Welcome to Squad 4 [Medium / DE] ❷✗

[Deleted]

Name: Welcome to Squad 4

Participants: Hibiki

Location: Soul Society

Difficulty Level: Medium

Setting: DE

Plotline: Wow. Things just do not get easy for this man. First he gets pudding in his socks? Then he dies? He finally comes back to life after all that and more and guess what? He gets accused of being an imposter! Hibiki finds himself brought before the Central 46, who are in the middle of discussing just what to do with this strange individual.

Estimated Enemy Strength: Class 5

Estimated Time Until Completion: 3 Pages

Starts: Now

Special Conditions: [Insert Here] - Any special conditions, limitations, or other things.

[Kamikawa Hibiki]

How in the world had he ended up here? Well, he could try to play innocent, but Kamikawa Hibiki knew exactly why he stood where he did. He stood before Central 46 accused of a single crime. They had called him an impostor. He couldn’t possibly be who he said he was, for the man known as Hibiki had been killed in action years ago. His death was an official fact of that mission, and was not something that could be easily erased from the record. If he had turned up the next day, or the next week, then perhaps it would have been easier, but he had been considered naught but a corpse for nearly half a decade.

They had given him a stern lecture about how everything he had claimed was impossible. He had told them the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. While they had admitted that the disappearance of Amaya Azarola lined up with his story, and there was a similarity in their powers, everything he claimed being true would have required him to be the first to ever achieve a number of things. It would have been the first reincarnation as a Zanpakuto Spirit ever recorded, and the first time that a Zanpakuto Spirit ever took over a host body permanently. The only part of it that wouldn’t be a first would be the surgery to change his appearance.

Admitting that either of these things were possible would be tough for Central 46 to do. If they admitted that someone could be brought back from the dead, outside the cycle of souls, then it wouldn’t exactly be a good thing. The Shinigami preached the cycle of souls as a nearly religious mantra. A crack in that would not be seen in a positive light. Far worse was the other half, where a Zanpakuto Spirit had taken control of a Shinigami. He had explained that it was a special case, and that there should be no possibility of this happening to others, but the idea that Shinigami could become slaves to their weapons, who might not consider the Gotei to be allies, was a terribly troubling precedent to set.

For the time being, Hibiki was stuck with nothing to do but hang his head and wait for their deliberations to be finished. He had made his case, and offered all the words that he could. He had had only one request that he was hopeful for. He didn’t have a personal relationship to anyone in Central 46, but there were others out there who would know he was the real Hibiki. There was sure to be some kind of evidence he could turn up, as well as some witnesses. He had asked them for some time to go out and prove his innocence. It’s not like he was much of a threat in his current condition, so he hoped that they would permit him to go get his proof if they didn’t already believe him.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Stats and Skills}
Stats
Strength - [100{50)] Points
Speed - [90] Points
Spiritual Pressure - [50] Points
Reiatsu Strength - [90(135)] Points
Light Aura - [100] Points
Dark Aura - [0] Points
Instinct - [50] Points
Senses [100(50)] Points
Energy sensory - [0] Points
Healing Expertise - [100(150)] Points
Total SP: [580] Points

Skills

• [Kido] {1}
  
• [Battle Analysis] {1}
  
• [Hakuda] {1}
  
• [Mental Incantation] {1}
  
• [Calm Mind] {1}
  
• [Pain Tolerance] {1}

[Jyuria "Elisa" Arroj]

It had been a hard deliberation to be sure, and no doubt it would be hard for Hibiki to feel very good about his chances, standing there in the center of the chamber, with untold numbers of seals and traps around him, keeping him from the numerous judges that all but surrounded him. After all, there was no jury, only judges. The most conservative and cautious of judges in perhaps the three worlds. As each member moved in and returned to their place after their consideration, Hibiki would be all but drowned in the haunting silence that followed. The men and women in charge of his fate allowed the silence to sink in, to cast doubt in his mind, as if waiting to see if the man would suddenly crack under the anticipation.

One of the voices let out a slow, tired sigh. "Something on your mind, Pretender?" That voice came out calloused and grouchy, whatever the deliberation had been, the man seemed clearly displeased with it, and Hibiki would be able to almost FEEL the glare through the screen that separated him from this particular judge. His words caused a shift, and even a few muffled chuckles from the other panels as another, much more gentle voice spoke up behind another screen, one that, no doubt to Hibiki's surprise, would sound unbelievably young.

"We have reached a decision. One I believe you will be quite pleased with. As it stands, the argument you have established, while somewhat convenient and lacking in hard facts, is something that does match up with a number of your claims. Of course, under normal circumstances, someone of your position would have very little wiggle-room. But thanks to your.....chosen venue of profession. We can allow some leniency. It is the decision of this court that you be released under parole and guard for the time being. You have made a number of claims which this council is very eager to see brought to a more...concrete foundation. Given your apparent extensive knowledge of your situation, we feel that you should be given the opportunity to provide us with more evidence of your claim. We are giving you a chance to prove that you're telling the truth."

Another, sly voice spoke up from the other end of the room. "But of course, it's only fair that you know. The main deciding factor was the fact that you're so weak that we don't feel any particular threat from you~ You have been allotted a single week. During which time you will be allowed to collect evidence and present your case to us anew." The man sounded amused, but so very very doubtful, as though his smiling mouth were plastered with a grin that said he KNEW Hibiki would never amount enough evidence to really change their minds. The man was lounging so hard that even from Hibiki's position, he would be able to see the barest hint of wavy grey locks from the edge of that screen. It was clear whomever this man was: He had no high opinion of Hibiki.

A much more stern, elderly female voice piped up. "But it is rather crucial that you not believe this to be any sort of wide berth. Weak or not, you will be under constant surveillance and guard. You may very well feel, young man, that you are alone for this time. Do not allow such insipid thoughts to cross your mind. Your execution may come just as easily as any traitorous thoughts may cause your hand to stray to any activities beyond gathering evidence." She all but sneered at him, the height of incredulity in her voice. "You have a single week. During which time, you will be permitted to move about freely. But make no mistake young man. This trial has not yet concluded, and should you fail to adequately prove yourself. You will be executed for crimes of impersonating a Soul Reaper."

"Can't go wasting funds on some weak little thing like you being in prison now can we?~ If you are innocent, then enjoy this blessing. Prove yourself, and we will certainly welcome your....'revival' with open arms~ And no doubt a number of individuals in the sereitei will have missed you~. But of course....if you are lying to us. Then I would consider using this time to enjoy yourself while you can~ The Rukongai and Sereitei have such wonderful facilities this time of year. Enjoy this last week you have in this plane of existence. And rest assured, you will not escape your punishment." He chuckled softly at that.

An audible sigh came from the other end of the chamber, from that young male voice. "Do you have anything else to say before we allow you to leave?" That voice asked calmly and cooly, and several judges shifted in their seats in anticipation. If nothing else, the judges were very interested in this 'young man' to say the least. His every word, gesture, and tone was scrutinized from so very many directions. As if each and every one of them was looking for some sign or tell that this man was, or was not, who he said he was.

[Kamikawa Hibiki]

There were certainly a number of things that Hibiki wanted to say in that moment. Most of them were not a good idea. He wanted to tell them to shove this stupid trial straight up their asses and die in a fire, but obviously he didn’t dare utter that aloud. This whole situation had been almost entirely out of his control from the day of his reawakening, several years ago. The only part of this that had ever really been intentional was the “backup” attempt itself when he had created this version of himself in the first place. All the rest of it had been a series of unfortunate events.

So no matter how much he wanted to tell off the Central 46, he knew that he couldn’t do it at this time. Though he could dare to be defiant, he could not dare to be disrespectful. His words were chosen ever so carefully, but he did speak. ”I think you’ll find that you have made the right choice. I look forward to proving the claims I have made. It is a shame that Lorilad is no longer with us to prove this more easily, but rest assured I’ll get you the proof you require so that you know Soul Society’s number one medic is back. I look forward to seeing you all for your check-ups in the future.”

With his piece said, Hibiki turned on his heels and walked from the room. Only once he was outside that chamber would his shackles be released. Weak though he was, no level of threat was deemed acceptable to the Central 46, and even with his limited Kido arsenal he was some threat. The question now was what to go do. Truly, Hibiki wished that Lorilad were still alive. Were his former Captain still around, then this would have been settled in an instant. The two knew each other well enough that they could have figured it out with mere questions, but Lorilad also could have verified the DNA in a few minutes.

Oh well. Life wasn’t that easy anymore. Instead he had to head back to Squad Four and do things the old fashioned way. Well, really, DNA sequencing wasn’t old fashioned at all, but that was definitely the first step to be done. Soul Society had a bad habit of keeping samples of noteworthy Shinigami around, be it for purposes of identification, research, or just for medical baseline records. As former vice-captains of Squad Four, both he and Amaya had DNA aplenty in storage due to the sheer amount of times they were used for internal testing of new medications. Want to test a drug? Who better to test the efficacy with than someone whose body will filter out all the nasty side effects you forgot to remove?

So it was back to Squad Four, but he couldn’t just run the tests himself. Though Hibiki couldn’t detect any outside eyes on him, he was never much of one for noticing hidden individuals. Still, he couldn’t assume that they would have enough medical training to be able to swear that he didn’t doctor the results of the DNA testing. So he made his way back to the barracks in search of some of his former subordinates, ones that he could trust, to have them run the testing for him and certify its accuracy. Hopefully that would be enough to prove at least one part of his story. There would be plenty more work to do, but that was a starting point.

[Jyuria "Elisa" Arroj]

The individuals behind those screens simply chuckled at his reply, some of them more heartily than others. Some didn't at all. In any case, the 'criminal' was let out of the chambers, and escorted out of the Central 46 chambers and into the processing chamber. With the verdict already decided, it was a simple matter of giving him his possessions back. His Zanpaku'to primarily, and anything else that he had been stripped of along the way. He could almost smell the disdain in the air as the guards gave him his things and then he was bulled over to the exit.

Once he was out, he was escorted out of the compound and back toward Squad 4, where he had been picked up in the first place. One of the guards weaved a sign and Hibiki would notice that nobody seemed to react to them, it seemed to be some sort of kido to ensure that they were not disturbed. Once they arrived at his barracks, he was released, given one last look at those sneering guards before they vanished from sight, no doubt heading back to where they had been stationed. Hibiki was left quite alone in the barracks, the majority of squad four was off performing their duties.

If he was looking for a familiar face he would...strangely not find many? At least none of his trusted subordinates. They seemed to have simply vanished. Every now and then he would see the smiling face of a comrade as they either worked or passed by him, but it didn't seem that there were any friendly faces present! The first person to actually talk to him, he would likely only vaguely remember, a short, blonde-haired girl by the name of Isa, a full head shorter than him and all but skipping. "Ah! Hibiki-kun! There you are! You sure got me in a lot of trouble!" She huffed, slapping a notebook before him. "What's with that weird, far-off look? Cmon snap out of it! I can't scold you if you don't even LOOK like you're paying attention!" she insisted, clearly unaware of the situation going on around him.

Annoying Coworker encountered
Name: Isa Mee Mario
Rank: Unseated
Class: 6
Status: Annoyed