What Was That First Rule Again? [ R | JT | Taka | Yoko ]

[Yoko Kusanagi]

Taka Sar.

It was a name that Yoko Kusanagi had heard in passing. There were plenty of rumors surrounding this individual. They ranged from fairly mundane, that they owned a club, to the fairly bizarre. Like that the club had an underground fight ring in it. Or that the fight ring had people beyond human levels at it. Monsters. Demons. Those were the kind of words that Yoko had heard flung around when she had investigated a warehouse fight club. That gathering had been pathetically normal, but she had gotten her lead. From the sound of things, it looked like Taka Sar’s club was the place that she had been looking for all along.

To her, these investigations weren’t a matter of looking for mean things to arrest people for. What people did in their free time, as long as they consented, was none of her business. If people wanted to try and beat each other to a pulp… well she kinda got that. Despite everything else she was publically, Yoko was still a soldier. Her main talent was punching people really hard. In the face. Until they stopped having one. But, regardless, the point was that she wasn’t there to protect people from themselves. Or from their bad decisions. Yoko existed to protect people from the threats that they neither consented to nor could defend themselves from.

Taka Sar’s club was of interested because of one part of the rumor she had heard in particular. The part about the monsters and demons. To her, that could be basically anything. It could just mean that The Mountain went down there, and those guys were talking about him like he was capable of bashing their skulls in… because he was. But it was also possible that there was something more important going on there. It could be anything from actual demons to Fullbringers, or anything in between. That meant it was definitely worth investigating. The chance of finding someone spiritually aware there was high enough. The chance of finding someone with actual developed powers was also quite high. If nothing else, they might need protection if they were gathering spiritually aware people in one place. Prime target for hollow attacks.

As part of her preparation, Yoko had to make make sure she was dressed appropriately for the place she was headed to. Yeah, she could just wear one of her normal outfits, but if she walked into the place looking like a security guard, then she probably was gonna stick out like a sore thumb. She wasn’t planning to make a scene, so she dressed the part. A seldom worn black and purple dress was pulled from her closet, with its cut a bit lower than she might normally have worn. She was going to a club after all! What harm was there in dressing just a teensy bit slutty. Okay, and it had thigh high stockings… and a slightly immodest length. It was a dress that fell right in the gap between skanky and classy. The overall cut and design was still relatively formal, but the places where the fabric stopped existing wouldn’t be appropriate for a formal gala.

Dressed like that, Yoko made her way over to Taka’s club that night. She just walked up to the door, and got in the ground level okay. It was a club. She was, despite her best efforts, a relatively attractive woman. Though she generally wanted to be treated as just one of the boys, she couldn’t help but deny that her looks did have an advantage from time to time. All she had to do was say that she was here to go to the club, and they were willing to let her in. They looked at her a bit funny, and though she didn’t know it, the guards had enough energy sensory talent to know a little bit about her.

For the time being though, they didn’t get anything that was enough to cause a problem. Yoko wasn’t here to cause trouble, and her mind at that time was full of the thought of “just get to the club.” That was all the guards at the door could pick up on. She was, after all, a rather one track mind. Once she was set on the mission, that was all that consumed her thoughts. At that stage her goal was innocent enough. So she was let in, and she made her way down to the elevator and passed the spiritual barriers. She couldn’t sense them, but felt an ever so slight tug each time she made her way through them. Interesting.

Eventually Yoko made her way into the club proper. It had been a long time since she was in a place like this. It wasn’t that she had an aversion to them or anything, but, well, the middle of the desert isn’t a great spot for debauchery. Part of her wanted to just stay and relax, but she had a mission to do. The Fullbringer made her way up to the bar and just asked, ”Is Taka around? I have some questions for them.” In an instant, there were guards on either side of her that definitely weren’t there before. She was taken off to the site, and given a pat down that she opted not to resist.

Of course they found nothing threatening on her person. Yoko’s person was the threat after all. She didn’t need to carry weapons with her when she could just will them into existence. And at that moment too, the guards would get nothing threatening from her. Yeah, they could tell that she was physically strong, but Yoko was the opposite of threatening when she wanted to be. She knew how to suppress her spiritual presence, though not as well as though who were trained in stealth, and her reiatsu was fairly weak anyway. More important was her single-minded nature. Her main reason for being here was innocent. She genuinely wanted only two things. One would be the possibility of finding recruits. The other was to ensure that everyone here was safe.

She had nothing to hide. The more dangerous fact than what they could sense was revealed by simply looking at her face. Over the past few months, Yoko had become a fairly minor celebrity in Karakura. Her face was on the news on a couple of occasions, and it wasn’t a great surprise that one of the guards recognized her. But, as their detection skills revealed, the truth was that she wasn’t here to cause trouble. Because of that, she was escorted over to Taka’s office, and allowed to see the boss. When brought to the room, Yoko went inside, and stood at attention. She would not sit unless invited to do so. Military discipline and all that.

”You must be Taka then? I am Yoko Kusanagi. I come here today following a rumor. A rumor that you leads me to believe you have a gathering spot for those with spiritual powers here. My intention is to help ensure the safety of such a place, as if the rumors are to be believed, then this is a prime hunting ground for Hollows.” Straight to the point, as always. Yoko never really did beat around the bush much. It just wasn’t her style. If the rumors were false, and Taka and everyone else here were in fact normal humans, then she’d probably just receive a confused look and be on her way. If not though, then this was something worth pursuing.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Outfit Reference}

SPOILER: Click to show

{Updated Stats and Skills for Rank 3}
Strength - [400(1000)] Points

Speed - [250(437.5)] Points

Spiritual Pressure - [300(150)] Points

Reiatsu Strength - [100(50)] Points

Light Aura - [60] Points

Dark Aura - [40] Points

Instinct - [165] Points

Senses [185] Points

Energy sensory - [0] Points

Healing Expertise - [0] Points


Total SP: [1400]

• [Martial Art: Kunlun] {3}
  
  
• [Weapon: Sword {3}
  
  
• [Pain Tolerance] {2}
  
  
• [Battle Analysis] {2}
  
  
• [Calm Mind] {2}
  
  
• [Anti-Stealth] {3}
  
  
• [Weapon:Guns] {1}
  
  

["Taka" Sar]

Taka honestly was not expecting any sort of guests. It had been quite an entertaining night to say the least. Ever since Luke had gone and shown his face again things had been....hectic, but on the positive side of things. It was actually rather nice, she had a much better mood, especially after all of those boring meetings in America about branching into the west. It wasn't something she was t oo fond of, to be frank. She always preferred to keep a personal eye on her clubs, and going around Japan was pretty easy to do. But going overseas? IT made her a little uncertain. She had even considered asking if Luke had any input on it. Not that he knew the first thing about running clubs, but still.

She had been decompressing for most of the day, having finally gotten over her jet lag, she had been more or less relaxing in her office, letting her staff run things for the time being, and relaxing in her favorite Gigai. The one she and Luke had stolen from that Museum so very very long ago. She smiled to herself and enjoyed the cool surface of the floor beneath her. However, she was a little surprised when she sensed someone entering her office. The heck? She peered, narrowing her eyes at the intruder and wondering what they were here for.

Immediately she activated her Shine Sar, peering as she watched the woman make their way toward her desk. The office was dark, the lights were all off, as if nobody was even there, save for the person relaxing in the chair. Which was, specifically, her main Gigai. And like any good gigai, when it was not inhabited, it simply seemed to be asleep. The woman in that chair was leaning to the side a little, still obviously breathing, as Yoko would have more than enough a sense of hearing to tell. But they seemed unresponsive to the woman's introduction. From where she was, she had to admit she was impressed. Despite their clothing, they seemed very...militaristic.

Taka got up and made her way over behind Yoko and tilted her head. Depending on how focused Yoko was on things that weren't the 'sleeping' form in the chair, would effect how long until she noticed the....something. It wasn't a sound, or any sort of spiritual ripple. But Yoko, with her incredible ability to sense her surroundings, would actually feel a void. An area where the sound suddenly stopped behind her. A dead zone moving around her as it moved in to inspect her from behind. She opened up a slight slit along that gravitational seal that served as her stealthy ability, just along her mouth so that she could speak and be heard.

"Huh, and here I was thinking someone was trying to set me up on a date. I like your style, Yoko. Name's Taka. Pleasure to meet you. And do be a dear and don't go screaming." She asked. Of course, if Yoko turned, she would not immediately SEE anything. There would just be ..something. Her mind would be able to put it together, she'd be able to see where the area got darker, even in broad daylight, people sometimes just thought she was the shadow of a cloud passing overhead. But Yoko would see ....something. Not an exact outline, but she would see something quite large before her.

That is, until Zaluu dropped it. She didnt' end the ability, she simply opened it up, revealing herself to the woman while it was still technically active, showing off her....'casual' outfit. namely that she was an enormous fucking raptor. A Utahraptor to be specific, one that slightly towered over Yoko as those clawed limbs would raise, her head pulling back to show that she was unarmed, though depending on the gal's sensitivity, she might be quite freaked. "I hope you don't mind my casualwear. I like using different Gigai. Hah, you should have seen me last week. I did a little poledancing in this. Not as hard as you'd think!" Came a chipper voice, as the 'raptor' smiled down at the woman.

"Love the outfit bye the way. Though from the way you talk I can't help but wonder if someone else picked it out for ya. Bah, but that's none of my business." She chuckled and would, assuming she was uninhibited, make her way around to the chair and then poke her other gigai in the face. "Makes me wonder which one I'm more sexy in, eh? But ah, you're here for business.....ish." an eye turned to focus on the woman's attire. It seemed a bit...dominatrix-y for clubwear. "Are you looking for a security job or something? I'm afraid I am a little unclear as to your exact intention."

-300 reiatsu for Shine Sar level 5
Shine Sar Lv5: post 1/7
Concealed at this level: Sound, Light, Reiatsu
Instinct required for General Direction: 150
Instinct Required for Exact Location: 200
(Above values take into account Yoko's Anti-stealth vs Zaluu's Stealth)
750/1050 Reiatsu Remaining

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{Zaluu's Shit}
Strength: 100 (70)
Speed: 100 (70)
Spiritual Pressure: 150 (105)
Reiatsu Strength: 180 (540)

Light Aura: 98
Dark Aura: 2

Instinct: 80 (56)
Senses: 70 (49)
Energy Senses: 20 (14)
Healing Energy: 0

Street Fighting: 1
Stealth: 2
Anti-Stealth: 2
Poison Resist: 1
Damage Recovery: 2
Battle Focus: 2

SPOILER: Click to show

{Gigai In Use}

SPOILER: Click to show

{Gigai in Chair}

[Yoko Kusanagi]

Well that was something that Yoko hadn’t expected. That much was for sure. Okay, no, let’s be fair. That was multiple things that Yoko hadn’t expected. First and foremost, she hadn’t expected to be unable to detect Taka’s true form immediately. She was a master of tracking those who slipped in and out of the shadows, yet she hadn’t been able to pinpoint the presence in the room. That was something that was certainly unusual, but something like that wasn’t what she would call scary. No, she would just refer to something like that as a cause for concern, not for fear. She could still tell roughly where the presence was, and that was enough for her normally calm mind to keep it together without any issue.

She listened as the voice behind her spoke, and she turned to face it, but as she expected there was nothing visible there at first. For whatever reason, it seemed that Taka had some sort of annoying stealth related ability. Though she couldn’t see anything, she was certain something was there. Taka had spoken to her, and offered a compliment on Yoko’s appearance, despite a desire to hide her own. That lack of decorum merited a raised eyebrow towards the place the sound had come from. Why would Yoko be scared by a disembodied voice? She’d fought literal monsters. This wasn’t exactly the worst thing she’d dealt with. And then Taka decided to drop the technique for a moment, and became visible.

Okay. That was unexpected. Very unexpected. What got Yoko the most wasn’t that it was a goddamned raptor, but rather that it wasn’t a Hollow. There was no mask. That was the weird part to her. She’d fought plenty of Hollows with a monstrous form in her day, and the idea that something other than a Hollow could have this form was rather concerning. Was it a projection from the ability of the main body that sat over in the chair? Was it a transformation technique? Thankfully Taka provided that answer pretty quickly. It was a gigai. Though that was definitely incredibly odd, it at least made perfect sense in terms of how a body like that could exist.

There was a scent in the space there that wasn’t elsewhere in the room. It was something strangely artificial. Rubbery perhaps? For some strange reason it reminded her of of a childhood field trip, though she couldn’t fathom why. It definitely didn’t smell like the circus or anything. What it probably confirmed was that the gigai was entirely artificial. Made of some sort of common building materials, or perhaps EPS foam and a sewn on coating? Yoko wasn’t sure what exactly the body might be made of, but the craftsmanship was certainly impressive. She kinda wanted to order some commission work from whoever had made it. They certainly had talent, and Yoko did always keep her eyes open for other talented crafters in case she needed something special for a cosplay she was working on.

Regardless, Taka didn’t seem to be taking any hostile actions, but Yoko was definitely on guard given the nature of the encounter. Of course that was made a bit trickier by Taka being apparently invisible at will. If things went really south, then Yoko could probably manage to detect them between Variant and her Fullbring, but she currently didn’t think that using any reiatsu would be a wise move. Anything that could be misconstrued as hostile generally wasn’t smart after all. Besides, Taka seemed to be perfectly friendly, despite the form, and despite the eccentricity. Thankfully, before too long, the thing turned back to the reason for Yoko’s visit. She didn’t really care a lot for smalltalk. Taka just gave her a lot of weird vibes, so chit-chat wasn’t really anything she felt like doing.

”I appreciate the compliments, though I assure you it was my own choice. As you’ve correctly surmised though, all of this” She gestured around her ”isn’t exactly the type of place I normally choose to spend my time. That matters little though. I’m here on official business. Any hotspot where people gather puts all of them at risk. Clearly, at bare minimum, you are no normal human, which means that, again at bare minimum, you are in danger if you are not properly able to defend yourself.” Hers eyes glanced in the general direction of the security that had escorted her here, with a rather pitiable look, as she didn’t get any feelings of massive strength out of them.

”You see to have taken some precautions, yes, but my fear is that this location would be a prime target if the likes of Las Noches ever felt like getting a midnight snack. With your sheer numbers, you could probably fend off some small fry just fine, but Karakura is a town that has played host to some of the most violent conflicts ever known the spiritual world. I want to make sure that everything that can be done to ensure the safety of those here has been done in the event of something on that scale. My team has made it their mission to ensure that people are safe in this city, and that includes everyone in this club. So I’m here to offer protection, training, or merely information. Whatever might be needed to prevent the loss of life in the event of a catastrophe.”

As always, Yoko was straight to the point. Whereas Taka had filled time with smalltalk and banter, the Fullbringer was here with a singular goal in mind. She was here on a mission. The same one she was always on. When she first heard about this club, it was certainly a concern for her. Not because it was a threat, but because it was a target. If an enemy army marched into Karakura, anywhere that was known to harbor large numbers of spiritually aware individuals was a prime target. Her mission was to ensure the safety of everyone in this city, and that included even weird sneaky people that liked dressing up as dinosaurs. Weird or not, they didn’t deserve to die just because they were unprepared.

["Taka" Sar]

Taka nodded slowly and settled beside that chair, eyeing Yoko thoughtfully as they spoke to her. She fell silent, thoughtful as she kept that veil down, watching so very closely. This was......a little suspicious. The spiritual world wasn't filled with kumbayas and all that jazz. Yoko.....seemed genuine enough. She had been through security. But still, the nature of the offer did not do much to calm the club owner's concerns. She lightly tapped thise big toeclaws against the floor, eyes narrowing slightly at Yoko as they spoke.

"I admit. Your offer is a bit...concerning. If you had wanted to come off as professional, you would have dressed the part. Instead, you tried to blend in. to obscure your intentions until you got to me. And not only that, but once you did, you deliver a VERY one-sided deal to me. I'm hearing a whole lot of personal benefit I have to gain. But I'm not hearing any conditions. Waht exactly you have to gain from this. As much as I believe in charity, and protecting others, I also know that that sort of thing doesn't come free. It's why if your ears ae sharp enough, you might hear the dull vibration through the floor. From the race track. I'm aware of the irony of a literal underground underground race track, bye the bye." She chuckled, cracking a little joke to herself.

She came off as very relaxed, despite how critical she was being of Yoko. "So, Mrs.Kusanagi. If someone showed up in YOUR office looking like some Chip-And-Dales level kinda hot, in a sweet little outfit, and then snapped a salute, offering you all this and a bag of chips, but mentioned NOTHING about what they had to gain from it. Would YOU feel entirely trusting of them?" She ventured, trying to impress on Yoko how.....ridiculously suspicious she seemed. If she had more casual clothing? Sure. But that dress screamed honeypotting.

"So, if you don't mind. Would you mind telling me what you want out of this, and perhasp who you work for? I know of at least one sorta...goodwill organization. My best friend Mr.clyburn is a part of it. But I ALSO hear an awful lot of talk about just how much that particular organization loves to suck soul Society's dick. And given that just abuot every single person in this club has some reason to be afraid of soul society. I can't help but be very incredulous." That voice dipped away from that calm, laid-back tone, and into something much more serious.

She wasn't particularly afraid. Yoko did not come off as knowing what the hell Taka was. Even if they decided to try and kill her, at most she imagined they would desroy her Gigais, and then she would just have to wait till she left, then make a new one and alert security. She'd been 'killed' about three times. She still had her guard up. Its why she still had her ability active, and not just lowered. But she wasn't going to freak out. She was curious, and cautious. This was a LOT that Mrs.yoko was unpacking.

"Have a seat. You know, if you were trying to get me to relax with the getup, you should try acting the part too. You got that 'could-kill-you-with-my-pinky kinda vibe going on." She suggested. If at all possible? She wanted Yoko to relax. she was putting her on edge. A lot of signals, and a lot of them were somewhat conflicting. "I assume you probably also wouldn't say yes. But if you wanna borrow one of my suits, they're over there. Your outfit is distracting." A mote of honesty. Was it smart to let he gal know she was distracting? Alright Taka wasn't a strategist, she did her damned best, she had a lot more intelligent people do that sort of planning for her. She ran shit, but this? Well she was doing her best, and that outfit was making it hard.

Shine Sar: 2/7

[Yoko Kusanagi]

Yoko allowed herself to smile as Taka spoke. Taka was like her in some ways. She was cautious, skeptical. She did not so easily place her trust in someone that just wandered in the door. Good. That was the hardest step with most people. Trust was the easiest way to kill someone. Look at crime statistics some time, and check out how many murders are committed by someone the victim knows. Almost all of them are. Random killings are few and far between. Most are crimes of passion. Deaths caused by letting someone get too close to you. Thoughts like these were probably why Yoko was single, but seeing that same paranoia in another was a welcome comfort.

Clearly this operation had survived this long because of the suspicious nature of its head of operations. Thought it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows. Taka was annoyingly fixated on Yoko’s personal appearance, rather than her offer. That was what bothered her. Yoko detested being treated as a woman, and only allowed herself to even present as such on rare occasions. She was a soldier first. A hero second. A woman last. That simply was not an important part of her identity in her mind, and to have someone so fixated on it that they couldn’t even focus on the important things was annoying to her. If she had been here purely for fun, then it would be more tolerable, but she was here to discuss matters of life and death, not attire.

Such a shame that they didn’t see eye to eye on that point, but it seemed that perhaps Taka’s information network wasn’t very good. She asked who Yoko worked for, and quite frankly, Yoko had expected to have been recognized by this point. Anyone who was keeping an ear to the ground about the happenings in Karakura should have seen her face at least once, or at least that’s how she felt about it. At the same time though, she was normally annoyed by being in the spotlight. Yet here she was. The one time that she was trying to take advantage of that spotlight, and it hadn’t shined bright enough when it actually mattered. What a shame indeed.

What caught her attention even more than that though was the mention of a name. Clyburn. She was aware that Luke had spoke of a club he frequented in the past, but he hadn’t ever dropped a name. He’d been all hush hush about it. She would have to have some words with the bount about the kind of company he was keeping. More important though, she was going to have to ask him why he didn’t feel it was important to mention a place like this in more explicit detail. It was an obvious target, and Uzaki Enterprises should have already had it on their radar for places to monitor. Though she had helped that man overcome some of his problems, it seemed there was much more work to do there.

Once Taka had finished speaking, Yoko began to take a seat. ”I meant no insult by dressing as such. I simply figured that when in rome, dress as the romans do, and the rumor mill didn’t really care to talk about acceptable attire.” Her body began to illuminate in a golden glow, but it did not give off a threatening aura. Instead it coated her body and molded itself into the form of her Fullbring, but only Stage 1. This dull gray suit of armor looked like a halfway mix between the Iron Man suit that Stark built in a cave and Ultron, right down to having an low-res LCD screen for displaying some limited facial expressions.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Fullbring Stage 1 Appearance}

”If you want me to dress the part of someone here to make you an offer, then consider it done.” Clad in the form of her Fullbring, but not its powers, she took the seat that was offered. ”I’m sad to see my reputation failed to precede me, so I’ll answer your questions as best I am able.” She adjusted herself in the seat a bit. This form wasn’t used often, but it seemed that Taka wanted something less human, and this was the best she had. Still though, she wasn’t used to trying to cram this fat robotic ass into a seat. ”My name is Yoko Kusanagi. I am the former Chief of Security for, and current leader of the Emergency Response Team of, Uzaki Enterprises.”

She let those words sink in for a moment. Depending on how Luke had actually told her, then it would answer at least most of the questions that had been asked, possibly even all of them. Nonetheless, she felt a need to answer all of them explicitly. ”The Primary Rule of Uzaki Enterprises is to avoid and prevent the unnecessary loss of innocent life. That is our official position, dictated by Kazura Uzaki himself. One of my closer colleagues is part Hellspawn. I’ve fought against multiple Shinigami officers, including one of their Captains, in an effort to ensure the safety of the people of this city when Soul Society could not. I’m afraid you may have been given some poor information by our friend Luke if you think we let Soul Society stop us from protecting those who need it, even if Soul Society is who they need protection against.”

Once more she let the weight of her words sink in. Throughout this exchange, Yoko had taken offense only to the remarks on her appearance being distracting, and had remained generally stress free. To her, this was simply business. ”I didn’t come in a suit because I have nothing to sell. I didn’t come to make a show of force because I’m not here to threaten anyone. I am here to offer assistance in ensuring the safety of yourself and all those who congregate here. Whether that is through offering to share information on potential threats, providing direct assistance in times of crisis when they arise, or through training those here so that our help is not needed in the future makes little difference to me.”

Her offer from before had been restated, without any direct address to the point of Taka’s suspicions. She had hoped that the mention of Uzaki Enterprises, and stating their purpose and mission would be enough to begin to fix that. Nothing she had said thus far was anything but the truth. She hid nothing, and would answer any other questions that might be asked of her. The only other point she hadn’t addressed was that she did in fact think she could probably break her way out of here by force if she needed to. Yoko was quite confident in her skills, and felt no need to address that. She never really pretended to be charming or charismatic anyway. Regardless, she had only one question for Taka. ”So tell me Taka, will you continue to look a gift horse in the mouth and wonder if it will kick you, or would you rather put it to work instead?”

["Taka" Sar]

Zaluu blinked in responseto the woman’s apology. She gave a sheepish snort and shook her head. ”Don’t apologize for something like that. Trust me, if it were up to me then we’d both be in sweats, discussing this over ice cream. But humans are all funny about that stuff.” she explained, and then blinked as the woman summoned a.... suit of armor. She furrowed her brows. ”Huh. Liked the other one better. You remind me a little of Luke. He started wearing that fancy helmet or hood or whatever its called. Real superheroesque, like your armor. He’s a funny kid.” she murmured and promptly grabbed her gigai.

”I’ll be right back if you don’t mind. You kinda caught me in my casualwear. Not the best for talking to people. Didn’t exactly modify it for small talk so it strains the neck a little. I’ll only be a few” she explained softly, giving a polite nod of her head and promptly taking her leave, heading into the bathroom off to the side, and then into the adjacent bedroom. It took her a minute to switch gigai, and when she did she went into her closet. To find a note? Her brows furrowed and she snagged it. ‘Dear Taka, took the suits to get pressed. Stop spilling mustard on the silk, Timor.’ Well fuck. She tossed the note aside and grunted aggravatedly. She looked around. Underwear, lingerie, sweats, and her jumper. She frowned, staring for a bit and sighing.

Moments later, she arrived in, as previously mentioned, her sweats. Maling her way to her chair, tying her hair back in that bun, she sat down and shook her head. ”Suits are at the cleaners. And I hate dresses. On the plus side.” she opened her minifridge and took out a little container of strawberry itallian ice. She got an extra out and set it infront of Yoko, then leaned back in her chair. ”So. You wanna be a hero. Keep everyone safe and happy. And from what I know, your boss makes enough dosh with his fancy inventions that you guys don’t need funding. As for my information? I got rumors. Some say you guys shove it to the gotei. Others said you got on your knees for it. In my experience, its safer to assume the worst........ always.” that last word sounded.... vold. All too jaded and knowing. But she pushed that aside and took a spoonfup of her ice cream. If yoko ignored hers then she’d eat it after she finished her own.

”So you say you favor our own. I’m inclined to believe you, what with Luke being a bount. But I still have to cover my bases. You have a good point, and all the reason in the world to wanna help. Like you say, we are a target. But something’s still bothering me.” she hummed, closing her eyes and tapping her fingers. ”If Uzaki sent you, why would they send you? You’re Rescue. Not to say you’re not qualified. But Luke would be the better choice. Or that Zeich fella, who’s in charge of security. Wouldn’t he be a better person to help us? Not to look you in the .....mouth. But I’m just dotting my I’s and crossing my t’s here. If you’re the real deal? I see no reason not to accept your help. Heck I could use some training myself. Kinda depressin to see Luke surpass me so damn hard. I trained that kid when he was still just some punk who didn’t know he was a vampire. So if you’ll just.... humor my curiosity.” she spoke, getting it across that she just wanted to be certain, to check Yoko’s claim. To put herself at ease. She already liked the gal’s style. She just wanted to make sure she was thorough. Also trying not to imagone the woman in a saddle and bridle from that horse analogy.

[Yoko Kusanagi]

Once more, Yoko sit back and casually listened as Taka spoke. More critiques of her appearance. She just couldn’t win with this one. She sighed and dismissed the armor. ”Just trying to keep you happy dear.” It was the kind of thing a man said to his wife after she vetoed the fourth restaurant in a row. That was kinda how she felt about things like this. She did enjoy the chance to get in a cheap shot at Luke though. ”Luke really needs to get his head out of the comics. Idiot runs around dressed like Red Hood to hide his identity. All it does is attract more attention because people want a photo op.”

When Taka paused to go change out of the raptor body, the Fullbringer honestly breathed a slight sigh of relief. Though she had definitely dealt with things more frightening before, it was super fuckin awkward to try to carry a conversation with something that looked like that. Honestly, she had been doing a pretty shitty job at maintaining eye contact because of that. When Taka returned a few minutes later, Yoko was relieved to be working with the more “normal” body. It was… just easier to interact with. Once the dessert was brought out, it got a little analysis from Yoko. A quick look for needle marks, feigned as her reading the nutritional info, and then a discreet sniff once it was opened to see if she could smell poison on it. Given she saw no foul play, she offered a ”Thank you.” and ate it up.

She nodded along casually as Taka spoke, and listened to her between spoonfuls of italian ice. Her instincts were still pretty solid, but Yoko had in fact started to relax a bit more. Maybe it was the offer of food, or maybe it was the lack of a dinosaur in the room. Maybe it was just the passage of time. Hard to tell. Either way, she was fairly impressed by Taka’s outlook. She was cautious. She was careful. The two really did share a great deal on that bit. Where she wasn’t right though, was on the idea that sending anyone other than Yoko would have been the wise choice. When it came to training people, she was the top dog.

”I appreciate your desire to check and double check. I assure you, if I had come here with any kind of hostile intent, I wouldn’t have waited this long to display it. Besides, the new Chief of Security only got his post because I had to step away for personal reasons for a few years. As for Luke? I think we both know he’s kind of a hot mess. Yeah, he’s got power, but he still hasn’t got his head screwed on straight. I taught him half of what he knows for controlling reiatsu, and I’m a physical fighter.” Though some would view it as cruel, Yoko had no problem stating those as if they were facts… because they were.

Luke had received training to overcome the loss of his strength from Yoko, and it was her who helped him find the power he needed to overcome that. As for the Chief of Security? Yoko invented that role. Had it not been for politics that forced her away for a bit, she would still have that job title to this day. ”Oh, and please don’t call Luke a vampire. He’s rather particular about that. He’s a Bount. Not the v-word.” See? She does actually care about her coworkers. She just also has no problem acknowledging their faults either. To Yoko that’s merely part of her job. If she didn’t know their weaknesses, then she’d do a real shit job of making battlefield decisions after all.

”And I believe you misunderstand my role as well. Rescue would actually be closer to Luke’s role. His Department is in fact the Help and Rescue. Meanwhile, my role is to lead more military responses. I look out for the big scale pictures. Things like Soul Society and the Vandenreich deciding that Karakura looks like a nice place to have a war. Those kinds of fun things. My normal duties include assessment, training, and planning. So if I do say so myself, there isn’t anyone better suited for this task. If you’d like, I would be happy to offer a training session to you personally, and show you that my claim regarding myself are genuine. Naturally, if you feel uneasy about the offer, you’re more than welcome to have as many armed guards with you as you wish.”

["Taka" Sar]

When Yoko changed back she blinked. She.... what? ”That.... wasn’t like an order. You can wear whatever you want.”” she murmured. Jesus how strict was that Kazura guy? She shook her head and took another bite of her ice. At the comic regarding Luke she shook his head and sighed. ”He needs to stop running from what he is. He thinks that just because he is capable of something, he has to deny his race as much as possible to avoid it. If he used his dolls half as much as he threw his own body into danger he’d be unstoppable.” she murmured.

she huckled softly at Yoko at that hostile part. ”Thats a stupid line. And also a lie. There are billions of reasons to serve revenge cold. If you meant me harm, getting to know me would do you worlds of good. Learning how my ability works, for example.” she noted softly, licking her spoon and then looking to Yoko. ”But, one can’t let fear rule them. You make good enough points for my tastes...” she paused and looked at Yoko. At Her. Seeing them relax, she watched with mild interest. It was always interesting to see these steely types unwind. ”I.... seriously? Ugh. I need to set that idiot straight. This denial thing is going to get him killed.” she murmured, and then stood up.

”Very well. Let’s get started then. As for guards. I have enough present. I am much more a fan of the guards that don’t make their presence known.” she stated and rolled her shoulders. After all, she had guards at the door with high senses. She also had some closer than that. Guards who could snipe someone four floors down. She took a moment to make sure her hair wouldnt come loose before turning her attention back to Yoko, a playful smile on her face. ”let’s go. Teach me a lesson, Daddy.” Yoko’s first glimpse of Taka’s sense of humor.

Shine sar: 4/7

[Yoko Kusanagi]

Yoko allowed herself a bit of a chuckle at Taka’s continued commentary about Yoko’s outfit. She didn’t really care much about something like that. If nothing else, they were at least two things they had in common. There was the earlier note of them both having the health sense of paranoia, and they both also agreed that Luke was squandering his potential by not embracing his heritage or his powers. Yoko nodded knowingly as Taka made all of those points about her coworker. She didn’t object to any of them, and had actively given him a hard time about some of them. They still didn’t see perfectly eye to eye though. She was no black widow.

”I gotta say though, the whole get up close and get to know someone style… not my cup of tea. Works for some people just fine, but I don’t really do the whole faking caring about people thing really well. I’ve got this nasty habit of just punching people in the face if I wanted them dead.” She continued to smile, and rose from her seat to look around the space. She’d allowed herself to joke a bit with Taka, as this Mod Soul certainly seemed to be a bit more playful than they had been at first. And yes, that was Yoko’s idea of a joke. She wasn’t a terribly funny person. Poor thing.

She had begun to asses the space they were in, and then Taka hit her with that line. ”Let’s go. Teach me a lesson, Daddy.” Yoko couldn’t help herself. She immediately burst out laughing. Hopefully with Taka, and not at her. It took her a moment, but she collected herself. She wasn’t sure if that was supposed to be humor, or if Taka was just fucked up in the head, but she thought it was hilarious. ”Don’t go saying things you’ll regret now.” She winked at the Mod Soul. A bit of her playful side had come out with that line. She had passed the important trials already. Everything left was easy by comparison, so she could afford to cut loose a bit.

”Right then. Full disclosures before we get started. Unless you wanna tell me anything about your abilities or how you prefer to fight outright, I don’t have much to go on. So as far as I’m concerned, we can either have you give me a briefing, or you can just tell me what area you’d like to work on… ooooorrrrr you can see if you can hurt me, and I’ll give you some advice on landing a punch.” The Fullbringer seemed confident, especially with her last suggestion, but not arrogant. She didn’t make it sound like landing a hit on her was impossible, but she also knew that it would mean Taka was quite remarkable compared to even the average spiritually aware being if she could pull it off.

The Fullbringer was more than just confident she could take Taka alone though. They’d mentioned being passed by Luke, and Yoko gave herself 60-40 odds against the Bount. Not taking a single hit, especially against a stealth based fighter though… that was a bit closer towards arrogant. She was confident in her defense though. Her speciality was dealing with troublesome abilities like that. Yeah, sure, it might merit showing off more power than she might otherwise need to, but them’s the brakes sometimes. But then she remembered something else. ”Oh, right. Don’t take offense to this one, but unless you wanna tell me about some super strength ability you got or something, I’m not gonna be punching very hard so that I don’t kill ya. You seem nice enough. Would be a shame if I accidentally knocked your head off right?”

Once more she, let out a playful little giggle. To her, having to restrain her strength was something that basically went without saying, but it seemed that Taka didn’t know Yoko’s capabilities all that well. She mimed a flick towards Taka’s head, and a visible gust of wind flew towards the Mod Soul thanks to Fist of Unbroken Air. Given that only a single finger was used, and Yoko held her strength back to a mere 10%, it wasn’t much of her power, but even that would be enough to move Zaluu’s head backwards a few inches if it wasn’t avoided. ”Unless you think you can take more than that without having a bad day, that level of strength is all I’ll be using. Of course it’ll have some more oomph from a proper punch, but I figure that gives you a good picture.”

SPOILER: Click to show

{Fist of Unbroken Air}Technique Name: [Fist of Unbroken Air]

Class: [1]

Technique Type: [Martial]

Usable By: [Anyone who meets the requirements: 800 strength AND have mastered Low Pressure AND have a 3 in either Kunlun or Baguazhang]

Technique Element: [Wind]

Technique Description and Effects: [This technique is something developed by Yoko after mastering Low Pressure, and reaching a truly high level of strength. Those with incredible strength are generally able to fire of shockwaves of raw power that can unleash terrible devastation. Such shockwaves have even been known to bypass Hierro. An unintended side effect of Low Pressure was that her shockwaves did not develop in the same way as most high-strength fighters. Instead of striking so hard that she shatters the air, her strength lets her "push" the air. At the most basic level, the difference between shockwaves and this technique is that the shockwave will "punch" things and this technique will "push" things.

Effectively, this technique allows Yoko to use her physical prowess to send out blasts of air. At learned or proficient status, it is only good for basic, ki-blast style gusts of wind from the hands or feet. The bursts of wind push things with force equivalent to Yoko's physical strength. That's the thing though. This technique doesn't cause direct damage, it just sends things flying. Granted, those who horribly neglect their strength may still get injured. If Yoko's physical strength exceeds that of the target by at least five times (ie: less than 160 strength target when Yoko has 800 strength) then they will still suffer bruising on impact. If her strength exceeds theirs by ten times (ie: less than 80 strength target when Yoko has 800 strength) then broken bones are expected. On the off chance that Yoko manages to exceed their strength by twenty times (ie: less than 40 strength target when Yoko has 800 strength) the impact alone is likely to incapacitate them. However, ALL impact damage is completely negated by any skin defense (ie: Hierro) or armor that can withstand at least one fifth of Yoko's strength (ie: Fancy Suit Mk 1 or Amaya's Tattersall Bindings). That won't stop them from going flying though, unless the defense specifically negates stuff like that (looking at you, Blut).

Regardless, the real risk of injury is what happens when they STOP moving. Slamming into walls at high speeds is rarely fun without high strength. If an emeny is hit by Fist of Unbroken Air, then they will go flying at a speed equal to Yoko's strength. The strength of this technique technically works off of impact strength, since it is a martial technique. That means it can be combo'd with techniques like Impact, and can bypass the 3x cap.

Mastery grants a finer level of control. The gusts of wind can be shaped to a degree. With mastery, Yoko can do things like change the gust to be a thin stream of air, a crescent, or even a sphere. Only simple shapes though. No sending any realistic drawings of Ben Franklin at anyone with this technique. The other advantage of mastery is that Yoko can launch the technique from any muscle she can flex. Tensing up everything at once can even briefly create a sphere of air around her that repels any weaker attack! Mastery also allows this to be used with weapons, assuming the user has a 3 in that weapon skill. Really though, the best perk of mastery in Yoko's eyes is the ability to hold back. With mastery the strength of this technique can be reduced as low as 1/10th of her current strength.

As a purely martial technique, this does not cost any reiatsu. Despite that, the gusts of air can clash with reiatsu. If the margin is close enough that the techniques cancel out, then the other technique will just be stopped in its tracks, and probably explode. If the margin is high enough that Fist of Unbroken Air completely overpowers the other technique, it will actively redirect it back along the path that Fist of Unbroken Air was following.]

How to use technique (How is it activated?): [At learned or proficient: punch or kick without holding strength back, and a blast of air comes out. With mastery, any movement or muscle flexed can send a burst of wind flying.]

Technique Drawbacks: [First, there are strict requirements to learn this technique. A minimum of 800 strength is required, as well as a 3 in one of two martial arts (listed above). A previous technique is required to be mastered, and that technique requires points in Calm Mind. Also, like Low Pressure caused Gravity Crushing to be lost forever, Fist of Unbroken Air causes the basic shockwave ability to be forever lost. Also, this technique will basically never do damage against a fighter of equal class unless they are standing next to a brick wall and have both low strength and no defenses. It's more of a defensive counterpart to shockwaves, which limits the damage output significantly. Oh, it can also be completely resisted (like, the target won't even move an inch) if they have strength 50% higher than Yoko. Others can resist being blown away by a variety of methods, including random stuff like Soul Commanding the ground they're standing on to be really sticky.]

Made By: Yoko Kusanagi

Reserved?: [Yes, but can be taught to, and mastered by, others if Yoko chooses to teach them all the secrets.]

["Taka" Sar]

Taka smiled as she noticed the woman chuckle, rather pleased to get the woman to laugh a little. She was quite pleased to find that they had so much to talk about. Taka herself shrugged just a little. "Me neither, truth be told. I have to do it for work sometimes, to a lesser degree. But sadly I don't get to conclude those ventures by killing them. Whew, if only if only." She noted with a wistful air to her voice, brushing back a stray lock of that soft pink hair before she gave pause. Both of them seemed to be clicking fairly well.

And of course, when her real coupe de gra joke came in, turned out she NAILED it! She smiled and laughed along with Yoko a her own ridiculous little statement, glad to have added more levity. Actually it was a little uplifting in the soul section of her chest. She rarely got to joke around like this. It seemed like every day some butface was busting up her club, or she had to hunt down someone who was causing trouble. Sure she got to put on an act for her club, but that was mostly just hyping. She rarely got to just be herself. And all the better? When Yoko made that mildly suggestive counter-joke of her own. Taka promptly grinned at that. "What, and waste the 'step on me' outfit?"

Training to Master Mod Rood: Air Current Class 6

Though as they transitioned into a more serious conversation, she gave a nice, slow nod of her head as she made note of Yoko's calm and casual stance. She lightly flexed her fingers and allowed her roots to slip out of her body, those spiritual lines spilling into the air around her and testing it. Of course Yoko wouldn't see a thing, and without an ability to sense spiritually, she wouldn't sense anything either. That invisible network that spilled out into the open air and felt around thoughtfully. She tested her surroundings.

She had been hearing a lot about some of the more useful types of manipulation that some of her brethren mod souls had managed to acquire for themselves. Specifically some blonde Mod Soul, supposedly used to work for Xcution. There wasn't a ton of information on her, but she supposedly was a very unpleasant woman to be on the bad side of. What was more, she had head about a particular version of Mod Root the woman had come up with. One that Taka herself was trying to get an idea on how to put together. She licked her lips just a little as she watched Yoko, talking so that her sudden immobility wouldn't be suspicious.

"Ahhhh, well a magician can't reveal all her secrets right off the bat. That and truth be toldm y ability is a little complicated to just go explaining. I tried explaining it to Luke once, did not really stick with the kiddo." She noted as she felt the air around her, making it twist and move around her. It was a simple, basic use of Mod root, but the trick was to get it to the point where she could actually do something with it. There was a little ripple around her arm, and then she shoved the air to the side. Little did she know that that little gesture from Yoko would have it's own effect.

The little flick was cute, and oh my was that giggle even cuter, causing Taka's smile to widen, but she was surprised when that puff of air actually shoved her head back just a little, brows lifting as she almost fell, stumbling back just a tiny bit before peering at Yoko, her head tilting slowly to the side, thoughtfully. Well well well. That was...interesting. The girl was doing with pure strength what she was able to do with her mod roots. Intriguing. She raised one of her hands and mimicked Yoko's finger flick. She tested it out a few times, and then aimed at Yoko.

With a little flick, she used mod root to shunt the air towards the woman, so that Yoko would feel a VERY weak brush of air against her face. Probably something a bit surprising since she wouldn't see what was actually doing it. But even so, Taka could get a .....sense for it. She could feel the air moving around her much better. She suddenly closed up that 'opening' in her Shine sar, and suddenly she was swallowed up once again. Of course she had noticed that Yoko could sense her, at least a little from before, so she couldn't just waltz up to them.

Using that manipulation of air, she took control of the air around her, and then SHUNTED herself forward and up, tearing past the woman to move to their left, at a fairly reasonable speed. Something that combined with her stealth, would make it a bit harder to keep track of. It was only after THAT that she finally let all the tumblers fall into place in her head. Using that slower version, she finally got the gist of the technique. A bit of actual practice helping her get over that last hurdle. So that in that next moment, the boost was MUCH larger, suddenly moving almost twice as fast in that next shunt to move herself from Yoko's 4 o clock, to her 7 o'clock.

Finished MAstering Air Current

From experience, he knew better than to go directly for the back. For weaker opponents? Sure! They always had that blind spot. But anyone with experience had that little...flux. That EXTRA awareness of their blind spot, if that area where they were visually most vulnerable. Which is why Zaluu chose that spot, adjacent. Where that blind spot usually migrated to on tougher opponents. Admittedly it was SUPER a theory, and she had never actually put it into practice, she never really got to fight people. BUT! she threw a punch at the woman's mid lower back.

If it actually managed to connect it would be...well pathetic. She was strong for a human. Heck, even a good deal of the more spirituall focused shinigami were weaker physically than she was. But of course Yoko would likely not feel a damn thing. Well, aside from contact, but in terms of pain? She doubted that it would register. In the midst of that attack she had ACTUALLY even considered putting her power behind it, making sure that that thin film of burning light would sear it's way in. But well....she actually was kinda starting to like the gal, and this was training. She didn't want to go burning her knuckles through the woman's mid-lower back just to try and look cool. So when she had executed the punch, she focused, and made sure that the burning aspect around her knuckles wasn't active.

But she DID use another aspect. The ability to bend material around her fist, so that when that punch landed, Yoko wouldn't feel it through her outfit. But she'd feel it on her bare skin, the material of the fabric bending around her fist, and even when she pulled back (Or was punched back/shockwaved back/whatever Yoko did), if she had managed that touch, then the fabric would, surprisingly, still be very intact. It was, after all, a part of her stealth ability at the level she was capable of, to just slip through physical material without leaving a trace of her passing.

-200 Reiatsu for Mod Root: Air Current (8x and 15x) (560 and 1050 speed respectively)
550/1050 reiatsu remaining
Shine Sar: 5/7

SPOILER: Click to show

{Mod Root: Air Stream}
Technique Name: Moddo Ne: Kūki-Ryū (Mod Root: Air Stream)

Class: 6, 4, 2

Technique Type: Step Tech, Kigen

Usable By : Mod Souls (Non-Giga, Non-Nakka)

Technique Description and Effects : This Technique is a True step technique, usable only by Mod Souls, specifically those who have not been tainted by hell or who have abandoned their pill form. This technique uses Mod Root to spread into the air around their bodies, completely eliminating wind resistance and even manipulating the air around them in order to shunt their bodies in any way they desire. Additionally, as the technique manipulates through mod root as opposed to bursts of reiatsu, this technique does not cause a flux in the user's reiatsu during use.

At Class 6, this is a simple step technique, only instead of being based on the user's feet being on a solid surface, this technique needs no solid base to perform, and simply shoves the user in any direction they wish at 8x their normal speed. Unlike most step techniques, this does not need to be performed in a straight line as, again, this is not simply launching from a single point, but consciously moving the user around using the surrounding air. At Profficient, the speed boost raises to 11x normal speed (increases cost to 100 reiatsu), and at Mastered the boost becomes 15x normal speed (Increases cost to 150 reiatsu).

At Class 4, this technique can not only apply to general movement and maneuvering, but also can be used to focus on a single part of the Mod Soul's anatomy in use for combat. This allows the tech to be used on a single limb. This boost is a flat 3x the user's base speed and only applies to the effected limb. This boost of speed lasts 1 post at learned, 3 posts at proficient, and 5 posts at Mastered. Even at learned, this class of the technique counts as a long-term stat boost.

At Class 2, this technique is further amplified, applying the technique to the user's entire body like in class 6, but with a powerful speed boost similar to class 4. In this use, the user's speed is increased by 150% (100 becomes 250), and the area around the Mod soul's body has the wind moving around them at such a pace that anything that comes too close to the mod soul is subjected to shredding wind currents, these currents have no offensive strength as it is not reiatsu-infused and is just simply physical air currents, meaning that any type of barrier or skin defense can stop them, however this means that it cannot be resisted without using a defense, and any unprotected area of the body will be damaged. At Learned, anything within 5 meters of the user is subjected to shallow lacerations from the wind. At Proficient, anything within 2 meters of the user is subjected to deep lacerations. At Mastered, anything within 1 foot of the user's body will be shredded, stripping flesh down to the bone. Lasts for 6 posts.

Technique Drawbacks: It costs twice the normal amount of TTP to Learn, Profficient, and Master this technique because of the fine control involved compared to any other step technique, additionally it does not have ties to a discipline or martial art skill as it is an intrinsic ability inherent to true mod souls. The user must have Mastered Mod Root of equal or greater class than the class of this technique they are trying to learn. Additionally, this technique costs 50 reiatsu at class 6 (100 for 11x, 150 for 15x), 250 reiatsu at class 4, and 600 reiatsu at class 2.
Unlike any other step technique, this takes up a technique slot.

At Class 2, this technique is so straining, that regardless of class, the user cannot use ANY step techniques (Including the lower class versions of this same technique) while it is active as it strains the pill rather than the actual body. Class 2 of the technique cannot be refreshed, and the user must not use it again for 2 posts after it has ended or else they risk heavily damaging their pill itself, crippling the mod soul in such a way that no matter what body they are in, they will have halved speed, strength, and senses until their pill has time to recover (a Long rest). Any use of this technique in a pill that is already damaged from overuse will obliterate the pill and kill the Mod Soul after the 3 posts, not even getting the full duration before they lose their life.


Unavailable to Mod Soul Gigas and Nakkabaki
Made By: Hebika

Reserved? : No

[Yoko Kusanagi]

Very well then, it seemed that Taka had opted to go for the “figure it out for yourself” route. That was fine with Yoko. She wasn’t a master analyst or anything, but she was certainly capable enough of finding issues with someone’s abilities. She put her right foot back and settled into a loose fighting stance. Her left arm, which gleamed with hints of spiritual steel, was up to cover her face and torso. Her right arm was down low, to cover any blows to the guts. The stance was a fairly typical one for something like Tae Kwon Do, but was quite relaxed. Clearly the Fullbringer wasn’t tense enough to give it her all yet.

”Very well. We’ll do it your way then. Come at me whenever you’re ready.” It didn’t take Taka long to take her up on the offer. It seemed that the Mod Soul was testing something out, like she had tried to replicate the effects of Yoko’s flick. Though it was ever so slight, Yoko did feel a little gust of air brush over her. Interesting. She didn’t know Mod Soul’s abilities well enough to know how it was performed, but it seemed that Taka was pretty quick on the uptake if she could mimic something like that so quickly. That was good. It showed promise, but it was still just child’s play. The real interesting part had not yet begun.

And then Taka vanished from sight. Yoko could still make out roughly where she was, but she regretted that she would need to actually use reiatsu to follow this ability properly. It was a shame, but that’s just what it was. When Taka vanished, Yoko let her reiatsu flare out just a bit before the golden glow concentrated into her eyes. In the instant that Taka began to move, Yoko’s eyes had gone from their normally fairly dull state to looking like someone did a cliche photoshop job to make her eyes “pop” with color. This was of course the work of Variant, a Human-exclusive ability to amplify one’s sensory abilities. Given her limited reiatsu capacity, Yoko couldn’t use it for too long, but she could at least use it.

With Variant active, her instincts were sharp enough to see right through Taka’s ability. She no longer had an issue figuring out exactly where the Mod Soul was, which was good, because Taka had begun a proper attack. In a rush, Yoko’s trainee for the day had closed the gap between them. The speed wasn’t that impressive to her though. It only exceeded her own base speed by a bit. During that entire movement, the Fullbringer lazily followed the Mod Soul with her eyes, and rotated her body to keep the Mod Soul in front of her. Given the linear movement though, Yoko had it pegged for some kind of step technique, even if she didn’t recognize it.

But then Taka had a little surprise in store. She stepped her speed up considerably, to nearly double what it had been before. She was faster than Yoko with that second movement, yes, but it was so similar to Bringer Light in application that it was far from unpredictable. Given that all Yoko had to do was pivot, whereas Taka had to go around her, even her slower speed was enough. When Taka emerged from her technique, whatever it was, and threw a punch, she found it in the hands of a capable martial artist who had used a similar sequence time and time again. Her punch had been caught by the warm flesh of Yoko’s right hand.

There was a look of disappointment in the Fullbringer’s glowing golden orbs. She knew she was far faster than most, but she had a nasty feeling that something else was amiss. Was Taka holding something back? Was she actually worried about hurting Yoko? While she couldn’t say that was unheard of, there were only two real possibilities that came to mind. Either Taka overestimated herself to the point where she felt she actually needed to hold back, or, more likely given all the comments, she didn’t want to ruin Yoko’s dress by hitting it with some kind of ability. Rather than countering in that moment, Yoko released her grip on Taka’s hand and jumped backwards a few paces.

”Look, if ya hold back something then this isn’t going to go anywhere fast. There’s gotta be more to your powers than just being sneaky right?” The Fullbringer looked herself over. ”If you’re afraid of ruining the dress or something silly like that, I appreciate it, but you coulda just said somethin. I’ve got an easy fix for that one.” And then, true to her lack of fucks given, Yoko proved that statement. In one quick motion she undid the bow that held her dress up and let the garment fall to the floor, revealing her in naught but a black racerback sports bra and a pair of matched boyshorts.

She was so used to being half or not dressed around guys in the army that she had long since stopped caring if people saw her in this kind of state. Her dress and flats were kicked off and over onto Taka’s desk a ways away. Now barefoot and nearly bare entirely, the Fullbringer took up an identical fighting stance to the one before. [smear:008080]”There. Now you’ve got no dumb excuses to hold back right? I need to see what you can actually do before I can figure out where to help anyway. Time to see how you do on defense!”[/smear:00C0C0:1] Truth be told, Yoko was having some fun with this one. There was a hint of the old sing-songy tone that her voice used to have before she became so jaded.

No time was given for Taka to object to the Fullbringer’s latest wardrobe change. She charged back in towards the Mod Soul with just her normal speed. Still though, she appeared as nothing but a blur to Taka, given their massive difference in speed. Given that this was no more than a test, she threw a basic combination at the mod soul. Jab then cross then hook. Left, right, left. None of them were thrown with any more than the upper limits of normal human strength, so they wouldn’t be death sentences, but she actually held back a bit farther than that. If it was clear she was about to hit, then any of those blows would be stopped a fraction of an inch off the Mod Soul’s face, which they were all aimed at.

How well could Taka do on defense against someone much faster than them? It was a weakness that was common for many folks, but there were certainly ways to get around it, depending on your abilities. Given that Yoko had no clue whatsoever about the capabilities of Mod Souls, she was genuinely unsure if Taka had any way to defend themself at all. That was part of the spar’s purpose though. She wanted to identify weaknesses, and find ways to improve them. Sometimes that meant letting Taka attack, and sometimes that meant attacking them. Only time would tell how the Mod Soul would react, or fail to. All Yoko knew is that she was eager to see what was in store for her.

Reiatsu: 1200/1500
-300 for Variant

New Instinct: 215
New Senses: 241

SPOILER: Click to show

{Variant}Technique Name: Variant

Class: 3

Technique Type: Other

Technique Element: None

Technique Description and Effects:
This variant of the Willpower technique is incredibly deadly. It's very simple, purely taking advantage of the second stage. In addition to the physical increases, awareness is also required. It causes the head itself to become covered in blue Reiatsu. The eyes will also turn yellow during activation. It costs 300 Reiatsu to activate this variant. This increases sensory stats by 30% while active.

How to use technique: Extend “Pulley” to apply to the head as well as the body.

Drawback: After the post of activation, this goes down by 5% per following post. It costs an additional 50 Reiatsu per sacrificed 5% to rejuvenate the 5%.

["Taka" Sar]

Taka was.....not surprised about Yoko's ability to follow her motions in the least. She was about as slow as liquid rebar. Even so, it was surprising to feel the woman's hand close around her own, watching Yoko very closely as they not only impeded her assault, but additionally even managed to rebuke her use of it ontop of that. She faltered slightly and found herself a bit caught off guard. Admittedly she did have to feel a little iffy about it. She peeled the veil from her mouth. "I'm not worried about the dress a-andthere it goes." She paused and sorta drank all that in, putting the veil back in to suppress the FUCK that came from her mouth. Thank goodness for powers that could trap her expletives.

"More like the last time I went full ham a litte, I wound up burning Luke pretty bad. He was a bit of a baby about it, but even so I hurt him pretty bad." Plus she figured that Yoko might not be so durable, especially being a normal human.....was she? She honestly wasn't sure these days. For all she knew, Yoko could be a bount or something. She was built like a vampire, wow she needed to stop focusing on that bare skin. Eyes popped back up, thankful for her veil. Awesome. Of course Taka's reflexes were, to say the least: Shit. So when Yoko started that assault, she was immediately tensed, balking and backing up as t hat flurry of strikes was aimed at her face.

BUT! To her credit. She stopped holding back some. Promptly, she stopped pulling back the burn quality, and then she shunted her roots into her surroundings. Suddenly, that dark spot that Yoko saw that was Taka, suddenly enveloped everything, as if she was everywhere around her at once, mainly because of how close they were. Taka promptly used Mod Root, the sensory version, turning everything within four meters of her body into essentially her gigai. In most instances this was a weakness, for poisoners, or those scary fucks who could kill you with one strike (Fuck Katrina), but in this instance, it worked in her advantage, as her ability promptly spread to those roots, and suddenly, Yoko would feel a fierce burn sweep across her body as every space within that area suddenly began burning it's way into her body.

Of course she couldn't inject her roots into an actual living thing, not without being INSIDE them, so it wasn't as if suddenly the fullbringer would be Resident Evil laser-gridded, but even so it would likely be an unpleasant experience for the woman if they attempted to move, as there would be a considerable network of burning roots behind her. Truth be told, she only used this sort of thing on Hollows in normal circumstances, but Yoko had somewhat asked for it. Though on the other end of things, it would give Yoko a looksie into the ability. Noy only was she bombarded with pent up light, trapped around Taka, but the reishi, the sound, all of it slammed into her, of course there wasn't much of it, it was far more useful if an explosion or something else loud happened around her and was trapped in that layer. But even so, it was a hint as to how her ability worked.

With all hopes involved, hopefully Yoko would be a bit overwhelmed by the sudden assault of burning, a which point Taka would slide forward and attempt to punch once again, this time with that burning veil in full effect. She had no idea how durable the woman was toward spiritual effects, but she was still...anxious. She wasn't holding back, but now she was a little afraid, and as such only punched shallowly, not wanting to inflict anything too deep if it turned out that the woman wasn't able to flex off her attack.

-100 reiatsu for Mod Root Class 7
Root Radius: 4 meters
Shine Sar: 6/7
450/1050 reiatsu remaining

SPOILER: Click to show

{Mod Root}
Technique Name: Kigen: Moddo Ne (Mod Root)

Class: 8-1

Technique Type: Mod Soul Technique

Usable By: Mod Souls

Technique Element: N/A

Technique Description and Effects: A Mod Soul's ability to reach out with its Reiatsu and take control of a body it inhabits is something truly unique. By simply surrounding itself with material, it can reach out, and make that substance its own body, take it in and use it as if it were part of itself, and for all intents and purposes, become its surroundings.

This technique works on the basic principle of the Mod Soul's ability to take over that which is within its surroundings. By having its Reiatsu extend from the body that it is physically inhabiting and branching tiny roots of it's own Reiatsu, the user implants them into the surroundings before taking them into their body, adding the material to the body they already inhabit, making it a part of them. In its most fundamental stages, this ability can simply be used to create a shell of material around the user from surrounding materials in very thin layers. In its most powerful of forms it can integrate entire landscapes and take control of them. While this extension allows them to sense changes in the controlled environment, they do not receive pain as a result of it. Additionally, control of the environment is effected by Skills such as Battle Focus, Strength of Will, and any other mental skill that would effect their ability to concentrate on manipulating it (Having multiples increases this further, allowing extraordinary control). In addition to control, both buffs and debuffs of a Reiatsu nature can be passed to the Mod Soul through the environment that they have extended into. This control of the environment does not extend to Reiatsu attacks such as Cero or Kido unless the attack manipulates physical material such as water or fire. In these cases it can be controlled so long as the user has Superior Reiatsu Strength to the attack's power. The environment manipulated maintains its properties, and aside from the Speed at which it moves (based on the Mod Soul's Reiatsu Strength) its features such as durability and malleability are unchanged.

At Class 8-6 the user can take in dust or spirit particles in the air and make it a part of themselves. In this most simple of forms, it is as if the air surrounding them is a part of them, allowing Mod Souls to sense anything passing through this air as if it were touching them. While this does not hurt, it is a useful sensory tool that can be used to notice incoming objects. The effective range of this ability is approximately three meters, extending to four meters at Class 7 and ten meters at Class 6. This process costs 100 reiatsu to initiate and lasts four posts before it needs refreshing.

At Class 5-4 the user can, in addition to sensing and branching their Reiatsu into their surroundings, fuse these dust or spirit particles to their skin in small layers, allowing them to actually use material they are in direct contact with. This enables them to add protective layers of material to their body in order to create a surface, much like a weapon. Areas of their body that have had this layer added to them can be considered like the edge of a sword or other weapon and can be used to attack and parry incoming slashes, though reiatsu-based attacks and the like will tend to weaken the bonds and cause the layers to peel away. At Class 5 this layer can be applied to any small patch of skin no more than ten square inches in area. At class four this increases to an entire limb. This process takes 150 reiatsu to initiate and lasts for five posts at Class 5 and seven posts at Class 4.

At Class 3, the user can extend their Reiatsu into their immediate surroundings for brief moments. Anything nonliving within five meters of their body can, for a brief moment, become as though it is a part of them. They will feel anything passing through it, and they will be able to manipulate the material within as if it were a part of their body. This lasts for roughly fifteen seconds, or about one post, and costs 175 Reiatsu to initiate every time

At Class 2 The user can spread their influence, making their surroundings part of them. This allows their soul to take root in their surroundings. With this active, they can freely manipulate their surroundings within five meters of their body indefinitely, as well as any material that COMES into this range. This ability costs 500 reiatsu to activate and lasts for eight posts.

At Class 1 The user can not only influence their surroundings, but completely fuse with it. Taking in ambient materials, a Mod Soul can modify whatever body they inhabit into a weapon using surrounding materials, transforming their body and taking on a much more intimidating form. For seven posts, this form can be maintained and utilized, though it cannot be refreshed for another three posts after that as the Mod Soul takes time to recover, blocking them from any Class level of use during this time.

How to use technique (How is it activated?): This uses the basic principle of a Mod Soul's ability to control a body it is placed within. To use, a Mod Soul Simply needs spread their spirit energy outside of that body in the form of tiny roots.

Technique Drawbacks Using this technique, the Mod Soul's surroundings becomes a part of them in every way, as such any poisons or negative ailment abilities can use the affected surroundings as a means of spreading their debuff to the Mod Soul itself. This technique's TTP cost depends on the level being mastered. 5 TTP at class 8, 10 at class 7, and so on. However, one's aptitude with the technique must be "Upgraded" when learning the next highest class, paying the new ttp cost in order to upgrade the Tech, making up for the cost as if you learned at a higher class. It also cannot be used to affect Seki Seki rock.

Incantation and Effect: None

Made By: Hebiface

[Yoko Kusanagi]

As always she listened carefully when Taka spoke. Most of the things that came out of her mouth were worth paying attention to. Except everything to do with attire. They would never see eye to eye on that one. But then there was the comment about Luke, and burning him. Luke was no slouch in the modern day, but back when Taka fought him, he was practically a different person. Still, he was vaguely competent. Anything that could catch him off guard enough to wreck his shit was worth keeping an eye out for. At first she wasn’t too worried about it, and just nodded at Taka and told them, ”I’m sure I’ll be okay. I can handle myself well enough. You worry about you.”

Yoko had intended to go in for a clean combo. She had expected Taka to respond with martial arts, or footwork, or maybe a blade. That expectation was not accurate. What Yoko found to greet her when she threw her first punch, the left jab, was a wall of darkness that came out. It was only then that Yoko truly appreciate what Taka had said about the burns Luke had suffered in the past. Her punch stopped in its tracks, and she bounded backwards before she could even think of finishing her combo. She had only been within that darkness for a moment, but she had felt it. That burning sensation that must infect all things within that space.

A quick assessment revealed that Yoko had sustained some minor burns in a few spots scattered over her body. It was nothing to laugh at, but it was far from enough to stop her. Had she stayed in that space for more than a second, then surely the wounds would have been much worse. But Yoko was a cautious fighter. In that moment she’d had two choices. Hit it very hard, or retreat. Given that she was trying to avoid doing lasting damage to Taka, she had opted for an immediate retreat. This phase was meant as an assessment, not a life or death struggle. Yeah, she could probably have blown that away with Fist of Unbroken Air, but she wasn’t sure if she could defeat it with a safe level of strength.

Yeah, Yoko could have blown that away attack away if she wanted to, but sometimes it wasn’t about winning the fight. At this moment she was there to assess Taka’s capabilities, and provide insight. What she had learned was that Taka had very good capabilities for stealth and hit and run style tactics. Against people who weren’t Yoko, then the Mod Soul would probably fare quite well. But Yoko was one of the worst matchups on the planet for stealth based fighters. She was able to follow what had happened pretty well, and she’d gotten a pretty good feel for it right away. Whatever technique Taka used to hide their presence seemed to be some kind of fiery barrier, and that field of energy could be expanded to the space around the Mod Soul.

Truth be told, it was a fairly simply ability, but not any less potent. It seemed to come at a pretty steep stamina cost though. The pair had only been through one back and forth, and yet Yoko could already feel the signs of fatigue creeping in on Taka. It was just the little things, like the time it took Taka to react having increased between the first sequence and the second. Little details like that were enough to gauge it, at least to some extent. Having felt this, Yoko lowered her guard and made a “hold on a minute” gesture towards he sparring partner. They’d only traded a few blows, but it had been enough to figure out a direction to go in.

[smear:008080]”You’ve got good instincts, and a troublesome ability for most folks there.”[/smear:00C0C0:1] Her praise was genuine, and there was no hint of sarcasm in her voice whatsoever. Once more that sing-songy tone had shown its head. Despite the slight burns she’d received, she didn’t seem to be too bothered. [smear:008080]”I asked to see what you had, and you delivered. I’m not sure I’d want to fight against that ability at close range without using enough strength to blow it away.”[/smear:00C0C0:1] As always, she spoke nothing but the truth. Yoko had genuinely been unsure if she could beat that technique without injuring Taka. That was why she’d called for the timeout. There was a fine line between sparring and the hospital if she wasn’t careful.

[smear:008080]”So, I’ve got only one question about that trick. What happens if I shoot ya? Cuz ya see,”[/smear:00C0C0:1] There was a burst of golden light for just a moment as Yoko toggled her Fullbring on and off in an instant. [smear:008080]”I am Gundam. Not just Yoko.[/smear:00C0C0:1] Both her hands now held a pistol, but it was worth noting that her fingers weren’t on the trigger, nor were they pointed towards Taka. She took a deep breath in and out before she continued talking. The extertion of spending a third of her reiatsu in fairly short succession wasn’t something she could completely ignore. [smear:008080]”Something tells me that these little things would spell a bad day for you, and I’d rather not test that directly. Think I’ve got a decent feel for it, or is my shot in the dark missing?”[/smear:00C0C0:1]

Reiatsu: 1000/1500
-200 for Fullbring Stage 1 Release

Current Instinct: 206
Current Senses: 231

SPOILER: Click to show

{Pistol Info}Name: Beretta 92FS
Appearance:Link
Slots Required: 1 Sub Slot
Effective Range: 50 meters
Power: 600
Speed: 600
Ammo Capacity: 10
Special Traits: Can be equipped with a suppressor for 50 additional reiatsu.
Alternate Fire: None.
Spawn Cost: 100
Drawback: Low range, low power, low speed, and only a moderate ammo capacity. This is just a basic sidearm. The only reason to use it is for the low cost, or if you need a suppressed weapon.

["Taka" Sar]

Zaluu was... surprised. She had expected some sort of action against her but instead Yoko just bolted out, backing off in reaponse to the assault and getting out of dodge. Zaluu let out a woof as they did so, a little anxious. But as Yoko called a timeout, she allowed her ability to end, her time was up anyway as it were. She took a deep breath and gave a thumbs-up as the woman. ”Thank you. Its saved my butt many times. I have some other tricks I can do but uh, looks like you’re too tough for it to do too nuch damage. I have to ve careful doing that thiugh. I’ve had less...durable crooks try to step tech out of it. They wound up playdough factorying themselves.” she moved in, still panting and paused, stopping a good two meters from yoko, then stepped back.

Ah good, she didn’t seem to have any serious injuries. Also wow firm. But in any case she sat herself down and wiped her brow. ”I really don’t have a lot of tricks. I actually kinda pulled out that step tech on the spot. But I also kinda worry that I’m just too slow and weak to use it right. I dunno if I should learn tricks to compensate for my weakness or to focus on building myself up, or if I should try to just improve myself in general, get better with my own special ability and bulk up along the way.” she murmured, peeling off her sweats and tossing them to the floor, leaving her in her black skivs. A set of panties and a tank top. “Good to know I don’t suck too much though.”

She paused and glanced back to Yoko. ”Thats a pretty good approximation. Truth be told its kinda hard to explain. “ she paused and lifted her brows at the show of guns. Though she... chuckled just a little at the I am Gundam part. That was a tiny but cute. ”Nice. As for getting shot that depends. From you? It’d probably disable me for a bit. If you shot me in the head I’d probably have to make myself a new body till the fight was over.Which is annoying. Then get this one fixed up. Though most people are so weak that a bullet burns up before it can touch me. Well most humans anyway. So long as its nothing high powered.” she mumbled, scratching her cheek and then rubbing her eyes.

”On another note. I’m a little exhausted. Spent a lot of energy giving ya my best shot. I don’t really have a ton of stamina.” she explained and got up to go and pull a bottle of water from her minifridge, slurping it before setting one out for Yoko as well. She paused and tapped her fingers thoughtfully. ”Much of a dork as that kid Clyburn is... I kinda envy him. When I met him he was just some kid. No powers. Now he could scuffle with the best of him. He may not aknowledge who he is. But he knows who he wants to be.” she ran her fingers down her face. Oof. She stood back up.

When she turned back around she was smiling again. ”Whew! I get talkative when I’m tired huh? Sorry bout that. I’ll shut up about all that. Now. I still don’t trust you all the way. No offense. For right now though, you do have my respect. So I think an exchange of information if a nice appropriate measure for now. In the future? I may very well love to have you on board and training my staff. But for now. I’d like to see how you do with me. I think that sounds fair.” She felt pretty good. An exchange always gave her insight on a person. Especially faced with her abilities. In luke’s case? He showed his little bitch side. With Yoko? She held back, and swallowed her pride to retreat. Taka knew that Yoko could have just lowed through her with her fist alone, let alone a gun being involved.

Instead, Yoko had backed out, ran, and called a timeout. She was showing good character, even in a situation where most people even with good intentions could have panicked and lashed out. Yoko had not only proven her intentions, but her restraint. That was a very good note in her book. That said she still was nervous. She planned on taking things slow. For now she was comfortable with an exchange of information, within reason. Just because Yoko coupd be trusted didn’t mean Kazura could be. Let alone the rest of UE’s Staff. She wanted to get to know yoko. Get to trust them. And eventually, once they were close, she could ask Yoko if she truly felt that nobody in Uzaki Enterprises posed a threat to her and her patrons. At a point where she could feel she trusted the answer to that.

”So. Putting a pin in our training for a bit. Do you have any questions? And not necessarily just about me mind you, flattering as that would be. But its a little clear you don’t know a ton about our operation. No offense intended. So seeing as we’rlre somewhat entangling our businesses, I feel we both could use some answers. This far I’ve gotten most of mine. So I believe it’s Daddy’s turn. Also not your nickname or anything. Mildly dizzy from the fatigue. Also that expansion thing kinda makes me feel everything in the radius so lightheaded. Fantastic glutes bee tee dubs.” she clarified and sat on the edge of her desk. There would be a big ol sweaty assprint but she could worry about that later.

[Yoko Kusanagi]

Well, Yoko had certainly called that one, but she honestly hadn’t expected Taka to be that tuckered out that quickly. She had gotten a feeling of a bit of fatigue, but not what was displayed when the technique ended properly, and Taka was fully visible again. She listened as the Mod Soul spoke about the usual outcomes of her ability. She hadn’t felt anything like that. Was there some kind of barrier on the outer edge of the expanded zone? She must have been moving too fast to tell. Still, it seemed like her instinct had been a good one to end it when she did. That technique seemed dangerous for both of them.

What Yoko caught next was something she hadn’t expected. She caught Taka’s eyes as they wandered up and down over the Fullbringer’s body. Though the Mod Soul could say that it was just a check for injuries, it was more than that. Especially with Yoko’s senses enhanced by Variant, there was no way that she would miss the moments where Taka’s eyes stayed longer than they needed to on sections that were clearly devoid of injury. Yoko had been the subject of treatment like this plenty of times in her life. Normally, it pissed her off. Normally, it was from men. Some of them treated her like nothing more than a piece of meat that existed just for them to satisfy themselves with.

That wasn’t the impression she had gotten from those stray glances she’d caught from Taka. Now Yoko couldn’t read minds or anything, but she could at least figure out why someone’s eyes might linger somewhere longer than they needed. Oh… is she… I guess some of what she said does make more sense in that context… Yoko didn’t normally really give any thought to matters of sexuality, but those stray glances had her think that maybe Taka was a bit outside the norms there. The whole idea of Mod Souls and gender and sexuality was still super weird to her anyway. Given that they could change bodies on a whim it was… she didn’t really know. It was just kinda weird to her.

How were you supposed to think about someone that introduced themselves as a dinosaur anyway? That whole thing was just so far outside of her framework that in the end she just decided to take it as a compliment and leave it at that. There was no real harm in someone catching an eyeful, as long as they didn’t take it too far, right? All the actual words out of Taka’s mouth were mostly business, and Yoko decided to focus on that as well. There was no point in dwelling on the rest of things. She was here for her mission after all, and not anything else. In the face of her job, she really couldn’t afford to put much thought into such silly matters anyway.

The Fullbringer made her way over to the desk and set down the pistols she had spawned. Fun fact: she had no way to despawn them now that they existed. She helped herself to the bottle of water that Taka offered, and gave her a [smear:008080]”Thank you.”[/smear:00c0c0:1] in return. It was only at that distance that it clicked in Yoko’s mind that the Mod Soul was no longer wearing pants. Truly, it seemed clothing was the continual string that would leave them both confused about what the other wanted. [smear:008080]”Luke… Luke knows what he wants, but he doesn’t know how to get there. He hasn’t changed as much as you might think he has. A good chunk of him is still the same scared little kid you first met. Just that kid has a bunch of superpowers now.”[/smear:00c0c0:1]

She downed the rest of the bottle of water, and heard what Taka had to say about trust and the future. [smear:008080]”If you trusted me just because I didn’t punch your head off there, then I’d be a little surprised to be honest. I don’t mean it as anything but a compliment, but you’ve definitely got the skepticism required to keep people safe. That alone has soothed my fears about this place a good bit. You might not have the raw power to back it up, yet, but you have a good head for leadership.”[/smear:00c0c0:1] As always, the praise was genuine. In the former Chief of Security’s eyes, paranoia was the most important quality that one could have when it came to keeping people safe.

But then it was time for Yoko to get to ask her questions. She started to think about what all she wanted to know, and then Taka hit her with another “Daddy” and a comment about Yoko’s butt. Suddenly the Fullbringer had forgotten what questions she wanted to ask. She wasn’t mad or anything, no. She felt… oddly complacent. She couldn’t really tell why, but being treated like that by Taka… it just kinda felt nice? She took it as a compliment, and decided to play back a bit just for fun. The two of them were right next to each other by this point anyway. Taka was on the desk, and Yoko was right next to it from having grabbed that bottle of water.

With a casual glance over towards Taka she fired back [smear:008080]”Oh? Are you sure about that? Once is a joke, but a second time makes me think you might be focused on exchanging something other than information.”[/smear:00e0e0:1] Though it was far from her strong suit, Yoko sent a wink Taka’s way. It was, in truth, no more than a friendly tease. She was all smiles though, and hadn’t taken any offense. Taka had been respectful and kind. Her comments had been innocent enough, even when they were less professional in nature. Though Yoko didn’t really see herself swinging that way, some part of her enjoyed the way that the Mod Soul treated her. That mix of a tinge of fear amidst desire. It was… refreshing.

[smear:008080]”Afraid I do have to keep it business for now though.”[/smear:00c0c0:1] She hopped on on the desk next to Taka, eager to get her feet off the wooden floor. Yeah, she was tough and all, but sometimes a girl just wanted to kick back a little. When in Rome right? [smear:008080]”So, all I know is the rumors, and what you’ve told me. What I’d like to know goes in two directions. The first, I can probably guess, but I wanna hear you say it. Why’d you make this place? What purpose does it serve?”[/smear:00e0e0:1] Probably it was because a place like this needed to exist. A place where people with powers could come and feel like they weren’t freaks.

That was the softball question, but it was still one that the Fullbringer wanted to know. Besides, she liked listening to people talk about the things they cared about most. It’s usually when folks were at their best. The second question was the hardball. Hopefully that first one got Taka a little warmed up. Yoko waited for that first answer to be done before she asked the second one. [smear:008080]”And for question two, I do want to know about what I should expect from you all if war was to show up on Karakura’s doorstep tomorrow. Anyone work here that I shouldn’t fuck with? Any recurring patrons that might have a bullseye painted on their back for some reason or another? That kind of stuff.”[/smear:00e0e0:1]

Current Instinct: 198
Current Senses: 222