New Predator in Town...Err...Society [NDE, Joint Training]

[Caedir din Sahra]

((OOC: Picking this thread back up, continuing as a joint training with the stats listed in the first post despite changes since then.))

Caedir noticed that, as always, Okami was watching him, analyzing him. What was it that the black-robed human found so fascinating about him? At least it was better than the other humans treated him; most were frightened, or angry. Only occasionally did anyone show any kindness towards the feline Beast-Clan, but never before had anyone shown such open curiosity; it was certainly unusual, though unsettling, in a way. And yet, Caedir expressed the same interest in this man, this... what was the word he had used to describe himself? It was a big word, but one that the cheetah had heard a few times to describe the black-robe people. Anyway, the feline definitely felt the same level of intrigue towards Okami, and was determined to learn more about him. That was why he had invited the man to hunt with him.

It was almost laughable that Okami started ahead, having been invited on the hunt; it was obvious that the man did not understand Caedir fully, and had misinterpreted the invitation to join him as a request for the cheetah to tag along. Caedir was quick to remedy that, moving in the direction that the black-robed man had indicated, and then using his superior speed to pull ahead in a sudden burst of movement. His claws provided a traction that any human would envy, and the balance he possessed due to his feline nature made his footing almost perfect as he leapt forward, moving through the bushes at an incredible rate. Truly, the traits that came with being part animal were fantastic, and Okami would get to experience them first-hand as Caedir took the lead, using some minor skill in stealth to reduce the amount of noise he made as he headed in the direction he had last scented the Hollow.

It did not take Caedir long to catch scent of his target again, and the cheetah paused in mid-stride, stopping after only two quick steps despite the great speed at which he had run at. They hadn't gone far despite the quick sprint, maybe fifty feet; The cheetah raised his head, his ears perked up to catch any unusual sounds while his nose sniffed the air, searching for unusual scents among that of the forest to pinpoint the direction that the mask-creature had gone. His senses were sharp, but with all of the natural scents of the forest, only one who had lived there as long as he did could pick out individual scents in such a short time, as long as they were unusual. And a mask-creature was certainly something that didn't belong in the forest, smelling of something rotten in a place full of life. Wrinkling his nose, Caedir quickly determined the direction he was to go. The entire time he said nothing to Okami, expecting the man to follow at his own pace. But suddenly...

“Okami! Mask-creature at you!” It was a simple enough warning; the creature's scent had appeared behind Caedir, closer to Okami, who had jumped up in the trees to make travel easier. Caedir could take to the trees as well, and probably with more ease, but the cheetah had wanted to show off just how fast he was, a boast to prove his authority between the two. All animals strove to be alphas, and Caedir was no different; the feline Beast-Clan was more than happy to test himself against Okami however he could. But such a competition could wait; they had found their prey, and surprisingly quickly too; perhaps it was drawn to the black-robed human, as the mask-creature had immediately lunged out from what seemed to be within the tree and struck at Okami with its claws. The human, with surprisingly agility, twisted around the branch and landed on another a short distance away, avoiding the attacks.

And then the creature disappeared again, sinking into itself. Its scent was still present, but it had become incredibly faint; no wonder Caedir had lost it so easily, if it could mask itself like that. There were no sounds from it either as it moved in a manner imperceptible to the feline, who had never seen anything move through shadows, and had not known it was possible. Frowning, Caedir sniffed the air again, his knees bending as he lowered himself into a crouch, ready to spring away if the creature came after him. His whole body was coiled, and his eyes roamed from side to side. He was surprisingly still, like a statue, waiting to act.

The time came in moments as the creature lunged from the shadows, appearing about ten feet away. Any closer and it might have forced Caedir to retreat, getting out of range of its scything claws, but the mask-creature made a mistake in giving the Beast-Clansman time to attack. Caedir quickly relaxed, standing up from his crouch as the creature approached. Powerful claws rose up, ready to tear through the feline, but even as they came down the cheetah moved in a fluid, efficient motion; ducking slightly, he twisted beneath the horizontal swipe of the clawed appendage by sliding his foot to the side, letting himself move beneath the attack. At the same time, that foot that slid quickly braced itself, claws digging into the dirt and helping support Caedir's body as he brought his other leg up, bending it at the knee and drawing it closer before releasing it into a powerful upwards kick at the arm as it finished passing by. The motion was performed at amazing speeds as the cheetah put his full velocity into it, and as it struck the arm, a loud crack was heard, the limb bending upwards unnaturally and causing the creature to give another clicking shriek from the attack.

But Caedir wasn't done as his foot immediately lowered back to the ground, and it took a half-second of adjustment for him to start moving again, still at his full pace. Unlike humans, Caedir didn't know how to hold back, didn't understand fighting at lower speeds to conserve energy. Instead, he dashed forward quickly, closing the distance to the mask-creature's main body. The cheetah was there in a flash, and another twist of his body had his leg slicing upwards at that same speed, the strong limb slamming into the creature's torso. If it weren't for the fact that it was anchored to its shadow, Caedir's attack probably would have sent it tumbling a good distance away; as it was, the attack's force was taken directly with another loud crack filling the air; the cheetah was far stronger than the average individual, and he had no hesitation about throwing his full strength at the mask-creature he was hunting.

The creature would retreat to the shadows once more, and it would begin to pull away. Caedir's nose caught its scent faintly, and he pointed with one arm in the general direction it was moving. This time, the feline had seen how the creature had escaped. “Okami! Shadow there!” The cheetah had no way to fight shadows; after all, they were as insubstantial as the air itself. But maybe Okami, being a human, had a way to do so; the black-robed people had unusual powers, things Caedir himself could not do, so maybe the man had a way to attack the creature.

[Ōkami Shihoin]

He’s fast…!

The Shihoin head noted the speed of his newfound companion very quickly. It wasn’t just how quickly Caedir had taken the lead in their pursuit of the hollow, but also in how he dodged the hollow creature. Of course, moving within the trees was slower than moving along the ground, but Ōkami Shihoin noted how quickly Caedir could move even along the ground. It seemed much faster than he himself would have been able to move had he been traveling on the ground floor. What did you expect?! He’s a cheetah! We have lots of speed, remember? I believe you found that out from me first hand, eh? That was the voice of Kyukyoku no Kasokuki, the zanpaktou spirit that lived within the blade sheathed at his side. The spirit was an anthropomorphic cheetah as well, and had put Ōkami’s speed to the test many times during the seven or eight centuries the two had known one another. It was because of Kyukyoku no Kasokuki that Ōkami had grown so fast.

Caedir’s speed would prove a valuable asset if he became an ally. Ōkami would think about asking the Beastclan creature about training later. For now, he had to focus on the task at hand. He had already dodged the hollow’s surprise attack, his experience and skills having aided him in doing so. Had he not been training with the white-haired figure with the mask, he wouldn’t have been able to dodge that attack. His training paid off…. he thought to himself. It seemed that Caedir too proved to be capable of handling himself. With fluid movement, Caedir had been able to duck under the hollow’s attack. And then with continued fluidity, the feline released what looked to be a powerful kick into the hollow’s arm, most likely breaking that arm. And indeed, the hollow shrieked out in pain as a snapping sound could be heard from the arm.

The Shihoin watched incredulously as the feline quickly followed up the attack with another. In less than a second, Caedir was at the hollow’s main body. The hollow’s speed was great, but it couldn’t compete with the feline’s impressive speed. It tried to pull back, to suck itself back into the shadow but it was too late. Even with its great instincts, it wasn’t able to react on time. It took the full brunt of the powerful kick to its torso, having been unable to move away in time. Another shriek of pain left the hollow’s mouth as it began retracting, pulling itself back to the shadow. It had both a broken arm and fractured ribs. Caedir had weakened the creature considerably and now all that they had to do was finish it off when it came up next.

The feline Beast-Clan pointed towards another direction, indicating that the hollow had begun moving. It was probably running away. Not if I can help it… The problem now was getting it to appear again. If it was planning on running away, it wasn’t going to appear from the shadows again. The only way to make it come out of the shadows, and therefore make it possible to hit it would be to lure it out. But that was going to be the difficult part. Ōkami had a plan though, one which he quickly relayed to the Beast-Clan. ”It moves in shadows. So, we have to take it somewhere with no shadows.” he said slowly, hoping that Caedir understood his plan. If he didn’t, he was going to try and explain again, this time in another way. ”You chase it towards the light ahead. When it gets to the light, I will finish it.” the Shihoin Head explained simply. He also pointed in the direction of the clearing just up ahead. And with that, the plan would be in motion. Caedir just had to chase the creature into the clearing up ahead where there were no shadows to travel between. Once it got to the clearing, Okami would take it out. Simple as that, right?

[Caedir din Sahra]

Okami quickly gave his own set of directions; chase the creature into the lit-up area ahead. Thankfully, the instructions were simple enough that Caedir could pick up what he was supposed to do, though he wasn't sure why he was doing them. But Okami had a plan, and that was enough; the feline Beast-Clansman trusted his ally enough that he was willing to listen for the time being, if it meant their success in hunting the creature down. Giving a terse nod, Caedir was already off again, darting through the trees at his full speed again, chasing down the shadow that was attempting to flee. He could faintly catch its scent as it twisted through the trees, and immediately the cheetah could tell that it wasn't moving towards the bright light ahead. They couldn't have that, so Caedir dashed forward, and moved to intercept the shadow, slipping ahead of it.

Unfortunately, as shadows were insubstantial, immaterial things, the creature simply slipped past him, sliding under his feet without making any form of contact. Caedir growled in frustration and turned to pursue; it seemed as though he would not be intimidating the shadow-creature on his own! He could easily keep pace with it, thankfully, but again he tried to jump in front of it, growling as though it would slow the creature down. Once more it slipped past him without resistance, causing Caedir to become angry. He was not used to an enemy that would not stand and fight, as well as not be touched! Swiping at the ground with one of his claws did no good either; though he tore up a good chunk of the earth, the shadow just slid along the ground seamlessly despite the difference in elevation.

But he wasn't going to give up the hunt, either; Caedir had a stubborn streak, and continued to follow the shadow despite being unable to catch it. Maybe Okami would be able to figure out another tactic, but until then, he had to track the shadow-creature. Humans were not known for their sense of smell, so Caedir knew that it would be up to him to keep up with the creature he was pursuing. It was just frustrating that there was little he could do to stop the shadow, just follow it around until one of them tired out. He wasn't the smartest individual, either, so it was possible that the creature was leading him into a trap... but he wouldn't know that. Caedir just knew that he had to pursue his target, and keep leading Okami towards it. Hopefully the man would figure out something, and soon.

[Ōkami Shihoin]

Ōkami watched as the anthropomorphic cheetah chased after the hollow. Leaping from branch to branch, he kept his own eye on the hollow from his position there within the trees. He just needed it to move a little further. Just a little further, and he would end it. The creature wouldn't even know what was coming. It appeared that the hollow didn't realize what exactly it was walking into either. In its haste to escape from the two, that hollow which slithered in the shadows began heading right towards the clearing, right towards the trap Ōkami was laying out for it. Instincts could only force it to run. Instincts could only send it scurrying in fear to a position far from these two. The creature, in its wounded state, could not think rationally outside of that pure instinctual drive to escape; therefore, it would continue on its way into Ōkami's trap despite Caedir's failed attempts to catch it.

Good...just keep chasing after it. Even if you can't catch it, just the threat of you following will keep it moving.

The Shihoin Head understood well how the creature thought. He understood how the creature thought because he had learned much about hollows during his century of imprisonment in that land of endless white sand. While fighting them off, he had also been able to study them. And through Monarch, he was able to understand the primal instinct that drove those creatures of endless hunger. There was no intellect that drove some of them until they reached the Adjuchas stage. And yet, even in such a stage, this one seemed to regress to that primal instinct when it was in danger. But, this was a good thing. Had it not, the Shihoin would not have been able to lead it into his trap like this.

Lifting his head from the scene below him to peer ahead of them, he could see the light breaking through the tall trees. They were almost to the clearing up ahead. He had known of the location of it because he had already traversed a good portion of this area in the search for this hollow. Little did he know before embarking on this mission that it possessed this ability to travel amongst shadows. The Shihoin surmised that it might even have been following him up until now. It had watched him kill the other hollow and then bided its own time before it decided to attack him. The cunning hollow had waited until his guard was down to try and attack, Ultimately, its surprise attack had failed and now it was going to regret not escaping when it had the chance earlier.

As he grew closer to the clearing, the Shihoin Head suddenly found himself breathing in more slowly. He found his breaths coming in more deeply, his body moving more quickly, and his mind focusing only on the target before him. His right hand moved to settle on the hilt of the blade sheathed on his left side. He glanced down at the shadow hollow and watched as it grew closer to the light. If he predicted correctly, it would be revealed if there was no more shadow to hide within. Just as the light of the clearing came into view, Ōkami leapt into action. Boosting himself with reiatsu, he leapt off the final branch into the light ahead. His movement was fluid, agile. This was it.

At 10x his normal speed, the Shihoin Head launched towards the hollow just as it entered into the clearing. Even while moving at this speed, his eyes were able to lock onto the creature as it was pulled from the shadows. With no more shadows ahead, it was cut off. With its haste to run away from Caedir, the creature wouldn’t realize there was nowhere to go until it reached that clearing. At that point, it would be too late. With incredible speed, Ōkami appeared before the creature. Before the hollow could move away, his blade was already accelerating at 10x speed towards the hollow’s neck. In one swift motion, the Shihoin Head removed the hollow’s head, severing it from the rest of the body. Then, with a sideways cut at 10x speed once more, he bisected the creature’s head in an effort to cut the hollow’s mask and purify it. Before the two halves of it’s head and the hollow’s torso could hit the ground, Ōkami was sheathing his blade.

”Thank you for your help.” the Shihoin said as he turned to face his ally. While he knew that Caedir had also wanted to take out the hollow, he had wanted to do it himself in order to test the limits of his power after coming back. While he could have defeated the creature much more quickly had he been at his peak, he would have to deal with his performance for now. At least he hadn’t degraded too much while grieving over the death of his parent’s. In time, he would grow stronger. In time, he would restore the Shihoin family to its proud name. Speaking of which, that gave him an idea. You Caedir, right?” the Shihoin asked, pointing towards the anthropomorphic cheetah to get his attention. ”You have strength. I respect that. Want to join my pack? Become Beta?” A smile, an expression usually reserved for family members and people he held closely, graced his face as he looked upon Caedir. There was potential that he saw in the beast clan and he wanted to bring out that potential. After such a brief moment of talking with Caedir, he had come to respect the Beast-Clan member. He wondered whether Caedir would be willing to receive more training in the Soul Society to increase his strength.

Ōkami’s Remaining Reiatsu: 2750/3000 (-100 for 2x Shunpo Karin, -50 for Shunpo)

[Caedir din Sahra]

Caedir continued to chase the mask-creature's shadow, passing through the brush with ease, sidestepping obstacles and even leaping over one offending bush in his bid to keep the creature in sight. The cheetah's eyes darted up occasionally to check the path ahead for further obstacles, but otherwise he paid attention to the shadow darting across the ground and the scent of the mask-creature as it retreated. Caedir wasn't sure how long he would have to chase, or when the hunt would end, and he was starting to tire by constantly moving at his full speed to keep up. Hopefully Okami came up with something soon; the cheetah was frustrated by his own inability to do anything, but as long as the prey was taken down, he would be at least partially satisfied.

They came to a clearing, and in that moment, the mask-creature leapt from the shadows. Caedir was confused, unsure why the monster would choose to reveal itself, but he didn't pass up the opportunity; keeping up his pace he lunged at the creature, stepping to its side and bringing his leg around in a powerful blow. The kick would hit nearly the same place as before, further damaging the already broken ribs, but what happened next was completely unplanned. Even as Caedir's kick landed, Okami appeared above the two of them, his metal stick slashing out at the mask-creature's neck. It was far faster than the cheetah had expected, however, his eyes unable to keep up with more than a flash of light as the man's arm seemed to almost blink from one side to the other.

The effects were obvious; even as the creature's head was removed, the motion of the blade carrying the head in one direction, Caedir's kick had the creature's torso going in the opposite direction, making it slam into a pair of trees at the edge of the clearing, the trunks cracking slightly under the weight. The head that fell a moment later was easily repelled in a similar manner, a straight kick propelling it into the trees. Okami finished the job even as Caedir launched it, his flash-cut again slicing through the creature even as it flew through the air. The mask-monster's face was torn apart, both pieces disappearing into the forest, and the body dissolved a moment later.

Caedir actually found himself disappointed; normally he hunted to eat, and he was curious to see what one of those mask-creatures tasted like. Food normally did not disappear when it was killed either, so the cheetah found himself both confused and annoyed at the same time. Had Okami stolen his dinner? No, he decided in an almost mercurial shift of moods; Okami wasn't like that. He hadn't expressed interest, had merely been hunting, and had in no way consumed the creature himself. Maybe the mask-creatures just disappeared after being killed? That meant that they'd make terrible hunting in the future, and Caedir resolved to remember that; he'd just drive them out of his territory, and ignore them otherwise.

For now, Okami was talking again, though this time he was kind enough to use simpler words, ones that Caedir understood. An invitation was extended, one to join the man's pack, and Caedir found himself curious; did Okami refer to the pack of black-robed humans, or a pack of humans like himself? Either way, Caedir was not a human, and he felt as though he would not fit in among such a pack; previous experiences had told him that most humans did not like his kind, treating them as monsters. “Caedir no human; how Caedir join pack? Caedir strong, but Caedir not like Okami. Okami not like Caedir. Pack not like not-human, yes?”

[Ōkami Shihoin]

"Yes, my pack not like not-human." the Shihoin Head responded to the Beast Cansmen. It appeared that Caedir had some reservations about joining the Shihoin noble's "pack". Ōkami could understand why. He was a human asking a "not-human" to join his pack. For Caedir, it must have been quite confusing. Not only that, but Ōkami suspected that the anthropomorphic cheetah had some suspicion about Ōkami's offer. When Ōkami had first approached Caedir, he had remained cautious of the noble, keeping his guard up until he realized that Ōkami was no threat to him. This signaled to Ōkami that Caedir must have had some bad experiences with either Shinigami or humans in general. He surmised that it was the latter more than the former. So, with that knowledge, he wanted to approach it in a different way.

"You have pack?" Ōkami asked, using words that he felt Caedir would understand. Despite not normally communicating in such simple words, he seemed to be getting the hang of it rather quickly. "My pack take not-humans too." the Shihoin lied. It wasn't true that the Shihoin family accepted those that were like Caedir or that were even not of Shihoin blood. For years, the Shihoin and many other noble families had stood proudly behind this fact. To accept someone of non-noble birth would lead to deterioration of the noble blood. That had been the belief within all of the noble families.

But, Ōkami wanted to change that. He had heard based on rumors that Sozen Kuchiki had accepted non-Kuchiki into his family. He had gone against the age-old tradition and committed a taboo amongst noble families. If the Kuchiki council had allowed him to do such a thing without retaliation, it meant that the Kuchiki could now be seen as an example of it being okay to adopt others outside of the family. It wasn't the fact that doing this would bring new blood, and essentially an individual who could bring a new perspective to the family, but it could also help the noble families to become more respected rather than feared. All of his life growing up, Ōkami had been looked down on for being a noble. His nobility pushed him away from other children and caused much dissonance with them. But if noble families began giving those of non-noble birth a chance to be accepted into their families, it could possibly show others that nobles were not the self-centered, stuck up people that everyone believed they were.

It wasn't only this that caused Ōkami to extend such an offer to the Beast Clansmen, however. Though he knew deep down that his father and even the Shihoin council would have qualms about it, he could not help but want to give aid to Caedir. The Beast Clansmen reminded him so much of his own zanpakutou spirit, Kyukyoku no Kasokuki. The anthropomorphic cheetah that was his soul's inner spirit resembled Caedir in many ways. And it was because of this resemblance, this familiarity, that Ōkami chose to extend that invitation to Caedir. He wanted to give him a home, where he would not have to worry about hollows intruding on his territory. But then, the noble had to also ask himself whether Caedir was fine with living the way he was currently. Maybe he didn't care about his situation. Maybe he wanted to just be left alone, to live his life here away from the humans who discriminated against him. But, what if he didn't? It didn't hurt to ask, the Shihoin noble concluded.

"You strong." Ōkami said, pointing a finger towards the Beast Clansmen. Then, he turned that same finger onto himself. "My pack strong too. I am alpha of my pack." he said. He wasn't sure how Caedir would react to the knowledge of Ōkami being the alpha of his own pack. Would it stir Caedir's curiosity? He remained silent for a little to gauge Caedir's thoughts on what he had said. Then, after Caedir spoke or if there was silence instead, he would speak again, "You like it here? Hunting in this area? You like hunting mask beast?" If Caedir didn't want to join his family, he could give him some incentive in the form of hunting more hollow and getting stronger. He could tell that Caedir had enjoyed the hunt and wanted to see if this would make the Beast Clansmen consider joining a pack with not-humans.