The End Is Nigh [R, NDE]

[Zou ۞]

Thread Title: The End Arrives: Part 2
Participants: Zeich Yajuu, Kuroi Naito
World: Soul Society
Death Setting: Non Death Enabled
Rating: R
Location: Inside of the Seireitei. Squad 4 barracks.
Special Conditions: None.
Circumstances: The masked man's invasion continues. A massive flagship has begun to hover over the Rukongai and bombard it. Tens of thousands are dying. Millions will be extinguished today.

In the Seireitei itself, an army of Mod Souls with unprecedented power and viciousness has broken through the wall and begins a direct assault on the Shinigami inside. Led by the mysterious masked man, they are at a stalemate against the well trained Shinigami forces.

It is merely an hour into the invasion but word has already spread to the human world because of a distress signal sent out by someone fortunate enough to survive to manage it. Zeich Yajuu has heard the distress call and dropped everything to come help.

When he arrives he will find a full scale war.

The squads 1 and 4 barracks are being massacred and receiving the heaviest assault. The leader of the invasion is in squad 4, having come for a personal vendetta. The still recovering Squad 5 Captain, Enma, lays hospitalized. The masked man has arrived to finish him off.

Just before he can, Zeich will arrive to save his Captain.

It is here that the masked man turns to Zeich.

The masked man smells of Arrancar. But who? Who is this monster that has attacked the Soul Society?

[Zeich Yajuu]

Once more, home but not... Zeich thought as he stood atop one of the walls surrounding Seireitei, observing the damage below. Though he could not see it with his eyes, he had Haiiro at his side to act as his vision, transmitting images between the two of them to show him just how bad the situation was. They could see the enormous warship that had crashed through the walls that once had been thought to be impenetrable, thought to be the ultimate defense against invasion from outside forces. They could see the flames burning, the invading army spreading throughout the streets. Though the enemy forces looked human, Zeich couldn’t be so sure; humans couldn’t get to the World of the Living, not without extremely extenuating circumstances. No, these were spiritual beings. Pluses, perhaps? Or maybe they were just Gigais worn to disguise those within. Whoever these invaders were, they were making progress, albeit slowly, as the Shinigami forces struggled valiantly to hold them off.

Yes, we do have a rather bad habit of visiting on their off days, don’t we? Haiiro observed, his odd twist of humor still coming through even in such a dire situation. I dare say that if this is the reception we keep getting, maybe it is best we stay away. I don’t think Soul Society can take an invasion every time their estranged relations come to visit. Despite his quirky nature, the wolf’s eyes were scanning over the battlefield at his master’s request. He was observing, finding weaknesses in the enemy formations, determining the direction of their charge. Haiiro noted that the forces were generally making their way towards the central tower, where the Squad One barracks and the meeting chamber for Central 47 were located. Odds were, this invasion was a direct attack on the leadership of Soul Society.

Zeich thought over his plan of action quickly, considering the various routes he could take. As one person, the amount of actual damage he could do to a large-scale invasion was generally minimum. Though his Zanpaktou’s talents would allow him to take out large numbers of the enemy troops, it would only be a bucket of water in the ocean of bodies. No, as an unknown factor in this battle to both sides, Zeich’s best bet would be to seek out the enemy leadership, much as the opposing forces were. The loss of a leader meant the loss of direction and morale, and though it would not halt the tides, it would do much to turn them back.

But where to begin looking? Zeich couldn’t even identify the enemy forces, so he had no baseline to determine who their leader was. At best, he could make general assumptions: most leaders hung back towards the back of their army, letting the disposable units take the casualties while they led from relative safety. This was not a given, though; depending on the nature of the army, some generals were the type to charge forward at the head. This was more terrifying than one who fought from the back lines, as these were the generals with true power, unable to be stopped by mere soldiers. The aggressiveness of this army might have suggested the latter situation, but Zeich needed more time to observe. Jumping in now, rashly, would do Soul Society no good.

What do you want to do, Master? Haiiro asked, though this time there was no humor in his tone, especially as the two of them watched an arm of the invading forces tear through a smaller group of Shinigami and overwhelm them in a moment. It was a bloody mess, and there was no doubt that the Shinigami were slain even as they watched. Haiiro winced at the carnage, displeased by the sight, but he dutifully kept his gaze on the combat to ensure maximum observation of the enemy’s abilities. So far, a large arrangement of powers were made visible, with no real rhyme or correlation between them. Were these spells, like Kido, or were they stronger, personal Release abilities? Whatever they were, Zeich didn’t like this. The odds were not good.

You could have helped, you know. It was a small branch, and you could have killed them and retreated once more. Zeich shook his head softly, and even as he started to respond, he knew that Haiiro understood why. The wolf, the outward manifestation of his soul, had a very good grasp of his master’s emotional and logical state, and understood how Zeich thought. The two of them hadn’t interfered for multiple reasons: first, it was best to conserve energy. The more physical and spiritual energy he had when combating the leader, the better his chances of victory. Second, Zeich did not want to expose his presence to the other Shinigami present, even if it cost them their lives; he was an outlaw, an enemy, a threat from the moment he was discovered alive. The only thing he had in his favor was that no one had seen his face during the last visit, meaning that no one knew that “Zeich Yajuu” was alive.

This was why he hid behind the mask. The mask he wore was a replica of his Vizard mask’s lupine shape, with its curled lips, its snarling teeth, and its flattened ears; a vicious wolf stared back at those who met Zeich’s gaze, those golden eyes behind the mask’s visage seeming to glow with their own light. That metallic gaze seemed so bright and clear that no one would ever guess at the truth, that the man who wore the mask was blind. A darkness had overcome his vision, a blessing and a curse bestowed by his Inner Hollow upon his victory and dominion over it. Yet even with his eyes in shadows, the light gone, he had adapted to his lack of vision. His senses had grown sharper, and he could rely on his partner to aid him as needed, just as he was now.

He was no longer Zeich Yajuu. Now, he went by a simpler moniker: Wolf. And a wolf he was, no trained dog to bark on command. Though he was affiliated with Uzaki Enterprises for the time being, he had made it clear from the start that it was not employer and employee, boss and subordinate; the Wolf was there as long as he chose to be there. The moment that Kazura did something out of line that threatened the worlds or even just Soul Society, he would be dead. The moment that Zeich felt warranted death would be followed up by an execution the moment after. He had never once made it a secret that he had his fangs at Kazura’s throat, and it was only by his mercy and the good nature of Kazura’s actions that those jaws had not snapped shut.

Master, there! A quick jab for attention from Haiiro drew Zeich’s eyes downwards, to the barracks over which they were perched. The Squad Four Barracks was not only a place for its units to rest and live, but it also served as a major hospital that housed dozens of patients, making it one of the largest barracks in Seireitei, second only to Squad Twelve and its many research laboratories. So far, the tide of battle had not yet progressed towards the hospital, sparing the helpless patients a death that they could do nothing about. But now, a large number of their forces were moving inwards, making their way towards the Squad Four Barracks. Before long, they would overwhelm and butcher the healers, followed by the patients.

You’re not going to let them…? Haiiro’s tone was incredulous as Zeich remained motionless, still unmoving. For a moment it seemed as though the former Third Seat was unwilling to step in even now, when hundreds of innocents were about to be slaughtered for no reason. It seemed that even now, he was unwilling to expose himself, unwilling to step in and protect the home that he had sworn he would always defend. The Vizard was cold and practical, often to the point where his efficient nature would allow him to ignore those in need to accomplish a greater goal, but this seemed beyond him…

There. Zeich’s tone was sharper suddenly, even in the mental connection between them, and Haiiro focused back on what he was seeing, the image that his master had picked up. A single man seemed to stand out among the advancing army, clad in a mask of white even as he approached the hospital. Both master and Zanpaktou knew in a moment that this was one of the leaders, if not the head of the entire army. This was the target they had been waiting for, an opportunity to strike a crippling blow to the invasion rather than a lesser one. Now Zeich was ready to act; Haiiro could sense it as the former Shinigami stood, placing a hand on his weapon. A brief mental command was all that was needed to activate it, an aura of dim gray ash filling the air around Zeich.

With the appearance of Tsukikage’s ash, Haiiro vanished, rejoining Zeich’s soul to allow him to unleash the power of his Zanpaktou. The ash rose into the air, but as soon as it did, it clung to the Vizard’s body, coating it from head to toe, completely masking his presence. At this point, he bore absolutely no spiritual presence. No amount of Energy Sensory could detect him, as Tsukikage’s primary property was to suppress. Normally it did so by sapping the opponent’s Reiatsu and filling them with pain, but it could also suppress Reiatsu altogether, keeping it from radiating from the body and being detectable. Combined with his talents in Stealth, Zeich had the ability to all but vanish, an ability he used now as he descended from the wall and onto the roof of the Squad Four Barracks.

It didn’t take long for him to find his target. The man was approaching, making his way towards the wing where major patients were kept, those who were in the most critical condition. Zeich didn’t know what the leader’s target was, but whatever it was, it couldn’t be good. He had to act before the man found what he was looking for; after all, if one of the officers showed up in search of a specific target, it had to be critical to the opposing side. The Vizard would have to eliminate this man before he approached too further. No matter; this was a task he was suited for, and it was the role that he embodied. As before, and as always, he was a soldier. He would die trying, if need be.

Blind Instinct was activated immediately, doubling Zeich’s already impressive senses, allowing him to follow the man’s footsteps specifically even through the crowd and the noise. Before, he had only been able to track the man in the quieter areas, but now, he had the target’s location down to each individual step. The sound of his clothing rustling, the slight smell of metal amidst the much larger odor of blood; these things told Zeich exactly where his prey was, and he prepared himself for the initial strike. The preemptive move would make all the difference. If he could strike in one moment, and deal a fatal blow to the leader before he had a chance to prepare himself… this would be the ideal situation.

The ash flowed off of Zeich’s body, flowing down the side of the building and along the ground. Three-fifths of it made their way towards the man’s back, while the other two remained around Zeich, to be used as weapons or a means to defend himself as necessary. With his attack starting, the former Shinigami performed a Shunpo, stepping onto the building before the attacker, making himself known while his ash crept along, undetectable as it approached from behind along the ground. Whether this made the man halt or attack, it wouldn’t matter; it would draw his attention for a few brief moments while the attack struck.

Zeich said nothing as the ash on the ground formed three distinct lances that would tear right through the man’s body from back to front; one through the heart, one through the stomach, and one through the lungs. There was little way that the man could have anticipated or expected the attack, and unless he moved exactly in that moment, he would find himself impaled. Only lucky movement or some kind of spiritual armor would protect the leader. Quick and efficient slaughter; that was Zeich’s modus operandi, and he lived it even now, as his blades moved to penetrate the man through several of his vital organs, ending his life then and there.

Remaining Reiatsu: 6575/7000 (-150 for Shikai, -75 for Buraindo Jinsei (50 + 50% cost for being coated in ash), -50 for Shunpo, -150 for Kaijin Ken x3)

Shikai: 1/10

New Senses: 400

[Zou ۞]

The invasion was going as planned. Many Mod Souls were dying, but the resources existed which would allow more to be built. What was most important was how many Shinigami they took with them, and how many innocents were destroyed in Rukongai by the massive ship's bombardments. The man in the black mask pushed his forces onward relentlessly, without mercy. Anyone who fell behind was left behind to be slaughtered. Anyone that could not keep formation was fodder. The discipline of the army was to be admired, as was its effectiveness. Shinigami after Shinigami fell into a heap of blood. Yet, still, no Captains. The intention had been to decimate what Captains there were, but none had shown themselves, much to the chagrin of the man in black. If he could not find any Captains, then he would draw them out by destroying precious resources. The first would be the Squad 4 barracks. The next would be the generator for the Seireitei's invisible force field. The more he weakened them, the better.

His pace was heavy. Each step left a deep imprint on the ground as he walked forward. Some petty Shinigami attempted to jump into the masked man's way. He destroyed them. A quick use of his Hierro to stop their swords and shatter that cheap steel was all it took to defend. A swift motion with his left hand to slash their throats open was all it took to attack. Some required more brutal methods, and were met with holes in the chest from a powerful Bala. No threats were unknown to him. During the entire time, nothing was able to mount an appropriate defense or offense against him. That was why he had wanted Captains... No matter, soon the whole of Seireitei would be ash. When arriving at the Squad 4 barracks, the masked man ignited his Pesquis to sense the place for targets. And there it was. Luck would have it. He sensed two major presences and recognized both. They would be eliminated.

The masked man marched into the building, flanked by over a dozen of his subordinates. The building was filled with medics trying to rush their way out with patients and escape, or trying to help heal them. In the process of the attack, a few of his subordinates were taken down. It seemed that the medics had received better defense training in recent years. They were still all for naught. None of them mattered before the masked man. All were soon dead, along with their patients. What followed was a meeting with... Griswald P. Lorilad. A familiar presence. The former Captain of Squad 4 had reportedly stepped in as a substitute while the current Squad 4 Captain was out on errands. How unfortunate for the greatest healer of this generation that he had picked today to substitute. "These... these are all injured." Lorilad said. "You can't possibly attack them! The morals of it..."

"What weak spirit constraints you has nothing to do with me." the masked man informed Lorilad. The mask provided voice modulation so that the Arrancar behind it would not be recognized. The struggle with Lorilad was quick. The former Squad 4 Captain had been replaced because as good of a healer as he had been, his combat ability and his power to defend his clients was nothing. Negligible. He was an easy victim. A flash of black produced the masked man's Zanpakuto in his right hand, and his reiatsu ignited over it to form a red cross over the blade. The cold steel of a truly powerful Zanpakuto cut Lorilad in half and left his two pieces dead on the floor. Continued marching saw the masked man arrive at last in the secluded room he had been seeking. He looked down at the unconscious man before him. The man who was once known as the Lord of Hades. Squad 5's Captain, Enma....

What a pathetic sight to behold. Bandaged everywhere because of burns and missing all four limbs. Enma had once been the most powerful of Seireitei's Captains. No more. The Gotei Thirteen had spat him out weaker than ever. Rumor had it that he had been defeated by Sozen Kuchiki. Gazing down, the masked man spoke. "We were once rivals." Enma did not respond. He was unconscious. He could not hear or even detect what was happening. Some sort of disturbance of reiatsu picked up on the masked man's Pesquis. "You were strong. Now you are nothing. You are not even worth the effort it would take to kill you." One of the masked man's subordinates suddenly went down. A lance of black ashes had taken his life. It had broken the window on the way in. A mix of Pesquis and the shattering glass made the Arrancar's instincts kick in. He immediately began thinking in a machine-like manner to piece together where that attack had come from.

The lance struck him, but over the black cloak. A hole was torn into the cloak, but it did not get past any more clothes. It failed instead against a Hierro that was several times more powerful than it was. What came next was a reactive explosion of reiatsu from the masked man's body. That was when Zeich would feel how powerful this opponent was for the first time. He was on the same level of spirit as the Captain Commander. The ash lance had failed against an invincible Hierro first, and then reiatsu had blown away and dispersed all of its individual pieces. Without even a fraction of hesitation, the masked man used what his brain had determined to be the logical trajectory of the projectile and his Pesquis to locate where he should go. Not even a second had passed from the lance failing before he spoke to his subordinates. "Kill Enma." Then a Sonido brought the masked man to Zeich's location, facing him.

Voice modulation made the masked man's voice unrecognizable. His Zanpakuto was in his hand already. "Your choice of attack was foolish, Shinigami. And it will not save the Squad 5 Captain." Another disturbance in his Pesquis, this time in the room where Enma dwelt. A reinforcement that was trying to protect him? No matter. His soldiers were powerful. As long as he kept track of them for a while, he also had the opportunity to focus more on his new opponent here. This one was stronger than the other fodder, but only by a little. The Arrancar was not to be disturbed. He wanted the opportunity to kill another young one with potential. "If you flee now, I may yet let you live." the masked man promised. So far, his reiatsu might feel vaguely familiar, but it had changed so much over recent years that Zeich wouldn't be able to place it. Against all odds, what would this lone warrior accomplish against the greatest Arrancar ever to live?

Kuroi's Remaining Reiatsu: 4800 Reiatsu

Pesquis: 1/5

SPOILER: Click to show

{Stats/Skills}

Strength - [200{1/2}(100)] (125) Points

Speed - [400] (500) Points

Spiritual Pressure - [400] (500) Points

Reiatsu Strength - [400{x2.5}(1000)] (1250) Points

Light Aura - [0] Points

Dark Aura - [100] Points

Instinct - [200] (250) Points

Senses [200] (250) Points

Energy sensory - [100] (125) Points

Healing Expertise - [400] (500) Points


Total SP: 2300 Points

---

[Weapons: Sword] {4}

[Battle Analysis] {4}

[Analyzing] {3}

[Pain Tolerance] {3}

[Battle Abilities Other: Mixed Martial Arts (Kung Fu/BJJ/Muay Thai)] {3}

[Calm Mind] {2}

[Zeich Yajuu]

He’s fast. It wasn’t a gasp of fear, a moment of panic; Zeich observed this event very objectively, hearing the sound of movement, the feeling of air moving about him. Interestingly, the former came before the latter, suggesting a movement of enormous speed; the assailant had traveled faster than the sound wave could, effectively creating a vacuum of sound that would only erupt a second or two after the man had arrived. Had Zeich only been reliant on his sense of sound and not the sense of touch that alerted him to the movement of his opponent, he would have been left off-guard and surprised. But he had learned in the weeks following the loss of his sight that he could not rely on any one tactic to make up for that loss of his primary sense, and so he was prepared for multiple situations as needed.

He’s strong. Hierro, or Blut perhaps? I don’t think that was armor I struck. Another observation; this one would lead the suggestion that this individual was an Arrancar or a Quincy, but given that he was wielding a sword, Zeich wanted to lean towards the former. If so, that meant that this was trouble; his Zanpaktou’s spears had been unable to pierce through the man’s Hierro, suggesting an incredibly powerful Reiatsu Strength able to dwarf Zeich’s own spiritual power. If it had only been a small advantage, he may have been able to deal a small amount of damage, draw a little blood and introduce his ash into the attacker’s body. Attacking from the inside would have been a simple matter from then on. But no, the opponent’s spiritual strength was too great for Zeich’s basic strike to even cause a dent in his armor.

That didn’t mean he was invincible; if it was truly Hierro, any number of orifices were still viable targets, and Zeich’s unique Zanpaktou enabled him to take advantage of these openings. The eyes, the nose, the ears, the mouth; if he was willing to be patient, he could probably even push smaller particles of ash through the body’s pores and infest the victim over a longer period of time. Patience and caution would be key to dealing with this assault, and he would have to analyze his foe further before he could make any conclusions. For now, the Vizard had to react to the situation that was before him: His opponent had appeared before him with a rapid stepping technique, likely a Sonido, and was in close-range combat. While Zeich did not lack skill at such range, his talents were limited, and he worked best manipulating an opponent and weakening them over time.

These thoughts passed by in the space of a moment, Zeich’s high mental processing speed as well as his ability to analyze an opponent in battle telling him more about his opponent than a glance would normally have given others. Knowing that he could not strike at his opponent directly, not now, Zeich leapt backwards, a simple maneuver that put him on a higher tier of rooftop, just above his opponent. It wasn’t a fast movement, suggesting that he wasn’t alert or perhaps that he was bluffing, but in this step, he was prepared; he could combine Advanced Air Ground with Shunpo to allow himself to redirect himself and adjust to a sudden charge in no time. It was simply used as a step back to evaluate. No doubt Kuroi would recognize it not as a feeble attempt to dodge, but a simple movement to create a little more space without creating the sensation of flight from this battle.

There was one more component to this battle that had Zeich thinking, however; the man’s words to his subordinates, and his following statement to Zeich himself. “Kill Enma,” he had told the people with him. “It will not save the Squad 5 Captain,” he had told Zeich. The Vizard was surprised to hear that Captain Enma was here, and admittedly a bit puzzled at being told that he was the Squad 5 Captain instead of the Squad 7 Captain, but things had likely changed in the time that Zeich had been away from Soul Society. He did not care what position his former Captain was in, and it only interested him somewhat because this was Enma, of all people. But in the end, it changed very little.

A year ago, before Zeich had discovered his Inner Hollow and had fallen into his dark path to becoming a Vizard, he might have leapt to the Captain’s defense. He might have jumped down there, attackers be damned, and made an attempt to defend Enma, especially if he felt that the man was in true danger. Back then, he had possessed an amazing amount of respect for Captain Enma, even though he rarely if ever saw the man. But that was long ago; now, a year later, Zeich saw things in a different light. He saw a man that had abandoned his duty, abandoned his Squad and his followers. They had been left with no one for the longest of times. Without that guidance, Zeich had lost to the darkness within him, had become corrupted by Adalo, and the Hollow within him had fully awakened. Maybe Enma couldn’t have stopped it, but without even being there, he couldn’t even ease the transition. Zeich owed him nothing.

“Save the Captain? Since when has a Vizard owed anything to a Captain?” The coldness in Zeich’s tone was genuine, a layer of ice that betrayed a slight bitterness, one that penetrated his neutrality and laced it with frost. “I am here because you are an officer, if not the leader of this army. Tactically speaking, should you fall here, your side will crumble shortly after. It is not passion or emotion that brings me here: it is simple tactical logic.” By now, Zeich’s ash had reformed itself, and surrounded the area in a thin, dispersed cloud. At any point, he could conjure more blades to stab at his foe, but for now it would be a pointless endeavor that would only waste Reiatsu. Instead, he had another goal; to feel out and understand his opponent’s strengths.

The ash that was now filling the air in a dispersed cloud would begin to simply fall, mingling with the ashes from the burning city about the two combatants. The ash would settle on their shoulders, along the man’s mask, settling into folds of his clothing. But as it did, the ash would begin to cling, drawing upon the inner reserves of Reiatsu within Zeich’s opponent. This masked man would find the change to be very gradual, very weak at first; it was a very small, meager amount of Reiatsu that was sapped away, but it was still a loss. Zeich’s abilities were all about attrition and weakening the foe over long-term combat, and as long as his ash could find a foothold, victims would find their spiritual energy being siphoned away, leaving them with very few options in combat.

The ash would cling to the masked man’s body, clinging through his clothing, his cape, his helmet. It would mostly attach around his body, however, clinging to it as a central point and holding itself firm there by siphoning away the man’s Reiatsu as a means of anchoring. And once it truly began to siphon spiritual energy, pain would begin. It wasn’t a dull pain, either, but that of a thousand hot needles stabbing into the flesh and burning through it, tearing into the muscles and cracking the bone beneath. Though there was no actual damage, the ash created a sensation of extreme pain, suppressing the foe’s ability to concentrate and think fully, and it would serve to distract the man so that Zeich could attempt to infiltrate his body with more of the ash. The mask made it difficult, however, but it was just an object, unprotected by the man’s Hierro; worst came to it, it could be pierced or shattered.

That passive ashen fall was not the only thing that Zeich did, however; even as it pooled in the man’s clothing and mask, some of the ash began to build up on his sword’s hilt and blade. It began to coat the opponent’s weapon, as if sheathing it in a layer of dense ash. This would make a large difference in battle to come, dulling its edge and reducing its cutting power sharply, equal to the power of Zeich’s own spiritual pressure. If dulled enough, it wouldn’t even be able to pierce his skin, the layer of ash acting like a pseudo-cutback effect even on Release weapons, though it would lack the repercussions of its consequences. All the blade would do was be stopped, as though it had hit armor. But that would be enough for Zeich; it would give him a chance to get into close combat without being at risk of being hacked apart.

“Your offer of flight is generous, but it is wasted on me.” Zeich said softly, still unarmed; he hadn’t yet formed a sword from his ash. He didn’t feel a need to, not just yet; he was a skilled swordsman, but he didn’t want to reveal all of his talents just yet. Besides, he wanted to keep at least some of his ash about him in a disparate cloud; though he couldn’t see the man, he could feel any disturbance that moved his ash about, giving him a constant feed on his opponent’s location. For now, he was simply asserting control over the battlefield, feeling out what it was that he was up against; until he knew more, he couldn’t formulate a long-term plan. “I can hardly run from an unknown opponent, can I? A faceless, nameless foe?”

Without a single visual cue, just a mental signal, another lance formed from the ash, stabbing into the man’s mask, aiming for his left eye. The mask would not go without being damaged if it was struck, as Zeich was no weak fighter; his spiritual strength was enough that any simple accessory would shatter under the impact. And if it hit the man’s eye, all the better; Hierro didn’t protect orifices, and the eyes were a vulnerable spot. Zeich didn’t anticipate that he would be so lucky, however, so his goal was simply to destroy the mask if he was able to. He was curious as to who was underneath; even if he couldn’t see, perhaps the reactions of those around him would allow him to better prepare.

“Shall we dispense with the masks?”

Remaining Reiatsu: 6375/7000 (-100 for Kaijin Shi-Su, -50 for Kaijin Ken, -50 for Buraindo Jinsei upkeep.)

Shikai: 2/10

SPOILER: Click to show

{Zeich’s Stats}
Strength - [300] (300) Points

Speed - [400] (400) Points

Spiritual Pressure – [400 x 1.75] (700) Points

Reiatsu Strength – [200 x 0.6] (140) Points

Light Aura - [50] Points

Dark Aura - [50] Points

Instinct - [200 x 1.5] (300) Points

Senses - [200] Points

Energy sensory - [100 x 0.70] (70) Points

Healing Expertise - [0] Points


Total SP: [1800] points

SPOILER: Click to show

{Zeich’s Skills}

• [Weapons - Katana] 3
  
  
• [Strength of Will] 3
  
  
• [Martial Arts - Hakuda] 3
  
  
• [Stealth] 2
  
  
• [Calm Mind] 3
  
  
• [Martial Arts - Wing Chun] 1
  
  
• [Battle Analysis] 2

[Zou ۞]

OOC: Note that I have modified my previous post to include an activated Pesquis, which I had mentioned in that post already.

The Shinigami was a Vizard. It had been wasteful information to give away. Any tactical information merely revealed that way could only serve to hinder. How disgusting. An Arrancar, the mightiest of the races, had just come across the most mocking of opponents. Here was one of Azeru Cho's failed pseudo-Arrancar. They were an insult to everything that the masked man could ever stand for. The masked man continued to watch and evaluate as his opponent responded to his taunt. Of course he had not expected this enemy to flee. The foolish rarely did. Those few of adequate intelligence to know when not to challenge their opponents were many, but statistically speaking there would always be some incompetents. The Arrancar's evaluation was always running. Even his words had been a means of evaluation. From the way his opponent had attempted to gain distance early, and from the words given, the Arrancar learned two things.

First, his opponent was very strategically oriented and considered himself logical. Second, he had been surprised by the might and speed of the Arrancar. Gaining distance that way was a tactic used when one felt disadvantaged in the current situation, as this Vizard must have felt. He wanted distance for his combat. In addition to these observations was the observation that he had replied and continued to speak. The most tactical option would have been silence, yet he spoke. If he was speaking, it meant that he was utilizing it while setting preparations for himself. He was trying to distract. Earlier, the masked man had seen a dark lance try to strike him. He had seen the little particles of residue left on his dead subordinate, but also had seen the way the lance was dispersed instead of knocked away when the Arrancar's reiatsu was brought to bear. It wasn't a solid. It was made of sandy particles. That dull gray indicated ashes.

His opponent was clearly already released, further indicated by Pesquis showing a higher level surge in the Vizard's reiatsu and having acknowledged it earlier at the time of release. Yet the masked man had not been able to sense the ashes that made up that original lance, and had instead been alerted by the surge of reiatsu, the death of his subordinate, the shadow cast on the floor, and the window. If this was the case, it could be assumed that only the five senses would work for detecting it. It had some sort of ability which allowed it to go undetected. Perhaps it could even mask his opponent's reiatsu if it covered him. That would not be out of the question. It was fair to say then that it was stealthy and constrictive in nature, like a typical assassin's power. Indeed, with his high level senses, the Arrancar had noticed the change in light immediately when the ashes had begun to gather. Ashes were thick and very good at blotting out light.

He had also seen the spores starting to descend like a slow and small rain. He had been looking for it from the beginning, realizing that his opponent was attempting some sort of set-up. Judging from that lance earlier, the ash's maximum speed was only slightly above the Arrancar's, and it could not stop his step techniques from outpacing it. It was easy to judge from how his opponent operated that the Vizard was doing prep work for larger scale strategies, or that he was trying a war of attrition against a much more powerful opponent. Both would have been good, tactical strategies. From release type to attitude toward combat, this man's behavior indicated that in his Shinigami days he had probably been a member of Squad 1 or Squad 7 under Enma. And, despite his emotional outburst, a fact that the masked man could use later as a psychological advantage, everything he did spoke of continued loyalty to the Gotei Thirteen.

The Arrancar's powerful reiatsu flexed to repulse the ash before it even touched him. He had been aware of it from the beginning. The continued flex would become tiresome quickly if he did it for too long, but the sudden surge of it was mighty because of his reiatsu strength. It was tall. It blasted a column right up to the sky and blasted apart the cloud overhead while also blasting away any ashes near the masked man himself. When the second lance formed into an attack, it was useless. It was blasted apart by the sudden shockwave of reiatsu and dispersed. Kuroi's reiatsu also charged in advance, ready for further counter. The cloud too, dispersed, gave some freedom. If the Vizard wanted it reformed, that would require a minor division of attention. That was all that was needed to create an opening. Since that lance had failed, the masked man could not help but mock the irony. A Vizard who wished to dispense with masks. Wordlessly, the masked man used a little over half of his speed to rush up to where the Vizard was.

He took care to step nowhere near immediate offensive vicinity of any ashes. The cloud still had not reformed. The lance had failed. His body was ashless. His sword was ashless. His flexing reiatsu dissipated while he swung a powerful sword strike in the direction of the Vizard. He applied pressure to his forward foot as he did so, letting it be ready to follow his sword if it needed to be should the need to follow through come to pass. Or should other counters need to pass. However his sword strike was elementary. It would seek only to carve into the Vizard's face and chest. Vicious, and if it struck it would split both open mercilessly, but this was hardly an attack that the masked man expected to land. But his reiatsu in his body suddenly charged quickly while attacking. This close, he could see his opponent's eyes and see a lack of pupils. A blind opponent would give him a new advantage.

Kuroi's Remaining Reiatsu: 4800 Reiatsu

Pesquis: 2/5

[Zeich Yajuu]

((OOC: Fair note, Zeich’s eyes have no actual indicator that he is blind; his blindness is inflicted on his spirit as opposed to his actual physical body.))

Simple tactics wouldn’t work, something revealed to Zeich only a moment after his initial attempt. Once more, his ash had been dispelled by an outflow of Reiatsu, a blast of it that had simply emerged from the opponent. He knew his opponent’s spiritual strength was high, but to see that the man could control it to such fine precision, releasing it in powerful bursts throughout his entire body, was proof that this was no ordinary opponent. This meant that it wouldn’t be as easy as simply coating the opponent in ash, sapping away their Reiatsu reserves and leaving them exhausted. Binding the man’s weapon or his limbs would be similarly difficult if his ash could be blasted back like that every time he tried, wasting valuable Reiatsu.

At the same time, however, it provided a valuable avenue of assault for Zeich. Though he could not strike directly at his foe’s spiritual energy, he could sap the man’s stamina by continuously applying his ash to the man, forcing him to repel it time and again. Given that his ash moved at a fairly fast rate, half again what Zeich could move at without Shunpo, it would very likely keep up with his opponent’s movements. This meant that the masked man would have to either make use of stepping techniques or repel the ash, both of which would eat away at his physical stamina. If he chose to do neither, his Reiatsu would be consumed instead. It was a simple plan of attrition, and hastily crafted on the fly, but it was a start to work with.

Of course, there was also the defensive aspect to consider; the masked man would not remain still for Zeich’s tactic. He had already proved to be both fast and perceptive, not to mention his immense spiritual strength; Zeich had no defense against his adversary’s powerful attacks aside from pure evasion. His ashen weapons would withstand a hit or two at best, and only in a compressed state; otherwise, they would simply shatter without slowing the oncoming attacks. Zeich knew that he would have to keep his distance, but he would have to do so carefully; though his opponent would be wearing himself out repelling the ash, the Vizard would have to work hard to keep ahead too, which ran the risk of burning out his own stamina in the process. It would be a careful race of attrition.

Suddenly, the man moved forward to strike. Zeich was aware of it as his opponent’s foot struck the tiled roof, but there was an unusual note to the impact, a heavier landing than should have been used to brace for the swinging of a sword. The masked attacker was putting his weight on his foot, preparing for another step forward. A counterattack, to follow up on an evaded swing? The opponent was thinking two steps ahead, planning in anticipation in case Zeich stepped forward or to the side. An attempt to dodge with Shunpo would only be met by a faster Sonido, forcing the Vizard to constantly evade and dodge an onslaught of attacks. It could turn the game of attrition on him quickly, as his ash could not keep up with such high-speed combat.

Evasion wasn’t the answer, but a block was impossible at this time; Zeich’s ash had been dispersed, and though it was already regathering, it would take too long to form a new weapon in order to block. No evasion, no blocking; he could either take the hit, or counterattack. These were his only options. And that was why the Vizard moved; rather than dodging backwards, creating distance, a Shunpo carried him forward with sudden speed. Unlike most Shunpo, which aimed for distance, this one instead only took him forward three steps, putting him within his opponent’s reach, where a sword could not be swung inward easily. Zeich’s position allowed him to easily block the arm moving with a Hakuda Defense: Do slammed into the forearm before he grabbed it by the wrist, binding it tightly in his hand. This would put him in a position to grapple his enemy, keeping them both at such close range that weapons would be difficult to use. It would evolve this fight into a hand-to-hand encounter, and make it difficult for the masked figure to keep the ash away by splitting his concentration.

Even as Zeich grabbed at the man’s wrist, holding it in place, the ash was starting to coalesce in a cloud around them. It was starting to fall once more, coating his opponent’s shoulders and head once more, the pain immediately starting as it made contact. It was another way to further split the attacker’s concentration; now he had to focus on the sharp pain from the ash that drew his attention, deal with the individual holding to his arm with strength great enough to keep the limb from moving, and resolve the issue of the ash beginning to sap away at his Reiatsu. It was an attack on multiple fronts, to keep the target guessing and preventing him from concentrating on any one thing at a time.

It was time for another attack on that mask; Zeich’s ash coalesced around the man’s face, but this time it didn’t form blades; rather, it shoved its way along the outside edges of the mask, seeping into any openings, into the slightest cracks or gaps in the headpiece. Whether it was from the neck or along the area that allowed the man to see out from behind his mask, the thousands of minute particles would find a way to slip in among the gaps, infiltrating into the depths of that mask. When they did, a simple surge of Reiatsu would not be enough to dispel them, as the mask itself would act as the perfect container. Even after the Reiatsu surge ended, the man would find the ash pressing against his eyes, his nose, his ears, and his mouth, seeking entry into his body, flooding its way into his system to destroy him from the inside out. Even if it didn’t succeed in smothering him by cutting off his air flow, Zeich’s ability to turn that ash into bladed death would be enough to ensure that he could fill his foe full of holes along his organs.

Of course, Zeich wasn’t idle in this time. While his ash was attaching itself to the man and infiltrating his mask, the Vizard was already moving, keeping a tight grip on his adversary’s wrist. Moving along the side of the arm that he had captured, he was attempting to get behind his foe, where he could wrench the arm into a locked position and prevent it from being used altogether. Getting leverage was one of the ways to combat Hierro; though the iron skin protected the body from direct impacts and blows, it did nothing to stop a foe from simply pulling a limb out of its socket. And Zeich was strong enough that, if he could get good leverage, he could pull that off with no difficulty whatsoever. If he managed to dart around behind his foe, he’d use his full strength to simply rip that arm off and leave it useless, reducing his opponent’s means of attack.

All the while, ash fell like a sullen, stained snow.

Remaining Reiatsu: 6275/7000 (-50 for Shunpo, -50 for Buraindo Jinsei upkeep)

Shikai: 3/10

[Zou ۞]

The Arrancar's single most momentous advantage was his strategy and his cunning. Even against a warrior that used logic as the basis of strategy the masked man had something superior: experience. Decades of battling Captain level adversaries had left this particular Arrancar with a keen foresight into what his opponents would do when probed in certain ways. He had learned not only how to size up an opponent before the battle began but how to ascertain the correct method for defeating them long before their swords met. As soon as the battle had started the masked man had already known his likely method for dealing with his opponent. Especially if it was a Vizard. It was pitiful. The Hollow within had potential. This had been seen when he had subjugated that earlier officer. This one had already completed weakening the Hollow inside. He was nothing more now than a failed pseudo-Arrancar hardly worth the masked man's time.

Pesquis told the masked man everything that he needed to know. The same was true of his visual senses. He possessed a firm understanding of combat tactics, a Pesquis that had high rate of detection and a very keen eye for swords and martial arts. Together they created a potion of unstoppable strategic proportions. It was an elixir for the perfect warrior. Taking the battle up close to the masked man was foolish, though distance would not have worked out any better. The first thing of note was the gathering of reiatsu in the opponent's legs in the typical fashion of a Shunpo. That was an easy guess. The second was noting the tension gathering in the shoulder indicating a forward strike. With his experience and skill the masked man was already able to ascertain the trajectory of the attack and the form it would take just by looking at the shoulder and how the arm was beginning to move.

By the position of his opponent's legs, a vital thing to pay attention to in swordplay, the masked man could also ascertain how far his opponent likely wanted to travel and what kind of distance timing was required for the attack. The Arrancar had also seen the counter coming for him before in Sozen Kuchiki. Hakuda Defense: Do. Memory of the first time he had ever encountered that Shinigami Captain allowed him now to use his machine-like brain to recognize the attack. Such was the power of so great an analytic as the masked man. His counter was also very simplistic. He had charged up reiatsu and prepared his position while expecting not only a counter, but an attempted counter to his counter. He was certain that the Vizard was anticipating some form of countermeasure and was ready to do the same to stay even a step ahead, yet the masked man would be as far as six or seven more steps past that.

The first things to occur were a Sonido and a Sonido Garra. Accelerating to maximum speed to use Sonido was one thing. Accelerating his own motion and his already mid-strike arm into Sonido Garra was another. Because of that split second where the masked man had used years of practice and skill to ascertain the opponent's likely move and the fact that he was already in mid motion for the attack, the masked man was able to intercept Zeich as the Vizard moved forward and tried to strike. The use of Sonido to bring the masked man away also altered the angle of the attack. The end result was Zeich had committed to a Shunpo that he could now no longer get out of, and he was stuck at such a single instant moment wherein he had not even charged reiatsu and had instead focused on regathering that ash that he lacked the time necessary to instantaneously produce a new countermeasure or even to summon his mask. The masked man had planned for this to be the case.

His new angle was one moving around and passed. He had pressed his foot into the ground with the intent of Sonido. He had charged reiatsu into his body with the intent of executing several powerful techniques at once. Sonido would take him multiple buildings away and out of range of the ashes that were gathering once more. With that timing being only a split second after the masked man's initial slash after the ash had been dispersed it would not have time to gather again and leave even a single grain on him. By the time it gathered and fell once more, the masked man had escaped its reach and was far away. At the same time, that angle change left it so that Zeich's incoming arm movement came into the way of the attack of the blade. Yet the changed angle as a result of Sonido and Sonido Garra meant that as the masked man was escaping, Zeich's arm was in danger. The sword would cut and sever the arm at the forearm and open up an artery.

The bleeding would be intense and leave the Vizard in grave danger of bleeding out during the battle. This part would be impossible to escape. The masked man's planned intent and timing meant that Zeich had more or less one way Shunpo'd himself into an arm severing that failed to stop the altered angle of the sword strike. It was also a matter of the masked man's vastly superior speed. Zeich's Shunpo might hit 4000, but the masked man's Sonido hit 6500. It was impossible to guard or dodge because of timing, lack of a preparation of additional defense, and speed. All of this also meant that Zeich had failed to grab the masked man's arm and that the ashes had not fallen upon him and would not until they chased after him. Because of the masked man's Sonido speed, it would take them time to catch up. Worst of all would be that this in itself was not the only attack. The masked man's downed arm had been seemingly inactive too as he had moved past, but it was part of a strategy.

In mid movement, with his reiatsu charged and ready for an attack, he would have released one. At the same time, having severed Zeich's arm and escaped, he would then be gone. Zeich would feel the pain before he heard the sound. Dos Bala. It was a bullet much smaller than a Bala but even faster. The masked man had even used more reiatsu to speed it up to Mach 2. This meant that it was far faster than Zeich or even the masked man. But it had not been aimed at Zeich. The masked man's hand had not been pointed at Zeich. It had been down, and so it wedged into the tile of the rooftop that they were on. It would have penetrated through if the masked man hadn't immediately willed it to detonate. Because of his timing, he was moving past Zeich and severing an arm with unavoidably precise timing and strategy while Zeich was using a Shunpo to get into that mess, but he was also releasing Dos Bala downward. Zeich's Shunpo took him next to it, perhaps even over it as he finished his movement, so that it may be right below him. Either way it was in impossibly close proximity.

Because it had been released so quickly the effect of what would happen would occur within milliseconds nearly simultaneous to severing the arm but at that moment when the masked man was out of harm's way, still yet even before the masked man reached his final destination of that far away rooftop with Sonido. The event was an explosion. Using a mental willing the Arrancar had willed the bullet to explode. That was one of the powers of Dos Bala. An explosion. It was not huge but it was large enough that the explosion may just incinerate Zeich's legs. Dos Bala had been released so quickly that Zeich would probably not have really realized, known, or noticed what it was until it was too late. He also would have had no way of knowing it would explode. By the time he realized anything had been released, he would be distracted by the masked man vanishing and by the severed arm. Thus the explosion was almost unavoidable and impossible to guard in itself.

All it took was mental willing and the attack was done with. And it would be unavoidable for one more reason, as would the loss of the arm. At precisely the right timing with Zeich's step ending and his arm beginning to be severed and just before the Dos Bala exploded the masked man stopped restraining himself. His gravitational pressure was exerted and released. Many Shinigami in the area would instantly die from its full force and more importantly Zeich himself would feel as if oceans of pressure crushed down on him. An ocean of dark power. A sea of turbulence and Despair crushing him so absolutely that as his arm was severed and the masked man escaped the ashes all Zeich would be able to notice was a lost arm and a crushing presence and that the masked man was gone. The explosion would then occur and was nearly guaranteed to take his legs. All while the masked man landed very, very far away. Vastly out of reach.

No ashes could touch him. No counterattack could touch him. And yet even then the masked man had another counter up his sleeve as reiatsu ran through his veins and limbs. But it did not matter. The arm was guaranteed to be lost. The most likely scenario was that the legs had also been blown off and that the Vizard was now down three limbs and all of them were bleeding out profusely. The masked man did not actually expect the fight to end with that but was aware that now it would be as good as over. Covering for such losses against an opponent that was still holding back so much would not bode well for Zeich. Having escaped far away the masked man did not speak. All that could be heard were the sounds of screaming and dying and warfare in Seireitei. None of that would be audible for Zeich. All he would feel was a sharp ringing in his ears from the explosion and pain. All of the same he would still have pressure on his body after all of that. It would make even getting up almost impossible. The End was Nigh.

Kuroi's Remaining Reiatsu: 4400 Reiatsu

Pesquis: 3/5

[Zeich Yajuu]

Zeich might not have had the extreme mastery of analytical skills his opponent did, but that did not mean that he was without talent in that field. A fairly high skill of combat analysis combined with a high mental reaction time and sharpened senses was a combination to be reckoned with, and probably the only thing that saved the Vizard from an absolutely crippling strike on his opponent’s part. Without any one component of this combination, he probably would be writhing in the ground, his legs a scorched mass of blistered flesh, and his injured arm half-removed, hanging on by scraps of skin and muscle. Such was the terrifying force of the attacks being thrown at him that had he lacked even one aspect of his combat skills, it would be over.

Unfortunately, as good as he was, there was no way to avoid the slash to his arm, or even to mitigate it. Though his ability to react mentally was far above average, there was no way to halt his physical motion once he had committed to it. And however fast his mind was, it still wouldn’t save him in that split millisecond of time. No, the masked man’s attack would cleave into Zeich’s arm, tearing through the sleeve of his jacket and through the flesh. Blood exploded outwards, such was the force of the attack, a fountain of crimson that splashed out in an arc away from the injured limb. The pain was excruciating, a shot of cold ice stabbing up and down through the limb and up to the shoulder, the shock nearly enough to stagger Zeich mid-step and leave him in a fatally prone position for the split second it would require. Only his ability to remain calm, his ability to separate himself from emotional and mental shock, kept him sensible and acting.

And act he did. Even as he had charged forward to grab at the man’s arm, he felt a surge of Reiatsu come from his adversary. The Vizard’s dulled ability to sense Reiatsu was limited, and he couldn’t begin to break apart how many different abilities were used or the scope at which they’d operate, but what he could detect was a common gathering of Reiatsu in the legs, a phenomenon seen in just about every stepping technique that existed. The masked man was likely moving to retreat and create distance; this much he could guess. That was why, even as Zeich stepped forward, he knew that he wouldn’t be able to grab his opponent. That was why he took a shot in the dark, and rather than stop where he was, he took a step to the left, another Shunpo accentuating his motion as he leapt from one rooftop to another.

It was just then that a triad of shocks hit him simultaneously. The first was physical, the injury inflicted by the man’s sword registering even as he came out of his step, stumbling and crashing to the ground before rolling to his feet. A moment of distraction, but it could have been worse; even as Zeich mentally fought to keep his focus and keep himself from occupying his good hand with clutching at the wound, the second shock came. This one was sensory, taking advantage of his sharpened hearing as some kind of detonation went off nearby. Zeich was actually surprised this time; he hadn’t known that an attack had been fired, and for that to happen, the timing would have had to be exceptionally precise, or the attack must have been exceptionally fast, too much for his hearing to catch in advance. Whatever it was, the detonation was a resounding thunderclap in his ears that set his nerves to reeling, suffering under the sudden barrage of sound.

But the third and final shock was the worst; even as Zeich was suffering under the physical and sensory blows, a third attack was leveled at him on an emotional scale. The man’s presence suddenly crashed outwards, a tidal wave of dark energy that simply smashed everything around it. Even the Vizard, who normally had the strength of spirit to stand against such things, found himself crushed to the ground momentarily. It took a flexing of his Reiatsu and his powerful force of will to push himself to his feet, his spiritual energy serving only as a buffer to the ocean of darkness crushing down on him. But even that did not stop the emotional aspect of it, the darkness that threatened to swallow him, a tide of despair and a storm of anguish. And as those dark fangs descended upon him, began to consume him, he realized that within his own heart, a seed of doubt was beginning to take root.

Do I even have a chance against something like this…?

For a moment, all seemed lost. Zeich couldn’t see how he could begin to combat this foe. Even with his Bankai, the best he could do was buy time, keep the man busy. While this would save some lives, it would not stop the tide of death that the masked figure threatened. Even with his mask, which would strengthen him physically and spiritually, he would lack the sheer expertise and combat advantage this opponent had over him. Right now, as he was, he was inferior to the masked man, and no matter how hard he tried, he was going to lose here. In all likelihood, it would lead to him dying shortly after; Zeich doubted he’d be able to escape from such a merciless and deadly adversary.

So what then? Why had Zeich struggled all this time, fought through the darkness that had threatened to consume his soul before? Why had he fought against the Inner Hollow? Why had he struggled to remain the one in control, and why had he tried to protect Soul Society, even after he was cast out? Why had he bothered to live, if his life meant nothing? Why had he bothered to try, if his efforts were all for naught? Was this what it meant to be a Vizard, to find yourself sinking into despair? To escape the darkness, only to find yourself powerless?

Don’t give me any of that shit, boy! How the hell did you beat me if you’re giving up so easily!?

Like red lightning coursing through the dark despair, Tsukikage’s fury and bloodlust suddenly shattered the fear that was gripping Zeich’s heart. The Inner Hollow’s rage replaced it, that anger a familiar force to fear. It brought back memories of the times where Zeich had thought he would lose himself to the darkness within him, that he would lose his body and mind to Tsukikage. Back then, that anger, that desire for blood, that hatred of all that lived had been Zeich’s greatest fear, and the former Shinigami had thought that there was no hope for him. In the bloody, violent struggle between Hollow and Vizard, he had thought that he would die repeatedly, and that there was no hope for him.

He had been proven wrong. In a moment of near-death, where he had thought that Tsukikage’s viciousness would be the end of him, he had found clarity. He had found peace of mind. And, for the first time in his life, he had found an emotion that he had never truly experienced before: hope. That was the moment that he and Haiiro had first reconnected, the positive aspects of his soul reunited with the rest, and giving him the strength to move on. And now, in a moment of crisis, that clarity came again, that presence of mind that cleared away all doubt and fear. But this time, it didn’t take its root in hope; instead, this was a gift grown in anger and rage.

Why did he doubt himself? That anger was turned inwards, rather than outwards, directed at his helplessness and willingness to turn to despair. Why did he find himself worthless? Was not every minute he kept his opponent occupied another minute that the Shinigami forces could drive back the invading army, and prepare themselves for a united front? Why did he think that his time up until this point was wasted? Hadn’t he helped fight off a major criminal from the Senzaikyu Prisons not terribly far back? Suddenly, all his self-doubt seemed foolish, mere shadows that were dispersed and consumed by the slowly-growing flame of anger within him.

...You’re right, Tsukikage. I cannot give up like this. I cannot doubt myself. I cannot tell myself that I am worthless, useless. The moment I believe these things is the moment that I am them. Until I give my last breath, this is not over. The anger burned like a purifying fire, searing away any last vestiges of doubt or fear, and left him calm and clear-headed. He knew what he had to do now, and he knew that even if he did not win, did not survive this, what he was doing was worthwhile. This was what he needed to do, what he had survived to do. Everything had come to this moment, and he was not going to let himself fall into despair.

Tsukikage, I will need your help. I need your anger, your bloodlust, your fury, your desire to destroy; I need you to let loose all that you are. We need to work together; by myself, I cannot do this. Will you join with me to defeat this foe? Zeich knew what he was asking, and knew what the price would be for it. The two of them had made their agreement when they had learned how to combine their strengths, and the Vizard intended to honor the word of their pact. He could feel Tsukikage’s dark grin, and the nod of assent from his Inner Hollow. The deal was made, and the price was set. I’ll start the timer. I’ll even shave off a few seconds if you can spill his blood.

Deal.

Suddenly, the masked man would feel Zeich’s spiritual presence explode outwards. It expanded enormously as he reached up, tossing his false mask aside. For a moment, his face was revealed, those golden eyes glowing behind an expression of determined calm. The rope scar around his neck was sharply highlighted in the light of the burning city about them. For a moment he stood there, free of the mask that stole his identity and left him as nothing but the Wolf, a man who did what he would at the service of no other. For that brief moment, he was Zeich Yajuu, the former Shinigami, former Third Seat of Squad Seven. For that moment, he was alive as no one but himself.

And then, he was more.

The mask was back, but this time, it was alive. The eyes that gleamed behind it glowed with a feral, wild light. But it wasn’t just the mask this time as ash seemed to spread outwards, covering his entire head. Pointed, sharp ears were flattened back in anger, while a long mane of ashen fur started to flow down his back and around his neck. It formed a new body for him, almost like taking on a Vizard’s Resurrection, only without the sharp increase in power. He was more powerful than normal, however; Zeich had activated his Vizard’s mask and paired it with the technique he was using, doubling all of his capabilities notably. His strength, the scope of his spirit, his speed, his mental reactions… all of them were sharply doubled, only his senses untouched as they remained at the same value with the ending of Buraindo Jinsei.

To the masked man, Zeich would disappear to his spiritual senses. His eyes would see the wolf-like man standing on the rooftop all that distance away, the snarling visage of his mask twisting and contorting like a real face, the golden eyes gleaming with a wild light. But to his Pesquis and to his natural Energy Sensory, Zeich was simply gone, vanished like a phantom into the darkness. This was the first part of the technique that Zeich had activated: Haiiro Yasei, the Wild Gray. His Soulbind technique, the one that took his Zanpaktou Spirit—or in his case, his Inner Hollow—and aligned their souls perfectly, allowing them to take on a new power that one’s Release would not normally obtain. And now, as Shinigami and Hollow came together into the masked wolf that stood before their opponent, seeming more monster than human, their true power would emerge.

There was no time to sense Zeich’s movement, not with the ability to sense his spiritual energy completely negated. Shunpo, now twice as fast as before, came even faster than the masked man’s Sonido. Without the ability to sense energy, and without the ability to see the sheer rapid speed of movement, the man would have no way to anticipate Zeich’s sudden appearance in front of him. In a split second of movement, the former Shinigami attacked, driving his fist forward with incredible speed straight into the man’s face. Even with his sharp senses, there was no way for the man to predict what was coming; at that distance, there was no way to see the shift of Zeich’s body, and without the ability to use his Pesquis to sense the Vizard’s movements, he was left completely in the dark.

But it was more than that; normally, the gap in their experience should have allowed him to anticipate the flow of Zeich’s attacks after watching him battle up until now, but that was the strangest part. Before, Zeich had fought carefully and methodically, setting up his foe and playing move and countermove. This sudden and direct attack went completely counter to his normal means of fighting, and that same disparity in combat styles would leave a large opening for the element of surprise. For that was the second aspect of Zeich’s Soulbind, aside from masking his presence; as with the rest of his Release abilities, its power was to suppress, and in this case, it suppressed his personality and mindset, overlaying them with Tsukikage’s bloodlust, his thirst for violence, and his hatred. Fury and destruction would reign supreme in this second half of the fight, and it would make it hard to predict him, reducing the effects of any anticipatory analysis.

Even as Zeich lunged forward in his attack, his clawed hand stabbing through the man’s mask and into his face with an offensive force of 1400, strong enough to even destroy the Arrancar’s Hierro, his free hand was already moving instinctively to the side at a speed of 8000 thank to the use of Shunpo Karin, more rapidly than the masked man could slash his sword about even with another Sonido Garra. The limb would be crushed by a powerful blow, Zeich’s doubled strength more than enough to shatter the bones and tear the muscles apart. The man’s sword would drop to the ground as the hand went limp, the damage enough that the hand would be useless.

Surprisingly, that second attack was done with his injured arm, the one that had been slashed deeply by the masked man’s strike. The ash coating it had formed its own limb over the existing arm, and as it was an extension of his body, could move freely despite the injury beneath. Doing so would aggravate the existing wound and make recovery far more difficult later on, but in this state, Zeich was unaware of the damage. Right now, his mind was consumed by a primal instinct to spill blood, to kill, to destroy. He aimed to tear apart the man before him, to see him writhe on the ground even as his blood formed a crimson tribute to the end of his life.

Even as the second strike came at full speed, a barrage of attacks was only a moment behind. Yet another Shunpo, once more performed with barely any physical indication of his motion, had Zeich move around the masked man’s side. However, he did so at so close a range that his leg caught with his opponent’s, slamming into it with the full 8000 speed of a boosted Shunpo and pulling it out from underneath the man if not outright tearing it off with his increased strength. But there was little time to think about that; another powerful blow came, this time with foot-long claws slashing across the man’s arm, raking through the flesh and tearing apart the bone below if they struck.

But again, he was moving; the Vizard was continuously speeding along, a tactic that was completely contrary to his actions before. Back then, he had been focused on attrition, trying to weaken his foe, trying to get him to burn himself out, but now Zeich had reversed that; if the masked man had attempted to focus on his aim of careful, measured combat before, he’d be even further surprised as the Vizard’s speed was maximized the entire time. It would burn through his stamina, and by the end of his Soulbind he would likely be exhausted beyond movement, but it was a price he was willing to pay in order to do what he could against his foe.

This time, Zeich’s movement had carried him back in front, without the use of Shunpo; though this was slower than before, it was still incredibly fast, more than half again the attacker’s movement speed. But once more, he was already attacking even as he stopped moving; this time, his claws would tear through the man’s torso, aiming for his internal organs; the heart, the stomach, the lungs, anything they could hit was fair game. And if the masked Arrancar tried to escape at all during any of this, odds were he’d find his Sonido outmatched by a Shunpo that was far faster than it; he could attempt to counter, but given Zeich’s improved speed and vicious attacks on the man’s limbs, it was likely that such an attempt would be met with failure.

And now, it was time to see just what color an Arrancar’s blood was…

Remaining Reiatsu: 5750/7000 (-150 for Shunpo x3, -300 to resist Gravitational Pressure, -75 for Soulbind: Haiiro Yasei).

Soulbind: 1/15

Vizard Mask: 1/3

SPOILER: Click to show

{Vizard Mask Stats}Strength – [300 x 2] (600) Points

Speed – [400 x 2] (800) Points

Spiritual Pressure – [(400 x 1.75) x 2] (1400) Points

Reiatsu Strength – [(200 x 0.6) x 2] (280) Points

Light Aura - [50] Points

Dark Aura - [50] Points

Instinct - [(200 x 1.5) x 2] (600) Points

Senses – [200 x 2] (400) Points

Energy sensory - [(100 x 0.70) x 2] (140) Points

Healing Expertise – [0 x 2] (0) Points

SPOILER: Click to show

{Haiiro Yasei (For Reference)}Technique Name: Soulbind: Haiiro Yasei (Wild Gray)

Class: 4

Technique Type: Shinigami Technique

Usable By: Zeich only

Technique Element: Spirit

Technique Description and Effects:
Haiiro Yasei, despite its name, is a Soulbind that incorporates Zeich's Inner Hollow, Tsukikage, rather than his initial Zanpaktou spirit. This technique draws upon the dark creature's feral nature, and implants it into Zeich, drawing out a more reactive and wild form of combat. The theme of Zeich's Zanpaktou has always been suppression, and so it is here; suppressing his natural calm and analytical personality, layering Tsukikage's anger and aggression atop of it, the Vizard is able to act in a manner completely opposite to what one expects from him. This technique gives him an element of surprise and an air of unpredictability that can completely turn a battle on its head.

When activated, this technique completely coats Zeich in ash, changing his apparent physical features. His face is coated by a mask that seems to mirror his Vizard mask, though the jaws and eyes move just like a real wolf's. Long, pointed ears frame a narrow muzzle and the Vizard's normally golden eyes, making him look feral indeed. As an additional note, those eyes can now see, as they can when normally looking through the filter of Tsukikage's mask. Each hand is now tipped with foot-long razor-sharp claws that are reminiscent of his Kaijin Ken ability, each with durability equal to double his Spiritual Pressure. These claws are treated like an extension of his Zanpaktou, and have cutting power as appropriate. With Zeich's entire body covered in his Reiatsu-suppressing ash, he simply disappears from any form of Energy Sensory, no matter how strong; one can see him, but one can never sense his spiritual presence.

Finally, the greatest bonus of this technique is the reward of utter unpredictability. Because of his feral mindset while this technique is active, Zeich can attack at unusual angles and unexpected times. This unpredictability makes those who have grown accustomed to a pattern from Zeich completely lose track of the Vizard; mechanically, all Analysis skills that apply to Zeich or his attacks (Analysis, Battle Analysis, etc) are reduced by two tiers, unless Zeich is a higher Class than the foe, at which point they are reduced by three tiers. It's hard to predict something without a plan or course of action.

As with all Soulbinds, this technique has a duration equal to the current maximum length of the user’s Shikai release, with an additional five posts of duration if it is mastered. Its cost is also equal to half of the user’s current Shikai cost.

How to use technique:
To use this technique, the user quickly communes with their Zanpaktou Spirit, asking their permission to use it. If permission is granted, the user absorbs their Zanpaktou into their body, causing it to burn with a bright blue flame as it disintegrates away, the spiritual ash merging with their material form.

Technique Drawbacks
This technique has a fair number of drawbacks to balance out the bonuses given to it. For one, all forms of Analysis that Zeich has are reduced to 0, as are all ranks of Calm Mind. Additionally, his combat style is required to be far more aggressive; he cannot take posts in which he is idle, but instead must make at least some form of direct attack every post. Finally, all actions taken are at maximum speed, meaning that stamina can be burned rather quickly, especially since all techniques are still available and will be used offensively in order to take down a foe quickly.

In addition, the normal drawbacks of Soulbind apply: No Zanpaktou techniques can be used during Soulbind; only the overall ability is enabled. Also, no other stage of Release can be used for the Zanpaktou that Soulbind is active with. This also causes spiritual damage to both the user and the Zanpaktou; the user is literally consuming their own soul and making it perfectly align with their material bodies as well, which tears at and weakens the spirit. Excessive use of more than twice in a thread without extended rest will leave a Shinigami comatose or kill him.

Made By: Zeich Yajuu

Reserved: Yes

[Zou ۞]

SPOILER: Click to show

{Play this}

The masked man had gotten what he had wanted. Hollowfication. This was not his first time encountering a Vizard and nor did he expect that it would be his last. Ever since he had learned of his opponent being a Vizard he had been waiting expectantly for the moment when Zeich summoned his Hollow mask. From his experience against Zouma Santeku in that shadowy realm so many years ago and his research since then on the subject the Arrancar was aware of what to expect. Hollowfication made its user twice as fast and strong and seemed to extend infinite stamina to them. It provided them with double the attack power and gave them a sharpened sense of clarity. Every level of statistics went up when Hollowfication was the object in question. However the masked man had overcome that against Zouma Santeku and other Vizards in past wars and he would do the same thing against a lone amateur like this one.

The first thing he noticed aside from the mask was that the ash had coalesced into a more contained form on his opponent's body. The end result of this was that the Arrancar could no longer detect his opponent even with Pesquis. Yet he could see his opponent, even at that distance, and while his ability to analyze Zeich had been weakened unknown to him he had other abilities to fall back on. Having a great mastery of the sword and of martial arts also meant having mastery of analyzing an opponent's space, timing, and footwork. Anyone wishing to excel in these wanted to understand these things. That included the masked man. With instinctive capability and senses that defeated even a wild animal's the masked man could see quite well at that distance. He saw the young Vizard beginning to move. What he noticed was based not on his ability to analyze combat or people but on his knowledge of swordplay. It was a typical advance style attack and it didn't take education or sensory to know that the best way to accomplish it would be the heightened speed that came with Shunpo.

The masked man even anticipated based on how fast Zouma had been before and after Hollowfication that Zeich would be faster by about the same margin or a little more. While Zeich could take away predictability he could not remove experience or knowledge of a combat form. When he started to move, the masked man inherently understood his trajectory of coming forth in a rushing attack and a step technique. However when Zeich was moving the Arrancar noticed something else. I can't read his shoulder's movement or the exact trajectory of where he will appear. Failing to analyze Zeich was one thing but the masked man's mind did work like a computer otherwise and it was able to tell him the answer to the situation immediately even if reduced because of one thing alone: experience. He knew from his training in the sword and in martial arts that something dangerous was the unorthodox. Many martial arts fell to foreign arts. Many beginners had flukes because they were new to movements and did not exhibit telltale signs when randomly flailing and trying to learn.

This was the answer that the masked man realized early. He knew Zeich was coming forward and knew even that a step technique was going to come. He knew that the ferocity and speed would be vastly increased, probably doubled or tripled. And he also knew that Zeich's movements had somehow become unorthodox to him. Something he could not immediately read or accurately predict. He could read the movements a little. He wasn't blind. But to do it with the same accuracy was not possible. Still these facts did nothing to slow the Arrancar's response time. He didn't need just his power of analyzing combat or people. He also had his experience and his knowledge of combat arts to fall back on. What those told him was that the best answer to the situation was still to time his opponent out by using some sort of a catch-all. The masked man instantaneously processed all of this as his analysis may be inferior when trying to gauge Zeich but was still absolutely clear when pondering on himself. He had a powerful instinct and an even more powerful veteran's eye.

As he instantly processed it he also instantly allowed reiatsu to pulse through and burn his leg. The Vizard may be fast but his response time was slowed and he was made more hesitant before the mighty Arrancar's continued exertion of powerful gravitational pressure. Speed wouldn't help him here as the masked man suddenly jumped back with... superior speed to the Vizard. There was a weakness that the masked man hadn't known about or tried to capitalize on but which was fatal here. This was the feral nature of the ability being used against him. His opponent had been consumed by rage and blood lust. His ability to analyze anything had been depleted and was now zero. Against an adversary such as this Arrancar that was fatal. When the masked man was leaping back with superior speed, a flash of light erupted in between then and were it not for existing blindness it would have blinded the Vizard that had immediately launched himself forwards full momentum into a vicious attack. The blindness would have caused hesitation from the sudden shock of the visual pain.

However that was not the real pain. It didn't matter if he was blind or not. The real pain came from a blade being launched so that it would strike directly into the Vizard's mask and carve out his eye while also slashing into his skull. With a Shinigami's durability maybe he would get lucky. Maybe he could survive. The mask would be at least half torn from his face and he wasn't likely to be okay after that attack. His face was probably going to be split open and flesh would flap about because of it. What had happened was the use of the masked man's storage shoes. These were an item he always wore and they allowed him to point his toes to instantaneously summon a sword out into the world. He had done this as he escaped backwards. He hadn't been sure that his opponent was coming from the front but he had made an educated guess that he would be able to repel his opponent if his back was what was in danger. In fact, he did guard his back.

First, the blade did attack the front. It was unexpected. Not even someone with analytic skills would have anticipated it. It was a sword coming from a shoe. It was one of the least expected possible attacks in the masked man's arsenal. A creature that worked purely on instinct and was already committed to an even faster step technique could never have realized what it was and could never have thought to defend against it. Reacting with either a dodge or some kind of block would be impossible. That attack was almost guaranteed a successful strike. It had been timed precisely. But how had his back and sides been protected was another story. The masked man launched himself not only backwards but high up into the air with reiatsu charging through his left arm just in case. He did it with superior speed to the Vizard so that he couldn't have been caught. Yet how he had achieved that superior speed, which would also ensure his defense and attack were impossible to respond to, was an unorthodox technique unique to him alone.

To his credit the masked man kept his reiatsu ready in both body and arm for one of two possible major counters needed should his strategy fail but it was not needed. He had used Kakucho Cero Partial. He had released the reiatsu of one of his powerful Cero into his right leg to improve its speed. His leg was now fuming with steam and was glowing hot red. His speed was also higher now in that leg, the step leg. The step leg executed Sonido with 900 speed. This meant his final Sonido speed was 11,700. It was far greater than before. Zeich had no chance of keeping up with it and he would be completely overwhelmingly shocked by how terrifying it was. The muscles were going to suffer terrible damage for this technique. The masked man had wanted to save it for later but it was necessary here and it was worth it to bring down this Vizard quickly. Since he was so fast there was no way that the Vizard could keep up. Instead his sense of timing had again been beneath the masked man's and he would now take a severe hit to his face. The masked man had avoided the first two attacks this way.

It didn't matter since he was blind but it was likely that with both the horrible bleeding of the face split and the sword taking off half of his mask it would also rip out an eye. He would at least be in pain. He would be bleeding profusely from that eye and from his face now. Focusing would be all but impossible before the wound to his visage. His speed was not enough. Yet somehow the masked man saw him continue. The sword that had been released from the shoe was named Sakebu No Ame. It would be lost for now and to be retrieved later. For now the masked man needed to focus on continued attacks. He saw the telltale signs of footwork approaching another attack. This time the masked man was in the air and he knew that he was vulnerable in the air. He might even be barraged. He kept reiatsu charged in his body for a more serious counter if he needed it but he also had already charged his left arm. He did not wait for Zeich to attack.

He began releasing the Bala from his left arm immediately as he turned himself toward the sky in mid air. He only saw Zeich initiating his step technique after that. Zeich was fast, and his arrival with Shunpo would coincide with the masked man's Bala expanding in size as it fully developed. Yet the Bala's powerful propelled the masked man down at great timing and speed because he had begun it before Zeich came. With Zeich now here, close to the masked man and trying to attack, he was in range of the Bala as it suddenly expanded to a huge size that was large like a car or massive truck. He would be washed ablaze by the red attack and he would be covered in burns. Parts of him might even be reduced to ash. His insides would heat very high. The masked man meanwhile was sent back to ground level and did not hesitate to prepare a final defense to any further attacks from the Vizard.

Upon his landing he immediately used another Sonido off of his right leg to dodge the attack that came from Zeich's Shunpo. The speed was again too much for Zeich to deal with. It took the masked man far away and out of range of the next two attacks as they were executed, causing them to miss. The masked man was back on another rooftop with some distance. He had successfully avoided all of Zeich's attacks. His Sonido speed had been far too great, and because of the Vizard's now lack of analytic power he could not possibly have anticipated or countered a strategy such as the sword cutting his face or the masked man's heightened speed Sonido. He was almost guaranteed to have had his face cut and he probably had burns from the Bala too. He had Shunpo'd into vicinity of both attacks both times and left himself no time or preparation for further attacks. He couldn't use strategy. Only barrage. He had no way of defending or saving himself from those wounds.

Yes. The masked man had escaped with superior speed in Sonido and used the unexpected to land a dire wound on the Vizard's face. He had used a Bala to confound an enemy lacking strategy and cover him in burns. And his superior speed had again allowed yet further escape and retreat. He would eventually pay a price in stamina and muscle damage. But this was nothing compared to what the Vizard was now suffering at the hands of the Arrancar. The masked man's voice carried as he skillfully evaded all of those attacks and returned to a distance away. "You have become overcome by rage... I can see it. You have sacrificed some control to your Hollow and given into your blood lust. Indeed this is a form of power. Perhaps there is some value to you after all. Yet you are still weak and foolish. Useless to me. There is no reason to recruit the likes of you nor reason to tell you to stand down. I will simply allow you to die braver than most."

Kuroi's Remaining Reiatsu: 3950 Reiatsu

Pesquis: 4/5

Kakucho Cero - Right Leg: 1/4

Right Leg Speed: 900

[Zeich Yajuu]

The red haze continued to overtake him, and though Zeich was conscious of the world about him, though he was aware of what happened, his mind was stopped. His analytical abilities were stopped. His calm was stopped. He was consumed by rage and bloodlust, anger and fury. But he was also infused by his natural instincts, his body’s immediate reactions to the world about him. Where the mind could often perform lightning-fast reactions, the body could act even more quickly. This was another threat that Zeich’s Soulbind unleashed, the ability to suppress the cognitive mind that doubted, second-guessed, hesitated, or questioned. Instead the body’s natural instincts and reactions took over, and it was these reactions, with no hesitation or delay on their release, that made him so unpredictable.

And that was why the masked man’s counterattack was ineffective. Though the flash of light would normally have stabbed into Zeich’s eyes, as his vision was restored during the use of his Vizard mask from his viewing through Tsukikage’s eyes, his wild and feral mindset didn’t even blink or flinch away. Instead, his vision was briefly dazzled, his sight taken away for a few moments due to that flash. But it wasn’t enough to halt him, nor was it enough to allow the released sword to strike at him. Lupine ears perked briefly as the sword was released, its sound echoing through the air. The hiss of metal against the air resistance was enough to alert him, and immediately, instinctively, his arm shot out, backhanding the sword away. The blade struck against his claws and, thanks to the sheer power of Zeich’s increased strength and spiritual energy, was thrown aside. It was only by virtue of the masked man’s own spiritual strength that the blade didn’t shatter immediately on the hit, else he would have been down one sword. As it was, the weapon was lost to him, and no damage was done to Zeich’s body; with no real momentum to the sword because of its nature of simply being summoned while the opponent slipped away, it was thrown aside without even slowing the Vizard’s approach.

This was an instinctive response, rather than an analytical one. Zeich, in his feral state, had not thought about what he was striking, not even taking a moment to consider what it was he had hit. He had simply detected something in his way and had thrown it aside, the powerful blow leaving the blade crashing through the rooftop of the nearby building, disappearing beneath the ceiling and likely embedding itself in some poor attacker who was foolish enough to be beneath its path. This was the advantage that Zeich’s mindset gave him: where his adversary might have acted to create strategies that were too fast for a cognitive or analytical mind to follow, these same strategies had a high failure rate against a mind that didn’t think, but simply acted without hesitation.

It was no different even as the masked man moved away once more; Zeich closed the distance in one step again, and though he was slower thanks to the opponent’s use of another technique, he still caught up after a moment. It was to his disadvantage, however, that it was into another attack; even as he appeared, a Bala was fired, then expanded to an enormous size. It looked as though it would consume the Vizard, but Zeich simply charged through it, his claws slashing out before him again. The Bala was torn apart, though not just because of the former Shinigami’s strike; it was simply too fast to be struck down completely. No, as it struck Zeich, it simply was tanked, torn through by the difference in technique Class. Zeich’s Soulbind was far more powerful than a simple Bala no matter its size, and thanks to his high spiritual pressure giving strength to the ashen body about him, he was able to shrug off the explosive force of the attack as it shattered on impact, unable to harm him. Bala did not have a constant field of temperature and was concussive by nature, so once it struck, the heat dissipated, leaving the Vizard unburned. Had it not been for his ash-layered skin, that would have been a disaster, but as it was, he was simply able to continue past the explosion.

Even though the masked man was moving again, Zeich once more closed. This time, however, he did not carry himself in front of the man. His step was so powerful, his instincts telling him to keep moving thanks to his opponent’s speed, that he actually overshot it and ended up behind him. The effect was still as useful, however, placing him behind his foe and into a blind spot. If he were more analytically minded, not lost in Tsukikage’s bloodlust, he would have guessed that his opponent probably had a way of guarding his blind spots. Even if his Pesquis didn’t work, Zeich could have guessed that his opponent’s sheer battle experience would be enough to allow him to anticipate an attack from behind. Odds were, his mental process would have told him that the masked man would aim a counterattack behind him after such a movement, and he would have instead worked with that to make use of Shinkirou, stepping back in front of the man even as a counterattack came and left him a wide opening to strike from. Normally, in a bloodthirsty rage, this would not work. That was why mental clarity was needed.

Master, wake up!

Right on cue, Haiiro’s words broke through the haze of fury, shattering it and removing it altogether. They had planned this, the two of them. Though the wolf lacked Zeich’s natural analytical and logical processes in exchange for a larger emotional capacity, he was still able to tell an advantageous situation in combat. The two of them had worked it out thus: though Haiiro would lack the capacity to make plans on the fly and take control of such an advantageous situation, he could recognize it and alert his master to it. At the moment of alert, Zeich would break his Soulbind, restoring his mentality almost immediately and allowing him to act in accordance to the situation. The best way, of course, was to make use of his strongest ability, something that only a handful of Shinigami possessed.

Bankai: Tsukikage Ookami.

The wolf-like creature would seem to explode outwards into a wall of gray that swallowed everything about it like a sandstorm erupting in the middle of combat. There was no tell-tale indicator; going from a form that lacked any form of expelled energy to sense and into a Bankai whose ash prevented those in its area from being detected by spiritual senses, there was no way to know that a switch would happen. Zeich’s Bankai didn’t let out a swell of Reiatsu thanks to its suppressive nature, and as a result, there would be no warning for the change from Soulbind to Bankai. By the time the masked man noticed it, he would be too late; he would be engulfed in a sea of ashes, one that could occupy as much space as a skyscraper. It trapped him, enveloped him, and though the ashes were normally disparate and easily scattered, now they were clumped and compressed into a solid mass that would not simply be brushed aside by physical force. Even the masked man would not be able to simply push it back by flexing his Reiatsu, he’d discover; his ability to pulsate out energy was strong, but Zeich’s spiritual strength was higher, and he was using a Release as opposed to an unfocused pulse of Reiatsu.

In fact, it wasn’t just any Release; Zeich had poured more Reiatsu into his Bankai than normal, making it even more powerful. The ash would crush down with even greater force, binding the masked man, preventing him from moving any part of his body even as it started to invade, slipping through his clothing and his mask, pressing against the skin and beginning to sap away Reiatsu. But it did more; it would invade the eyes, ears, mouth, and nose, suffocating and infesting the man’s body, and the moment it went inside, he was doomed. Zeich’s ash was a fatality if it ever entered the body or slipped past defenses, as it could turn into a thousand different deadly forms to rip apart the victim from the inside, tearing apart vital organs and leaving nothing but a mass of internal bleeding and ruined insides.

And then there was the second layer of attack; even as he was hemmed in, pressed against by the ash restricting his movements, the attacker would find that his arms would be bound, wrapped in some type of ashen cloth that wrapped around them and tied them behind his back like some kind of restraint. A layer of chains formed over them, a second binding to double the strength of the grip. This was an exceptionally powerful binding from Zeich’s Shikai, Kaijin Gokusha, and it grew stronger in Bankai. A doubled layer of ashen restraints would prevent anyone without more than double Zeich’s spiritual strength from breaking through, and against a stat of 1400, the masked man couldn’t even compare. His legs would receive similar bindings, an attempt to lock out movement as well as offensive capability. With both his arms and his legs bound, the ash trapping him and invading his body, and his Reiatsu being sapped away and blocked by the bindings on him, the invader would suddenly find himself with few options to counterattack.

But the Vizard wasn’t arrogant enough to assume that his “trick” would guarantee him a victory. Even as he summoned his Bankai, he activated one of its techniques: Kaijin Kasumi allowed his own body to dissolve and dissipate into ash, removing a target for the masked man to strike at; all he could do was evade and escape from the ash, and though he’d be able to do significant damage to the surrounding area, it was doubtful that he could deal significant damage to such a large and potentially disparate mass of ash, even with the power of Cero. In essence, Zeich became potentially invincible to incoming attacks, though he’d have to reform parts of himself in order to make his own strikes aside from guiding his ash.

This was the start of the real battle; Zeich’s Bankai was in play, and he rarely utilized it in combat due to its lack of necessity. That he did so indicated the level of threat that his opponent presented, enough that he had to throw everything into the battle. The masked man was a force of destruction, and he had forced Zeich to use his ultimate power just to restrain and bind him. Without his Vizard Mask, that would have been a potentially impossible task, but now, while he had a few minutes where he could use Tsukikage’s full power, there was a chance. If he could hold the masked man for those few minutes, until his ash invaded the opponent’s body, that would be it. It would be game over, and the head of this invasion’s snake would be cut off, leaving the rest to writhe and die.

Remaining Reiatsu: 4300/7000 (-300 for resisting Gravitational Pressure, -100 for Shunpo x2, -450 for Bankai Class 1, -600 for Kaijin Gokusha doubled x2, -100 for Kaijin Kasumi)

Bankai: 1/9

Vizard Mask: 2/3

[Zou ۞]

SPOILER: Click to show

{Play this}

The Vizard may have broken his haze of fury but it was this act that allowed the masked man to evade his attack. Zeich was logical and analytical and he possessed razor sharp instincts. This was especially true whilst he wore the mask that signified Hollowfication. If the Arrancar had been privy to Zeich's thoughts he would certainly have admired the teamwork fostered between the Vizard, the Zanpakuto spirit, and the Hollow within. Yet that was all it was. Teamwork. Teamwork between three spirits none of whom had the experience or power of analysis that the masked man did. His mind was as a super computer, his body as a machine. All who faced him were immobile rag dolls compared to the awesome onslaught of his mechanical and flawless attacks. Though he appeared in the masked man's blind spot Zeich was still slower. He had lagged a second or two behind the Arrancar's Sonido and given him adequate prep time for a further counter.

He also gave him another quarter moment or two with the time it would take to realize his opportunity. The wolf had to break his fury and alert him, the Vizard had to observe his situation and deduce his attack, and he had to release Bankai and will it into physical motion. These were a lot of actions and prompted a lot of time. Meanwhile, the masked man's mind, with all of that experience and skill, was able to process far more information in that time and make it advantageous. The first thing he noticed of course was the Vizard in his blind spot. He noticed the approach and trajectory not by measuring the Vizard's own movements but by glancing into his peripherals as he moved and observing the dissipated Bala as he faced it upon landing from his Sonido. He saw the Bala shredded and the viciousness behind it which indicated a feral attack. He had seen this kind of relentless barrage many times before, even done them himself, and he knew more was coming.

Yet he also knew that the airborne Bala meant that to step again the Vizard needed to touch onto the ground and gain that platform before he could Shunpo, just as the Arrancar had done for his Sonido. The Vizard was not far behind, but he was still slower when it came to step techniques. All of this alone gave the masked man more than adequate time to prepare himself. As the Vizard appeared in his blind spot, he twisted off into a Sonido away again. His Sonido began as the Vizard's fury broke and Zeich's highly potent instinct alerted him to the situation and the need to use Bankai. It would look as if the masked man simply outsped the Bankai, but it was a matter of timing once more. He escaped before the Bankai began to move, while there were still openings to escape from, before the ash even spilled forth. It was out of his own instinct and desire to evade further barrages that the masked man disappeared into a fast Sonido far away, out of reach. By the time the Bankai appeared, the masked man would be gone. High instinct didn't matter against superior speed combined with superior analysis and superior experience, planning, and expectation.

The time taken to reach the masked man, the time taken to break fury and create that attack. That was all that was needed to analyze the situation and perform a step technique. However, on his way away, the Arrancar also noticed something else as the Vizard appeared in his blind spot and just a fraction of a second before Sonido. The Arrancar noticed it from seeing the Vizard's shadow and from the way the air moved about him. The Arrancar noticed that he could tell what kind of movement the Vizard's body was using, and was likely able to detect what the Vizard's body position was. I can read you again. Thus the masked man escaped a moment before the ash coalesced and attacked, and he did so with the knowledge that his opponent had either lost his fury or could now once more be predicted more easily. His opponent might be calculating again. Yet of course, though he had good instincts, Zeich did not have the power of combat analysis that the masked man did. Their abilities to strategize or to take advantage of timing and space was like night and day.

It was no wonder Zeich had not been able to land even that attack. By the time the huge Bankai attack struck, the masked man was far out of range. However he could observe, and he did. He saw his opponent become ashes and merge with them. He saw a much larger flood of ashes than ever before. With that mass it could cover the distance between them quickly after it had finished failing in its initial strike. However the masked man did not have to worry. He never had to worry. He would counter it when it arrived. Right now he only had to judge the size and scope of it to identify it as a Bankai. Hollowfication and a Bankai... This was excellent news. The Vizard would tire himself out soon because of this. The masked man had seen masks of varying duration and was not exactly sure when this one would break but he knew that none of them lasted for very long. Only Zouma Santeku had been able to push for a long time.

Even in spite of all of this the masked man's reiatsu pulsed through his body and he was ready to move and to attack and to counter. As long as even a millimeter of space existed between him and an attack, he had his one ultimate failsafe way to repel it. Such was an Arrancar's advantage. Such would have been Zeich's advantage in Bankai if he had kept it instead of seeking stealth. Though the Arrancar acknowledged that a stealth approach was not without merit if they operated differently from one another. Now instead he watched with curiosity. What would be the Vizard's next move? What would be his attack? If Bankai was out, then the masked man suspected that this Vizard might try a truly final ultimate attack as Captains in the past had done. First, there was something else. The masked man had returned to the building they had started on and both combatants would be able to look back into the original window where Enma was.

The window where blood was all over the walls from Shinigami that had tried and failed to save him. The window which showed a Mod Soul about to drive a blade into Enma's heart as the masked man had ordered.

Kuroi's Remaining Reiatsu: 3850 Reiatsu

Pesquis: 5/5

Kakucho Cero - Right Leg: 2/4

Right Leg Speed: 900

[Zeich Yajuu]

Another failed attempt, the man’s experience giving him enough paranoia to retreat even in the face of an unusual and unintended attack. Zeich swore to himself mentally, realizing that he was just too outmatched at this point. He had nothing to overcome the man’s defenses, had nothing to surprise his opponent; though he could shift into Soulbind again and make use of its unpredictability, he was already feeling unwell, the results of forcibly merging his soul already leaving him aching on a spiritual level. Besides, his Vizard mask wouldn’t last much longer; he could feel it, ready to give out in the coming moments, and without it he would be even worse off than before. At this point, victory was impossible.

But victory was not the only objective, nor the only goal. Zeich had succeeded in stalling his enemy for a considerable amount of time, allowing the Shinigami of Soul Society to band together and better prepare themselves for combat against this man. Zeich had burnt down his opponent’s stamina notably, forcing him to constantly step around and even use techniques to augment his speed. This was not a worthless endeavor in the end, as one false step from exhaustion could be the turning point that reversed this invasion and turned it into a rout. The Vizard took comfort knowing that while he could not overcome and stop this foe himself, he was able to contribute in a way that could count later on.

There was one last thing that needed to be attended to, however; Zeich knew that the masked man had sent his allies into the Squad Four barracks to kill all those there, whether they were patient or medic. Though he could not save everyone, and was sure that the majority were dead, Zeich was determined to save those he could. Medics were crucial in any war, and now was no exception. Additionally, the masked man had mentioned Enma’s presence within the medical wing; though the former Shinigami bore no obligation to his previous commander, Zeich knew that every Captain was an asset to Soul Society, and though the Vizard’s efforts had not been able to save Lorilad, Enma would still be of considerable value once he recovered from whatever injury had him here in the first place.

That was why the ashen mass suddenly crashed down; rather than coming down like a light snowfall, as ash was wont to do, Zeich’s mental control had it crash down like a tidal wave upon the barracks. Gray ash flooded through all of the rooms, tearing through windows and doorways, flooding through the attacking soldiers and suffocating them beneath its mass. Ash would flow into mouths and throats, choking and suffocating them, while limiting movement as it filled entire rooms of the Barracks. The few Shinigami that were still alive were unharmed, but they too would feel the power of Zeich’s Zanpaktou a moment later.

Each time he approached an allied Shinigami, Zeich’s hand reformed from the ash and made brief contact with the man or woman, converting their body into his Bankai’s ash as well. The use of Kaijin Gokusha in an offensive manner had a few beneficial uses to it, and Zeich’s superior spiritual strength would allow him to convert his allies almost immediately. While his opponents were wiped out by the flood of ash in such a limited, enclosed space, three Shinigami that would have otherwise been killed within minutes were saved, becoming one with Zeich’s ash to be reformed later. For now, he had to force his way into the medical wing where Enma was being held, aware that there were threats closing in on the man at that very moment.

Ash would flood into the room, and the man looming over Enma would find himself crushed beneath the sheer volume of ash that slammed him into a wall. Much like the other Shinigami, Zeich reached out to transform Enma’s body into ash as well. With the Captain’s unconsciousness meaning he offered no struggle, the Vizard was able to convert him almost instantly. In a moment, those few survivors—Zeich, Enma, and the three medical Shinigami he had managed to rescue—were all part of the Bankai’s ash. And then the ashen mass scattered in all directions, seemingly spreading in a disparate mass outwards from the Squad Four barracks. It would be impossible to target it accurately, and no one section made up any individual person anyway; Zeich could reform his Bankai by refreshing the cost, and re-summon the ash to make up that which was lost.

At this point, the Vizard had been forced to escape, and though the results were less than ideal, he had still accomplished much. The masked man had been slowed, and some of his abilities had been put on display; any Omnitsukido member watching would be able to at least give a slight edge to those who had yet to defend against their attacker. Enma had been saved, and though Zeich owed him no loyalty anymore, at least the Captain would live to fight another day. Not ideal, but acceptable. Maybe another day Zeich would be strong enough to challenge the masked man, should the attack not claim his life; for now, he was thankful to be alive. He had much to live for, these days.


((OOC: With this, Zeich has fled the battle, marking it over on my end. Feel free to give an additional post for closure.))

[Zou ۞]

Perhaps it would have been a simple matter to destroy the Vizard at that moment. A use of Muerte Lanzar or Bala Odioso while this enemy tried to save medics and Enma would have been guaranteed to hit because of the size and scale of both attacks. Yet the masked man did not intend to waste such resources on his opponent. It was as Zeich had strategized. Though the Arrancar still had an enormous amount of stamina, reiatsu and power left to spare this was a large scale invasion and every single modicum of energy counted. If the masked man was to continue to the Captain Commander he would need to be near his peak condition and this battle with the Vizard had taken enough out of the Arrancar that there was no point in continuing to fight. Zeich seemed to have the same idea. The ashes were flooding out to indicate an escape. Though Zeich could have forced the masked man to exert greater power it would cost him his life, something he evidently valued.

It was a wise decision not to die for a cause like this. The Vizard had realized that he would also be needed in the future and that dying against the masked man would lead to the loss of Enma's life and the loss of more medics. Even if it made it so that a battle against the Captain Commander was not possible that loss of resources was even greater a loss than if the Captain Commander was injured. The Vizard had been intelligent and powerful. The masked man would show him the respect that he had earned in future encounters. Nonetheless despite the masked man's internal compliment Zeich had only managed to save three medics and Enma. All of the others that were in Squad 4 at the time were annihilated. When Zeich continued on to escape the masked man would descend from the rooftop and fire a lone Cero to annihilate what remained of the actual barracks. Barracks which were already aflame and whose instruments of medicine had already been destroyed.

One of the masked man's soldiers appeared behind him and knelt for a status report as the Arrancar halted outside of the ashes that had once been Squad 4. "My lord, our forces are receiving heavy losses near Squad 7. Vice Captain Youji has appeared." Enma's Vice Captain. The masked man recalled his knowledge on the man and knew of the power contained by those in the division in its peak days. If he was an enemy there then regular forces would not be plausible. "Return to the ship. Tell them to deploy a supervising commander against him, and if that one should fail then another should be sent." Two would suffice to kill a Vice Captain of that level. The masked man remembered when Enma's Squad 7 had been more powerful and he recalled hearing rumors that all of its members could use Bankai. The masked man accounted for that and had his highest level of command sent after Kaen Youji. If one fell it would not matter as Kaen's injuries would be too severe to sustain battle against another.

---

Silence. Then the sound of his own heartbeat. All that Kaito could hear was his heart and a ringing in his ears. There were noises outside. The sounds of war and death were there. Nonetheless the 12th seat of Squad 1 could not hear any of that. He had been part of a squadron deployed to repel Mod Soul invaders. They had succeeded at first. Squad 1 had been protected for a while. 8th seat Asahi, 11th seat Jibu, 16th seat Hinata, 20th seat Reo, 5th seat Arashi. Together all of them and Kaito had been able to ward off attack and he had thought triumphantly of the potential to turn the tides. That had been until he felt the reiatsu at the door. It was an overwhelming ocean of power and a magnitude that the 12th seat had never felt before. His heart immediately came to a halt and he nearly choked on his own saliva as beads of sweat rolled from his forehead and down his chin onto the floor.

Time stood still for a moment, just a moment, and then the door exploded inward off of its hinges. The blaze of red reiatsu that had flooded the room was larger than Kaito could ever have imagined and was also deafening so that his ears were truly left ringing after it happened. He fell to the floor on his bottom in shock while his teeth began to grind with fear and the chattering was audible to everyone in the room. His ears would not stop ringing. He could barely process that moment when a man in black with a helmet for a mask over his head walked into the room with impressively poised posture and a Zanpakuto in his right hand. "HOLD HIM!" Asahi had yelled that. Kaito heard it vaguely out of one ear but did not immediately react. He saw his friend the 8th seat charge first. His sword was held over his head but with one arm at a low diagonal position with his other arm over his chest. He knew what he was doing.

It didn't matter. The masked man's Zanpakuto cut through Asahi's blade and then through Asahi. The manner of death was decapitation and Asahi's blood sprayed all over the walls and the floor before his body even fell. "Oh... oh my god, Jesus no...!" Kaito inhaled. He had discovered Christ during exhibitions to the human world and come to believe in a higher power of that sort. It helped comfort him with a job that dealt in the lore behind death but today it did no such thing. He stood and tried to run but when his back turned to the masked man his legs froze in place. Knees weak, shoulders shaking, Kaito turned his head to see the masked man's progress toward him. Hinata and Jibu had already gone up to him but they were just as ineffective. Hinata lost his arm before his blade ever met the masked man's weapon while Jibu's blade shattered against the masked man's body. Both were taken down in one slash that severed them below the waist.

Kaito saw their eyes go empty as they died. The masked man even made a point to drive his sword into Hinata's heart on the way toward the rest of the Shinigami of Squad 1. Kaito was next. He was next. He was next... He couldn't explain why his body moved the way it did. He did not feel brave. He did not feel loyal. He was willing to abandon his friends here if it meant he would escape with his wretched life but all the same he charged the masked man. His weapon even ignited with reiatsu as Kaito began to release to use his Shikai. It did nothing for him. Before it even finished his blade was split in half and he saw the masked man's left hand entered his chest and grasp his heart. He had only a split second to understand how he was going to die. He used that second to look back at Reo and Arashi. "Run away!" he called to them. "PLEASE." His heart was crushed afterward and he fell dead to the floor as the masked man marched over his lifeless corpse.

[Kyomei Kuchiki]

76 Paragraphs for Zeich equals 760 TP
48 Paragraphs for Kuroi plus victory equal 580 TP