Leo Vs Shade [NDE, R, TP]

Shade didn’t know what Leo meant when he remarked on what kind of person Shade was, but he decided that it didn’t matter and that his mind was better put to getting this other lieutenant to fight him. The challenge had been stated and it was now up to Leo whether or not things preceded further. A lieutenant was not supposed to be behaving the way Leo had, so Shade felt fully justified in initiating the challenge. The vice-captain noticed Leo’s mouth twist up into a smile before he stood up. What did such a curvature of the mouth mean? Shade didn’t understand facial expressions at all and would have preferred to live in a world without such trivialities. “Before I kill you... thanks,” said the lieutenant as he got up slowly. Now he was expressing appreciation for something? Shade didn’t quite understand but chose to simply keep his mouth closed and quietly observe his opponent who seemed bent on killing him.

It turned out to be a good decision not to take his eyes off Leo, because as soon as he’d gotten up his zanpakutou was unsheathed. Leo quickly came at Shade, delivering a vertical swing that was directed at the soul reaper’s torso. The lieutenant simply held his zanpakutou horizontal and stopped Leo’s sword in its tracks as the blades met. Leo wasn’t done there though. A barrage of slices crashed against the shinigami’s defense fruitlessly as Shade’s gaze continued to beat down on Leo like a torrent of rain. “Is that all?” muttered the lieutenant as he dealt with each of Leo’s swings and stabs. This particular vice-captain was the youngest seated officer in Soul Society and it just so happened he was one of the strongest as well. It was no secret that Shade was a prodigy and possessed skill that was unmatched by any of his peers. There was simply no way that things would be as easy for Leo as he expected. He didn’t have any idea just what he was dealing with.

Shade, on the other hand, was able to gauge the other lieutenant’s skill from that one exchange. He could tell that Leo was going about this very amateurishly and that there was no way he’d win in a battle of swordsmanship. But most importantly, Shade could feel that he was stronger than Leo and that they possessed around the same speed. This was certainly a desirable situation for the shinigami to be in. Then the lieutenant felt it. With his acute energy sensory Shade noticed this shinigami’s spiritual pressure. It was massive and completely dwarfed his own. Taking this into account, the soul reaper knew that cutting him would be a dire mistake, for not only would Buraindo Kira not pierce his flesh at all, Shade would receive damage to his hands. This affect could be ignored, however, by simply releasing. However, Shade did not want to needlessly reveal his blade’s abilities and was confident in his ability to outmaneuver this particular individual and beat him solely with blunt force.

With a swift movement Shade dropped to the ground, paying mind to any attacks that may yet be sent his way from Leo, and preformed a quick leg sweep in hopes of sending Leo plummeting to the ground. One of two things would probably happen. Either the sweep would go off without a hitch and Leo would be sent falling to the ground, or Leo would jump over Shade's leg. The lieutenant was prepared for this second scenario as well and he would strike quickly if things took such a turn, for when one jumps into the air, they have no control over their body's position until they land.