Employees with the Employer [Closed, Joint Training]

[Kazura Uzaki]

It was early on a Saturday morning, however Kazura was still in the office working. Work never ended, it only had small breaks from time to time. These breaks usually included the random sleeping, the fighting, and the plane rides. And as Kazura wasn't sleeping, fighting, or riding in a plane, he was working. There was a lot of paperwork involved in being the head of a business, and while he was incredibly bored of it, he couldn't trust it to any of his secretaries. Not that they weren't the top of their class in... secretary school, they just were mortal, rather than being special.

Kazura looked over the books for the last time, and was happy to see that the little departments that contained the Rogue Shinigami and the new Fullbringer had no real impact on his company as a whole. They could literally set their yearly budgets on fire and there would be no auditors who would mention anything of it. When Kazura had finished a good portion of the day's paperwork, all of the things that involved the spiritual realm at all, he decided that he could take a break. He didn't feel like sleeping, and didn't feel like going somewhere on a plane, so he'd go and fight.

Rather than fighting his robots as he would normally, he decided that he would use this period of being bored to collect his spiritual employees and put them through the ropes. He could train them while training himself, so he went down to the dojo and whipped up a training regimen. By the time he was finished, it was a half hour until noon, so he hoped that his two employees, the Rogue and Fullbringer, were awake by this point in time. First thing that I need to do is get their names...

With the dojo ready, Kazura sent for Iwamichi and Kitai. He was hoping that they would come. He nearly could guarantee that Kitai would come, as the fullbringer had desired to spar with him every once in awhile, and he could only hope that the Rogue had enough respect for him to come when he politely requested her presence for training and exercise. Whether they came or not, he had a training course laid out for the three of them. It would test their physical and mental endurances, while also having fun, hopefully.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Stats}

Strength - [200 x.5 (100)] Points

Speed - [200] Points

Light Aura - [40] Points

Dark Aura - [60] Points

Spiritual Pressure - [200] Points

Reiatsu Strength - [200 x.5 (100)] Points]

Instinct - [200] Points

Senses [150] Points

Energy sensory - [50] Points

Healing Expertise - [200 (x.5) 100] Points


Total SP: [1400] Points



Abilities



[Analysis] {2}

[Pain Tolerance] {2}

[Strength of Will] {2}

[Crafting/Forging] {2}

[Krav Maga] {2}

[Learning] {2}

[Jujutsu] {2}

[Stealth] {2}


Total SKP: 16

[Kitai Yoru]

Kitai had just returned to his home he had received from Kazura. When he had joined his little group, he hadn't expected to get them so soon. It had been less than a few hours before he was given an address by the rich boy and was able to finally sleep. If he hadn't been so tired at the time, he might have questioned it further. Or blamed it on magic. The building was starch white, and plain all around, but he preferred it that way. He had received a few extra things as well, like a phone/pager. It had received a text, saying to meet for some training, but no one was there to answer it. It would be another twenty minutes before someone finally did.

Kitai was walking home from one of the few Christian churches in Japan. He had left the phone at home, along with his fullbring items and straitjacket. He had to take a pair of white gloves so his hands wouldn't burn in the sunlight, and actually combed his hair, putting it in a pony tail. He had left early in the morning, and stayed for the entire sermon. This lasted for a few hours, and made him miss Kazura text. He might have arrived in time for it, if he hadn't walked home from the church.

Upon finally arriving at his new home, he ripped off the gloves from his hands, and headed up to his bedroom. He tossed the gloves on the kitchen table as he passed it. Jumping onto the bed, he landed on his back with an 'umph'. He laid there, fully intending on going to sleep. He would have too, if his phone hadn't made an annoying bleeping noise. His right eye shot open, looking slightly bloodshot. Kitai was pretty tired, despite it being noon.

The albino preferred living the night life, sleeping through the days as they go by, with church being an exception. Begrudgingly reaching for the phone, he clicked a few buttons to see what it wanted. Rubbing his eyes, he read over the message Kazura had sent him. After he finished the text, his lips spread across his face, becoming a wicked smile, once again. He got up, and got his straitjacket and fullbring items. He went to his kitchen before he left, and grabbed a few cans of something, and placed them in his long sleeves, before rushing out the door. The door locking itself as it slammed.

He didn't need to run for long though. The house was very close to his destination, so he only got lost three times as a result. He blames bad directions on Kazura's fault. So, after nearly forty minutes from the time his phone got the text, to the time he had entered the dojo had passed. So, Kitai being Kitai, slammed the door open, and walked in. His presence was able to send chills down most peoples backs, just from his aura alone. He was drinking from one of the cans he had grabbed earlier. You wouldn't be able to see the can, being covered by his sleeve, but it smelled or alcohol. Finishing the can quietly, he crushed it, and placed it back into his left sleeve.

SPOILER: Click to show

{stats and skills}[Strength - [300] Points (+25%=370)

Speed - [100] Points

Spiritual Pressure - [200] Points (-50%=100)

Reiatsu Strength - [150] Points (+25%=187)

Light Aura - [0] Points

Dark Aura - [100] Points

Instinct - [210] Points (-50%=105)

Senses [100] Points

Energy sensory - [100] Points (+25%=125)

Healing Expertise - [0] Points

Total SP: [1160] Points]


[Crafting/Forging] {2}

[strength of will] {3}

[Weapons-firearms] {2}

[Martial arts: Drunken fist] {2}

[anti-stealth] {1}

[stealth] {1}

[weapons-swords] {2}

[acting] {2}

[Iwamichi Saeke]

Iwa was slightly surprised to hear from her "employer" so soon. She thought "employer", but she preferred to think of it more as a partnership. It helped her deal with having to take orders better. And yet, here she was, receiving a message from the rich human. He must have left it with her after their encounter. He still didn't know her name; he just asked her to come for some training. At first, she took this as an insult. He didn't trust her, or he thought her skills were so weak that she needed training from HIM. She ignored this and instead looked at it as an opportunity. She could see more of his gadgets and she always liked to train. Training was necessary because she needed to be strong. If she became strong enough, not even Kazura would be able to boss her around. Satisfied with this, she prepared to head out.

Iwa was a strict and punctual person, not wanting to leave a distasteful impression on her first meeting as an employee... partner ... She had woken early that morning, about a quarter to eight, to start wandering around the city. She had been to Karakura town once before, but there were always new things to be done there. Hollows were always in abundance. That was good. Apparently, her... -partner- was also based here. No wonder he knew about hollows and shinigami and whatnot. His living space was crawling with them. As Iwa walked and meditated, the city slowly began to wake as well and busy itself in the usual routine. She observed every passerby and every building. Her habit of watching people never died.

Finally, she came upon her destination. A white-washed building rose in front of her, dominating much of the landscape. It looked modern, sleek, and - well - rich. Those were some of the only words she could use to describe it. Shrugging her shoulders, she walked inside the main door. It was quieter than it was on the streets. The place breathed snooty elegance, like those hotels that, if you're a commoner, you're too afraid to step an inch into because even the walls look down at you and scoff. It didn't annoy her since she wasn't of this world, but it would if she was. She liked everything to be refined but simple; neat and practical. This was a little over the top.

She glanced over towards the elevator. The night in Paris came back into her mind, pushing any thought she had of going in one again out of her head. That music....nearly killed her. She wasn't going to try her luck again. Going through the air ducts could be an option. No, probably not. They were too cramped and she didn't know the layout of the buuilding well enough to know where she was going. From the message she received, it seemed like everything would be in an underground dojo. Seemed practical to her.

Still, she froze in the hall for a second; she was still trying to decide if she was going to take the elevator or which alternative she would try. It would be nice to just blast a hole in the floor. Alas, that would not go smoothly with Kazura. He was a freak when it came to keeping his company's reputation. She couldn't jeopardize that. Sighing, she decided to brave that elevator. Iwa walked straight through the closed doors to find, of course, no elevator - just the empty shaft. That was no big deal, but it sent her falling pretty quickly. She culd picture an abrupt landing: it would sting, but just a little. The floor she wanted was the ground floor. As she approached, she finally stopped her fall with air ground.

It was certainly pain that she could handle, but she wished she would have been a little smarter. Closed doors are closed for a reason. She cut corners to avoid that nasty elevator music and this is what happened. Iwa walked across to the opening to the ground floor. Suddenly, she was met with bright white fluorescent light bulbs an white bamboo mats. It took her eyes a second to adjust to all that white. Glancing around, she saw Kazura. It seemed like he had been there for a while, setting things up and the like. He saw her and started in her direction. Iwa nonchalantly leaned against one of the poles and waited to hear what he had to say. To her surprise, they weren't going to be starting immediately. There was one more that she had to deal with.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Spoiler} Stats:
Strength - 160 (112) Points

Speed - 140 Points (100+40)

Spiritual Pressure - 195 (293) Points

Reiatsu Strength -100 Points

Light Aura - [50] Points

Dark Aura - [50] Points

Instinct - 110 Points

Senses - 100 Points

Energy sensory - 10 Points

Healing Expertise - 0 Points

Total SP: [815] Points

New Kido: (400 TTP to spend)
Hado #1: Sho - mastered = 20 TTP

Hado #4: Byakurai - mastered = 20 TTP

Hado #11: Tsuzuri Raiden - mastered = 20 TTP

Hado #32: Oukasen - mastered = 60 TTP

Hado #34: Kongobaku - mastered = 60 TTP

Hado #35: Raiko Kawa - mastered = 60 TTP

Hado #50: Mabarashi Dangan - mastered = 120 TTP

Bakudo #39: Enkosen - proficient = 40 TTP
Total TTP Spent: 400

Used SKP: 13/15

Abilities



Analyzing {2}

Lack of Fear {2}

Learning {2}

Strength of Will {2}

Martial Arts: Karate {2}

Focused Eye {1}

Damage Recovery {2}

Current SKP: 13/15

[Kazura Uzaki]

Kazura sensed Iwa before he heard or saw her. He merely felt in the back of his mind a familiar presence falling rapidly through the elevator shaft towards the dojo room that he was in and had prepared the day's work out in. He had been stretching when he felt her coming down the shaft, not by the elevator, but by merely falling. He opened the doors at the bottom by mental command, allowing her to land on air ground and walk through the open doors into the large cavern of a room.

Kitai hadn't responded to his text, nor had his phone even registered that the message had been received, so Kazura could only assume that the boy wasn't coming or would be later than fashionably late. However, the Rogue was here, and she was an interesting figure. She was attractive, yes, however Kazura knew better than to go down that route. She was A) an employee, and B) coldly serious and a bit scary if you try to get close. While he was a billionaire playboy at times, he wouldn't go so far as to seduce or bed an employee of his. Too messy to try to deal with work issues when that is on one's mind.

So, Kazura put the thoughts out of his head and had the strength and determination to keep them that way. He greeted Iwamichi formally, though he really didn't know her name yet, which was a problem in his mind. "Greetings. I hope that your sleeping accommodations are up to your expectations? I'm afraid you haven't given me your name yet, and it makes it a bit hard to file your employment paperwork legally without a name. How should I refer to you, miss..." Kazura didn't know whether or not she was more American or Japanese or French, or foreign, so he had no way of knowing which honorifics to use. He didn't even know how to politely address people in french, so if she was french, then he'd need to read up on the language to better be polite to her.

Kazura was a good employer, he liked to think. As the CEO of a company that thrives on invention and research, it was his goal to foster as much creativity as possible. Creativity could not be forced, and it could rarely be encouraged. It simply had to be left alone in a comfortable environment for it to flourish. To tell the truth, inspiration could come from anywhere, especially stressful circumstances, but for inspiration to take root and grow into something magnificent, it had to be given ample materials and nourishment. Kazura wished to supply that.

"So, do you have any special talents? Are you good at building things, or designing things? What about science or math? Or is manual labor more your cup of tea? Pardon the questions, but now that you're an employee of my company, I need to place you into the department that you will thrive in and help to grow." Kazura was completely serious about this. He expected Iwa to work, and if he found that she was completely unable to serve in research and development, then he'd need to put her in one of the teams that only completed external missions. Maybe she was good at scouting, or data acquisition? Or maybe she was merely good at being a bodyguard for the... more squishy researchers. Whatever she was good at, Kazura would find a place for her.

Meanwhile, as they talked, Kitai decided to show up. He took the elevator instead of falling multiple stories, which said something about the two of them. The insane one took the sane route, and the one who seemed sane took the insane route. However, the Fullbringer showed up reeking of alcohol, drinking some of it and storing the trash in his clothes. Whether or not Kitai was drunk, Kazura didn't care. His father had been an alcoholic, and sometimes some of his better inventions came about from a night of heavy drinking. Ahh.... Sprite... Tasty drink, easy cure for hangovers. I'll miss you, otou-san... Your legacy is stronger than ever now...

Kazura raised his voice a little so Kitai and Iwa could both hear him in the large room with very poor acoustics. "Well let's get introductions out of the way. I'm Kazura, your employer." Kazura paused, waiting for the other two to introduce themselves. He wouldn't continue until this was done, even if he had to stare and or glare at them until they gave even a fake name by which they could be referred to. When those were done, Kazura had a fun day of exercise and training for the three of them planned.

"Today we have quite a bit of work to do. I need to see what you all are capable of so that you can use your talents best and be better eligible for promotion. Because everyone wants that, of course." Kazura turned and pressed a couple buttons on a console. He could have done it mentally, but where's the fun in that? Six thin poles emerged from the ground. They were only three feet high, but they were only wide enough for both feet to fit comfortably with little wiggle room. The six poles had three colors, yellow, blue, and green.

Kazura jumped onto a green pole, and gestured to the yellow and blue poles. "Pick a color of poles and then get onto it." The poles of the same color were merely two feet apart, which could easily be stepped or jumped to, while the three different colors of poles formed a triangle. Each set of pole was six feet away from the other sets of poles, which would make for a very long jump that was feasible, but difficult to make. "The point of this exercise is to be the last one standing on a pole. You cannot use any reiatsu, that is the only rule."

With the rule stated, Kazura tossed two thin rods to Kitai and Iwa while holding one himself. He remained on his pole and waited for the two to be ready before doing anything. He wanted to test what the two were capable of, so he didn't mind if it became a two on one battle, or simply was one on one on one. He didn't care about winning, he just wanted to analyze. If either of them were good at staff combat, then they'd be at the advantage, especially because Kazura had no real weapon proficiencies. So he merely waited and watched for one of them to act.

[Kitai Yoru]

When Kitai saw Iwa, his senses, the ones that let him sense energy, immediately told him that she was one of those heretics, or Shinigani as Kazura called them. If she wasn't, she at least felt like one. He would have attacked her out of principle, and relative hatred for the non-human races. But, Kazura didn't seem to be attacking her, so he had to at least have a reason to have her around. He doubted the the rich boy didn't know about what she was. Wealthy guys that got into business with the afterlife tended not to be in the dark about most things. So he would hold off on attacking her. 'I say we kill her anyway! She's just another one of them, why are you not doing anything!' The screeching woman yelled to him mentally.

Oh how he hated her, but the alcohol was helping. He pulled out another can during Kazura's introduction, and started drinking away at it. "Ahh, good old liquid bread, hehehehah. You an the heretic there can call me John Striker." He announced, letting them know that he knew what she was. He continued drinking as she introduced herself to the humans in the group. Kitai then watched as the rich boy walked over to a console or terminal of some sort. The albino was better at making the machines, not operating them. As such, he was in the dark about what Kazura was doing.

He didn't have to wait long though, as less than a minute after the human began typing away, poles shot shot out of the ground. Six poles in multiple colors. Six poles that were three feet in height. Kitai was lucky that he had finished his beer, because he crushed the can on reflex after seeing how many poles there were. He grabbed the pole weapon that had been thrown to him out of the air. After Kazura jumped onto one of the green poles, Kitai walked over to one of the yellow ones, placing the beer can in his left sleeve.

Kitai didn't look any different than how he normally acted; he still walked like a drunk and still had that menacing smile upon his face, along with his creepy aura, but he was annoyed. The six poles in the ground, the pole in his hands being six feet long, he only had two more beers, and was in a room with someone he felt he should be killing. Mentally huffing in annoyance, he grabbed one of the two yellow poles with his left hand. The next thing he did might surprise at least Kazura, if not the rouge too. After grabbing the pole at the top, he swept his right leg at its base, breaking it off at the base. He then proceeded to break off a foot of the pole he was given as a weapon.

After breaking the extra foot off, he held the pole a foot from the end in his right hand, like he would for a large sword. He held the yellow pole in reverse grip, like he would hold his cannon, having to crush his fingers into the material so he could hold onto the thick pole. He then held the broken poles tightly, tensing for the odd battle they were about to have. It was hard to tell that however, as his sleeves were covering his hands holding them. Kitai bent his legs a bit, and jumped up, landing on the last remaining yellow pole. The freak was glad they weren't aloud to use reiatsu. He preferred using the body God gave him any day.

His stance was fairly shaky though. Normally, his fighting style depended on having a lot of stepping room. The fact that each pole had barely enough for both his feet. Audibly growling in annoyance, he bent his knees again, and held his weapon on his right shoulder, preparing to leap at someone, intent on delivering a downwards slash. Waiting impatiently, he placed the staff under his arm, and grabbed another beer from his sleeve. He quickly started drinking again, finally starting to feel the effects from it. His stance, if you can call it that, began to sway, and Kitai started laughing darkly.

[Iwamichi Saeke]

Kazura approached Iwa and addressed her as polite as anyone possibly could. Reminded her of another Quincy she had met. All the politeness annoyed her a little because she couldn't really believe he was THAT polite. She brushed it aside. He still wanted to know her name, supposedly for "paperwork". She didn't think it was that necessary though. Why must he be so insisting? Iwa didn't like revealing things about herself to others - they might find a weakness in her. Begrudgingly, she replied, "My name is Iwamichi Saeke. Well, since you're Japanese it would be Saeke Iwamichi right?" She paused and let him digest this. Her name was nothing special, which irritated her a little. She should have just said rogue or some other cool name.

Kazura began again with another question. This time, it required more thought. Her skills... what was she the best at, essentially? In this regard, she didn't mind talking about herself. Maybe he'd be impressed. He probably already was impressed with her. Sometimes, it seemed that he was forcing himself to be formal and polite: could be either from fear that he might upset her and lose a great asset or some other reason that Iwa couldn't fathom yet. Either way, she would answer his question as best as she could. She also wanted to know where he thought she would be best suited in.

Iwa stood up from her stance and looked him in the eye. "You want to know my abilities and skills? Well, fighting is one of the only things I know. I do everything so I can be stronger. But one of my favorite hobbies is just...watching people." She would let that sink in for a bit. Perhaps he understood her meaning, perhaps not. But it was true. She liked to watch, to observe. Humans were so funny and interesting. Sometimes. She prided herself on her analytic ability, and it helped in battle. It might be useful for his company - that was up to him to figure out.

"Anyways, what I mean is I like to observe humans, like you, or other beings. I want to figure out who they are and assess them. It helps in battle, but I do it mainly for my own amusement. I have gotten quite good at it. If that would help your company in any way, I would be glad to use that ability." This speech concluded, Iwa began to crack her knuckles and hear Kazura's response. After what seemed like half an hour, the third person to their party came waltzing in. No, more like stammering in - a faint scent of alcohol on his person. He walked like a drunk, even went so far as to drink a can of beer right there in front of them. Iwa's evaluation of the man began immediately.

He had a suspicious look on his face, obviously not trusting Iwa as soon as he saw her. She didn't care about all the glares he was giving her. She had gotten those before and brushed them all aside. Kazura had been a little incredulous as well when they first met. It was just the way she looked - like a shinigami. She assumed that this human hated them too. Probably wouldn't have joined Kazura otherwise. Iwa could see by the other man's bloodshot eyes that he probably hadn't slept well. She wasn't surprised. He took another gulp of the alcohol and introduced himself as "John". Why were so many people called John? It was simple, but too simple. It gave no one any identity or uniqueness. She felt a little sorry for the man, although he was oblivious to this.

He had called her a heretic. She allowed a smile to pass her face. "A funny name you call me, yet, ironically, suitable. To shinigami I am such. Call me that if you wish, or Iwamichi. I don't care." Iwa said no more as Kazura began to start their training regimen. She watched unamused with his machinery. Poles came up from under the mats, and he handed one to each of them. Kazura picked green and John picked yellow, so Iwa was left with blue. She was satisfied with the color. The training wouldn't be too difficult if it was just standing on this pole for however many hours. But, Iwa knew there was some catch to this. The goal was to be the last one standing, so there was nothing to stop anyone from knocking each other off. The others probably had thought of this.

As she was preparing to get on her pole, she saw John cross over to his and break them. Iwa was confused at first, but she decided to look at it from his perspective instead of hers - or at least try. If she was just going to watch and assess, it showed her that he was one for being unconventional. He was probably as wild and unpredictable as his actions implied. Iwa was used to fighting practical and intelligent people. This man should prove to be interesting. Shrugging, she jumped onto her own pole. So they couldn't use reiatsu, so what? She had done training like this on her own many times. She just had to stay calm and focus.

Balancing on the pole was easy. With the third pole in her hand, she watched her opponents. Neither were making a move just yet, but it could come at any time. Would Kazura be the first to strike. One thing Iwa usually lacked, unfortunately, was patience. she had to force herself not to be so hasty. In this case, one wrong step meant losing. Iwa could never accept defeat. And not to mere humans. Oh no. A minute went by. Still nothing. John let out an occasional chuckle though, a weird laugh. Must be crazy, Iwa thought. His poles were broken, so maybe she could use that to her advantage. But how?

John was holding two poles as weapons, a seemingly smart decision. But, it did leave him with only one pole. He couldn't jump to the other in case he was knocked off balance. He was probably relying on his skill to balance perfectly and fight off any attempts at knocking him off. It would prove difficult, since he was holding two poles. Iwa looked down at hers. It was pretty large and bulky compared to the katana she was used to wielding. Iwa had great training in martial arts and karate. It might help a little, but not a whole lot if she had to use the pole as a staff. Maybe the others were in the same predicament. She finally decided to make a move. But toward which person? Both would prove difficult to knock off, and she probably would only get one chance. What if she failed?

Pole in hand, Iwa leaped off her own pole towards Kazura's. It was a little far to jump, but she had a remedy for this. She brought the pole in her hands to the ground, straight up. She used the pole to give herself an extra push away from the ground like a pole vaulter. Her efforts sprung her a little above Kazura's head. As she neared him, she swung her leg at his torso. Hopefully, it had enough fore, even if he blocked it, to knock him off balance. Either he'd fall to the floor or the pole would give way and collapse beneath him. If her attack failed, she could simply use the pole to give herself another push.

Then, as she went to land the third time, she would stick the pole straight up and balance atop it - as if it had been her original pole. Unfortunately, it would leave her incapable of doing an attack like that again, since she probably couldn't take the pole underneath her to do the same stunt. Hopefully, it was enough to knock one opponent out of the exercise. Then, all she would have to do is wait to see what John would do. It was probably difficult to balance like that holding two poles at the same time. She would have to wait for him to come to her. But that was okay; she would still win.

[Kazura Uzaki]

Iwamichi... Stone Road... The name had a nice feel to it. Whether it was destiny or she chose her own name Kazura didn't know, but her name fit her personality quite interestingly. She was quite serious, and her name had a serious meaning as well. The Fullbringer was now going by the name John Striker, but he was in his aggressive voice, so whether or not that was his true name was completely unknown to Kazura. All he knew was that for the next... few minutes or so, the fullbringer could be called John Striker and he would respond to it.

John chose the yellow grouping of poles... and broke one off at the top. He cut over a foot of it off, making standing on it extremely difficult, and balancing on it nearly impossible. It wasn't a clean break, it was a splintery kind of break. When he finished breaking that one, he broke the weapon that he had been tossed, so now he had a disadvantage in reach and a disadvantage in dodging potential. He couldn't hope to really have a solid defense nor offense with nothing to work with, save for his innovative dual wielding style of dealing with the scenario.

Kazura watched Iwamichi the most intently though. She had listed her talents as observing people, and as soon as John had walked into the room she had started analyzing him. If nothing else, she was perfect for scouting. This would have to be kept in mind. He would have to talk with her later about what she thought of her coworker the fullbringer. Already there seemed to be tension between them as Kitai hated her kind, even if she had defected and "renounced her ways" or whatever religious jargon made sense in this situation.

When they each took their places on the platforms that were going to be their fighting ground, a full minute took place before any of them moved. Kazura was merely watching and observing them like any good boss would and should, John was getting drunk, and Iwamichi was getting impatient. She decided to make the first move, jumping at Kazura and using her pole to give her enough distance to get to Kazura's pole. However, the Uzaki inventor wasn't about to let her get in a couple free attacks.

Sticking out his own pole, he caught Iwa in the solar plexus at the top of her pole jump. He was considerably faster than her, and capable of processing information and reacting at a much greater speed. In fact, he surprised himself with how fast his reactions took hold and guided his arms in the movements he wanted. He hadn't realized just how sharp his mind had gotten in the past few weeks, nor how fast he had moved. He was definitely faster than Souza had been without the stepping technique, but wasn't nearly as fast as the other Shinigami he had seen.

With Iwamichi stopped at the top of her movement, she wouldn't have lost, no, not at all. She'd be balanced on her weapon, for now. She was a bit stronger than Kazura, so she had a few options there, but she had no momentum. It would be difficult for her to react and do something about the loss of momentum without losing grip of her pole, and if she didn't act fast she'd fall off of it. She wasn't perched on top of it, she was merely holding it, so her first priority probably should be to establish a more firm footing. She was in the middle of the room, easily three feet away from any firm footing at all.

Meanwhile, Kazura had no way of engaging John in this short encounter. As the one who had gone first, his full attention was on Iwamichi, seeing how she would get out of this. If she truly could analyze people and events well, then she'd have a plan. Whether it was abandoning her weapon for stability and defense or offense, or simply finding a unique way out of this problem, Kazura had no way of knowing what she would do. And honestly, he was excited to see her try and succeed. He was just that kind of boss.

[Kitai Yoru]

Unlike Kazura, Kitai, or 'John' as he was currently calling himself, did not want that. No, he wanted to see her fail and fall. He figured it would get him a few laughs, in his sadistic and drunken mind of his. H watched as she was struck in the stomach. And like he thought, he laughed cruelly at it. He was disappointed when she... 'regained her footing', so to speak. After her failed attack, she used her own pole as a support, in place of the colored ones. 'DO SOMETHING YOU TWIT! Hit her, make her suffer!' The other voice in his head hollered to him, causing him to cringe for a moment, before regaining his insane mask.

In all honesty, he didn't feel comfortable hitting a woman, even if she was one of those heretics, to his knowledge. There was something off with how her energy felt. He could defiantly tell her energy was at least similar to them, but something was missing from it. He hadn't noticed it at first, but the more he thought about it, the more differences he could make out. Oh well, not like it makes much of a difference at the moment. The voices were yelling at him, and he wanted them to shut up.

So, with a twisted grin, he threw the yellow pole right at the girl, adding a spin to it. The pole was moving at 100 speed, but would hit with 300 strength. The pole was spinning lazily, showing how poorly the albino was at such things. The strong throw had unbalanced Kitai as well. His right foot had slipped off the pillar, and twisted him into a position where he would fall off, but was still standing on it. Noticing this, he tilted himself a bit towards the rich boy, and sprung at his employer. With his strength, he was easily capable of crossing the gap between the two of them.

Still grinning his sickening grin, Kitai swung his broken pole down at the human, laughing like a maniac. While his attack might not have been the fastest, it still held a lot of power behind it. He was a bit higher than Kazura at the moment, about a foot higher than the top of the pole. This meant that, if he moved to a different pillar, he could take the spot for himself. He figured the human would move, because he wasn't going to stop his swing, even if he was struck like the girl had been.

It might have been the three beers clouding his thoughts, but he was starting to have fun. The prospect of causing harm to the man who told him to come to this place so early, and a chick with blue hair, was fun. "HAHAHAHAAA! I'm gonna tear you apart, AHAHAHAHAA!" He yelled to Kazura, laughing madly. He would always prefer a regular fight, to the heavily conditioned fights like these, but if this is all he has to work with, he would make do. Sometimes things like this could be fun.

[Iwamichi Saeke]

Iwa expected Kazura to dodge or something, unfortunately it meant being jabbed in the chest with his pole. Her momentum suddenly stopped and her attack failed. She had managed to steady herself somewhat, but she hadn't gotten a foothold like the one she had before. If she didn't react quickly, she would lose that stability and be the first to fall. No way could she do that. As she thought of her next move, she watched as John hurled his pole right at her with frightening monstrosity. It wouldn't be good if that hit her. Thankfully, her instincts were pretty good and her speed even faster than the pole that was coming toward her. She had time to react to this threat.

Iwa jumped above the hurling spear and let it sail past her. As she did so, the pole completely fell to the floor. It was now there, lying horizontally. But she would not be beaten. As she fell back down, she noticed John hurl himself in Kazura's direction. He would certainly be disappointed with the outcome of that action. She used her trained and focused eye to watch the pole as she fell to the ground. It would be difficult, but she could do it. Her feet landed on top of the horizontal pole - a hard landing not only because it was smaller area but also because it could now roll. Still, she had the skills to overcome this.

Iwa twisted her body so she fell on the pole vertically (in the direction it was facing, so technically horizontally), one foot in front of the other like a tight-rope walker. She stuck her arms out and bent her knees a little to give her more balance and brace the impact. As long as one side did not weigh too much or drag the other side, she could stay on the pole without falling to one side or the other. She could keep it steady and not roll out from underneath her. It would not be a good idea to try it for very long, though. Thankfully, she was still close to Kazura and his pole. While he was probably distracted with John, she took the opportunity to advance herself.

Suddenly, she moved her feet forward, sliding the pole across the floor to Kazura's. She had enough strength to send it flying at a decent speed and, if it hit, it could knock over Kazura's pole. She wasn't entirely sure it would hit, but it was worth a try. Iwa used this motion to also spring herself toward the other blue pole, only three feet away from her. She had the strength to get a good push off and the movement should give her even better momentum. Iwa turned her body and flung herself onto the pole. Although she wasn't perched on top perfectly, she was still off the ground. Her feet and arms wrapped around the pole, suspended from the ground but only just. Now she had to see what happened to the others.

[Kazura Uzaki]

John might have been crazy, but he was incredibly strong. He threw one of his weapons at Iwa, who squirmed out of its way using her pole, and then as the fullbringer attacked Kazura, she landed on her weapon with grace and jumped away to safety to one of the blue poles she had started on. So she can think under pressure... nice... However, I better act fast or I'll be the first to fall! John's strength had allowed him to cover the distance between the poles extremely efficiently, but Kazura wasn't about to stay in the same spot as he had been.

Kazura jumped backwards to his second green pole, putting a tiny bit of distance in between him and John. Meanwhile, Iwamichi had sent her weapon sliding into the green pole, which didn't do much. "Iwamichi, these are anchored into the ground. How else would they rise up out of the floor and support our weight?" Kazura said this with a genuine smile and mirth. He was amused at her unique tactic, which had surprised him, and if it had been a natural situation rather than a manufactured one it could have been far more effective.

John was now the real problem. With his exceptional strength, Kazura was going to be hard pressed to push him off completely, but the Uzaki hoped that he was a bit more skilled. By the way the pole had moved, Kazura figured that he was at least twice as fast as John, which could provide a bit more help. With only two feet of distance between them, Kazura was going to have to act fast if he was going to avoid being squashed. The height differential not bothering him as much as it had last time, the inventor acted quickly to enact his counter.

Hoping to catch John off guard while he was landing and regaining his balance from the long jump, Kazura used his various martial art proficiencies to attack the teen. Using his proficiency of Krav Maga, the older fullbringer struck out with his hands at John's ears to try and disorient him, then following up with a punch to the throat and a kick to the ankle. Those weak points weren't going to be damaging in a long lasting sense, they were just going to be painful, and pain might cause the boy to slip.

It was a reckless charge, showing courage and determination to his fellow employees, hopefully. While he knew Iwa was watching intently, Kazura was demonstrating his proficiency and hopefully his competency. He wasn't strong, and while he was averagely fast for the three of them, he felt as though his talents were in his skill and his ability to discern what was a proper course of action. Whether or not that was true remained to be seen, but if he hurt this teen severely, he had enough medical knowledge to fix it right away.

[Kitai Yoru]

Kitai was surprised by the bold move on Kazura's part, but only showed it for a moment. When Kitai went to attack his fellow fullbringer, he had expected him to jump over towards the blue pillars, not onto the other green one. A slight error on his part, but now he was able to attack the rich boy. There wasn't a lot of room for movement and he was bound to get an attack in on him. Kazura might have had the speed advantage between the three fighters, but there was times where strength could overpower it. This thought was cut off by a fist strinking him in the ear."

Ahh, you punched me in the EAR!" He cried in in shock, not losing his grin. The first strike made Kitai tense up, and, inadvertently, tensed the muscles in his neck, giving him some protection from the jab at his throat. He tried regaining his balance after the second attack, but the third attack from Kazura killed any chance of that. He attack struck him right on his left ankle, causing his left leg to bump into the right. This, obviously, caused the albino to slip and fall.

'Oh, how tragic, the young Kitai fell off the pole, making him the loser. Kitai was unable to bare the shame of losing to those filthy heathens, and decided he would be better off dead, like the rest of his loved ones. Finally he-' [smear:0066cc]SHUT UP JACK![/smear:ff00ff]' The two other voices yelled at the narrating one. Jack was one of the voices in Kitai's head, and always narrated some awful end when Kitai messed up, be it his fault or not.

Kitai was a stubborn one though, and wasn't about to give up like that. When he fell, he landed on the pillar, with it hitting him right in the ribs. He grabbed onto the green pole with both his hands, dropping his weapon in the posses. He had been tensing most of his muscles at the time, so it didn't do much. He was gripping the pillar with both his hands, still covered by his sleeves, and looked like he was having a tough time, unable to hide that at the moment. His hat fell off, and the hair fell out of his face, revealing his angry red eyes. They were glaring right at Kazura just then, trying to burn a hole into his head.

At a distance, he looked kinda like the letter 'T' with a longer line at the top. Pulling both of his legs back, he swung his body at towards Kazura. But he wasn't aiming for the human. No. He was aiming to shatter his support, and send the fullbringer to the ground. Swinging with all his might, but not all his speed. With the weird angle, he was barely able to attack with half his normal movement speed. This would make the attack extremely predictable to the wealthy man. "JUST FALL ALREADY!" He yelled out in frustration, smashing the pillar into pieces, be Kazura on it at the time or not.

[Iwamichi Saeke]

Iwa had successfully recovered a position on her original pole, albeit an uncomfortable one. She remedied that by pushing herself up and lifting her leg over. Now she could stand on top of it just as before. She had plenty of time to do this and plenty of time to watch what had preceded her endeavor. Her pole "attack" was an obvious failure. She didn't mind that as much as she did Kazura's mocking her for it. Oh, she would get him back for that. Iwa hated to be looked down upon- she wouldn't tolerate that even from her employer. Watching closely, she saw his quick efforts against John's aggressive attack. It was one that was easy to dodge, so his skills impressed her little. She knew of his talent and speed already, in their own fight.

He used some kind of martial arts unfamiliar to her, but still effective. He boxed John in the ears, helpful in disorienting him she knew. His attacks to the ankle was the most critical, however, in the fact that it knocked John off balance enough to slip. Iwa was interested to see how this human would react. Already judging from his attack style, insane grin, and blatant alcoholism, she took him to be insane and past the point of normal rational thought. It made him wild and unpredictable, sometimes helpful in a fight but not always. In this case, he could not win. Kazura obviously was too much for him. He swung his body to try and break the pole - Iwa couldn't really predict the result, but she couldn't imagine Kazura falling to the ground in this scenario.

Maybe it was best just to wait this time. If Kazura made it out just fine, he could come to her. Iwa had already tried one move and that worked out pretty terribly. She knew it was because of her impatience that she failed. So, learning from her lesson, she could just wait on top of her perch - wait for the real challenge: Kazura. She was pretty much unconcerned with John at this point. He wasn't really a threat to her, for he couldn't make any bold plans. Strength was the only thing he had and strength was not enough to overcome a challenge - she knew this well. My employer wants to assess me, but I also must monitor him. After all, he does call most of the shots, unfortunately.

[Kazura Uzaki]

Kazura was surprised at how well his attack went through. For all his strength, John didn't put up too much of a fight, going down quickly. However, the boy still had fight left in him. He caught himself on the pole and swung his legs outwards, hitting Kazura's pole with the full power of his extremely powerful body. The wooden pole shattered around the middle of it, causing it to be completely destroyed. There would be no standing on that green pole anymore.

So far, John had taken out one green pole and one yellow pole, leaving one yellow pole, one green pole, and two blue poles. Iwamichi was now standing on a blue pole, and John standing on the last green pole. Kazura had jumped and used his weapon to pole vault to the remaining yellow pole, learning from Iwa's good idea but choosing to go a more defensive route rather than an offensive one. However, he quickly changed tactics. He was having fun, and in being the last one with a weapon, he had high hopes for himself.

"I like both of your determination. So let's keep this up until we really do have a winner?" Pole vaulting again, Kazura aimed for the empty blue pole so he could have a quick interaction with Iwamichi. Immediately upon landing onto the pole, he was swinging his staff weapon in a wide arc, hoping to catch her in the side and carry her off balance onto the floor. He figured she could block it and stop the momentum from carrying her away from the pole, but he had a plan for that.

If she blocked it with her hands, cushioning it so that it didn't have the force to push her off, Kazura would tuck his end of the pole into his armpit and twist. In doing so he'd support the end of the staff and use his own body as a fulcrum, putting a lot more force into the push. He'd rotate his entire body around, and if Iwamichi didn't have some way of reacting or stopping Kazura from twisting, she very well could be swept off her feet. She was slightly stronger than him, but with physics on Kazura's side, who would win?

[Kitai Yoru]

Kaiti's master plan was coming together nicely. He chuckled at the happy thought. Hefting himself to a sitting position, with a bit of effort, he started to feel a tad dizzy. The beer combined with the fast opponents was starting to take it's toll on the tall teen. Not stopping though, he climbed to his feet without touching the ground. Shaking slightly on his feet, he looked towards his next target. And guess who just so happened to be on it.

Trying to shake off the feeling, he spied his target, and reached into his left sleeve. "I don't want there to be a winner. I just want you two to be the losers!" He said, still with his twisted smile. He started shaking something in his hand, and continued to talk. "I've already made it harder for you two to move by knocking out two pillars, what do you think will happen when I take out even one more, hmm?" He left the question in the air, for a few seconds, before talking again. "So all I have to do is take out a few more, and it'll be stalemate!"

The room finally stopped spinning as he talked, and looked at Iwa and Kazura from behind his hair, which fell back upon standing upright. Kicking off the last of the green pillars, he sped towards his starting point at yellow, still shaking whatever was in his hand. The force of the jump crushed the pillar under the weight of his jump. He was laughing, even as he landed on the pole, trying to make them flinch even the tiniest amount. He was going to let the two fight it out, and then win. He hasn't really figured out step 3, but whatever.

He watched as the two fought, and waited. He knew he was safe on the lone pillar. Kazura, even with his speed, would fall if he tried to attack him here. As for the girl, he was sure he could handle her too. There was only 3 pillars left, and he held the one at the corner. Any attacks would have to be head on, as far as he could predict. The best part is, if one of them does try and jump over to him, he doesn't even have to fight. He can break the pillars just by jumping. So, if they do try and attack him, all he'd have to do is jump up, and they would fall. He would fall too, but the game is 'last man standing' for a reason. He grinned in anticipation, still shaking whatever he was holding.

[Iwamichi Saeke]

Iwa knew Kazura would come eventually. He was trying to test her, after all. She saw him maneuver the same trick she had just done moments before. Copying her? Tsk. Whatever, she watched him land on the second blue pole right next to her. Of course, she knew he would land on that pole since that was one of the only spots left. He fortunately had a pole, whereas she did not. He useed this to his advantage and swung it at her side. It was an easy thing to dodge or block if she wanted. Well, she didn't feel like just blocking. She wanted to use this attack against him and make him pay.

As the pole swung to her side, Iwa did a samll jump and got above it. She timed it, however, so that she came down right on top of Kazura's pole. This motion would send the other side up. It was likely that the sudden change would cause him to lose grip on the pole, and the pole would fly straight up - probably hitting him square in the jaw. She chuckled at the surprise and the pain in his face. That should teach him some lesson. Then, Iwa decided to take the pole and use it herself. This, however, proved to be a mistake in judgement.

Iwa was standing in an awkward position; the pole was behind her and she was still facing the opposite direction of Kazura. As she tried to turn around on the ball of her foot to grab the pole, she quickly lost her footing - after all, she was standing on TWO poles, essentially. The one shifted and since her foot was no longer in contact with the one below it, she and the pole above fell. The pole in front of her flashed before her eyes; defeat flashed before her eyes. It was horrible, embarrassing, frustrating. She could see Kazura's face, his thoughts: "I knew she couldn't be THAT good. How stupid. How weak." She tried grabbing the pole on her way down and wrapping her feet around like before. But it was no use.

Iwa looked down at the ground. Her toes were barely... -barely- ... touching the floor. Her breath stopped. SHE was the first to go. Not even that crazy alcoholic FREAK was first. Admitting defeat, she got down off the pole. Her eyes burned bright, although her mouth was in an expressionless straight line. SHE had lost. SHE was the loser. It was all she could do from smashing a pole or something... like that human's skull. What was stopping her from releasing her power? It was Kazura's place - he would certainly try. No, she had to be better than the others, even in the face of defeat. The lunatic had cried and smashed things and yelled. She wasn't like that; she was rational, serious, and stoic. She was better than him.

Whether Kazura felt her anger or not, he wouldn't be able to deny that she handled the loss. She walked off towards a wall to watch the next part of the exercise. Kazura would win of course. But how would he do it? That would be interesting. Iwa turned back to John. Although she had seen all she wanted to see of him, she wondered what exactly he was thinking. He was holding something in his hands, shaking it vehemently and screaming incoherently. She just knew he was going to bask in his enemy's defeat - in Iwa's suffering. There was probably no way that she would ever bring herself to like this person. No, she needed to think less prejudiced and be more logical in her analysis. That was important. What if Kazura teamed them up? She would need to disregard these bitter feelings, in that case. Next time, for SURE, she would get the both of them.