Royalty Meet Stoicism (Shade vs Rin) SP Training

[Shade Kawada]

Shade had been training in his barracks for hours on end and had worked up a slight sweat. The san-seki’s pale skin was splotched with the red blood of his comrades who he had just finished sparring with. They weren’t enough. Shade needed more powerful foes in order to achieve the level of skill he was aiming for. Why was squad 11 full of such weaklings? Sure Zieg and Saix were powerful soul reapers, but they were his superiors and he held them on a different standard. In Shade’s opinion, they weren’t strong enough for the positions they held. They owed it to soul society to be the epitome of what a fighter should be, after all, they were the pride of squad 11. Shade couldn’t see either of them improving much in the future. Perhaps they had already begun to plateau.

After some thought and meditation, Shade decided to take a walk around Seireitei before returning to his barracks to train. He found all of it pointless. He would never improve at the rate he was shooting for by sparring with the other seated shinigami in his squad. But simply doing nothing was something that the emotionless shinigami simply could not do. He was a tool only meant to improve and to be of use to Soul Society. He would fulfill this requirement of him and become the ultimate warrior. He would be a perfect god of death. A trail of blood followed the third seat as he made his way down the white, cobbled road of Seireitei. His eyes remained closed as he walked. He would navigate Soul Society using only his senses.

Shade’s blind walk took him past squad 7 where he sensed a strong reiatsu. “This signature... It’s foreign to me...” thought the san-seki, stopping in his tracks and opening his eyes to find he was outside squad 7. “Why doesn’t squad 11 have more people like whoever possesses such reiatsu?” wondered the third seat as he peered inside the gates. It was people at levels such as this that he wished to pit himself against. It was people such as this that he wished to emerge victorious over. Only then would he be on his way to becoming a captain. He was not the only one looking for a fight. Buraindo Kira leaked blood onto the ground around Shade as his bloodlust grew.

“Shade... Why don’t you go in and see who that energy belongs to?” whispered the sword, “I’m sure they’d be willing to train with you...” But Shade wasn’t too sure. “I have already been away from my station for too long. I should return to my proper place at my own squad’s barracks...” said the san-seki under his breath. In truth he wanted to fight something strong, but what if he was needed by someone important? How would they know how to find him? But then again, how could he get stronger by being back there? Shade had conflicting thoughts for a moment, but then his sword spoke up yet again.

“WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!? YOU STUPID FUCK!!!” screeched Buraindo Kira, “HAVE YOU EVER BEEN STARVING?! NO?! WELL RIGHT NOW YOUR SWORD NEEDS TO DRINK SOME BLOOD!!! SO GET THE FUCK IN THERE AND FEED ME!!!” The sword’s word prompted the third seat to put everything else in the back of his mind and walk into the barracks. His trench coat draped over his shoulders and blew behind him as he made his way up to the other squad’s training room. He would find the source of such a reiatsu and he would paint the walls with their blood.

“YAAAAAA-HAAAAAA!!!” exclaimed the sword as Shade pushed the door to Squad 7’s barracks open and allowed his dark aura to fill the room. “Whose is it? The reiatsu. I feel it. Which one of you is the strongest?” stated the shinigami dryly as he stood in front of the rabble of squad 7 shinigami. It was obvious he was looking for a fight. He cared not that his sword made a bloody mess on the floor and he cared not if he interrupted their training. Shade was looking for a fight. Shade was looking to train.

SPOILER: Click to show

Strength - [100 (x2)] = 200 Points

Speed - [125] Points

Spiritual Pressure - [150] Points

Reiatsu Strength - [125] Points

Light Aura - [0] Points

Dark Aura - [100] Points

Instinct - [100] Points

Senses [200] Points

Energy sensory - [50 (x3)] = 150 Points

Healing Expertise - [0] Points

Total SP: [850] Points

[Deleted]

"Ne! To think you all could take me on at once?! Just because I'm a dainty girl?! You couldn't be anymore foolish!" These peasants! They will pay. Dearly. Why? Hmph. Well, it all started it out with her training by herself. And then, suddenly, a bunch of brutes from some other squad just jumped her thinking that they could get one over the squad 7 vice-captain. Puh-leeease! She was just checking herself out with her blade seeing as she lacked a mirror in that moment. She cut them to ribbons for that foolish little stunt of theirs. Imbeciles. They were lucky she couldn't kill them. She'd get punished for that. Empresses don't do well in jail.

There were little droplets of blood on the ground from that meaningless squabble. Nothing to really get upset over. Though the captain might wonder...and yell at her for cutting them and sending them over to the Squad 4 barracks. Ne, speaking of which, where was he? Whatever~ If he was here, he was going to pull out his bunny. Ne!! Why does he keep that thing with him!? ...Her captain might even threaten her with paperwork. She already had mountains and mountains of it. It was just sitting there in her office...and it was going to continue to climb. Did she care? No. Did she have sake? No. Therefore, you cannot force your highness to do paperwork!

"Nihi, Riiiiin-chan~ Someone interesting is approaching....Can I cut him to pieces...?"[/i] Rin flicked the blood off her sword and sheathed it. "Ne~? I can feel it too...but you cannot. It's against the law here OBVIOUSLY..."[/i] she rolled her eyes. Chimeiyoki was feisty and violent...she only ACTED sweet. She also had speech issues like Rin. Nihi, Ne...same difference. Rin had good senses and instinct. This person wanted to fight. It wasn't a good aura like the others. The ravenette's back was towards the door as she waited for her new opponent. Was this yet another fool that thought that they could catch her off guard? Ne...They'll pay too! If there was one thing Rin hated, it was striking someone's back. It was dishonorable and disrespectful.

“Whose is it? The reiatsu. I feel it. Which one of you is the strongest?” You mean he announced himself? Hmm. Interesting, ne~? Rin turned around as she whipped her fan out of her obi and began to fan herself. She had a habit of fanning herself. "My, my~....You make quite an entrance, don't you?" she smiled as she fanned herself slowly; as if she had all the time in the world. "It must be mine...I am an empress after all~" she said with a flip of her hair, tossing it over her shoulder. Rin might make quite an impression on Shade mainly because of her attire. It wasn't that of a normal shinigami. She had custom, silk robes and a colored obi. It was almost nothing like the shinigami attire. She got scolded for it, but it wasn't going to stop her. Not unless they were threatening her life...which meant that she's perfectly fine here~.

"Why don't we just skip to the formalities, ne? I am Rin Minamimoto. Squad 7 Vice-Captain....and who might you be?" She didn't quite like that tone of voice of his. She emphasized the Vice-Captain part of her title as a silent warning that she was one that should not be taken lightly. Not to mention that he shouldn't even try anything foolish. She's had enough foolishness today, thank you. Of course, if he wanted to spar, then she was always up for that. Rin loved a good spar. She'd done it with her third seat and he was incredibly impressive. "Can I help you with something?" she asked politely. Rin was was always polite as well as courteous to others. The only time she wasn't like that was when she was in battle.

"Nihi...Are you dense? Can't you tell?! Ahahahaha~"[/i] Rin kept the same facial expression on her face as she conversed with Chimeiyoki. "....I'm aware...But I want to talk to him first!"[/i] she complained. Rin loved conversation. All kinds of conversation. She was more than willing to chat with her other fellow shinigami...even if he wasn't from Squad 7. Rin honestly wouldn't mind if he was willing to bring a good fight as well as an enjoyable conversation. Those were two things she loved. Well...she also loved sushi and sake. However, that's an entirely different story. One that should be saved for later. [/size]

SPOILER: Click to show

Strength - 150 Points

Speed - 200 Points

Spiritual Pressure - 150 Points

Reiatsu Strength - 200 Points

Light Aura - 51 Points

Dark Aura - 49 Points

Instinct - 200 Points

Senses 150 Points

Energy sensory - 100 Points

Healing Expertise - 50 Points

[Shade Kawada]

Shade glared around the room, many shinigami were staring at him, but he only cared about one soul reaper. Shade’s eyes scanned squad 7’s barracks. They appeared similar to his own squad’s except for the lack of wear and tear that his barracks had received during the many spars that had taken place there. He hoped that he would be given the opportunity to add as many scars to this room as he had added to his own division. There she was, the owner of the powerful aura. Shade’s eyes fell on Rin as she eyed him. “She’s not wearing the traditional robes...” was the first thing that Shade thought as he spotted the vice-captain, “What kind of a tool does not dress as ordered?”

The pool of blood underneath Shade grew with every second. No doubt Rin would notice the blood falling from his blade by now. “THAT’S HER SHADE!!! HER BLOOD!!! I WANT IT!!!” whined Shade’s zanpakutou. Buraindo Kira was as gluttonous as ever. “My, my~....You make quite an entrance, don’t you?” said the vice captain as she fanned herself with an intricate, paper fan, “It must be mine...I am an empress after all~” Shade didn’t react to the lieutenant’s claim. He cared not about her social status or family background. All that mattered was that she was powerful, and judging by the size of her sword, Shade wouldn’t be disappointed.

“HAHA!!! I TOLD YOU SHADE!!! IT’S HER! USE ME! KILL HER!!! DO IT NOW!!!” screamed Buraindo Kira. Outbursts like this were normal for the violent, gluttonous, angry zanpakutou. Shade always tried his best to ignore his sword when he was hungry like this, which was practically 24 hours a day. Shade’s hand drifted to the sword’s hilt as he allowed Rin to finish speaking. The san-seki was a shinigami of squad 11, but he had good etiquette and a good mind on his shoulders, two things that most squad 11 shinigami lacked.

“Why don’t we just skip to the formalities, ne? I am Rin Minamimoto. Squad 7 Vice-Captain....and who might you be?” she said. Her tone of voice was of subtle warning, but things such as tones of voice meant nothing to the san-seki. He was unable to differentiate them as he was unable to differentiate facial expressions. Shade simply heard the words that came out of Rin’s mouth without any tone she attempted to imbue them with. Shade’s world was one of black, white, and shades of gray. He saw things from a different perspective and focused on facts, statistics, and ranks instead of morals, justice, and feelings.

“Shade Kawada... San-seki of squad 11...” uttered the shinigami, his eyes retaining their deathly glare on the woman. He did not approve of her choice in dress. Someone of her rank should do as they’re told, not attempt to stand apart. The san-seki didn’t care if she was a woman or not, all people bled the same, and if he could manage to kill her, then she deserved to die anyway for being too weak for her rank. Shade ran his pale fingers through his slicked back hair, his hand stopping just over the small indentation in his skull. It was here that he was scratched by the hollow while still a fetus in his mother’s belly. It was because of this that Shade couldn’t feel anything in his heart. It was because of this that Buraindo Kira had so much influence over him.

“Can I help you with something?” asked the lieutenant. “I felt a powerful reiatsu and thought it belonged to Youji-san,” said the san-seki, “Having beaten Youji-san last time, I was hoping to fight him again and show him that any amount of training is pointless against me... But it seems the reiatsu belonged to you instead...” Shade’s glare remained affixed on the lieutenant. He hoped that she would step up to him in her third seat’s stead. Maybe he had dishonored squad 7 to the point that Rin would agree to fight him for the sake of beating the one that had defeated their san-seki. Shade didn’t care what happened as long as he got to fight.

[Deleted]

Red-orange eyes were fixated on Shade like a hawk's; one with vicious intent. This one...there was something rather unpleasant about him. It was almost similar to the same aura Miho gave off. Dark. This one...he may as well just be a hollow. Of course, that didn't mean she'd be rude to him right off the bad. Rin was well aware that Shade wanted to fight. Rin was sharp despite not looking like it. She was no fool. Even her Zanpakuto, Chimeiyoki, pointed it out. Speaking of which, we're about to hear from the peanut gallery right now. "...I bet he's a fun fight~!" Rin flicked a strand of hair, removing it from her line of vision. "Ne~? You think so...?"[/i] ,"Can we---"[/i], "No.Her facial expression remained the same as she conversed with her zanpakuto. She had a knack for doing that. Empress' weren't really supposed to show much facial expression other than joy, ne~?

Squad 11 was filled with battle hungry brutes. Brutes who had absolutely no class and no talent. Save for their captain of course. He was obviously an exception. Due to numerous past experiences, Rin wasn't very fond of the savage-like squad. You have the Vice Captain to thank for that. Her last two missions with him were incredibly unpleasant. Sure, he might be nice...but no one cares about how nice you are on the battlefield. No one cares if your heart is filled with love and kindness. You're either an enemy or an ally and if you're always one of those things to either side which means you're going to get killed regardless if you're not careful. It was a place to drop such feelings. She was quiet, cold and brutal during battle. Talking during an actual battle gives your opponent a chance to defeat you. It gives them leverage. Something Rin would never allow her opponent to have. Not ever. In a fight, you take every advantage you can get by the horns. It was only common sense of course. Something this empress had plenty of. It was only natural, ne~?

If there was anything Shade and Rin had in common, it was being constantly annoyed by their zanpakuto. Chimeiyoki and Rin had a strange relationship. They were rather friendly with each other. Both Chimeiyoki and Rin could argue for hours on end and forget about it and move on to something amazing. It was like they had the attention span the size of pea...Which honestly was true for the both of them. They were so easily distracted by the strangest of things. They had similar traits. In fact, the only difference was was that Chimeiyoki loved to torture and fight more than Rin did. Not to mention that Chimeiyoki wasn't afraid of bunnies as well as not being a high and might empress like our favorite Squad 7 Vice Captain over here. No. She obviously had a more reasonable fear than bunnies; Butterflies. Who wouldn't be scared of butterflies? Chimeiyoki longed to come out. She wanted to tear and rip things apart. She wanted to hear screams....all while being a lady of course. That was rather important to the both of them, it seems. She was sassy, feisty and most of all mischievous.

“Shade Kawada... San-seki of squad 11...” Rin's eyes flared up with amusement. A third-seat, ne~? Oh my...how interesting. And he gave off such a strong aura too. "Well...It's a pleasure, Shade-san~" she smiled. Unfortunately, no one could tell Rin what to do except Enma-taicho....or the Captain Commander of course. If it wasn't coming out of either of their mouths, it wasn't happening. She already stood apart because of her prowess...why not add on to it by dressing up? Those shinigami robes were restricting. An empress should stand apart from the mindless sea of statistic souls of Seireitei. The Captains already did it as well as other Vice-Captains....so why shouldn't she? She was a vice captain after all! But third seats didn't deserve that privilege...well most of them didn't. This one might. He seemed strong. Only strong ones did... Like her third seat! Squad 7 was obviously the best, ne~? Rin was a bit of a Squad 7 go-hard. She had alot of pride for her squad. They had a strong captain and as of now, she was the strongest Vice-Captain.

“I felt a powerful reiatsu and thought it belonged to Youji-san. Having beaten Youji-san last time, I was hoping to fight him again and show him that any amount of training is pointless against me... But it seems the reiatsu belonged to you instead...” N-Ne?! She might have to take a few sentences back...but this writer too lazy to go back into the next paragraph and delete that. You can pretty much put anything in here to fill up extra space after all~. Rin's lips would curl into a grin of amusement. "Ahaha...Obviously it does. If you don't mind my saying so, you sound rather disappointed at discovering that, ne?" she said as she continued to fan herself with a grin. "Ah..You know Kaen-san?...Ne, I beg to differ. That boy has potential. I should know. I trained with him~." she shrugged. "But you don't care about that in the slightest do you? No...You're just itching for a fight, ne?" She was no fool. She could feel that murderous intent of his. It wreaked....not that she minded. As long as she was getting a good fight then she's a happy camper.

People lose fights all the time. She lost against Hiro. She swore that she'd come back a thousands stronger and fight him. Her overly gigantic ego wouldn't just allow that to slide by. There wasn't a chance in hell that she was going to allow that. In any case, it seems as though Kaen lost a fight. Hm. He didn't say very nice things about him either. Okay! For Squad 7! She'll go along with it. The empress was bored anyway. Rin stashed her fan back in her obi and held her sword in a defensive stance. She motioned for him to attack with her two fingers. "You best not disappoint me, Shade-san."[/size]

[Shade Kawada]

The pool of blood underneath Shade had grown quite a bit. Buraindo Kira’s bloodlust was growing with every moment and he wished for Shade to begin the fighting, for it was only when his master was fighting that he got the best blood to drink. “Kaen’s blood was certainly a delicious meal,” said the zanpakutou spirit, recalling the taste of the other third seat’s blood. Blood was Buraindo Kira’s life, and he never forgot the taste and smell of a specific person’s blood. He liked every type there was. AB-, O+, A-, AB+, B+, O-, B-, A+... It didn’t matter. If it was blood, then Buraindo Kira would make it his meal.

“Ahaha...Obviously it does. If you don’t mind my saying so, you sound rather disappointed at discovering that, ne?” said Rin, responding to Shade’s realization that the reiatsu belonged to her. That was it, he had to fight her. This was power fitting of a vice-captain, and if Shade could best this woman, then he was certainly good enough to best his own lieutenant. Shade wanted to challenge Rin so much. This was the caliber of training he was searching for. He wanted something that would push him, and he was certain that this would be it.

“Ah..You know Kaen-san?...Ne, I beg to differ. That boy has potential. I should know. I trained with him~. But you don’t care about that in the slightest do you? No...You’re just itching for a fight, ne?” said the lieutenant at the san-seki. She couldn’t have been more correct. Shade was literally holding himself back from attacking right now. The sooner he attacked, the sooner she’d attack back, and the sooner the fight would begin. But the consequences afterwards for attacking a superior like that would have been unacceptable for someone who wanted to become the perfect shinigami. As for Kaen, Shade didn’t know what Rin saw in him. He was trash. Anyone who lost to Shade was trash until they proved themselves to him once again. But Shade chose not to mention this. The san-seki had a feeling that such logic was wasted on the vice-captain.

In response to her statement about wanting to fight, Shade closed his hazy eyes and replied, “Don’t treat me like the rest of the mindless, bloodthirsty hounds of squad 11. Fighting is not my number one prerogative... I simply wish to get stronger for the sake of becoming more useful to Soul Society... It’s simply coincidence that my path requires me to cut down all in my way...” said the san-seki. His eyes glued to Rin in case she did something.

That’s when it happened. Rin lifted her hand up and motioned for the san-seki to come at her, “You best not disappoint me, Shade-san.” That was it! It was the third seat’s queue to begin the fight! Shade’s eyes opened wide, his uncaring glare turned to a much more intense one. He was 110% focused on every little movement his opponent made right now. His surroundings? Wood floor, shoji walls, with wooden pillars holding up the ceiling. There was a dozen or so shinigami scattered throughout the room which Shade calculated to be about 120 feet by 180 feet. It was large enough to comfortably spar in, but not large enough for the powerful san-seki to go all out in without leaving the place unscathed.

This was it, Shade unsheathed his sword so quickly he sent a gust of air throughout the room and made the blood that emanated from his sealed zanpakutou splatter across the barrack’s floor and walls. His dark energy filled the room and his black trench coat waved rapidly and threatened to fly off from the impressive updraft Shade was creating with his reiatsu. The san-seki pointed his bleeding blade at Rin and with a voice that was too calm for his recent performance, he spoke, “I take that to mean you wish to do battle with me... Vice-captain Minamimoto... I shall not be held responsible for what I am about to do to you...” Shade had been kept waiting long enough, and with no emotion on his face he charged Rin, his eyes observing every detail, taking in every bit of information as he approached his opponent. When he reached the lieutenant, the san-seki delivered a textbook jab at the vice-captain’s chest. It wasn’t supposed to be a match-ending strike, simply to signal the beginning of their match.

[Deleted]

“Don’t treat me like the rest of the mindless, bloodthirsty hounds of squad 11. Fighting is not my number one prerogative... I simply wish to get stronger for the sake of becoming more useful to Soul Society... It’s simply coincidence that my path requires me to cut down all in my way...” Rin laughed lightly as she watched him come for her. "Best me in raw combat and then we'll talk." she replied calmly. If Shade can change her outlook on Squad 11, then kudos to him. As of now, she didn't hold them very high in regards. If anything they were close to the bottom. Raw combat was what truly mattered in a fight. To Rin especially. Only a fool would use their release like crutches. Why? Well, for one, what if you ran out of reiatsu? How do you escape a sticky situation now? You probably can't. Most zanpakuto powers had taxing effects and if you already released, then you know that your fight is extremely tough. You can easily put yourself at a disadvantage if you were weak in normal, reiatsu-less combat.

When she said "You best not disappoint me", she meant it. The empress can get rather bored, you know? After all, she was a vice-captain. She had her own little chores and jobs to take care of. She had places to go and bunnies to avoid. Honestly, when word got out that she had an irrational fear of bunnies, some of her squad members thought it would be cute to scare her. Well, luckily her third seat didn't know. Or at least...she thinks he doesn't know. Oh god...she hoped not. As far as she knew, he hadn't cracked any jokes or teased her about it....so maybe he didn't know anything! Hey, a revelation! This is good. She discovered something new today. Not once did she consider if it was false or not. She just assumed and that was good enough for her. Or at least....for now it was. The more people don't know about her irrational fear, the better. Rin feared encountering a bunny hollow. God..that girl would scream louder than banshee if that were to happen. THAT'S when you know her life is truly in danger.

She may not have appeared to look that way, but she certainly was focused. She may look arrogant and snobby 85% of the time, but she was as sharp as a dagger. She caught things most people didn't. She purposely honed her senses and instincts so that she would be able to catch things beforehand so that she wouldn't get herself into a pickle later on. People honestly didn't realize how important it was. Knowing everything in a fight gave you an advantage. If she could catch important details early on, the better. The sooner you can get your job done, the better. Of course, if you've got time to make your opponent suffer and give them hell to pay, then that's bloody wonderful. Seriously. She blinked a few times and continued to watch every one of his movement. She was waiting for him to make a move. He'd better not be one of those 'bloodthirsty hounds' he spoke of earlier. That would just annoy Rin.

There were many things that annoyed Rin. Stupid people annoyed Rin. People that were cocky and couldn't back it up annoyed Rin. Perverts annoyed Rin. That Hiro Kaname T-shirt she's wearing now an--- well...She'd be a bit of a hypocrite to say that. It was a secret, but she actually kind of liked the Hiro Kaname merchandise. His shirts were figure flattering and that was important to a lady. Of course, she'd put up a front though. This woman had far too much pride. She wouldn't dare admit that she sort of liked his merchandise. Especially since he beat her in a fight. No way! Not happening!

Seeing as this was the person that defeated Kaen-san, she figured that she should go rough of this one. She watched as he pointed that disgusting, bloody blade of his at her. Hmph. Like she's some kind of...of...peasant! Ne~ The nerve!...But it meant something. She should watch out with this one as well. Keep a cautious eye one him. “I take that to mean you wish to do battle with me... Vice-captain Minamimoto... I shall not be held responsible for what I am about to do to you...” At this she grinned. "My, my...such cocky words, ne~? No matter...I like your spirit. Do your worst" she said as she watched him come at her. Wow. He really couldn't wait. He literally just bolted towards her right after that. Huh. For someone that didn't want to be treated like they were in Squad 11, he sure carried the traits, ne~? Then again, she has the rest of this fight to see if he really was claiming what he wasn't...mindless. Rin hated stupid people. Tremendously. It should have been in her likes, but I forgot that, so pretend that it's there!

Rin dropped her stance. As he neared her, she kept a keen eye on his fists. The fact that he pointed a sword to her earlier indicated that he was a swordsman of some kind. Rin just knew it. When you run they way he did, it meant that he was going to use his fists. He put far too much momentum and speed into his run for it to be some other attack. As he began to deliver his jab, Rin quickly side stepped out of the way in the opposite direction of his fist. That way, he couldn't attack with his other hand. She was also faster than him so this was possible. As she did so, Rin grabbed his wrist with an iron grip. Granted, she had less strength than him, but with the amount of momentum and force he probably put into it, it might be too late to resist. He was too caught up in the moment. With that being said, she yanked hard on his arm, thrashing him into the wall behind her. Hell, she might have even hyper-extended his arm which might hurt alot. Breaking a swordsman's hands or disabling them in someway was the worst thing you could ever do to them. Rin then turned around, awaiting Shade's next move.

[Shade Kawada]

Shade decided to open the fight with a punch instead of with his blade. The san-seki stopped his charge a few feet in front of the lieutenant. He gripped his zanpakutou in his right hand as he came to a halt. Shade’s right foot planted itself in front of his left, between Rin’s own two feet as his upper body pivoted, delivering the textbook blow. Even the vice-captain would no doubt see how flawless the san-seki’s moves were. Shade strove for perfection in everything he did, and it showed. In fact, the only reason Shade was still a san-seki is because he lacked the necessary power to become a captain. He had both the skill and the mind for such a task. Shade knew this, which is why he pursued power with so much vigor.

However the power difference between Rin and Shade was more than noticeable. Perfect or not, Shade’s jab came too slow and the lieutenant quickly side-stepped his punch. Rin quickly grabbed his wrist and pulled back, expecting him to be caught off balance and flung into a wall. However, all she accomplished was pulling herself by the heavy third seat. There were multiple reasons why Shade didn’t budge. He was much heavier then the woman and stronger as well, but the main reason her move didn’t go according to plan was because Shade’s punch was textbook. His own attack hadn’t thrown him off balance. Such things were an amateur mistake and Shade was far beyond that. The san-seki watched, anchored in place, as Rin moved by him on his left. He was waiting for the moment when Rin completed the speedy maneuver of hers. That would be the time to strike.

SPOILER: Click to show

“THERE!” thought the san-seki as she passed him and let go of his wrist. But just as she released her grip on the san-seki, he rotated his own hand and grabbed on to Rin’s wrist, holding her in place. She was trapped. The stronger of the two shinigami held her arm in place as the arm he held Buraindo Kira in came up next to his own head, the blade running parallel with her outstretched arm and the tip pointed directly at the vice-captain’s face. A quick rotation of Shade’s body brought his left foot closer to Rin’s body and his torso square with his target. It all happened so suddenly. Shade maintained his grip on Rin’s wrist and thrust his blade forward along her arm. He followed her arm with his blade, for surely where her arm went, there her body would be.

However, as the tip of the blade approached the lieutenant’s shoulder it would quickly rotate below her arm and threaten to stab her in her armpit. Would Shade draw the first blood? It was in Rin’s best interest to not get hit by this strike. It would leave her maimed and crippled if it hit. Shade’s glaring eyes simply fell on the vice-captain like the eyes of a predator as it stalked it’s prey. That’s all Rin was to him... Prey...

“GYAAAAHAHAHAHAHA!!!” screeched the bloodthirsty blade as it streaked towards Rin, “WHY DON’T YOU JUST DIE RIGHT NOW?! HERE! IN FRONT OF ALL THE OTHER BLOOD SACKS YOU CALL ‘UNDERLINGS’!!!” The zanpakutou had a habit of yelling taunts at Shade’s opponent mid-battle. It was his way of releasing all his pent up aggression. Even though the taunts would never be heard by anyone except Shade, the zanpakutou’s intent would be obvious. It was out for blood.

“Why do you persist such infantile yelling?” thought Shade in mid-lunge. “SAME FUCKIN’ REASON YOUR FACE IS SO DAMN UGLY!!! ASS!!!” responded the zanpakutou in anger. This was the type of relationship the two had. Shade, the tool, and Buraindo Kira, the master. In truth the sword’s insults didn’t effect the third seat. Ugly? Shade didn’t care what a mere sword thought of his appearance. The san-seki was content with his appearance as long as he looked regal enough to take on the role of captain someday. But now that he thought about it, Buraindo Kira’s insult didn’t make sense. His sword yelled for the same reason his face looked the way it did? No... That didn’t make sense at all... Good thing Shade had learned to ignore his blade a long time ago.

[Deleted]

Ne...Maybe Shade should be in squad 7. He didn't seem so mindless as oppose to the the rest of squad 11. Ugh. Brutes. Idiots. That's what they were. Their Vice Captain was proof of that. Rin absolutely refuses to let that once situation go. Why? Because they could have died and if they could have died, it mattered. VIZARDS matter. Sasori was ugly too. Ugh. Why couldn't her evil opponents be good looking? AT LEAST it gives her something GOOD to look at while she's fighting. What was wrong with that?! Everyone wants something good to look at, ne~? Right! Cause I highly doubt the last thing you'd wanna look at is a Vizard with a giant bulging mutant hollow eye. Yeah. Yucky. Granted, he was okay with the eyepatch on...but then it fell off. It would be then that the high and mighty empress could feel herself about to throw up a little. That was a horrible mission.

There was that one mission in France. The one with those stupid humans. The one she hated the most was Kaname. Because of him, he ripped her clothes apart. With that being said, she was forced to wear the Hiro Kaname T-shirt. Granted, she liked it, but it was embarrassing. She couldn't let ANYONE figure out that she like it. She had a reputation to keep up! She was an empress after all. It's only natural that she acts this way! ....Geez. She has such a prissy, high and mighty attitude that it might even make one facepalm. She secretly wanted more of those t-shirts. They were figure flattering. Such threads were fit for an empress such as herself, no? Of course...anyone that found out about this would be punished horribly. She'll kill them until they die from it...if that makes any sense. No. It doesn't actually. Oh well.

Still. It takes more than just good techniques to get you places...As far as Rin was concerned, he was just another one. Strong...but not strong enough. Then again, she had a feeling that he might impress her over the course of the spar. Oh..How exciting, ne~? The thought of it excited the mock empress tremendously. She loved a good sword/ hand-to-hand fight. It was the sort of fighting that was at it's rawest and most extreme. It was the real deal to her. Those who were able to able to display exemplary skills were those that would prevail. Fancy reiatsu work was worthless. People over used their reiatsu and releases and used them like some sort of life support. It was sickening to watch. Yes, it was important against stronger foes like the Espada, but part of a good fight was weakening them down with raw combat. If you couldn't do that, then you'd obviously be in very, very big trouble.

To strive for perfection. Hm. That's interesting indeed. Not that Rin really knew that he wanted to. I'm only writing about it because I need an extra paragraph. YOU WANT THE SP. Ahem. Anyway, when you strive for perfection, what else would do you once you attain it? You're perfect! Congrats? Now what? What else is there to do? Soon, you'll get very, very bored...and boredom only leads to power abuse and them corruption. Well, that Rin's take on it at least. Ugh..Thinking. Deep thoughts. That unfamiliar territory for the empress. Well, not as much as Asuka. Asuka was a bit of a twit to her. Very nice girl...but not the sharpest tool in the shed. Miho was similar in the sense that she let her emotions rule her. Seriously. Ah well...what can you do. She's not an empress or a noble unlike herself. It's only natural, ne~?

Ugh. Men. They all think that they can get away with the same foolishness; grabbing a woman's wrist. Why? Because she was a woman and therefore 'weaker'. Hmph! Trapped, my darling, means she can't move and as long as Rin had room to move, she was still able to do something about it! He was strong, but the difference wasn't anything outstanding. Nijuu was ungodly strong. God. She hated him. Those two weren't sappy enough for 'love' so it was strange for everyone else EXCEPT them. Her original intention was to send him flying into the wall behind her. But it would seem that wasn't going to work right now. Ne...Oh well! She still had something up her sleeve. It wasn't all in vain.

The second the third seat got a hold of her wrist, she twisted it and pulled her wrist back. You're probably familiar with this maneuver. STREET FIGHTING! Anyway, as she did so, she batted his sword to the side, farther away from her arm with her own sword. A certain third-seat did that...She was stealing it. Seeing as she also had the range for it, she stabbed at his solar plexus with whatever strength she could muster...which was a lot so it would hurt and if it was the solar plexus, he might get the wind knocked out of him momentarily... which was enough time for Rin to retaliate. He was close enough and she had the range for it because the Nodachi is notoriously long. It might hit.

If it did hit, Rin would drop to a crouching position and smash her zanpakuto, sheath and all, into the side of his leg which would obviously give a pretty nasty bruise. She didn't want him knocked out yet. She wanted to fight! She wanted to see what Shade can do! She was so sure he could do something! Fighting like this was like a once in a blue moon kind of thing. She cherished this sort of thing because explosives and guns and reiatsu was no fun...and Rin liked a fun fight.

[Shade Kawada]

“Almost... almost...” thought Shade, his katana rapidly approaching Rin’s side. He would draw blood! This would signal the start of the real battle! “GYAHAHAHAHA!!!” chuckled Buraindo Kira in his signature laugh, “WHAT A FUCKING IDIOT!!!” Both the sword and the shinigami were expecting a hit. However, as the sword approached Rin, it would become apparent that the lieutenant wouldn’t be dealt with that easily.

In an instant Rin’s sword came out of it’s sheath and her wrist twisted with a movement so quick. With a swift pull the lieutenant yanked her arm out of Shade’s grip and blocked his katana with her own, larger zanpakutou. It was exactly what he expected of someone of her rank to be. She was swift, that much was clear, but she was also skilled. Shade would take all of this into account when he launched his next onslaught. Rin was about to find out that the most deadly tool in the san-seki’s arsenal was his mind. It was true that Shade possessed an IQ of over 180 and could learn to fight like a master simply by reading a book regarding specific moves. In some ways, Rin was in way over her head with the blank slate of a man.

Shade observed the vice-captain’s technique that allowed her to escape from his grip and was immediately able to understand it. He would not fall for the same trick twice and added the useful method of escaping to his own arsenal, for Shade was an extremely quick learner and could mimic something flawlessly after simply observing it being done, although Shade didn’t expect to need it against such a weak woman. He would simply file it away in the archives of his vast mind.

Shade watched with peeled eyes as Rin batted his blade away with her own and quickly altered it’s momentum so that it careened directly at his chest. A counter attack! Shade had seen the possibility of such a maneuver as soon as Rin had escaped his grip. A simple pivot of his body allowed the lieutenant’s sword to pass right by his chest and leave him completely unharmed. Shade wasn’t about to let such a simple counter-attack catch him off guard. Instead he took this time to move close to the lieutenant, eliminating the range advantage her sword gave her.

Shade’s shikai was, in many ways, similar to Rin’s long zanpakutou, and because of this he knew ways to make it that much more difficult for her. There were certain advantages that longer swords gave, and Shade knew exactly what took those advantages away. He knew his own shikai’s weaknesses so he naturally understood Rin’s. He would certainly utilize this knowledge and bring the fight even closer to the lieutenant, for extremely close-range battles were a weakness of longer blades.

Shade’s chest was now parallel with Rin’s zanpakutou. His right shoulder was facing her and his left was facing away. The right arm that held her sword was still in thrusting form directly in front of him. She was skilled, but terrible at concealing her openings. Shade’s left hand shot out gripped Rin by her forearm, but instead of keeping his grip he simply pulled her by like she had planned to do earlier with him. However, it would work because even if she had completely stopped, she was both lighter, AND weaker then Shade. This would cause Rin to stumble directly towards Shade, her sword incapacitated and unable to make an attack. However, the san-seki had done all this with one hand, and with his other he delivered a strong, but quick stab with his right hand using the blunt butt of his katana to hit Rin directly in the face.

“The difference in our power is clear...” said the san-seki without emotion, “You reign superior over me in practically every aspect...” he said as the hit connected with her face. “Yet my skill still surpasses your own...” The third seat’s hit would connect for a plethora of reasons. 1. He would not let go of Rin’s forearm until the butt of his blade connected with the lieutenant’s face. 2. He was both stronger, and heavier then her and was able to pull her to him because of this. 3. Her sword would be useless in the hand that she was being pulled with. And 4. Shade’s strength would be used to break through any defense Rin put up with her free hand.

[Deleted]

Rin vaguely wondered where Enma taichou was. That man was such a loner. Though, to her, he was almost like her best friend. Enma was a bit dark and secretive. She often tried to bring a little excitement in by offering him one of her sparkly bandanas. She always knew that he wouldn't take it. She knew he hated the bright colors or the sparkly stuff. But she knew it always brought something fun to their mundane lives. After all, they were shinigami. Busy shinigami at that. Vice Captain and Captain level shinigami had plenty to do. They missions to go on and enemies to slay. People to meet and paperwork to do. It was grueling at times, but Rin did like being Vice Captain. It was fun stuff.

Though, eventually, she did want to try and shoot for Captain. She knew that Enma taichou was light years away from her in terms of power. She was actually scared of wanting to try. Would she be able to live up to the reputation if she did become captain. She didn't want to fail the squad. She didn't want to be known infamously for being a horrible captain. No. That's the last thing she'd want! She wanted to be known as a great captain when the time comes. Sayuri and Okusa were great captains. She didn't want to be seen on the same level as Hara-taicho or Alkaid-taicho. Oh dear...no. That simply would not do for the empress. She didn't settle on bad, decent, okay or good. She wanted great, magnificent and excellence. She was an empress. It was only natural after all.

Many things were 'natural' for the empress. She blamed it on the very fact that she was an 'empress.' Well, not blame per say. But anything good was deemed natural because she was an empress. It was a wonder that Shade or Kaen hadn't gotten fed up with her. She still didn't know Shade couldn't feel emotion. Then again, could you really blame her? She literally just met the man a few moments ago. As for Kaen... That boy loved to tease and joke around and fight. He didn't seem like the kind that would take that sort of attitude from anyone. Then again, she WAS his vice captain. She'd beat him to a bloody pulp if he even dared to back talk her. That actually went to everyone except a few captains and Hiro. Hiro because the man had wonderful t-shirts. Why would she beat up someone with good clothes?

Of course...no one knew about it...and if they did, then they were going to die via ...well...Rin. Whatever she chooses to kill her victims with. She could pretty much choose whatever weapon she wanted. She absolutely loved it. She was aiming to be Seireitei's #1 weapon master..mistress? But master sounds badass...but she's a female. Hm. Predicament indeed. Oh! Solution! Seireitei's #1 Weapon empress. Ha! Much better than the last two choices, ne~? She obviously made the better choice. A smart one too! In fact, all the choices Rin made were smart! She was an empress after all. It was only natural that she made such decisions. Rin sometimes thought that she should be the empresses of all empresses! It only made sense (to her, of course). Mind you, Rin honestly wasn't the most...'level-headed' when it came to this sort of thing. In fact, she had a humongous ego.

She honestly did have a massive ego. How she got to be that way..well, nobody really knows. She actually wasn't like that in her human life. She was kind and conservative. The royalty thing was actually a pain to her because it interfered with her love life. That and she got a lot of pressure from her father. Her father was a jerk. There really was no pleasing that man. Even if she held the attitude she has today then, he still wouldn't be happy. Oh well~ It's not like Rin could remember any of that. Well..she did remember something. Just one thing. It was that she was royalty. She wasn't sure how much of that was true, but she could feel ing in her veins, heart, mind and soul. There was no denying that with this woman. Even if you told her she was wrong and that she was delusional, she wouldn't listen to it. She'd tell you that you're jealous or something like that.

Of course...that's providing she doesn't kill you first. She had a nasty temper. A violent one. Of course she didn't show it outside of battle for fear of ruining her image. Appearances were very important to her. It was important to look like a lady at all times. It was un-empress like to not do so and that in itself was unacceptable to the vice-captain. She often found lewd acts like that unforgivable. Like that crude girl in the Segunda's fraccion. Nijuu's comrade. Ugh...how on earth was he able to work with those people. Rin could only imagine the amount of frustration he felt when working with such twits. Though, knowing him, he probably smacked them around all the time. He was strong.

But that's getting off topic. Back to that girl. She was the very epitome of what Rin despised. Miho Shoga. She swore like a sailor, she wore black. Not only that, but her clothing was incredibly indecent. At times she wondered if the Segunda 'disciplined' her for it. If he didn't, then she should. She shoved people. Spat at them. Pulled, smacked, punched, kicked...she had horrible manners. Rin didn't even think she knew what the words "Thank You" meant. "I'm sorry" and "Excuse me" probably wasn't even in her vocabulary. She was a poor excuse of what a girl should be like. It was unforgivable and absolutely despicable to the mock-empress like shinigami.

Alas, there wasn't much she could do about it. She was in Las Noches while Rin was here in Seireitei sparring with a third seat that wasn't even her own. Rin's blade was still sheathed. Ugh. Close range fighters were such a pain. Honestly. Not like she couldn't deal with people in close range, she just found their style odd. Having a weapon like hers did leave openings, but it had it's advantages. For one, people were honestly so focused on her blade that they forgot other things. Like kicks and punches. Just as she was dealing her blow, she saw him pivot to the side. She had done something like this in her fight with Kaen. She felt him grab her forearm and she realized that she'd have to think FAST . She wasn't about to let some third seat talk down to her. Let alone, one that wasn't even in her squad.

So it was clear her own counterattack wasn't going to work. She got that the moment he pivoted to her side. But grabbing her forearm? She wouldn't be able to attack unless she punched. She wasn't going to risk that. He might do something with that sword of his. So her next best option was to release the sword from her hand and drop it into her free hand. The hilt itself was long so she would be able to manage catching it. Even while stumbling. The stomach is the most vulnerable place. Simply because it has the least power build up...and sometimes, you had to take a hit in order to deliver one. It was when one was most vulnerable after all, ne? So Rin stumbled in the direction he pulled her in as she twirled her nodachi around with her fingers. That way, the hilt would face him. She braced herself for his attack. He definitely wasn't as fast as her. So in the time it took him to slam the butt of his hilt into her face, Rin would already start attacking. She slammed her hilt into his stomach. It was long. She could definitely pull this off. She wouldn't get out unscathed, but he'd at least get hit. No dodging this one. He got too close and she was taking his attack so he might not see it coming. Also...

...UGH. A BRUISE. NE!

[Shade Kawada]

Shade wondered what would happen if the lieutenant did lose to his hand. Would he wish for a rematch? Would he defeat her in front of enough witnesses to take her spot? Shade didn’t mind the thought of being lieutenant for Squad 7. As long as he was continuously advancing then the shinigami felt he was on track. Shade hadn’t thought about it before, but he now fully considered the possibility that he might end up Captain of a completely different squad than what he began in. It wasn’t that uncommon. Most likely he’d take the seat of one of the weaker Captains such as Alkaid Akane or Hara Lucious. It was certainly something to shoot for. Shade had been unimpressed with the stories being told about those two.

It was at this moment that Shade realized that the best way to go about advancing through the ranks of soul society wasn’t to blaze a path straight up a single squad, but rather to fall into the cracks and break the weakest link to advance. Using this method he probably already had what it took to become a captain. However, Shade still lacked the personality of a leader. To him lives were as expendable as napkins. If Shade was captain he’d sacrifice his entire squad just for the sake of making himself appear better in the eyes of his superiors.

It was true that the san-seki was ready to advance as far as skill went, but his bloodthirsty sword, Buraindo Kira, still had too much control over his mind. He was simply not leadership material; not yet anyway. Little did Shade know that by the time he was ready to take the next step his mind would prepare itself against his will. And little did Shade know that by the time he was ready to become a captain, it wouldn’t be as important to him as it was now.

“GYAAAAAHAHAHAHAHA!!!” screeched the all-familiar voice of Buraindo Kira, “BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD!!! GIMMIE GIMMIE GIMMIE!!!” The sword playfully bantered as his bleeding form was wielded skillfully by the third seat. Shade blocked his zanpakutou’s inane jabber out during battle. For it would be impossible to maintain one’s composure while listening to the often enraged cursing of the zanpakutou spirit in the middle of battle. There was truly no sword that was more greedy, gluttonous, and wrathful then Buraindo Kira.

Shade skillfully avoided Rin’s sheathed blade as she stabbed it towards him. Why hadn’t she unsheathed her blade yet? Was she trying to prove a point? The san-seki didn’t care. It was things like this that got people killed. It didn’t matter to the san-seki. He would show Rin that he was someone who you couldn’t take lightly. With perfect form the third seat grabbed the lieutenant’s arm and pulled her by him. His other hand shooting out to jab her in the face with the hard butt of his blade. It would certainly leave quite the bruise on Rin’s petite face.

As he preformed this movement the third seat noticed Rin drop her sword into her other hand. What did she plan on doing with this? Shade watched the lieutenant’s counterattack fall into play out of the of his eyes. She had given up stopping his attack and had settled for exchanging blows. However, Shade’s blow contained much more power behind it and connected with someone much more tender then his stomach. Rin’s sword was heavy, and it was difficult to pick up speed with such a cumbersome thing. The sheathed sword slammed into the third seat’s stomach just as he brought the bottom of his hilt into Rin’s face. It was obvious who had come out on top in this exchange of attacks.

“Oof!” exclaimed Shade as Rin’s attack hit him. He was unharmed, but he certainly felt the blow to his midsection. It was like someone had punched him. However, the san-seki, being in Squad 11, was used to receiving more then his share of punches. Shade released his grip on the lieutenant now that he was done with his attack and leapt back a few feet to gauge the situation once again. “YOU FUCKING MORON!!! YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO USE MY OTHER END WHEN YOU ATTACK!!!” screamed the zanpakutou, unhappy with Shade’s choice of attack.

[Deleted]

Rin truly despised fools that looked down on her...and for what? Just because she was a woman? Imbeciles. She was a vice-captain after all!..And more importantly, she was an empress. People have always thought of her as the delicate type. Well, those people were wrong. Completely and totally. Of course, she came across delicate and well, weak. However, to come across strong was just unladylike to her and casting that sort of impression on someone was simply not acceptable to the mock empress shinigami. She prided herself in being lady like. It was truly important to her. So important, that she tended to look down on other females that didn't carry themselves in such a way.

Then again, Rin had a massive ego. She figured it was only fitting because she's an empress. Hell, she had this crazy idea that she should be able to get away with a ton of crap BECAUSE of it. "Oh, Rin, you're pretty!" Her response? "It's only natural because I'm an empress, ne~". You can even try "Rin, you shoplifted from that store and got away with it?!" Her response? "It's only natural because I'm an empress, ne~". Bloody hell, might as well make it her catch phrase. It's seems to be her excuse ANYWAY. She gets away with it for the most part. Unless she was talking to Enma. Yeah, Enma doesn't let her pull stupid stunts or let her get away with it for that matter. It was completely and utterly impossible with that man.

Sometimes, Rin wished that she could just sit down and have a decent conversation with the man. He was always such a recluse. Regardless, it would be nice to talk to someone once in a while right? Rin had tons of respect for her Captain. Tons. He was the strongest captain in all of Seireitei and to be his vice-captain, let alone be in his squad was a huge honor to her. She prided herself in knowing that she was in Squad 7. They were strong. Insults towards Squad 7 weren't to be tolerated either. It was easy to piss of Rin. Similarly, it was easy to get rid of foes that did so. She had a nasty temper after all. One most people didn't see outside of battle. Her anger just builds and builds and builds.

Let's speak about that for a second. Rin rage. It was like Roid Rage only more silent. I kid you not. Har. Pun. Cause you're known as Kid...and "I kid you not". GET IT!? Yeah, yeah it was a stupid joke. Nevermind. In any case, Rin only let her rage out in a serious fight. It literally was an on/off switch with this one. Unless Nijuu was around. God, she hated him. Though, not in the way you think. You see, those two always confused what they believed love was for hate. So they pretty much just said "I hate you!" which, in Rin & Nijuu language, meant "I love you"....Which is completely and totally twisted. Then again...Life is twisted. /emo

You know what the difference is between a third seat and a vice captain is? A bruise to the face is barely anything. Well, to Rin, its a nuisance because, well, it's a BRUISE. Ne! Granted...her weapon was heavy...but when you've been training with it for over a century, it's about as heavy as a normal katana. Her own sword was not difficult to handle and there wasn't a soul that could say that to her. Had she not been used it, it would have been a different story. The empress had received more than her fair share of injuries over the past two centuries. Rin grinned as she saw him leap back.

Rin stood there, watching Shade. She took slow steps to the side. She wanted to see if he'd move when she did. She looked at him for a bit. Studying him and finally realizing, she had something to attend to..as well as wanting sushi and getting a bit bored. You see...While this was a raw fight, the empress was quite bored. It was strange for her to not be very enthusiastic about it but she just found herself getting bored and wanting sushi...and no third seat was going to keep her from her desire to go get sushi. Especially one that wasn't from her squad. Only Squad members get special privileges from her. Last move and then she leaves! So, she'd unfortunately have to cut this session short. She hadn't unsheathed her nodachi yet, right? Ne...She was planning on beating him with sheath and all. Well, she technically still can do that. See, she was versatile and creative. It paid to have that sort of quality about you in battle. Rin brought her blade up; in a position that looked like she was going for a stab, a final blow so to speak.

She ran towards him for a frontal assault, her hand was positioned in a way so that it was extremely close to the guard. In fact, the only thing separating her hand and the blade itself was the guard. What did this mean? It meant that she was able to flick her sheath off with her thumb. So, Rin would go ahead and flick her sheath off with her thumb when she gauged that she was at least 5-6 feet away. This was the calculating side of her training. She often did this sort of thing and it wasn't impossible. Her strength was far above average and this was a sword she's handled for CENTURIES. What sort of vice captain would she be if she couldn't handle her sword? It was heavy and with her strength, it was like a heavy projectile that was coming straight for him. But..that would only fly for a few seconds and she wasn't finished there.

Remember how she flicked the sheath off when she figured she was 5-6 feet away? The actual length of her blade was about as tall as she was. That meant that she could cover a long range. She'd bring her free hand up to grab the sheath (which should still be flying towards him) and stab forwards and with her now unsheathed blade, she'd slash at a low horizontal angle. Step to the side to avoid the blunt stab from her sheath? You're still gonna get cut by the horizontal slash and since she was a bit far, her nodachi worked perfectly; able to deliver quite the slash at a large range. He was taller and bulkier in size to to just side step would be almost meaningless. Also, Rin was faster than Shade. Her 200 against his 125? The Empress reigns supreme here~. You can see this coming with whatever fancy skills you've got. You might register the stab first but the slash was going to be tricky. It just means jack if you're not fast enough to do anything!

Whatever Shade did, Rin was going to jump back almost immediately after completing her attack. She'd proceed to sheath her sword as she spoke to him. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got some business to attend to. This was quite the sparring session." she said, offering a small smile in an attempt to be polite. "Sayonara~" she said as she turned to the door, exiting.

[I'm done here.]

[Deleted]

Done. Have fun. DON'T MAKE TINY PARAGRAPHS.

[Shade Kawada]

(OOC: Thank you Rin)

Shade glared at her with eyes that showed no feeling, no emotion. Information was being passed at the speed of light in the complex labyrinth of his brain. Shade was arguably the most intelligent shinigami in Seireitei for he absorbed so much more than the average person from the smallest subtleties. Shade could sit down with a book on Brazillian Jiujitsu and after reading it, beat someone who had been practicing it for decades. There was almost no limit to the san-seki’s mind. “Quiet down Buraindo Kira...” ordered Shade as he stared down with the vice-captain. He’d let her make the next move, after all, he’d been faring rather well by capitalizing on the many openings she left in her offense. The third seat wondered how long the lieutenant would go. Rin Minamimoto was notorious for playing the role of someone that was too good to fight for long periods of time, but he had to admit that she was more skilled than his own vice-captain. Shade had even heard that this woman possessed bankai.

Shade thought deeply about what he wanted to accomplish in the following months. It was a strange time to think of one’s priorities, but it went to show how threatened the san-seki felt at that particular moment. He knew he was capable of becoming a lieutenant, in fact he’d gotten an offer from Nami Ketsueki a few nights ago. Should he go ahead and accept that? Shade wondered as he kept his gaze glued to the vice-captain. “CUT HER, CUT HER, CUT HER, CUT THE BITCH UP!!!” chanted Buraindo Kira ignoring his master’s order. Shade hadn’t beaten him into submission and claimed bankai yet. There was no reason for the zanpakutou spirit to listen to him. He still maintained control over the san-seki and only cared about exploiting Shade into feeding him as often as he could, and it was easier to exploit him if he housed no emotion whatsoever.

The interesting thing about Buraindo Kira was that the zanpakutou spirit was actually keeping him from feeling emotion. Shade had been given a brain injury as a fetus that wiped any feeling from his being, but he would have healed by now if not for his ravenous blade. Buraindo Kira knew that a shinigami that felt emotion was much more difficult to control, and for this reason he made sure that Shade never regained any feeling. He kept the san-seki as tender and understanding as a plank of wood. There was not a single emotion that the shinigami could feel. When it looked like he was angry, the third seat was simply irritated. When he appeared depressed he was simply deep in thought. There was something about Shade that was just...... empty...... He could never run a squad like this. It would be clear to anyone that he wasn’t captain material. He expected everyone to follow the same code of right and wrong as he did. There was no middle ground in the san-seki’s world. You were either good or evil. You were either right or wrong. You were either strong or weak.

Shade began to look bored as he waited for the lieutenant to come at him. He began wondering if he should simply attack her and finish the fight, but then the silence was broken. Rin ran towards him and the shinigami’s eyes observed her every movement. What caught the san-seki’s attention the most was her right hand as it creeped its way up to the guard of the blade. She was up to something. Sure enough, when she reached within swinging distance of her sword she launched the sheath off of her sword like a rocket at the third seat’s head. The shinigami’s mind began to run. Was this a distraction? What was she doing with her sword now that the sheath was off? Surely the sheath isn’t all there was to this attack. Shade’s suspicions were confirmed as he watched her reach up, grab the sheath before it escaped her reach, and stab forwards with it. Meanwhile the lieutenant swung her zanpakutou in a long sweep that was sure to disembowel him if he didn’t make a move quickly.

The san-seki could see exactly what the lieutenant was doing. Two different attacks aimed at two different places with two different weapons. The correct counter for this was a simple one. His blade would deal with her blade while his powerful hand dealt with the less threatening attack. It was a simple matter to halt the swing. Shade stabbed his zanpakutou directly into the wooden floor of the barracks as she released a powerful sweep. Unfortunately for the lieutenant her attack collided with the lowest part of Shade’s katana. (Or the highest part in this case since his zanpakutou is inverted and stabbed into the ground) This was the strongest part of the blade since it was closest to the hilt, and the blade was made even more sturdy because of its end being anchored to the ground, not to mention Shade’s powerful right hand holding it in place. While her zanpakutou came to a halt against his Buraindo Kira, his left hand reached out and caught the woman’s sheath in mid air. Shade’s speed wasn’t the best, but he more than made up for it by making every single move count. He had to react faster than most people because he was slower than most people. He couldn’t waste a single movement.

The san-seki wasted no time as he pulled the sheath closer to him and lifted his leg to deliver a textbook roundhouse to the lieutenant's face, but she did something rather unexpected. Rin let go and leapt back, avoiding the kick but forfeiting her sheath. The san-seki assumed the fight was still on and glared at her with a calculating gaze. It was clear the third seat was gaining the upper hand as far as pure swordsmanship went, but Rin was about to cut this battle short. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got some business to attend to. This was quite the sparring session,” she said with a smile. The san-seki looked at her with a blank stare for about three awkward seconds, then glanced down at her sheath, which he held in his hand. Without a word he tossed the sheath to her and she put away her weapon. “Sayonara~” she said as she turned and left. Just as the vice-captain had done the third seat turned and left out the exit on the opposite side, sheathing his sword as he did. Needless to say Buraindo Kira was NOT happy and relaying what he was saying yelling to Shade right now would not be pleasant to read. All that needs to be said was that the third seat left without a word and returned to his barracks for further training. Thus far he was not impressed with what Squad 7 had to offer.

Training Complete... And stuff...

[Zou ۞]

+360 CTP. (Distribute however much you can into SP, and the rest is CTP.)