[BSD-RP] The Valley of Screams

[Shinigami]

The steps of a titan severed the thick silence that swept through the Valley of Screams like a rogue tumbleweed. Although his mass was normal, his presence was simply forceful, as if he’d been a walking fortress of dead weight. Toes wiggled on the boundaries of socks dipped in alabaster, each strain of the fabric being pulled at by the split of his sandals. To everyone’s surprise, he’d been fully dressed; the black of his Shikashuhou and Hakama against the pearl of his Haori presented an irrefutable contrast. One look from head to toe and one could easily assume his Captain Status. Covered by the length of an unruly, fashioned ponytail was the Tenth Division’s insignia, worn proudly on the back of his coat. With the amount of solace he found in his duties it was better off tattooed into his flesh, though he refused to host such an imperfection.
Throughout the entirety of their journey here it had also been silence. The odd man—whom Higen had heard a bit about—seemed to stay to himself and his disguise. He could only wonder about the monstrosity that lay beneath. It was a natural curiosity after all; the garments of the candidate were completely unconventional, to say the least. Despite there not being a word of talking, Higen’s mind ran wild with thought, completely and utterly dissecting this man with his eyes. Although he wasn’t a man of vast intellect, Higen was still a man of detail. He paid attention to every sway and anomaly beneath Yamato’s coat, using the extent of his imagination to conjure what tools could be hidden below. He acknowledged his pace, while simultaneously matching it, attempting to form a rhythm with the combatant before the actual combat had even started. Fighting was a dance, an art, a display of one’s talent, and this was the mental process that occurred nearly every single time.
Their entrance into the new plane was hardly grandiose, the cracked, barren landscape welcoming them under a pale blue sky. It was nothing like he remembered, mainly because it wasn’t in pieces. He was sure he had a large part in destroying the dimension the last time he’d been but was happy to find it intact. As Higen stopped upon entry, Yamato continued, the distance between them stretching a mere ten meters. Had he not been careful, these were distances that Yamato would come to find menacing against the Shining Captain. Once the opponent’s feet were planted firmly and all motion ceased, Higen had continued to take a gander at the scientist. His vision caught wind of an eerie green luminance around the eye sockets of the strange mask, perhaps an ocular enhancement of some kind? He’d hardly finished his once-over before muffled words bled through, the pitch and tone seemed to suggest that he was speaking to a form of ventilator; it was dark and eluding.
“So Captain Higen, if I what I’ve been told is true during this Captain Test I’m supposed to come at you with everything I’ve got correct? Nothing is off limits correct?”
Amidst Yamato’s Sentence Higen’s right hand traveled along the length of his torso to graze the fabric of his zanpakuto’s hilt. With a firm grip, he drew it in a quick, decisive motion. His grip loosened, the blade spinning in the base of his hand before he secured it. To those familiar with him—which he was sure Yamato was not—this would be surprising, as he often opted to only use his body as a weapon. Wielding his Tanto-Kodachi fusion tightly like a combat knife, its edge faced the direction of his small finger, the emerald handle somewhat vanishing in the grasp of a gargantuan palm. Each of his hands balled into a fist, the right rising to about shoulder height, the shine of the blade forcing a glare onto Higen’s person. His left rose concurrently, extending somewhat further in front of himself, his elbow positioned at about a one-hundred twenty-degree angle. His full height dwindled in the lapse of a second, his knees bending at their joints and spreading out to accommodate a wider and more grounded stance. His left foot scurried against the dirt to be stowed just shoulder-length in front of the right.
“Correct, nothing is off limits. It’s important to remember that this applies to both you and myself. Now.. Let us begin.”
Upon the conclusion of his answer a breeze briefly swept through, ruffling the strands of his lengthy beard, causing them to flow in unison with those of his mane. To some, Higen’s statement would sound like some sort of warning, though it was simply information he figured the man should have. Reiryoku coursed through his body constantly, a portion of it surfacing on the follicles of his skin, visible in a sort of polish. Under his own command, it flowed heavily into the base of both hands, humming under the meat of his flesh. His eyes never abandoned his opponent’s frame, muscles loosening in preparation for rapid, countering movements. More specifically his gaze was fixated upon his opponent’s lower area, a shift in leg posture or the press of a toe could give away one’s intentions of utilizing shunpo, giving him the ability to respond accordingly. His pristine physicality allowed him to keep up with most of those who were proficient in Hoho techniques, able to push his body to limits foreign to others. In the end, he was still a proctor, prepared to gauge the true extent of this Shinigami’s ability along with his famed intelligence.

 

[Shinigami]

As he waited for Captain Higen to answer his question the captain didn’t reply at first and instead drew his sword. ‘Is he going to start the fight without answering me?’ Thought Yamato as the captain got into his fighting stance, upon looking at the man he saw that he was clearly a skilled fighter and the blade he carried almost seemed small when wielded by such a large person. Finally the captain answered his question by replying, “Correct, nothing is off limits. It’s important to remember that this applies to both you and myself. Now.. Let us begin.” As the captain said this Yamato’s secondary vision noted that a heavy amount of Reiryoku flowed into his hands as he seemingly waited for Yamato to make a move.
“Of course captain, it would be foolish of me to think you’d hold back when the point of this test is to see what I’m capable of...so in advance I apologize for what I’m about to do.”
Yamato’s right hand went to his suits belt were a knob could be seen, as he twisted the knob ninety degrees a hissing and whirring sound could be heard. The seals in his suit released as his poisonous energy disks and balls were put into two slots that connected to his launcher so he could fire them from it before putting the launcher into a hook on his waist. As his suit came undone his poisonous spirit energy came gushing out as he took off his suit revealing his loose green/grey striped hoodie and pants with his tail wrapping around his legs and the standard Shinigami socks and sandals below it.

Taking a deep breath to prepare himself for what was to come Yamato drew Rengoku no Kusari. Rengoku no Kusari was a blade five feet, four inches long with the blade tinted green with a snake of the same color as the edge pattern of the blade with the tail starting at the silver blade collar and ending at the point of the sword. Rengoku no Kusari’s Kissaki had two small two inch long hook like “fangs” where the snakes on the point of the sword ended that allowed Yamato to tear either ragged or precise wounds into his opponents. The guard was silver made in the likeness of Oroborus, the snake that swallows its own tail. The handle and cord wrap were both a sickly moss green as were the sheath and hanging cord with images of chains criss crossing in an ‘x’ pattern. The black colored pommel was that of a silver snake with its mouth open baring its fangs.
Yamato extended his right hand out all the way at chest height and placed Rengoku no Kusari horizontally and let go of it where it hanged in midair with the blade facing outward to his left. As Yamato gripped Rengoku no Kusari’s blade with both hands drawing blood he said in a deadly calm voice, “Dokubutsu: Rengoku no Kusari.” as a blinding green light erupted as Rengoku no Kusari shifted into Shikai form. When the light died died down the captain would be able to see a set of barbed chains each with a barbed/bladed hook attached to a pair of shackles.

Aside from being able to change its length at will Rengoku no Kusari had one simple yet deadly ability, anything be it a gas, solid, semi solid, liquid, plasma or energy, any part of it touches becomes a deadly poison. This even included poisons yet to be made/invented meaning he could create poisons within reason and this ability is so potent it can even affect other energies and even souls. Any Zanpakuto that clashes with Rengoku no Kusari would start to immediately weaken with any abilities slowly fading away as Rengoku no Kusari’s ability poisoned the Zanpakuto’s very soul thus weakening it, the blade and any abilities related. Just a touch from Rengoku no Kusari is usually fatal though death would never be immediate and any Zanpakuto that wasn’t destroyed by Rengoku no Kusari would regain its former strength after twenty four hours as the Zanpakuto “flushes” the poison out. In layman's terms the internal energy within an unbroken Zanpakuto would excise the forgein energy of Rengoku no Kusari like a fever would an illness for a body though it can’t “build up” a resistance to Rengoku no Kusari. Any other afflictions caused by Rengoku no Kusari are permanent unless the affected parts are removed before further damage could be done. The matter affected by Rengoku no Kusari can spread whatever poison was made over time making Rengoku no Kusari a Shikai that becomes more dangerous over time.
Even now Yamato tried to suppress his Reiryoku as much as possible, his goal today was to win, not to kill. The captain would be able to see the superficial cuts made by Yamato had already stopped bleeding and were nearly healed. As he swung his chains Yamato made the surrounding air touched by the chains into an airborne version Compound 1080 that was colorless, odorless and tasteless making the surrounding ten feet full of poison. As he swung the chains blood began to drip from his nose as one of his curses side effects to hold as he tried to suppress the potency of his poisonous Reiryoku. Looking at the captain he said, “If you start feeling ill captain please let me know, I’m here for this test to win, not to kill. I have no desire to cause you permanent damage or your death but at the same time I can’t afford to come at you with anything but my best.”

 

[Shinigami]

The gong was struck, the silent echo of suspense encompassing them both for only a second or two. His words seemed to be received well, a slight shift in the body language of his masked opponent was indication of this. To Higen’s surprise, however, there was still no movement. From these early moments he could tell fighting someone like Yamato was going to be different than anything else he had experienced prior. He was used to sporadic, quick tempo of a battle that comes for a more a frenzied opponent, but he was sure that this time he would have to remain astute and decisive. More words were filtered through the mask, briefly drawing a spell of interest.
“Of course captain, it would be foolish of me to think you’d hold back when the point of this test is to see what I’m capable of...so in advance I apologize for what I’m about to do.”
This apology would fall on deaf ears, as there was no need to apologize for trying one’s best, despite how gruesome the outcome may be. Even so, Yamato should hold no fear in hurting the mountainous man, as this was extremely difficult to do. Still, Higen continued to observe, watching each limb of his adversary closely for any discerning movements or patterns. A gaseous noise broke a brief silence as Yamato’s “Suit” became unlatched, revealing a less concealed, and somewhat still oddly dressed man underneath. In that spur of an instant Higen felt an increase in pressure, a toxic, ghastly aura consuming the area between them both. Autonomously, his own Reiryoku began to exert itself into Reiatsu to match the wavelengths emitted by his opponent; a natural defense system of a sort. Simultaneously, his Senren was being strengthened by this emission, a layer of reiryoku-based armor able to protect him indefinitely.
As the pressure increased Higen found no reason to break his stance, or shift his gaze. In fact, he was more cautious and attentive now than he had been before. The moment Yamato drew his sword Higen already suspected what was coming, and it was a smart thing to do, after all. He was no master at perceiving Reiryoku but small fluctuations were enough to indicate that his opponent had plans for something sinister. Then, there was blood. He’d cut himself? Higen thought, unsure what was to follow. A gleam of green enveloped the area around them for a moment, before revealing a new and improved version of Yamato’s unique blade. It was as if he was a prisoner to his own zanpakuto; shackles appeared on his wrists with chains connected to sharpened weapons he’d had trouble identifying. The eerie green was yet to fade, however, and seemed to be cause for alarm. The appearance itself was hazardous, but was quickly outclassed by the near-instant healing of the self-inflicted wounds. Did he have some sort of regenerative properties?
That could be problematic He thought, as he watched Yamato begin to swing the chains in a somewhat circular motion. They were well out of the range of Higen’s person—at least for now—but he continued to watch them closely for any change in length or trajectory. Yamato continued to talk afterward with even more concern expressed, something quite opposite of Higen’s expectations that he had developed just from the man’s appearance.
“If you start feeling ill captain please let me know, I’m here for this test to win, not to kill. I have no desire to cause you permanent damage or your death but at the same time I can’t afford to come at you with anything but my best.”
Was that it? Was that all? No actions ensued, there was nothing to look out for. Or maybe there was? This was a very intelligent opponent, after all. In Higen’s cautious mind perhaps Yamato was simply setting up an intricate trap or playing the waiting game. Either way, Higen would force him out of his element, or perhaps further into it. Puckered lips parted as his tongue rolled over a hill of white teeth to speak. Perhaps to Yamato it would seem that the Captain was about to respond to his statement, but the truth was there were different words to be said.
“Shimmer, Hitsumishi”
Spoken quickly, quietly, and coherently Higen had released his zanpakuto. The entirety of the weapon began to glow a vibrant green in a tint similar to that of his opponent’s. The glowing entity of light separated into small particles that divided equally, latching themselves onto Higen’s hands. In a flash, they dispersed, and from their absence came a pair of cobalt blue metallic gloves. Along the knuckles of each glove were a set of spikes, able to both crush and penetrate their target with little effort.

Without the slightest pause after the initial release Higen immediately pressed the two of his fists together, the clashing of metal resounding loudly throughout the empty space.
Clang
The moment his fists collided directly in front of his chest large stakes of jade-like crystal would sprout from the cracked terrain beneath. This process was quick, as if they had already been there. In reality, Higen had just utilized a masterful control of his own zanpakuto to manipulate the surrounding reishi that made up this very landscape. In a quick, unperceivable process these crystals would rise to consume the area in a two hundred yard radius. At its epicenter were five spikes that would rise beneath Yamato’s person with varying angles. One went straight upward, attempting to impale the man at an erect, vertical position. The second and fourth appeared at about a fifty degree angle each on the left and right sides of Yamato respectively. Their paths would have led them to both pierce and pin the man at the hip. This was even further assisted by the third and fifth stakes, appearing at the exact same time as the rest with identical angles as the second and fourth. The only difference was their location, appearing directly in front and directly behind Yamato. The angle allowed for some leniency in point of impact, as attempting to ascend to escape their wrath would only result in leg-bound injuries, specifically around the upper calf and knee.
It may have seemed like a random summon of harmful constructs but the entirety of this attack was much more elaborate than it gave off. Upon close inspection, one could see that outside of the positon of the spikes directly targeting Yamato, the rest inside the area of affect were identical. Each of them were spaced approximately twelve yards apart, had a height of twenty-three meters and a girth of seventy-five inches that decreased as you came closer to the sharpened tip. This meant that from Yamato’s location there were additional spikes every twelve yards for two hundred yards in four directions.
This crystal was more durable than any normal metallic alloy, impregnable, and dangerous to the touch. Had all gone as planned, the field would be set. Higen had no intentions of letting this linger on, applying himself to push Yamato to his limits as he had been employed to do. The Shining Captain would accept only the best to wear the same coat as he.

 

[Shinigami]

As Yamato waited for Higen to respond he saw that the captain had already released his Reiatsu to keep Yamato’s poisonous spirit energy at bay, a good choice. As Higen opened his mouth to speak Yamato thought he might be responding to him but instead the captain simply said clearly and precisely,
“Shimmer, Hitsumishi.”
As the captain’s weapon began to glow a vibrant green that was similar to Yamato’s Yamato couldn’t help but admire it and how pure the light looked,unlike his own sickly green glow. The glowing and vibrant illumination of light then separated into small particles that then proceeded to latch themselves onto Higen’s hands in an organized manner. In a flash, the small particles dispersed only to be replaced by a pair of cobalt blue metallic gloves. Along the knuckles of each glove were a set of spikes that wouldn’t look out of place in a gladiatorial arena. Yamato inwardly grimaced thinking,
‘Geeze, I sure don’t want to be hit by those, even with my regenerative abilities I still feel pain and just looking at those hurt. I do admire him though, he’s a man of few words but lots of action.’
Any other thoughts were battered from his brain as the captain brought his pummeled fists together with an ear aching CLANG!! Immediately after he did this all the ground in a two hundred meter range centered on Yamato sprouted jade green crystal spikes. Thanks to his ability to sense the flow of Reiryoku he knew a split second before hand that five of these crystals would pose the most immediate threat. Just as the five crystals were forming he slapped his tail on the ground popping himself up five feet in the air while simultaneously sending his chains and hooks above him with a flick of his wrists. Just as he started to defend back down towards the crystals he spoke in a quiet tone.
“Bakudo #8: Seki.”
As he did so a small orb of light blue energy formed beneath his right foot and sent him skyrocketing up forty feet in the air with him twisting like a top as he did so. As he rose up the length of his chains grew and he struck all the crystal spikes within a hundred meters of him with his chains and hooks. As he did this the ability of his Shikai turned the crystals into a fine white poisonous powder called Ricin with the effects of the poison greatly enhanced by his Shikai. Since he struck the crystals at such high speeds the air currents generated by the passing of the chains and hooks sent the Ricin powder in all directions including towards Higen.
If Higen were to breathe the powder in he would start feeling the first effects in the next turn. First Higen would have trouble breathing and begin to sweat heavily, then the turn after that he could develop a whooping cough as fluid filled his lungs, in the third turn he would suffer a massive fever along with cloudy vision and on the fourth turn he would no longer be able to stand as respiratory failure finally occurred before he succumbed to death.
Yamato wasn’t done however, as a scientist he never left anything to chance and now that the area was clear it was time to pull out all the stops.
“BAN...KAI!! HIDORA!!”
Descending he shortened his chains as they wrapped around his arms and his hooks gently hit the nape of his neck. The chains tightened biting into his arms and the hooks hit his neck hard enough that the spikes in the curves of the hooks drew blood though the wounds were superficial like when he released his Shikai. For a split second if one was close enough to see minute details they would see the blood drawn writhing into the shape of snakes before his Shikai turned to mist for one second and forming into Hidora the next. Hidora looked like the legendary Hydra of myth or the Yamato No Orochi save it only had four heads and two tails with two foot long barbed spines that start at the tips of the two tails going along the back and ending at the crowns of each head. Hidora was green, sixty feet tall and ninety feet long from head to tail and his body was so tough most physical attacks not enhanced by an element would prove useless against his hide. His spines could be fired like projectiles going as fast as the average bullet and only take a few seconds to grow back. These spines were dangerous as they were hollow and fragile, containing his blood which served to spread Hidora’s main ability.
Aside from Yamato’s Shikai powers Hidora had several other abilities. Hidora was practically impossible to destroy as Hidora possessed such an astonishing regenerative ability he could only be destroyed if all traces of him were gone as he could completely reform from the smallest part of his body. Like the Hydra of myth Hidora could regenerate any heads that were damaged with an extra one forming along with it six seconds after being cut off. Hidora’s main ability took Yamato’s Shikai ability to turn anything into poison by coming into contact with it to the next level. This happened through Hidora’s ability to breathe a continuous stream of the same poisonous energy into the air. The energy resembled a thick, green viscous fog and affects a hundred meter area around and above him by creating green clouds with the energy. Twelve seconds after the green clouds formed a green rain would start to fall with the same properties as Hidora’s breath. It’s important to note Hidora’s saliva, blood, flesh and spines all have the same Shikai ability.
So long as even one of Hidora’s heads continues to send the energy into the clouds it made the affected area would continue to increase by ten meters each round and for each additional head firing into the clouds the range would increase yet another ten meters. Unlike Shikai Hidora had another ability that worked in tandem with the Shikai ability that allowed him/Yamato to turn anything affected by the poisonous energy into any kind of specific poison at will. Also any other Zanpakuto affected by the poisonous energy Hidora emits wouldn't be able to recover unlike if they were exposed to Shikai and would get weaker and weaker until it could no longer be used and for all intents and purposes was just a normal sword with matching properties. The only loophole in this is if a Zanpakuto had an ability not directly connected to it such as if a Zan shot a fireball into the affected area only the fireball would be affected though the ability itself would grow weaker in potency when in the area.
As Hidora slammed into the now crystal free ground below his four heads started spewing forth the sickly green fog with Yamato landing into his back only to be quickly hidden in the fog. As the fog with the ground beneath Hidora Yamato made the ground turn into a mucky necrotizing tar basically turning the area surrounding the two of them into a swamp.

 

[Shinigami]

Hmph
A mental scoff, an internal display of disappointment. In a flash, Higen had bent the shape of the battlefield to his will, a forest of crystalline spires ascending to the blue sky. In the same frame of time, five of these said spires were affixed to convert Yamato into a Shish Kabob. Higen’s eyes had yet to allow his opponent’s shape to fade from view, peering intently to absorb every detail of his actions. It was odd; when Yamato went to move his actions had both purpose and intention. If Higen knew any better, it was almost as if he’d perceived what the Captain was going to do before it happened. Even still, his attempts were hopeless. Using his animal-like extremity as a springboard, Yamato would attempt to vault upward. His tail met contact with the earth in the same moment that the trees of emerald would sprout, leaving it at the mercy of the sharp, jagged edge. The first spire that was aimed directly upward pierced through the tail’s reptilian flesh. Naturally, as the spike rose to its full height it would take the now pinned Yamato up with it. This would never happen, however, the crystals originally aimed for the hip area would collide in the center, the five crystals all meeting simultaneously in the center of Yamato’s previous position, each rupturing the tail at different lengths. If there were any pain receptors in the tail, a sharp, piercing sensation would travel throughout. This wasn’t the end, though. The moment the crystals would impale the “man” he’d have the lingering feeling of his reiryoku being steadily sapped from his person. Having being impaled by the entire five that were released beneath him, this process’ speed increased exponentially.
Just in the briefness that was that moment he’d been drained of a considerable amount. Despite this, if the participant had massive pools of reiryoku then it’d be expendable. Even so, every crystal in the field began to radiate a vibrant green, humming internally with the volatile energy. Seemingly in the same instant, all of them ceased to glow except the five that had pierced the tail. The light from them increased in intensity, becoming almost blinding. Concurrently, Higen’s right hand opened and then immediately closed back, triggering the spontaneous combustion of the crystals inside the tail. While still intertwined with Yamato, a large explosion of reiryoku would originate from each of the five spikes, consuming him entirely. This would be enough to most likely blow the tail completely off, while rending burns of varying degree across the entirety of his lower body, head and torso.
Another result from the explosion would be the shattering of the crystal itself, sending sharpened, reiryoku-infused shards into different directions. Most of them concealed themselves in the light of the blast, heading towards varying locations along Yamato’s body, closing such a small distance near-instantaneously. One was angled toward his neck, a centimeter or two to the left of the jugular vein. The second would travel to impact his inner left thigh, while two more approached his diaphragm. If successful, this would leave Yamato both charred and skewered, most likely on the brink of a few final breaths. Higen was yet to move from his stationary position, simply bombarding his opponent at a range that wasn’t even his most effective. More than likely, this would be over quickly.