo took a deep breath in and got back up on his knees, holding in his anger, tears, and fears as best he could for her sake, and the sake of Division Thirteen. Why didn't he report her? Because he saw within her a chance at redemption… often times Shinigami don't see that in others… he thinks there is still a chance for Honoka to do the right things… a chance for the boy to turn into someone better than people predict he would turn out to be… but Katsuo feels his beliefs would fall on deaf ears… including his former brother.
"Saiko has nothing to do with the actions of myself… and, your wrong Captain Oda, Captain Mukuro. I think about my Duties, do my job, but I also worry for the future of the Gotei 13…. If we continue killing those who have been nothing but loyal all their lives for the seireitei we are no better off than we were 100 years ago, or even 1000…. I am Loyal to my Head Captain and Gotei 13, but I believe Honoka, and the child deserve a chance at life. If you kill the boy's mother in front of him or anything resulting in Violence… what would be the benefit of such a thing? Teach him the laws… teach him our ways, help Honoka…. And I see a warrior fit for the Gotei 13, someone future shinigami could stand beside… if we were to kill them both it would be a waste of resources and… souls… I didn't report it because I too wanted Honoka to come back on her own time, and peacefully…"
He'd sigh, and look down.
"Your decision, Captain Oda, although painful, is an understandable one… I want you, and all here to know that I agree with it. My actions were my own, a pathetic attempt at restoring the kinship between the Oda and Oki… I know now how Naive I am… to think Clans could even get along with one another and settle their differences in a peaceful manner… I just… wanted to make my mother happy with seeing them again, getting along with her former and new family… family is something important to have in this world… it makes everyone feel belonged, cherished. I can't have that if I put it in danger…"
He looked down.
"Similar to that is one's squad… and Division Thirteen is all I have left now. If you feel you must, Demote me for my actions… but please… don't lock me away. Don't send me away, because I feel I can still do good, for the Seireitei and Division Thirteen… I can still fight for my home, and the people that are still Under me… Not as an Oda, but as Katsuo Toshiyuki…. The boy from the Rukon… with little to nothing to his name… say for a promise to a friend that one day when a Shinigami tells a spirit that they are going to a better place, they really mean it… and that it is not just a white-faced lie to get the spirit to enter a place filled with misery and pain… so much pain…"
He remembers it all vividly, as would anyone from the Rukongai… those who grew up in the walls would never understand; Tenzen would have never understood him completely… none of the Oda would have… perhaps nobody in the entire Seireitei would…
"This has already stripped me of my honor… Don't strip me of my life and Duty too… when I can still use it to serve the seireitei, and the Head Captain…Please don't punish Saiko. She was looking for me, we were going to return to 13th Division Barracks and start working on something that could help us all train better… at least in theory…"
It took so much energy for Katsuo not to show how much pain he was in right now, nothing physical Yurui had done to him could compare to all of the mental stress the young Shinigami was under currently…
"I placed Saiko in this situation myself by trying to get Honoka to return to her duties peacefully as a friend, without threats and killing…"

 

[BSD]

His head bobbed in acknowledgment of Atsuko’s heed to his words of kindness. As always, his demeanor was visibly cool and calm-natured, another example of the Shinigami’s excellent focus despite his slightly immature tactics and processes. He reached into the small chest pocket hidden within the ebony folds of his shihakusho uniform to collect a blunted cigar of his own making from earlier in the day, as well as pulling out a book of matches and instantly began ’lighting up’ before Atsuko made her move to enter the so spoken sacred meeting hall for those who don the white haori. Noticing the arrival of Captain Nakamoto and what would seem to be….Omoni Hageshi in a bloodied Captain’s uniform? A strange sight given the events he has been forced to partake in, but more than likely unrelated to the ongoing case regarding the life of the Mad Dog. Although it was an eerie coincidence for them both to show up at the same time as them. Surely an important topic was to take place once inside.
Following Atsuko in right after both the Captain’s pre-approved entry, he saw a large number of high ranking shinigami, all of whom are esteemed in their own right-- except for maybe his own bubblegum-haired superior. Catching the sight of the room, then soon analyzing the tone in which was conceived for all of these individuals to be gathered here within this room. The Commander, sitting atop the cold stone thrown constructed by his predecessor. He looked comfortable, but he knew that the proverbial crown that lay crooked on his head was not to be easily worn. As he would soon find out. His second in command, and voice of reason, Fuyuko Kasumi the Head-Lieutenant of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads. Standing firm and attentive, as her lavender globes scan and survey teh room for anything out of place, you would know it would be as her mouth that would be open first to voice it. Then obviously the Captains; Mukuro, Nakamoto, Oda, Yugure and Hageshi all making their way to their preconceived spots if they weren’t standing there already. With Captain Mukuro standing before the commander, Shusuke was certain that the meeting had already been somewhat underway prior to the arrivals of the missing Captains and even Atsuko and he’s arrival. As he took his steps to take his own place behind Yasu and stood there quietly as the events took place. Not bothering to capture her attention nor look at her in any sort of way to grab some form of acknowledgement, he simply bowed before her silently and assumed himself to watch her back. It was finally from where he stood he gathered the information with his eyes. It was quite a lot to take in as there were persons also present in which he would never have seen here under any other circumstances. All except for maybe one.

Without fully ignoring the dialog of the topics at hand, he scanned the hall and its inhabitants. Skating past those of superior rank such as himself, he also saw a familiar face in Honoka Oki, another person to have seen the last of Shobatsu Murasaki on that fateful day in the chambers of Central. Only this time she looked obviously disgruntled and more than down on her luck as she was shackled on what would seem to be Captain Mukuro’s command. His eyes leave the dark-haired woman and quickly find yet another familiar sight in Katsuo Oda, the Lieutenant of the Thirteenth Division. It had been more than one hundred years since he had seen him, but the happy go lucky expression on his face could not be found today as he too, was also in shackles. Along with a blue-haired girl he assumed was from teh same Division. Surprise only caught him when he saw Honoka in irons, but not necessarily Katsuo. One could only wonder what level of trouble he would find himself in this time around. Taking a heavy drag from his cigar, smoke would billow from behind Yasu, surely to her annoyance for her partner’s ‘dirty’ habits. A calm exhale would leave him as he carried on his initial observations which would soon be done in a matter of seconds. Finding Akarui not too far from the commander, and then eventually….two children. One matching a description of both the Commander and Akarui if you had looked at the child right, Shusuke himself wondered what could have been brought on for the Captain-Commander to take such a….woman as his wife? A story neither of them are like to forget no doubt, and best told over sake because it would be that much more believable under drunken circumstances. However, the other boy, dark of hair and...eyes matching only one other person whom he knows in this life. Although they’re juvenile now, and innocent in appearance, he still saw something reminiscent of a sleeping demon within those eyes. “It can't be….” he thought. His mouth soon dropped, nearly having his cigar sent right to the floor before he caught himself out of the quic trance. It wasn’t possible. How could he have….? Was his only thought.
Just before Lieutenant Ise began her own report in the stead of Itsuki Asakura, Katsuo responded to seemingly what was said prior to the entrance of the individuals who had just recently arrived. Taking in his words, it would seem he was stripped of his clanship from the Oda and was now a regular commonor once again. Pity. However you wouldn’t find that from the smoke clad leftinent. Finally Atsuko was able to deliver the news of Asakura’s passing, and the current status of what was currently being done by her Division and the Fourth’s to discover his cause of death. Another brief smokey exhale exited from the Ninth’s Lieutenant, cocking his head to the side and quickly closing his eyes out of only astonishment for the amount of work the First Division has to perform now after all this news. It was all now up to the Commander to sift through all the words and find the judgement that lied in those same fields of uncertainty.

 

[BSD]

It had all been going according to plan, one could say. Every action, every scenario that could logically arise, it had ran through the third seat's mind, and had been compartmentalized and expected. It was in moments such as these that his intellect truly shined and his ability to create effective strategies on the go became his true ability. The moment Eizoku had allowed his reiatsu to freely flood his division in what could be described in an overwhelming torrent of his spiritual pressure washing over everyone affected, had been the moment his plan had truly went into effect.
A simple strategy in reality, putting on an act revolving around the desire of a desperate escape under the guise of a flashed concealment and binding. In reality, everyone present had done exactly what Eizoku desired them to - underestimate him and allow their hubris and confidence in their own positions and abilities to become their downfall, their weakness. His outward reaction of insanity had drawn the eyes of every onlooker in the vicinity with the exception of one, this in itself had been the first factor of his strategy. In order to effectively disable those present and maximize his chances of "escaping", he had purposefully drawn their attention and carried out what to the general onlooker appeared as a simple burst of blinding light which he desired to follow up with the feigning of a failed kido to further catch everyone offguard. He had already accounted for the factor of those present not looking away due to assistance in dulling the flash from their masks, and had all the more desired them to fall into the belief that because of this, they wouldn't be effected - this couldn't have been further from the truth.
What truly had occurred, was that Eizoku had utilized his signature modified Kido spell, Tanma Otoshi, through a medium that had been directly touching his body - the golden clips upon his head. They had been his subject of choice in this instance for the sole purpose of their natural capability to intensify the pulsing of light which originated from the spell. The fact of both him and the entourage being in an open area lacking shade, played all the more to his benefit. Albeit his intention to toss the afflicted clip into the air for maximum effectiveness, it had been unnecessary - and he was aware that the moment he made any sudden moves at least one individual would attempt to hound in and restrict him. To his benefit, it had been the one closest to him at this point, who had also been in possession of his zanpakto. He was aware of this, for he was the very individual who directly handed his zanpakto to her before their journey into fifth. It had never been in the forefront of his mind that he would be entering battle within his own barracks, but it was still a possibility nevertheless, and like almost all things with Eizoku, accounted for. Just how far had he planned ahead for things that had a high probability of never even occurring?
”Bakudo Number 9, Geki!”
The man had immediately closed his eyes before the paralysis had become fully invoked setting his senses attune to his environment still, so as to still keep pace with the individuals present. But again why? It would soon be revealed.
"Perfect...and again, expected.", the man thought to himself.
Upon hearing the verbalizing of this spell, one in the same situation as the chronomancer would generally find themselves filled with apprehension and a sense of absolute failure, however, he saw no need. Why? Simple, he was able to process the facts that the situation had been handled incorrectly due to her own overlooking of what had truly occured. Through his extensive and intense study of Kido, he was aware that Geki paralyzes the exterior physical body of its target, restraining outward physical movement - this is not inclusive of energy or elemental constructs such as kido. Nor was it the correct way to halt this particular kido spell which had already been in motion. Meaning, that despite a temporary restraint, Eizoku's spell had still been successful. The clips upon his head glowing in conjunction with each other before still managing to catch the rays and emitting an extremely vibrant and intense pulsing before swallowing Eizoku whole, and blinding all who had failed to take the necessary steps to protect themselves. Essentially, everyone except his Lieutenant who had inadvertently closed his eyes, granting him a simple protection from it all, along with the high priestess confronting Jatiri. It had been in this moment, why him closing his eyes and utilizing his sensory had been such an effective strategy. It had prevented him from falling subject to his own spell, a factor which many failed to realize was indeed possible.
The results, the high priestess whom had bound him, along with the rest of the kido corps, including Jatiri who although had just arrived failed to protect himself as well - would find themselves thrown into an immediate forced slumber. Meaning, just as quick as Geki had been invoked, it had also been released, also rendering every intended spell thereafter null - including Rikujokoro, and ironically Inemuri. Feeling himself regain mobility of his body, and his sensory allowing him to sense both her location and his zanpakto's he wasted not a moment. With his right hand reaching in the direction her body had fallen for his zanpakto, while pulling his zanpakto towards his direction by summoning it in order to ensure he retrieved it without fail. He was also aided in this by Arashi's personal decision to remain idle and inactive in this situation, and nothing more being done by the now immobilized kido corps. With this, the man had once again been in possession of his weapon, his shikai active the instant he came into contact with it. It had been in this moment, that Eizoku went from powerless to capable. His thoughts racing at unfathomable speeds as he ponders over his next action.
"I need to end this decisively without leaving anything open to chance or probability...but how? One decisive strike is all I have, but I am also aware that I do not posses the sheer strength to where I know I would be absolutely able to cleave him in two. I'm also unable to utilize my bankai...Think...think...Everything is subject to time, everything can be sped up or slowed down...including...!" His eyebrows rising despite his eyes remaining closed, signifying that he had surmised an effective strategy.
In the midst of his Lieutenant's moment of inactivity, before the pulsing rays of light could settle and subside, Eizoku had moved at what to an onlooker or one sensing him might appear to be an instantaneous speed by utilizing the capabilities of his shikai to bolster his speed and perception. His new location, only two feet behind what in his eyes appeared to be the massive stalking holllow. Ironically to Arashi, the man had moved faster than light in that moment, and even worse, had been able to comprehend doing so. With the spell he had abandoned in his wake dying down in its intensity while its reach remained, enough for him to open his eyes without succumbing to its effects. Eizoku would utilize the remaining stray rays of light to verbally double cast at a speed that would sound like nothing more than fast-forwarded gibberish, "Rikujokoro!" Immediately using the light which still spread its reach around everyone in an attempt to restrain both Arashi along with the Kido Priestess who remained with her back turned to him. To escape the clutches of such a spell would certainly require skills to react faster than the speed of light, something to his knowledge something only Arashi with his Shikai active had been capable of, yet he had already chosen not to use it prior, and to remain idle.
In sync with his spell, Arashi would find himself faced with a dual diagonal downward strike that soke to both bisect and decapitate him. The edges of both of his blades coated in a near translucent wavering pale blue aura. Out his desperation and determination, Eizoku had unknowingly attempted what might potentially be one of his most useful techniques in the near future, yet - albeit incomplete and unrefined in the moment. Essentially, his logic revolved around coating the edge of his blades in an ethereal coating of materialized time. By doing so, he would logically be able to drastically increase the advancement of time pertaining to the lifeline or aging factor of any individual or tangible entity he comes into contact with. With such a technique, in theory it would surely be able to be utilized in order to drastically decrease the lifeline of oncoming kido spells, and blade assaults rendering them essentially useless and allowing Eizoku, despite his lack of strength, to counter or shatter the blades or bodies of those who dare come into contact without the means to suppress or overpower his ability.
In Arashi's scenario, how would one react to be outpaced and placed in a predicament of uncertainty by your own hubris? To counter two scenarios which rivaled the speed of light. To being placed in a situation where utilizing Kido and defending with your own blade could even prove to be ineffective? What exactly would his superior do now?
It hadn't mattered, before his blades could finish their attempted bisection of the man, they would be brought to a halt.
"Halt your attack you fool! Get a grip on yourself Eizoku...", A voice from the man's own Zanpakto bringing him to a standstill, the exaggerated reality of his situation now settled into reality. He had downed nearly the entire division in the immediate area, including the kido corps and high priestess, and found himself attacking not a hollow, but his lieutenant. Yet, his attempted restraints by means of his spell had not been released for fear of his own life in the moment. Now the tables had turned once again, just what would become of him?

 

[BSD]

Instincts. A warrior’s greatest ally when all else is lost. It is the thing that has kept Eizoku alive. It is the very thing that allows him to operate and perform with the utmost intelligence. Having already devised a plan in mere seconds, and then executing this plan with near perfection; having taken down the Kido Corps who had thought to be protected by the very Vizards that covered their head- an issue that will be rectified in due time. Arashi still remains as he is, unaffected by the modified Kido having closed his eyes prior. With no change in his expression, the norm of his smile opposes the frantic and desperate man before him. Eizoku believes his inaction and idle profile to be his advantage. The fact that Arashi has not set a hand upon his Zanpakuto or had done anything to protect those that have fallen by the Kido performed or Eizoku’s impressive spiritual power. Against a weaker and less experienced foe, he would have been correct and completely capable of the actions that are soon to come.
For a hundred years, Arashi has been training. The calm and stillness he presents even now is the very product of that training, or perhaps a far more improved state of mind. In those years, he could not afford to be rash or hasty, and being the weakest of the three Vizards of the Seireitei, he had no choice but to keep up, to progress from what he once was. Against impossible odds, the Captain-Commander himself, simply faced with the possibility of death each and every day. Where Eizoku had spent his time fighting a Hollow with only one objective on his mind, he had to battle against a man who has far more experience, far more battle-ready, far more powerful than any mere Hollow. While they both faced death at any moment, there is a clear difference…
Blinded by his desperation, and the willingness to survive, Eizoku still manages to grab hold of his Zanpakuto and in tow, Arashi places his left hand against his own, drawing it, but only revealing two inches of the blade, an action that will go unnoticed due to his current position. That was all it took. Simultaneously to Eizoku releasing his Shikai, Arashi had done so as well, and that sliver of his blade being gone, nothing connected the handle to the scabbard at this point. So where had the blade gone? Right now, he was seeming without a blade to present against the opponent before him. Yet, he has not changed his posture to suit a battle-ready one.
Like Eizoku, he had been using his senses, well before Eizoku even arrived in the barracks. However, the young man seemed to have increased his speed. Something Arashi deduced to be the result of using his Shikai as a medium, and still, he is able to follow his motions. So much so, that at this very moment, Eizoku surpassed the speed of light and managed to get behind the still motionless Lieutenant. Words fast-forwarded to cast another Kido in his arsenal, Rikujokoro, utilizing the very light in the area in order to keep the Lieutenant from moving at all. However, it seemed this very Kido would be insurance, a simple ploy to hide what stands next to it. A fatal dual strike, made to bisect and decapitate the Hollow he perceived, and unfortunately the Lieutenant, his superior. Sure enough, his own Zanpakuto had intervened at the last possible moment, stopping such a fatal strike…
Amongst his instincts, his intelligence, his determination, and desperation, it all still stemmed from one thing. FEAR. Fear of death, fear of defeat, fear of being powerless. If he was sure that his strategy would work, then he would be blind to the true skill that Arashi has gained, and now possesses. This wasn’t his first time dealing with opponents that moved faster than light, be it a person or an attack. Not to mention that he often utilized a Zanpakuto where the speed of light is common. He could only hope that Ezioku did not truly believe that his speed is simply limited to the speed of light; that he had been outpaced. If so, then it only took a simple gesture. At the moment his Zanpakuto finished bringing Eizoku back to his senses with mere words, he’d feel a single hand upon his shoulder. This very hand belonged to Lieutenant Suta himself. Arashi notices the conflict within Eizoku ceasing to be, as the halt of his strike is evidence of that.
However, he’d likely be surprised. Wondering how Arashi was able to outmaneuver both his Kido and his strike? What beats speed? Timing. Understanding time and when it comes to battle; timing and precision are some of the key factors of combat. As a master of time, Eizoku should have known this, and while it is possible that he may have neglected this concept, Arashi’s speed has grown regardless. Right at the arrival of Eizoku, in the hastened words of another Bakudo in tandem of a strike coming his way, Arashi becomes a magician so to speak. So what stands before Eizoku now with another Arashi Suta standing behind him? Light, a construct that formulated and took the shape of Arashi Suta. A technique he has not used in a long time, the same one used against Sword Eater. Tōei(投影 Lit. “Projection”), a technique similar to Utsusemi, however, using available light as a medium, allowing him to cast a perfect image of himself before his opponent; in layman's terms, a hologram.
The image of Arashi Suta in front of Eizoku ripples as it fades away and along with Rikujokoro, it breaks into tiny specs of light. Unknown to Eizoku, Arashi allowed him to use his Shikai to cast his Bakudo, and ultimately, his Bakudo would have become Arashi’s, being the master of light in this small battle. His Shikai being arguably the fastest within the Soul Society, its release and dispersion speed is likely to be without an equal. His blade had simply done just that, become the very light that is his Shikai, blending and hiding within the already existing light of the world. With such control of his spiritual power, there seemed to be no elevation of his power. It all remained condensed and refined against the body. Perfectly balanced, perfectly sharpened, making it difficult to deduce when the Lieutenant had gone into Shikai.
” Enough. Eizoku. Please restrain yourself immediately.”
In the meantime, the sudden arrival of Takashi Kiyoshi’s spiritual signature would grab the attention of his senses for a mere second. However, he stands prepared for any other strategies the young man before him may concoct next, even though he may seem to have calmed down for now. However, with the return of Takashi Kiyoshi, he can already tell today is gonna be very interesting and he no longer needs to send a message to Shusuke Kiyoshi, nor Kiku Shunkan at this time. Both Takashi and Eizoku will be placed within their own individual cells until further notice… Should no other untimely interruptions arise. As for Jatiri, well, he will have to be woken up like the rest, should he have succumbed to the effects of Eizoku’s modified spell.

 

[BSD]

The moment the Lieutenant failed to increase the distance between the two and had attempted to placed his hand upon the shoulder of the third seat, marked the end of the entirety of the battle that had occurred. It was that moment, that Arashi Suta and all of his grace, had been made subject to the effects of Eizoku's Shikai. His body, his perceptions, his words, his actions, and even the shiaki under his control - all slowed to a near stagnant halt. He had once again underestimated the third seat of his division, and instead of placing his hand upon the back of Eizoku's shoulder, he would now be faced eye to eye with Eizoku, who'm had reacted at a speed that with Arashi's now slowed perception, would not even be able to process. The flattened tip of the blade in his right hand pressed firmly against the chest of the man, the slowing effects of his blade leaving Arashi subject to near stagnation regarding him movement and perception regardless of the distance between the two now.
"Even light, is subject to time..Goyogai..."
The lieutenant would find himself unable to comprehend the speed from his point of view that the barrier would encase him, suspending him in a stasis at the mercy of Eizoku. He had successfully immobilized the entire kido corps present, including the head priestess before him, and his own lieutenant. One suspended in a stasis, one sealed in place, the other's including those who were initially made subject to his spiritual pressure, unconscious from his own spell. However he was far from a criminal in his mind, and had no intention on being imprison or killed by those present; and as such, the man would position himself seated directly atop of the barrier awaiting the return of his Captain, his shiaki still active with his senses attuned to his surroundings. And it would be to him, and him alone that he would bow down to and comply, for it was obvious that he could trust no one else for the time being.
"Leiutenant Arashi...just what the hell are you?"