Clash of Wills [Joint training, R, Closed]

[Nakazawa Meian]

(OOC: Joint training between Nakazawa Meian and Jun Genshi)

Finally, the young man had reached the end of his seemingly endless Academy training. It had been a long trip, one which quickly felt like an eternity, but now, it finally became a part of the past. Meian would now be able to move forward, into the things for which he had joined the Shinigami ranks in the first place. For the first time in his life, he would be able to directly influence the flow of the very balance he sought to protect, instead of simply being a witness of its strength and a puppet of its will. All that was left was to get carried wherever he was already meant to be.

However, other things now mattered; as a member of the Third Squad, it was obvious that the young man would now have a responsibility over the lives of some of his comrades in his upcoming missions, something which could easily feel as quite a burden. If he wanted to fulfill his duties correctly, Meian needed to make sure that he would be confident in his abilities when the day came, and that meant he required even more training. Of course, though, such important training could not be done alone, at least not without risking to expand any flaw he may already have… but who could he even request help from?

…In fact, there was a man which came to his mind. Recently, Meian had heard about another Shinigami, in his own Squad, who apparently had similar fields of proficiency as him; although this was still only just a rumor he heard in his daily duties, investigating it further couldn’t do any harm. Besides, what kind of samurai would he be, if he turned down such an opportunity to hone his swordsmanship? It was a perfect chance to see just how much a swordsman like him could do in his new life, and he wasn’t going to let it slip away. With that in mind, he went out of his room, in search of this mysterious man.

Unfortunately, finding this man through the whole barrack wasn’t a simple task. Searching for someone with only “swordsman” as a description sure proved to be hard; the young man heard several names, among which were their Captain, a few Seated Officers and even some Unseated Shinigamis, himself included. In these conditions, finding the one he had heard about was nearly impossible, but things quickly changed when he mentioned the word “Samurai”. Apparently, someone else was fitting quite well with that word, aside from him…

And so here he was, standing in front of the Fourth Seat’s office, Jun Genshi. The man was said to have great swordsmanship skills, and Meian was here to see that for himself. After knocking on the door, the young man entered, announcing his motives. ”Hello, Jun-Sama. I’m Nakazawa Meian, newly appointed as an unseated Shinigami to this Dynasty. Sorry for the inconvenience, but could I request some of your time? I heard you had a lot of experience in swordsmanship, and so I’d like, if possible, to train with you. If this man was able to live up to the young samurai’s expectations, this would surely prove to be quite an interesting moment.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Stats}Strength – 150 Points

Speed – (350 x 1,5) = 525 Points

Spiritual Pressure – 300 Points

Reiatsu Strength – (50 x 0,5) = 25 Points

Light Aura – 100 Points

Dark Aura – 0 Points

Instinct – (200 x 1,5) = 300 Points

Senses – (100 x 0,5) = 50 Points

Energy Sensory – 50 Points

Healing Expertise – 0 Points


Total SP: 1200 Points

SPOILER: Click to show

{Skills}

Abilities

• Iaijutsu Level 2
  
  
• Battle Analysis Level 2
  
  
• Stealth Level 2
  
  
• Pain Tolerance Level 2
  
  
• War Strategy Level 2
  
  
• Calm Mind Level 2
  

[Jun Genshi]

((Yeah, it seems that we have the same talking colour xD. So because we don't want to put words into one another's mouth, I will change mine typing style a bit ^^))

Nothingness. Empty your mind's thoughts and get rid of your heart's emotions. Fill them with nothingness instead.


The interior of the room was dark with undefined edges and proportions, making him seem as if he was submerged in the depths of a black ocean. 'Seem' though would be ironical to say because no one could see him as he was right now, . Jun was entranced, meditating there, in the middle of this dark ocean, sitting with legs crossed and eyes closed. Holding his zanpakuto unseathed, between his palms , he stood there amid the abnormal silence that spread throughout the room. His head was drifting, his thoughts were constantly changing to more and more abstract notions, eventually reaching that of nothingness. He didn't know for how long he stood there, as the passage of time in this situation was tricky to even think of. But it didn't matter to him, as he was busy with achieving enlightment or so he at least thought that was what he was experiencing. This was just a necessary procedure before starting his casual training.

Today he had little paperwork to do, just a couple of documents regarding applications of new recruits to Squad 3. He was given less paperwork than the previous days, as the vice-captain and the 3rd seat were receiving most of it, in turn reducing his own. He was not happy with it, but neither sad. Aside from most people, he felt it was a sacred duty to handle paperwork. They were necessary for keeping the whole Shinigami system from falling apart, and despite some times being deemed meaningless and of little importance, nonetheless they were needed to retain the Soul Society's balance. How could these papers have so much power? Jun had wondered as he was approving a recruit's application, ages ago. This one recruit seemed quite similar him in terms of skill, possessing adequate proficiency in Zanjutsu and martial arts. It would be interesting to meet him one of these days. Such people were keeping the Shinigami's prestige with their melee skills, as opposed to others..

At any rate, he felt that paperwork was also beneficial for him. It is in such mundane tasks that one must show character, which in this case specifically meant two virtues; patience and discipline. Enough discipline to not complain for doing such 'trivial' work and enough patience to push someone to finish them, despite protests. It was his thought that by succeeding in completing such little things, he will be able to complete bigger ones as well. The opposite could persist too, but he didn't have the chance so far to prove it.

"Time is up, Jun-san" a woman's voice filled his head and echoed admist the nothingness that permeated his spirit. Jun sheathed his zanpakuto, Kenaiji, stood up and walked to his right. He didn't waver in the darkness, neither was afraid of stumbling somewhere. Contrary, he walked with ease as if the room was clearly visible to his still shut eyes. His hands touched a wooden surface and then he instictively put them both in a little gap. He pushed both them at opposite directions. Sunlight bathed the room, revealing its once indinstict proportions; a little room with two sliding doors at both sides, one door leading at the balcony with view to the squad's training grounds. The other one, still firmly shut , lead into a hallway that linked all the officers' rooms. The room had a two mats, one at the entrance door and one near the chabudai which lied in close to the wall. The decoration was austere, having a mat at the other side of the room, a huge scroll with japanese characters placed on the wall, near the chabudai and tree zafu circling it. Only expection was a black japanese armor standing at the right side of the room, supported by the wall.

"Thank you, Kenaiji-san." he replied to the invisible voice. This was just a notice to end his meditation. And to start his training. That included his schedule, which was becoming more and more frequent as his paperwork lessened. During all these years, he had gotten rusty and dull because of the lack of movement and the paperwork he had to do which resulted to him being often confined within this small space. But thanks to his superiors, he was able to practice more and more frequently over the past few days, honing his skills. Though he needed to take bigger steps to recover his once lost vigor. Sparring with the Captain would do the trick, but he was not as so insolent as to distract Alexander Taichou from his duties. The vice-captain and the 3rd seat were busy as well. So his options were either to spar with one of his subordinates or people from other divisions.

The answer to his need came swiftly. "Please enter." said Jun with his harsh and gruff voice which matched his face, in response to the one knocking the door. Despite speaking in a kind manner, his tone was a bit off-putting and rigid to hear. He eyed him up and down with a serious look, as if he was scolding him for a misdeed he had done. ”Hello, Jun-Sama. I’m Nakazawa Meian, newly appointed as an unseated Shinigami to this Dynasty. Sorry for the inconvenience, but could I request some of your time? I heard you had a lot of experience in swordsmanship, and so I’d like, if possible, to train with you" the youngling said, immediately announcing his intentions. Not really youngling, he roughly looked 10 years younger than him. "Mhm. Follow me please." he retorted as soon as Meian finished his introduction. So he was the one who he had approved his application to Squad 3 ages ago. The lad seemed kind, something which Jun greatly appreciated as quality. He went even as far to compliment his swordmanship. Jun didn't take much time to think for a response to his honest offer. He would be glad to help anyone enhance his skills, help them cultivate and ,in the end, master them. Furthermore, a training with more people is better than a solo one.

Jun headed to the balcony and raised his left leg, placing it on the balusters. He threw himself down while holding his hair, landing on the training grounds and raising a bit of dust at the same time. He motioned Meian to follow his example. The training grounds were big, enough to accommodate two basketball stadiums. Jun layed down his zanpakuto and threw his geta away on the wet glistening grass, which reflected the sun's rays. "Lay your zanpakuto here for now and we will start immediately." he said as he stood 4 meters away from Meian, assuming his fightning stance. He bent his legs slightly, bringing the right one to his right and then frontwards, enough so the left foot's toes wouldn't pass his right one's heel if an imaginary red line was drawn. He drew his pelvis inwards and he let his chest 'sunk'. He raised his arms on his shoulders' height, bending them, with the elbows kept below the shoulders' height and with open palms ,though not completely, as if they were about to stab something. His left hand was standing a couple of centimeters behind his right hand, in front of his solar plexus, while the right one was inviting Meian into a fight. Finally, the palms were not parallel but perpendicular to the ground, facing the Meian with their edge and his feet were 'grasping' the ground.

His stance looked pretty solid and 'closed', not leaving an unnecessary openings. He looked directly into Meian's eyes."If you master the body, then you can master the sword." he stated concisely, just in case Meian had any other thoughts about beginning the training with another manner. He had put his trust in Jun, and Jun was now obliged to reciprocate it. He would let him have the first attack but Meian shouldn't let himself mistake this action as kindness, weakness or even easier as underestimating his worth and dishonoring him . Jun seemed pretty serious about taking on Meian, emitting an resolute, confident and aggressive aura, despite being on the defence for the time being. This is the only way -the only effective way- to train someone.



Reiatsu 1000/1000

SPOILER: Click to show

{Stats}
Strength: 200 (400)

Speed: 200 (400)

Spiritual Pressure: [150] (100)

Reiatsu Strength: [300] (200)

Light Aura: 70

Dark Aura: 30

Senses: 100

Instinct: 150

Energy Sensory: 100

Healing Expertise: 0

SPOILER: Click to show

{Skills}
[Martial Arts: Kendo] {2}


[Martial Arts: Hakuda] {2}


[Martial Arts: Southern Praying Mantis] {2}


[Battle Focus] {1}


[Battle Analysis] {1}


[Pain Tolerance] {1}


[Damage Recovery] {1}


[Anti-Stealth] {2}

[Nakazawa Meian]

(OOC: this thread will ignore Cutback, since that would ruin the training's purpose.)

Fortunately, it didn’t take long for this man to accept the request Meian had asked of him. In fact, this came off as quite a surprise to the young Shinigami, considering the harsh attitude he had been welcomed with; the tone, the stare and even the facial expression of Jun could be depicted as cold. Still, Meian didn’t hold any bitterness for it, perceiving it as a part of the man’s thoughtful temperament. Maybe they had more in common than he initially thought? Either way, he’d have plenty of time to find out, as he’d be conceding a lot of his day to spar with the man…

However, one thing left the poor man completely speechless, before the spar even began; at one side of this small room lied an object he hadn’t seen for a very long while, an armor like those he had worn in his early days. A lot of memories came back from this simple sight, some painful, others cheerful. One thing was unquestionably obvious, though; it had perturbed him enough that even an indifferent person would notice he was now daydreaming. It was dire enough, in fact, to even force an intervention from his own Zanpakutou. Meian? Hey, I know very well how meaningful those things are to you, but maybe you should give a bit more of your attention to that weirdo? You’re the one asking for help, after all. Oh, umm… yes, you’re right. Sorry… Nonetheless, a few interrogations would keep circling on his mind throughout the training as to what such a relic did here, so far from its roots. Maybe he was at Sekigahara too, on that day…

And so, with a simple "Mhm. Follow me please.", they both headed toward the ground which would hold their training. Reaching it, though… was another story. Whether it was just a habit or he was impatient, Jun had took an unusual, albeit faster road; through the balcony. Since he was encouraged to do so, Meian did the same, although with some hesitation. Even if it was a known fact that spiritual bodies were more resistant than physical ones, it was also the kind of fact that the young man wasn’t willing to overestimate. Still, once in the courtyard, the Seated Officer of the 3rd Squad took the initiative for the first part of their training, and began by leaving his Zanpakutou on one side of the field. "Lay your zanpakuto here for now and we will start immediately." Unsure, Meian took a long look at Jun’s Zanpakutou; this wasn’t really a term the graduated Shinigami was willing to agree with…

Probably noticing that his efforts were in vain, Jun tried to insist while taking his stance, unfortunately to no avail. "If you master the body, then you can master the sword." Sadly, Meian wasn’t of the kind who accept to blindly follow orders they didn’t agree with, and this one was regrettably part of this category. For a swordsman like him, it was a command he saw as immoral, since it meant discarding a part of both himself and his duties. ”Sorry, but I am forced to decline your request. This blade is a part of myself, and so I can’t simply leave it in such a shameful position. I’ll still consent to that unarmed challenge, but I’ll do so with my Katana still at my hip…”

No matter what the Third Seat would now say, the young warrior had took his decision; he was likely not going to change his mind. However, there was still one alternative he was willing to give to his opponent, one which could very well make this training far more interesting for both of them. Jun would perhaps notice that Meian’s gaze and tone had changed to far more challenging ones as he said ”If you still want it to reach the ground, you’ll have no choice but to disarm me…”

With that said, the young man quickly took his fighting stance… or should I say someone else’s stance? After all, the young man had never even once fought bare-handed, often preferring to get out of sticky situations by using what the landscape had at its disposal instead of his fists. In such a situation, Meian had no choice but to mimic what he saw of unarmed combat, while using his swordsmanship knowledge to still be capable of fluid movements. Such a feat wasn’t an easy task, for someone accustomed to the Way of the Blade…

Given this, he took his position, right hand held high with the elbow kept at shoulder’s level while the fist was above his head, in a way that would allow him, he hoped, to counter most attacks that would be aimed at the upper section of his body. Likewise, his left hand took a more centered stand, with the fist retained near his chin and the elbow pointing toward the side, so as to have a way of countering lower-oriented attacks. As for the legs, they took a simple lowered stance, with the right one pointing to the front and the left one aimed at the side. Albeit unknown to Jun, Meian had unconsciously mimicked a few aspects from the style of someone else; Amaya. Maybe she had managed to influence him in more ways than he initially thought? Who knows…

However, now was his time to attack, a task which quickly became troubling. Although the swordsman had a few ways of keeping a fairly good unarmed defensive stance with the knowledge he had, trying to attack while he was weapon less, since he had no capabilities in unarmed combat, would surely leave very wide flaws in his attacks. He was at a severe disadvantage, one which would cripple him for as long as he couldn’t use his Zanpakutou. His best option, to balance things out, was through careful planning. My blows won’t work on him as long as I don’t make use of my own strengths. Either I rely on my mental reflexes to out speed him, or I try a feint of some sort… He chose the former alternative.

In order to start his offensive, Meian first used a Shunpo to get in very close range to Jun. He wasn’t just close, though; he was very, very close, having Shunpoed literally within his foe’s stance. At such a range, the strength of his blows would be greatly lessened, but in turn it would require incredibly high reaction speed for Jun to answer fast enough; given that Meian had an instinct of 300, this left him at a serious advantage for as long as they kept that range.

As for the attack itself, he recklessly engaged with his left knee, knowing plenty well that his legs would be able to give a far stronger blow than his fists in their current range. A second blow would quickly follow, this one given with his left arm toward Meian’s left to push away Jun’s right arm, in an attempt to break open his stance. Given the current situation, reacting to the first knee strike would be fairly hard, especially since it was done right after a close-engagement Shunpo. Fortunately, though, the most damage Jun could suffer from such an attack was likely just a temporary loss of breath. The successive blow, though, would be far easier to counter; Meian’s lack of experience in unarmed combat had made this blow an easy one to expect, and the fact it was following a previous one made it easy to spot. Still, for a first offensive, it was very likely to take Jun off-guard quite a bit, and… Meian was waiting specifically for Jun’s counter, to make use of it in his next move…

Reiatsu: 2950 / 3000 (-50 Shunpo)

[Jun Genshi]

Maybe it was for a brief second, but Jun had noticed that Meian was staring his armor. But, even though his gaze was fixed on the armor, his eyes were drifting far away, detached from the foreign vessel that carried them, wandering aimlessly to time. Jun though didn't pay much attention to this, as one would normally do with such trivial and mundane things. After all, he wasn't the one to pry into another's business. It would be impolite to do so, especially after meeting someone for the first time. If Meian wanted to do so though, Jun would be willing to hear him as long as whatever Meian thought of didn't pry in his business as well..


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

”Sorry, but I am forced to decline your request. This blade is a part of myself, and so I can’t simply leave it in such a shameful position. I’ll still consent to that unarmed challenge, but I’ll do so with my Katana still at my hip…” he retorted to Jun's surprise, as he decided to keep the tied blade at his hip. He had made a decent first impression and now he had come to 'pulverize' it. Jun was very disappointed ; no matter what, an order is an order. There is a reasoning behind each one. This one's specifically was to test how much obedient was Meian to higher authorities and how much disciplined he was so as not to let his personal will override the authority's but also make him adapt to a situation in which he may be forced to fight without it. He had failed miserably to both of them. In a normal occassion, Jun would be angry and would shout him down, reprimanding him for such obstinance. Though, this occassion was different from his normal ones..

Meian was giving off the image of a young respectable man with proper manners and displaying kindness exceptional for his age. He seemed honest and humble, both appearance and personality-wise. Thus, it came as a shock to Jun to hear such response coming from him. Was he perhaps very quick to judge him? The second reason was one that made him feel ashamed of himself. Foolishly and in his rush to train after a long time, Jun had put Kenaiji standing on the grass, not even leaning on a tree. She was laid down on the grass, which had been trod thousands of times by dirty men's feet. He couldn't fathom how he could treat her like that..like a mere sword, a tool. Kenaiji was a silent and calm spirit, humble and understanding always to his wishes. It was because of that Jun lately had started to treat her less and less like his equivalent, his partner., a part of his soul. I must apologize to you..but later, my dear Kenaiji. He thought in shame, lowering his head for a second before looking straight at Meian again. His face was the same, but his gaze was more intense than ever.

”If you still want it to reach the ground, you’ll have no choice but to disarm me…” And as he was starting cool off somehow, this phrase came to heat him up again. He was the one ordering, but now his role was stolen from him. If he wanted the training get going, he would have to abide by Meian's terms. It pissed him off a little, the fact that he was forced to follow a rookie's request. An evident anger was forming in his face, his eyes glowing with it. But, it was a training and he agreed to help Meian. He wouldn't let his petty anger ruin it. And he wouldn't delay it any longer than necessary. His facial feautures relaxed a bit.Though, he would tell a word or two to Meian later..

"Then..let it be as such." Jun threw his one-liner as he saw Meian taking his stance. To him, it looked like some kind of Karate stance. If it was Kung Fu, he may perhaphs had noticed that his stance was lacking in some areas. But as he was now, he thought that Meian was proficient in the martial art he practised. By the time he took his stance, Jun was prepared mentally and physically. Without further notice, Meian used a flash step, leaving a blur at the spot he stood before. Frankly speaking, Jun was quite surprised from this, but surprised in a good way. It's not that he didn't expect for a shunpo to cover their distance(only 4 mere meters..), it was just the speed. A speed that even surpassed his, a seated officer. Surely, it was something uncommon to see on a unseated member. Perhaps, this man was one of these prodigies, who come once in a decade? At any rate, this fact was enough to disperse Jun's cloud of doubt and disappointment towards Meian.

And within a second or less, Meian was standing in front of him, almost inside his stance. His eyes could barely follow him, still fixed at the spot he was standing before, but his energy sensory and his pure insticts could somehow even the scales. And as he expected Meian to assault with extraordinary speed, he did not. Though, the speed was still nothing to underestimate, it was held back by something. At any rate, he would think later about it. A left knee was coming towards him with breakneck speed, but not a speed he was not allowed to block. Jun was to quick to react to that, he raised his right leg upwards and to his left instantly, with the knee reaching the lower part of his abdomen(or his dan ken in short). Just as the knee would near him, he would swiftly use his leg to block Meian's knee with his max speed and with half of his strength. He couldn't amass his whole strength so quickly, but that strength would be enough to block Meian's knee . Jun exhaled as he blocked Meian's attack, casting off the pain that he had felt the moment it contacted with Meian's knee. In this cases, it is better to meet the enemy head on, rather than attempt to avoid him.

As for the second blow that would follow, it wouldn't even connect with Jun's right arm. Because as soon as he had the knee attack blocked and saw the second one coming, he would immediately step back. How? His still raised right leg would now retreat back, but not back to its original position, but further behind it, to increasing his dinstance between him and Meian. His left foot would follow back too, but would cover little distance, because this time Jun would exchange the position of his legs, with his left front and his right leg behind it. He was retaining the same stance, but now his left hand was in front of his right, instead of vice versa.

With that said, in a matter of one second he launched his own counter attack. He made a step with his left foot, enough to decrease his distance with Meian to few a couple of centimeters, and at the same time his left hand would be extended forward, with his elbow still bend and his hand placed horizontally, parallel to the ground itself. Stretching his shoulders, he would 'control' any attack made at that moment, meaning essentially that he would be prepared to block it. At the same time, he brought his right feet in front, not breaking his stance at all, though with right heel raised and not touching the ground. Also it was kept near his left foot, so near that only a paper or two could fit between them. His right hand was forming a fist, a peculiar one because the index finger sticked out more than the others. It was a phoenix fist, the trademark move of the Southern Praying Mantis system, but he doubt Meian would knew such obscure art. His right hand was bent, both elbow and fist raised to his forehead's level and a little above from it. His right side was 'open', preparing for the following attack. Jun took a deep inhale


Like they were bound by invisible threads both right arm and right leg moved at the same time forward. The leg move frontwards, inside Meian's stance to regain the original stance. But before contacting the ground, Meian would have to deal with a fist which was coming from upwards. A fist would be an ignorant thing to say, because his forearm had joined the assault as well. Just as he was placing his right foot forward and to his right, Jun was bringing his arm downwards, to Meian's face. The whole force was not directed from the arm, but rather from the flexed side which 'closed' abruptly, squeezing the air out of it, forcing his hand to go down in a swift and violent manner. The area it would hit was extending from the from his eyebrows down to the upper lip of his mouth, or in other words his nose. He was putting quite a lot of strength in it, enough to break Meian's stance and even throw him on the ground, producing an effected of dizziness and confusion for a while. On a side note, his left arm would not stay immobile. Following Jun's right arm, it would go downwards, back to protecting his solar plexus with fingers pointed and slight bent, looking at the sky above them.


If the fight ended there, which would end with Meian lying on the ground, then Jun would lax his stance and approach him and offer his hand. "A swordman must not always rely on his sword..but then again he wouldn't be called swordman. However, what would happen if you lost your zanpakuto in real combat? If I was now an enemy, I could disarm you easily as you are now." Jun expressed himself in a strict and scolding tone. He futher added in a softer manner, like a father lecturing his son "Remember, tomorrow's battle is won during today's practice. My second goal is to train you to be prepared for any situation, any possible situation". Looking straight at Meian's eyes, he admitted his own mistakes as well like it was something normal "Despite that, I admit that your determination to keep your zanpakuto shook me. For that you have my praise and my thanks, Meian-san.".


"Recover your strength. When you are ready, we will begin again." Jun stated as he sat on the ground, cross-legged, eyes firmly shut and Kenaiji resting on his legs. They would engage in sword combat soon, so it would be best for Meian to have keen senses before starting. Somehow, Jun felt that this time the battle would be drawn out longer. He had deduced that from peering searchingly at his wrists previously in his office, that Meian was more of a sword-fighter than a unarmed combatant. But before the battle, apologies were in order. "I am sorry, Kenaiji-san. I treated you like a mere tool, a mere blade used for cutting. You have any right to be angry, but before that I humbly request your assistance from you. Soon, I will engage with that lad over there, so I wish you could lend me your strength even if it was for a last time.".

Silence. Then out of nowhere a distinct short laughter was heard, like that of a playful girl "Jun-san..even if you dropped me hundred times on the ground like that, I still would let you hold me like nothing had happened. I am the only one who understands you better than anyone and you are the only one that understands me..and you know that such a trivial and mundane thing wouldn't even hurt me the tiniest. Now go and enjoy yourselves.". This was the first time he heard her talking like this and also the last one..

[Nakazawa Meian]

It seemed this fight would be up for a bit longer than Meian anticipated; not only had Jun effortlessly countered the stance-breaking move, but even the knee strike meant to incapacitate him had been null and void. That perfectly showed how apart they were in unarmed combat! However, the impact of the unseated’s knee against his opponent’s leg had given him a vital and crucial information, one which would help him in the upcoming struggles; his foe had a far greater strength than him. Fortunately, his tolerance to pain had lessened the side-effects of this exchange greatly, but still, he wasn’t willing to reattempt it anytime soon.

Jun’s retreat was a tactical choice, and one that Meian himself would likely have taken, had their situations been inverted. Surely the Fourth Seat had a very in-depth knowledge of battle intricacies, since any rookie would’ve made the error of taking such an assault head-on. If he understand the threat of keeping a range I chose, I can’t hope to win this over mere tricks. At least, though, this spacing that Jun opened between them left Meian in a greatly favorable position, now capable of avoiding pretty much any sorts of counter-offensive his sparring partner may have kept in reserve until now.

And that offensive quickly came, mind you; as soon as Jun’s defensive was successfully completed, he was already back for the assault. One thing suddenly came to Meian’s surprise, though. Albeit all the efforts that his foe had taken to increase their distance and break Meian’s range of predilection, he had now came back to this very same range, maybe even closer. Was he overestimating himself? Was this a sign of confidence in something Meian wasn’t aware of yet? Maybe his reflexes were better than he had showed thus far? Tons of uncertainties and doubts circled in the poor samurai’s mind, as to what this counterintuitive decision tried to conceal… a feint, maybe?

No matter what the case may be, the fact still remained that he had an attack coming his way, and that he had to counter it somehow. For Meian, though, this blow would be quite easy to avoid, unlike what Jun first seemed to think. Such a thing was due to two reasons; first of all, the young man was already, ever since his very first move, expecting a counter of some sort and anticipating to use it for his own good, which meant he was waiting for it. Second, Meian wasn’t just any ordinary soldier; he had recently been enhancing his reaction speed a lot, going so far as to seek the help from their very Captain for training. At this point, his reflexes were far above just about anyone else of his rank, and surpassed many more too.

As Jun’s downward attack came closer, Meian’s reaction was a swift one; in one fluid movement, he sidestepped to his left and therefore Jun’s right, taking himself out of the blow’s trajectory, while also preventing the Fourth Seat from penetrating his stance and getting in an ideal position to attack the man’s currently open side. So far, though, his movement was nothing of martial arts, rather reminiscent of his legworks he had learned as part of his Iaijutsu training; the Unseated Shinigami was going to get through this using his own skills, instead of those expected of him. Now that he had a perfect opportunity to strike, Meian gave a very simplistic blow, but one that would surely prove to be efficient; a dual-palm strike, aimed at the side that was currently undefended. This attack, though, would prove to be far more of a threat to Jun than the previous ones; this time, it came with Meian’s full speed, and the nature of the blow gave it sufficient space and momentum to pack the young man’s entire strength behind it. Fortunately, such a strike couldn’t cause any major damage, even less when used by someone inexperienced like Meian, and that wasn’t his plan anyway; the samurai aimed to push his target farther, so that he would’ve to take the offensive once again…

Reiatsu: 2950/3000

[Jun Genshi]

Jun was prepared for a counter. If anything, he had learned to be ready for everything and anything while in the field of combat. Because fights were often unpredictable, decided by parameters such as skill, strength, luck, environment and countless others, which could determine the winner. For a fairly seasoned fighter like him, he was confident in his skills and prepared for anything...or so he thought. In a moment of overconfidence, he failed to estimate in depth Meian's skill. The counter was splendid. The legwork was fluid but at the same time solid. And finally the palm strike could deal fair damage if it didn't lack strength. But it was the speed. This a speed uncommon for a Shinigami rookie. In terms of speed, he was certainly faster than Jun. "I see..this speed..it is vice-captain level." thought brief seconds before Meian's dual palm strike. A surprised grimace formed on his placid face. He coudn't counter it.

Only his eyes could somehow follow his palm strike as they rapidly covered the distance between him and Meian. Surely he couldn't counter but his mind had already thought of scenarios in which he could effectively defend against this attack. But at this point, a counter was preferred. Not because he was stubborn on being constantly on the offensive. But rather, it was because he wanted to end this hand to hand combat as he wanted to test Meian in a swordfight. From the strikes they have exchanged so far he had come to a conclusion; Meian was not very effective in hand to hand combat. Of course he has managed to fight par to par with him, even surpassing him in some cases like now. But that was not due to his skill in hand-to-hand combat, but rather his speed. Apart from this, the legwork he used was similar to those of Kendo practicioners. As such, he wanted to fight him in a case in which both could draw their full power.

Meaning that this spar of theirs would have to end. His pride as a 4th Seat dictated that he should be the one to end it. The rookie had made his point and had managed to exceed Jun's expectations by a lot. But if he lost to an Unranked Seat Member in a field in which he personally thought that he excelle( even better than that of Kendo, despite being dubbed the Samurai), his rank would be put to question. With that in consideration, he took head on Meian's strike. Of course, he made sure that his whole body would be flexed during the moment of impact and his feet would tightly grasp the ground, so as not to lose his balance.

If it was a real fight, he would probably lose by now. But his opponent hadn't put much strength in his strike, in order not to hurt his training partner. The contact with his ribs hurt, with a searing pain spreading around the affected spots throughout his right side. With a deep exhale and his innate ability to recover from any damage, Jun managed not to lose his focus. For this was the crucial moment, the moment that he would execute his (last hopefully)counter-attack. Faintly twisting his upper body to his right(or towards Meian), he would grab whichever of Meian's wrists was closest to his left arm. Ensuring that Meian's wrist wouldn't escape his hold by precisely pressing his fingers beneath his forearm's 'naked' spot with almost all his strength, he would then abruptly drag Meian's wrist towards himself with all his speed, bringing Meian closer to him and throwing him off balance. In the meantime, his right elbow would be directed towards Meian's head with crushing speed, aiming to deal a fair blow at the right side of his head.

Should Jun realize that his elbow would make contact, then he would swiftly pull it out. That would happen only if he saw that the fight was coming to an end. Additionally, his left hand's fingers would pressure on a sensitive spot which would produce a numbing pain, enough to render it useless during the time he attempted his counter-attack. Finally, it should be mentionaed that all these motions were done simultaneously, with Jun synchronizing his breath, his elbow attack and pulling Meian towards him in order to bring a devastating outcome that would deal major damage in fictional real battle. Of course, his purpose now was to make himself constantly better and make Meian submit.

[Jun Genshi]

((It has been a while but I was wondering if it would be all right for this to get graded, since Meian hasn't been active for some time.))

[Kyomei Kuchiki]

+220 TP