ooc: this entire thread is devoted to spirit power. also, in addition to the reward, i want to know what anyone thinks of the last part, the emotional part. what do you think?
to make it really dramatic, start listening at time 1:39 of this link lol
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WoNjZPJmArE&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bleachanimeguide.com%2Fbleach-soundtrack&feature=player_embedded

Ryouta stepped out of the Senkai gate into the nighttime of the real world. What had he been told this place was called? Tokyo. Something was itching at the back of his mind about the name…perhaps this was where he lived when he had, well, lived. Ryouta glanced around at his surroundings. He appeared to be on top of an extremely tall building surrounded by other extremely tall buildings in every direction. I lived in a place like this? Huh. It seems kind of noisy.

He walked to the edge of the building he was standing on and looked down. Hmm…very tall. I guess I just wait for a Hollow reiatsu to show up. Ryouta sat down and pulled out a book: On the Subject of Gigai. He began to read out loud; “In order to effectively control an inflatable gigai and use it as a substitute, one must possess sufficient reiatsu to do so, and also have the ability to control their reiatsu to a very specific-” Ryouta looked up in alarm. He had just felt the presence of a Hollow.

Ryouta stood up quickly. Based on the spiritual pressure he was feeling, it was probably just a weak, run-of-the-mill Hollow, the kind that Academy students faced. Yet these were still strong enough to take out a dead soul. He ran to the edge of the building and looked down. The Hollow’s reiatsu appeared to be coming from straight down. Ryouta jumped. As he fell, he focused and augmented his own reiatsu so he could perhaps get the Hollow to notice and confront him. Unfortunately, as Ryouta neared the ground, he saw that the Hollow was engaged in chasing down the spirit of a teenage boy, looked to be about 14. Ryouta used Hohou to slow his descent before he touched down lightly on the ground. “Oy! Hollow!” The damn thing kept running after the teenager.

Damn it, thought Ryouta. The boy tripped and the Hollow bent to feed on his soul. Shoot. Ryouta flash-stepped in front of the Hollow and did the only thing he could do- collect reiatsu in his fist and punch the Hollow right in between its eyes. It screeched in pain as it skidded backward several meters. “Stay where you are,” Ryouta advised the teenager as he faced the Hollow. It roared at him then charged. “I’m sorry you won’t be able to see this…” Ryouta said. He flash-stepped forward just above the Hollow’s head; he drew his right ninjato as he did so. Surprisingly, the Hollow reacted quickly and jumped, headbutting Ryouta in the stomach. This unexpected attack sent Ryouta flying upwards. With another roar, the Hollow jumped after him. “Tch.” Ryouta reversed his direction with Hohou, then came down and met the Hollow with a terrible slash of his Zanpakuto, splitting the entire thing in half. With a dying scream, the Hollow disappeared into numerous spirit particles. Ryouta landed but did not sheath his ninjato, and then turned to face the now terrified teenage boy’s soul.

Ryouta approached him and held out his hand. “Are you all right?”
“Y- yes. Who are you?” The boy looked about ready to wet himself.
Ryouta smiled in what he hoped was an endearing and friendly manner. “I’m Ayame Ryouta. Shinigami.”
“Why haven’t you put away your sword?” asked the boy.
“I still need to use it on you,” Ryouta explained.
“What? Get away from me!” the boy got up and began to run away.
Uh oh…I explained badly. Ryouta flash-stepped in front of the boy and said, “Don’t worry, not with the blade. I just need to touch you with the hilt so you can go to the spirit world.” Before the boy could react, Ryouta reached out and stamped his forehead with the hilt of his Zanpakuto, then waved as the boy turned blue and was transported to Soul Society.

My first successful rescue…thought Ryouta. What should I do next? Hey! I bet if I used to live here, I could find my grave. Maybe I’ll go look for it. On this thought, Ryouta used Hohou to stay in the air again, then began flash-stepping off to what an inner feeling was telling him would be the direction of the cemetery.

15 minutes later, thankfully Hollow-free, Ryouta arrived at the cemetery. He began walking among the gravestones, examining each grave carefully for a name, then passing it by when he saw it wasn’t his own. He was so absorbed with his examinations he didn’t notice the old couple standing by a grave until he nearly walked right into them. Whew! That was close; they could have reacted adversely to being bumped by an unseen force.

Ryouta peered over their shoulders to see the name of the person they were mourning. Ayame Ryouta. It was as if a weight had just landed on his chest; he found it hard to believe, seeing his grave. It was like an out-of-body experience, it felt so surreal. Ryouta looked harder at the wrinkled faces of the elderly couple, and something in his midn seemed to click as their faces became agonizingly, intensely familiar. “Otoo-san? Okaa-san?” (Japanese for father and mother) Suddenly overwhelmed by emotion, Ryouta nearly reached out and brushed each person’s face. He wanted to envelop them both in a hug, but knew he couldn’t. Instead, he could only watch in silence as his mother and father stared silently at his grave. It felt like an eternity, and each moment only seemed to add to his pain…it was agonizing standing there, watching the tears slide down his parents’ leathery, wrinkly cheeks. Ryouta longed to comfort them, and cursed the fact that he couldn’t. His heart felt as if it would tear, it ached so for his parents and the pain they must have surely felt. Why? Why did he have to die and cause these people so much suffering? A tear slid down his own cheek, and was quickly followed by more. “Otoo-san…Okaa-san…I’m here. I’m safe. Please…please don’t cry for me. Please- don’t bring yourselves pain; not for me. Not because of me. I’m…I’m not worth it. Otoo-san…O- Okaa-san.” Ryouta’s voice broke as he fell to his knees and buried his face in his hands, weeping to ears that could not hear his sobs.
The old man, his father, reached out and touched the gravestone. “We are honored to be your parents, sochi (son.) We love you still…our hitorikko (only child).” Ryouta’s father hugged his mother close, and then the pair turned and began to walk away. Ryouta looked up, his face streaked with tears. “No! Wait! Otoo-san, Okaa-san, come back! Please! Come back!” His parents continued on; they were completely unaware of his presence, after all. Ryouta flung out his hands as if to draw them back, but they both fell limply back to his sides as his parents rounded the corner and vanished from sight. “Otoo-san…Okaa-san…”

After he cried for about another five minutes, Ryouta got up and wiped the tears from his face. “I- I should get back to- to work.” He exited the cemetery by flash-stepping upward and then away, just in a random direction, just to escape the emotions that were still to raw to deal with. Strangely, he felt somewhat lighter, somewhat…stronger, though that wasn’t the precise word for it.

I'm gonna give this a +3 to spirit power. I'd like to give it more as it was a good read, of great quality and i really felt for your character at the end. What must it be like i wonder to be forced to look forever more at those you lover through a one sided mirror?
I'm awarding you with 10 ZE.

ooc: again, this is for spirit power. i'd like to use these posts as much for character development. Ryouta's becoming more mature

Ryouta had been in the real world for several days now. He had not visited his grave since; the emotions had still been too raw and painful to return. In the past few days, he had fought off around 15 weak Hollows and performed Soul Burials a corresponding number of times, but nothing really out of the ordinary. Today, Ryouta sat with his legs dangling over the edge of a massive skyscraper- his head almost literally in the clouds. He sighed. I really want to go back…but I’m afraid. I’m terrified that my parents will be there, and I’m terrified they won’t be. I’m scared that there might be someone else. I- I- I’m scared I’ll get hurt again…

Ryouta sighed again. “Pain is weakness leaving the body…” he recited a commonly used 11th squad motto. “If that’s true, I should confront that which I fear, even if it means pain.” His mind made up, Ryouta stood, then flash-stepped off toward the cemetery.
When he arrived, it was empty. Ryouta stood in front of his grave, drinking in the sight of it in an almost…perverse fashion. His eyes took in every detail, every bit of weathered stone, and the harsh edges of the characters etched into it. Ryouta walked around it, then sat down, and rested his head against the tombstone. “That wasn’t so bad…”

A female voice made him instantly alert. “What wasn’t? And who are you?”

Ryouta turned to see who had spoken, and was surprised to see a young woman’s spirit who looked to be in her early 20s. The chain on her chest hung down to her knees. She looked strangely familiar, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it. …Why does she look like she’s seen a ghost…?

Her eyes were wide open, and her hand was over her mouth. “Ryouta…? Ryouta, is that really you? It can’t be, you’re dead.”

Ryouta stood and shrugged. “Yes and no. I did die. But now, I’m a Shinigami. You’re the one who’s uh…dead.”

She glared at him suddenly. “You still can’t take anything seriously, can you Ryouta? You’re all dressed up in a kimono and you’re dead, and you’re feeding me some bullsh*t lies about you being a shinigami?!?!”

Ryouta was taken aback by this reaction. “Umm…I, I uh…lost my memories for the most part when I died. I- I don’t know who you are.”

She looked up at him. “Are you serious? I am- I *was* your girlfriend.”

At these words, more memories hit Ryouta like a load of bricks. He saw them eating ice cream at an ice cream parlor. He saw them laughing together as they walked down a busy street. He saw them kissing in the rain under the boughs of a tree. Ryouta gasped a little, and his eyes became shiny, though no tears fell.
“I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you at first…Reika-chan.” Ryouta felt extremely awkward. It was obvious from his memories that they had had feelings for each other, but now…even with all his memories of her restored, he felt nothing out of the ordinary from her. Based on her earlier words with him, he guessed that she wasn’t too happy with him either. His initial emotion seemed…out of place, especially considering the relationship he had with Himawari. “Umm…how have you been?”

When he looked into her eyes, he saw a similar detachment to his own. However, he sensed pain behind those eyes.

“How’ve I been, Ryouta-kun? You’re a Shinigami, shouldn’t you know?”

“It’s not like that. My job is to kill evil spirits and transport good ones to Soul Society. Heaven, if you prefer.”

“Uh-huh. Well, I’ll tell you how I’ve been. How would you feel if someone you loved was just taken away from you, just like that? I cried for weeks after that drunk driver killed you. Weeks! And now, here you are, you barely remember me, and you don’t know what to say! *I* don’t know what to say! I don’t know what to feel!” Her last words were marred a little as her voice broke. Her eyes had become shiny, and the pain behind them had become so naked that Ryouta could not help but feel a certain pity- as well as more grief for having caused someone he cared about pain.

“Reika…I’m sorry. But…we- we can’t change the past. You’re right; I don’t know what to say. I don’t know what you want. I’m scared you still love me; because if you do, you’ll end up getting hurt and it’ll be my fault. I don’t want that to happen. I saw my parents here a few days ago. It was almost too much for me to bear, seeing them mourn me, their only son,” Ryouta said. He tried to convey his helplessness to her through his gray eyes, but he wasn’t sure that that was having any effect.

She slapped him in the face, but he didn’t flinch. “Do you know what happened after you died? After I spent all that time crying? I killed myself. I loved you that much,” Reika spoke very clearly now.

A single tear ran down Ryouta’s cheek. “You killed yourself because of me? It seems I have much to atone for.”

“So…before, you said you were scared that I might still love you. Does that mean you don’t love me anymore? That you never did?” Reika asked this with a face completely devoid of emotion.

“I- I can’t say for sure. But based on my previous memories…I don’t think I loved you. I’ve said this a lot…but I’m sorry.”

Tears flowed down from her eyes. “Uh huh. I see. So I killed myself for nothing. Forget you!” With those words, she turned and ran from him. Ryouta stood watching her go. He turned to leave the area, but his blood ran cold when he heard a scream.

He flash-stepped away in the direction he had heard her scream from. When he rounded the corner of the cemetery, he saw her lying on her back, slowly trying to back away from 3 extremely large Hollows. “Inazuma ni koboruru oto ya take no tsuyu, Raikou Arashi.” His Zanpakuto became the hook swords that had red bandaged hilts. At his words, Reika turned to see him standing there with his blades drawn. “W- what?”

“Stay back.” Ryouta flash-stepped and slashed one of the giant Hollows right up the middle. “Shuurai.” Twin electric arcs split the skulls of the other two. Both of Ryouta’s Zanpakuto were back in his sheathes before he touched back down on the ground. Reika looked at him with an expression of mingled awe and fear.

“I’m sorry, Reika. I should have sent you to Soul Society as soon as I had the chance. Forgive me,” Ryouta said as he drew one of his ninjato. “I need to stamp you on the forehead with the hilt to send you there.” He reversed his grip, and then stamped her forehead. As she began to disappear, he said, “I hope…that you never see me in Soul Society. Find joy in forgetting that I ever existed.”

And with these words, Ryouta turned and walked away, tears evident in his eyes.

It was very late. Ryouta wandered the rooftops of Tokyo in a very listless manner. Ever since he had seen his parents, since he had performed the Soul Burial on his ex-girlfriend, he had felt a strange mixture of feelings. He felt depressed and melancholy, like he was empty, like he couldn’t feel any emotion beyond those two. Ryouta sighed as he trudged along.
He almost wished for some calamity to deal with, just so he’d have something to do.

Being depressed sucks. Ryouta thought to himself. He continued on his way, running across rooftops, jumping to land on the adjacent one. It was mindless exercise, just something to do while he tried to cope with his emotions. He felt like he was being smothered by an enormous soaked through wool blanket. That was why the sudden increase of reiatsu straight ahead of him hit him like a sledgehammer.

What the hell?! Ryouta ran forward to the edge of the building he was standing on, a relatively low office building. Looking over the edge, he saw a bunch of Academy students, a couple of seniors and a large group of lower level students. He flash-stepped down and approached the senior who looked to be in charge. “What are you guys doing here?” His voice was uncharacteristically morose.

“Relax, we’re just out on a routine Hollow extermination class. You know, so that us students can know what it’s like to really get out and take out a Hollow,” the senior explained.

“Oh. Fine. I’ll sort of tag along and check up on you guys every now and then,” Ryouta said. Then, not wishing to hear an argument, he flash-stepped away a small distance and watched them from afar. It was easy keeping an eye on them- many of them were not yet proficient in the use of Shunpo, and so traveled at a pace that he could easily stay with. The group took out perhaps 4 low level Hollows that they found. Then Ryouta saw the seniors group together- they seemed to be talking to the group at large, but Ryouta couldn’t hear what they were saying over the sounds of the city. After their speech, the group of students cheered, and Ryouta swore he heard things along the lines of “Yeah, we can handle it!” One of the seniors raised his hand high up in the air, clearly holding something, but it was too small for Ryouta to see what exactly it was. The senior crushed whatever was in his hand. Ryouta had a flashback to when his kido instructor back at the Academy had done a very similar thing. What?! He’s using Hollow bait to train this large a group? And so inexperienced?! Is he insane!?!

Ryouta’s fears were confirmed when he suddenly felt the reiatsus of at least 20 Hollows appear from nowhere- that wasn’t even the worst part, he knew many more would come. At least a hundred. Ryouta flash-stepped back to the group and accosted the seniors. “What the hell d’ya think you’re doing?! This group isn’t ready to take on so many Hollows at once!”

The senior seemed unconcerned. “No worries man, we can handle it.” The roars of several Hollows caused everybody in the area to tense. “Everybody stay here; don’t go running off with some false heroics, all right?” Ryouta yelled at the group.

He drew both of his Zanpakuto and waited- a large Hollow that resembled a gorilla leaped down from the top of a building. Ryouta flash-stepped and used his speed to rip the entire Hollow in half. He actually got some applause from below for that. This isn’t a game…he thought. Some of them are gonna die tonight- I can’t protect them all at once. I’m going to need Raikou Arashi’s help for this.

Ryouta held out both his ninjato. “Inazuma ni koboruru oto ya take no tsuyu, Raikou Arashi.” His ninjato extended to become the hook swords that were so familiar to him now. And that was when all hell broke loose- Hollow appeared everywhere. There were humanoid Hollows, Hollows that resembled primates, and Hollows that were like birds, some like reptiles. There were several that were simply enormous. Oh no…

He couldn’t waste a single second. Ryouta flash-stepped into the nearest group of Hollows and split the heads of the two nearest him. “Shuurai!” Spinning electric arcs of reiatsu exploded from his two blades and ripped apart two other Hollows. Eight more different Hollows seemed to rise in their stead. Ryouta continued his battle with this group of Hollows for about another 10 seconds, always flash-stepping to maneuver him into a position that granted him an easy, quick killing blow. For example, he'd flash-step below a particularly big Hollow, then flash-step up, ripping it in half as he did so.

Ryouta heard a scream of pain and anguish. Without hesitation, he flash-stepped off into the direction that he had heard the scream coming from. He appeared amidst bloody chaos- 2 Academy students were laying in pools of their own blood while Hollows attacked their colleagues. Ryouta let loose a primal roar of outrage and began flash-stepping all over the place. He flash-stepped above the head of a bird-like Hollow and sliced its head off, while he simultaneously ripped a snake like Hollow up the middle. Ryouta flash-stepped again, this time towards the head of a giant Hollow, and sliced its head open. He flash-stepped towards a small group of Hollows that were all pressed up against one another and uttered, “Shuurai!” He sent two huge blasts of electricity at the group, obliterating them.

Another cry grabbed his attention, but he was tiring from using so many flash-steps. “Use kido to slow ’em down or something- else more of you will die!” he shouted at the dwindling group of Academy students. He heard a chorus of “Bakudo no Ichi: Sai!”’s and watched with some satisfaction as several Hollows had their arms forced behind their backs. He flash-stepped over to each one and dispensed with them in the quickest way possible- i.e he beheaded them by flash-stepping past them so the hook of his sword would take off their heads as he went past.

“Bakudo no Ichi: Sai!” Again, the Academy students cast the simplest kido spell. Again, Ryouta flash-stepped to each and every unfortunate Hollow that was hit by one and beheaded each one. I hope they aren’t capable of Cero…if they were Menos we’d be in big trouble. Ryouta flash-stepped between the last two enormous Hollows and pointed a blade at each of their faces. “Hado no Yo: Byakurai!” He burned a hole through each of their skulls, and watched with satisfaction as they dissolved into spirit particles.

However, there were still an abundance of Hollows left. Ryouta had an idea, but it would involve the students. “Guys! Cast Bakudo#4! Try to get every Hollow touching a bit of the rope, and bring it all together!” He yelled out as he blocked a thrust from a deer-like Hollow, and then flash-stepped behind it and split it in half.

The students obliged. “Bakudo no Yo: Hainawa!” Yellow ropes of reiatsu sprung from each member of the Academy group to encircle a large group of Hollows. Pressed up against each other as they were, the Hollows could move, but they couldn’t really free themselves. Ryouta flash-stepped back into the center of the group. “All right, give me all the ends of the ropes you’re holding.” The students did as they were told, too scared to argue with him. He held onto all of them and let his reiatsu pulse through them. “Hado no Juichi: Tsuzuri Raiden!!” Each of the ropes glowed brilliant blue, as did any Hollow that was touching one, namely, most, if not all of them. Then, they all exploded in a burst of electric reiatsu. Ryouta breathed hard- all that flash-stepping had taken a lot out of him.

He called over the senior responsible for breaking the Hollow bait. “I hope you’re happy with yourself. You are directly responsible for the deaths of several people here. The job of a Shinigami is to protect his comrades and his friends, not to be an idiot and contribute to their deaths!” Ryouta sheathed his now sealed Zanpakuto. Then, he punched the guy in the face. He fell backward, spluttering, and then was helped back up by his teammates. Seemingly unconcerned, Ryouta continued with his dialogue. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have work to catch up on. Take care of your wounded and dead.” Ryouta wiped some sweat from his brow, then flash-stepped up and away. Stupid…but at least it got my mind off of some tough stuff- and it was a good workout.

ooc: so i'd like spirit power for the previous post and speed for this one. thx

Okaydokie, +2 SP and 10 ZE for the length and quality.

aw...i don't get speed too? rats.

Ryouta sat cross-legged on the tallest building in Tokyo, both his Zanpakuto laid across his lap. He began to pulse with reiatsu, and he let his mind connect with Raikou Arashi…

Ryouta found himself standing amidst the tall wild grasses of Raikou Arashi’s grassland domain. Raikou Arashi himself was standing there looking at him with his arms crossed. He did not seem at all pleased.

“What’s up?” Ryouta asked. “Ya seem…a little…pissed.”

Raikou Arashi crossed his arms across his massive chest. “I am not pleased. More specifically, I am not pleased with you.”

“What’s your beef dude? I don’t like releasing you that often because you’re not a good assassination weapon,” Ryouta explained what he thought Raikou Arashi had a problem with.

“That is not the issue. I am a fine assassination weapon when properly released. Have you noticed that despite my samurai armor, I have no sword?” Ryouta looked Raikou Arashi up and down. It was true. He had no sword. “My only weapons are my own fangs and claws. But that is all beside the point. You have lost that which made you a potentially great warrior. Get it back, or I will no longer come at your call.”

Ryouta looked taken aback. “What d’ya mean by that?”

Raikou Arashi uncrossed his arms and stared at Ryouta. His red eyes bored into Ryouta’s own. “You have lost that which makes a warrior great.”

Ryouta looked confused. “What do you mean? I still have the desire to protect those I care about. I still am willing to do anything to fulfill that desire.”

Raikou Arashi placed a huge paw on Ryouta’s right shoulder. “You have lost hope, friend. You have lost hope in the world, hope in your fellow Shinigami. In short, you have lost your determination, your passion, what really and truly drives you. I am not convinced of your motivation. Gain it back.”

Ryouta looked morose again. “I understand. Without hope, I won’t have trust. Without trust…”

“Exactly,” said Raikou Arashi. “Let’s go. Run with me.” Raikou Arashi dropped to all fours and began running. Ryouta followed after him, running at fairly high speed to keep up with him, but not using Shunpo. They ran for a long time, until they stood by a cliff that overlooked a dry, cracked desert. Raikou Arashi returned to standing on two legs, and then said, “And here is where we will find out if you can return to your original state of mind. A sorrowful experience should not result in depression, but instead, should be a learning experience. Harness what you feel and fight for it. Feeling as you do means that you are human. Embrace that.”

Ryouta nodded. “Yeah, I get it.”

Raikou Arashi grunted, then without warning, swung a giant paw at Ryouta’s face. Ryouta brought up both his Zanpakuto to block the attack. “What the hell?!”

Raikou Arashi kept his paw pushed up against the Zanpakutos. “If you can fight me with passion, with the desire to win; if you can fight me, who knows you perhaps better than you know yourself…, then you deserve to wield me.” He whirled with a roar, and crashed his other paw into the cross that Ryouta had formed with his short blades.

Ryouta vaulted over Raikou Arashi’s head, kicking out backward to put some distance between them. He spun and flash stepped forward, and then aimed a diagonal slash across Raikou Arashi’s chest. The massive lion somehow managed to sidestep the slash, and counterattack with a swipe at Ryouta’s own chest. The blow connected; Ryouta was flung back several feet. “You’re holding back!! Do not!” He began raining blows down on Ryouta, who was already winded from the heavy blow.

Damn, he’s strong…Ryouta thought as he parried Raikou Arashi’s blows. In fact, Raikou Arashi was so strong that Ryouta had to actually strike Raikou Arashi’s paws so they would deflect away from him. The best defense is a good offense…Ryouta thought. Raikou Arashi wanted him to go all out. Then fine, he would go all out.

Ryouta retreated deep within himself; let the beast loose, so to speak. He let his reiatsu build within him so it would augment his speed and power. With a primal roar, he threw himself at Raikou Arashi, striking so hard and fast that his arms were a blur. The thunking of his blades against Raikou Arashi’s armored paws were like the drum part in the song “Through the Fire and Flames.”

Ryouta aimed a slash at Raikou Arashi’s face, when it was deflected; he followed with a kick at his armored stomach. He didn’t register the pain of the kick; he only continued his assault, this time trying to wrap his leg around Raikou Arashi’s neck in an attempt to snare him. Failing this, Ryouta jumped above him and came down with a powerful overhead cut. As Raikou Arashi jumped backward to avoid it, Ryouta flash stepped behind him and swung his Zanpakuto as hard as he could against his armored back- his blade grated against the armor with a terrible screeching noise, leaving a long white scratch across it.

Ryouta then flash stepped in front of Raikou Arashi and stabbed out at his face, then followed up with a roundhouse kick aimed at his neck. Again and again, Raikou Arashi displayed excellent Hakudo skills and parried each of his blows.

Ryouta slid backward as he was hit by one of Raikou Arashi’s massive paws. “HAAAAAA-“ Ryouta was getting angry. He was fighting Raikou Arashi with all he had, and he wasn’t budging. “A flash of lightning-“ he didn’t even need to complete the haiku; his ninjato became hook swords as he flash stepped above Raikou Arashi and brought them both down towards his head. Raikou Arashi caught both blades and threw Ryouta aside. “Good. You have regained that which you lost. I hope this has been therapeutic for you- take solace in a friend.” And with that cryptic message, Raikou Arashi disappeared, as did the world around him. Ryouta found himself soaking wet. Apparently it had started raining, and so deeply was he engaged in what he was doing that he hadn’t noticed. Ryouta smiled. It had been therapeutic. He silently thanked Raikou Arashi, then got back up and began his routine patrol.

ooc: spirit power please

+2 Spirit power

Today was Ryouta’s first break in ages. He sat in a sort of Senkai rest station if you will. It was a place many went for their breaks when sent out on patrol for long periods of time- it was a great place to catch up on sleep, get a hot meal, etc. etc. The place was now being occupied by four other Shinigami that patrolled Tokyo; they also seemed to be keeping to themselves. This particular rest station was very popular, mostly because it featured things like hot springs.

At the moment, Ryouta was drinking green tea. He was looking forward to a good long bit of R & R. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, taking another sip of the therapeutic tea. And that was when the Hell Butterfly flew in. ALL SHINIGAMI STATIONED IN TOKYO ARE TO REENTER THE CITY. A LARGE NUMBER OF HOLLOWS HAVE BEEN DETECTED THERE. THAT IS ALL. Ryouta swore under his breath, and then sighed. He stood, as did the other four Shinigami (2 men and 2 women). They glanced at each other, sharing looks of annoyance and exasperation. Then they all headed for the gate, which opened and allowed them all through into Tokyo.

They appeared on top of a large building. Hollow reiatsu bombarded them from all directions. Ryouta sighed. This was going to be an all-nighter. “I’ll go that way.” Without waiting for a response, he flash stepped off. Very soon, he came upon a medium sized Hollow- it resembled a gigantic worm and was currently engaged in wrapping its enormous body around a building and climbing up it. Ryouta flash stepped above its head, pulled out his right ninjato, and then sliced the thing down the middle. As it disappeared, he began running up the building that it had been climbing. When he got to the top, he glanced around. He could feel the different reiatsus of several Hollows, and visually, he could see several of the enormous kind. “Damn it, I do not need to deal with this right now.”

Ryouta ran off in the direction of the closest reiatsu, which actually turned out to be a group of three medium-sized Hollows. Ryouta flash stepped behind the nearest one and split its skull with a ninjato. Then, as the other two launched himself at him, he drew his second ninjato in a reverse grip and slammed the hilt in the face of one of them; he hit it so hard that its mask split in half. He stabbed the other Hollow between the eyes and pulled up, essentially splitting its skull.

“Tch! Is this it? I can’t believe they actually sent all five of us out to deal with Hollows like this.” Ryouta wanted a good long soak in a hot spring, and he wanted one now. “I better get overtime pay for this.” He located the next group of Hollow by their reiatsu signatures, and then flash stepped off toward them. They fell easily, just about as easily as all the rest had.

Now there were no more Hollow reiatsus in Ryouta’s vicinity. “Do I get to leave now or what?” He was about to do just that when he felt a wild fluctuation in one of his companion Shinigami’s reiatsus; it flared, then seemed to almost vanish. “What the…” He flash stepped off in the direction he had felt the reiatsu nearly disappear.

Ryouta appeared on the edge of a tall building. The body of a very battered and bloody looking Shinigami laid there. Ryouta approached and nudged him with his foot. “Yo, you all right?” The man stirred, and then looked up. “Get away! It’s a trap!”

“What?” Then Ryouta felt an extremely disturbing reiatsu- actually, several disturbing reiatsus. He turned and saw what the cause of his discomfort was and saw a Menos charging up a Cero. “Sh*t! A flash of lighting, the sound of drops, falling among the bamboos, Raikou Arashi! Todoroke!”

The Cero fired and there was a huge explosion. The Menos roared in anger when it saw Ryouta standing there over the now unconscious Shinigami, apparently unharmed. “Shuurai.” His voice was full of quiet fury. Both blades glowed electric yellow, and then Ryouta made two slashing motions. The electric blasts literally cut the slow-moving Menos’s face in half. It gave a dying scream as it turned into spirit particles.

He now had to make a tough decision. He could stay here and guard this Shinigami- or he could head out and see if the others were in similar predicaments. After a little internal debate, he decided he’d head out- after all, the man’s reiatsu signature was barely even a blip on his radar; he was sure that the man would be fine. Ryouta flash stepped toward the next Menos reiatsu he felt.

The next one he came upon looked slightly different than the first. Its mask resembled a knight’s visor as opposed to the generic Menos mask that most Menos had. “I better take this one out- it could become an Adjuchas if it finds another of its companions.” He flash stepped right in front of its face and slashed it in half lengthwise. Not pausing to watch it disappear, Ryouta flash stepped off to the next source of Menos reiatsu.

Twenty minutes later, Ryouta had located the rest of the Shinigami and had helped them dispose of the rest of the Menos in the area; at least, the ones they could sense. They were now gathered around the body of the unconscious Shinigami, whom Ryouta was thankful to see was no more harmed than he had been before. “All right, I guess we should bring him back now.” The others nodded and started to pick him up. And that was when another, more intense Hollow reiatsu registered.

Ryouta turned to see the new threat, and was almost not surprised to see what appeared to be an Adjuchas floating in the air behind them. It was also charging up a Cero. “Everyone stay back; it’s an Adjuchas. I’ll take down that Hollow b*stard.” Ryouta gripped his hook swords tightly. “Todoroke!” He sent a blast of air towards the Adjuchas, hoping that maybe it might cause the Cero to explode in its own mouth. No such luck. It used Sonido and appeared above them all, then fired its Cero. “Shuurai!” Twin electric blasts met the Cero and there was a large, smoky explosion.

All of the Shinigami he was with had moved to an opposing building and were watching his progress. Good, they had done as they were ordered to…Ryouta prepared to take the Adjuchas.

The Adjuchas laughed. “Not bad, Shinigami! It’ll be fun watching your blood pour from your wounds!” It used Sonido and appeared behind him. Ryouta’s eyes widened. Sh*t! He’s fast! Ryouta flash stepped away and appeared behind the Adjuchas and pointed his blade at him.

“Hold on a second. If we’re fighting to the death, we both deserve the courtesy of knowing the name of our killer. I am Ayame Ryouta, Nibantai fukutaichou.” Ryouta said this in a calm, collected voice. There was no way he was letting on that the Adjuchas was faster than he thought.

The Adjuchas turned. It truly was very ugly. He stood at about fifteen feet tall and was built like a giant. He was literally bulging with muscles on top of more muscle. Its Hollow mask resembled a cape buffalo’s head. “Hehehe, you’re very amusing, Shinigami. All right, my name is Suigyuu Komi. Now that the pleasantries are over with, it’s time for you to die!”

Suigyuu used Sonido and appeared directly in front of Ryouta, swinging a massive fist at him as he did so. “Die, Shinigami!!” Ryouta brought up his hook swords to parry the unexpectedly fast blow. Suigyuu’s massive fist hit exactly in the center of where Ryouta’s hook swords crossed. Ryouta flew backward under the impact and slammed into the wall of stone behind him. It cracked inward from the collision, leaving a circular crater in the side of the building. Ryouta coughed up a little blood.

“Damn…you’re pretty strong…Suigyuu. This may be tougher than I expected.” He flash stepped behind Suigyuu. “Or maybe not…” Ryouta swung his right hook sword as hard as he could at the back of Suigyuu’s neck. Suigyuu whirled with impossible speed and lashed out with another enormous fist. Ryouta flash stepped to avoid it, fearing a possibly more deadly hit than before. “Shuurai!” Both his blades glowed with electric yellow reiatsu. Then Ryouta brought them both slashing down to release twin blades of electric energy directly at Suigyuu.

Suigyuu used Sonido to avoid the first blast, and then met the second blast with the palms of both hands. He closed them, and the blast fizzled out. “No- no way…” Ryouta was stunned by Suigyuu’s ability to so easily block his Inadzuma attack.

“Hahaha, you are so dead, Shinigami!” Suigyuu appeared right in front of him again and aimed another powerful punch. Ryouta only just managed to flash step out of the way, this time landing on the roof of an adjacent building. He sent out two more Inadzuma blasts at Suigyuu, but to no effect. Suigyuu simply used Sonido to avoid them and appear above Ryouta to come down with two fists. Ryouta dodged around and Suigyuu left a crater the size of several watermelons in the roof of the building.

“My turn!” Ryouta flash stepped above Suigyuu. “Shuurai!” He began making extremely fast slashing motions at Suigyuu, sending smaller but faster arcs of electric energy directly at him. It was like a downpour of rain, but instead of raindrops, there were arcs of lightning. After doing this for about twenty seconds, Ryouta stopped, panting hard. Almost as an afterthought, he said, “Todoroke!” and sent a blast of air down at the roof. As the dust cleared, he saw there was no sign of Suigyuu on the building, just a hell of a lot of chunks of building missing from its barrage.

Ryouta breathed a sigh of relief. (insert sound that accompanies a Sonido here) Ryouta whirled. A gigantic fist caught him right in the stomach and sent him spiraling down towards the building. He hit it hard, and felt several bones break. “Damn…it.” Suigyuu appeared standing above him.

“You fought well, Shinigami. But…not well enough to beat me. You die now, Ayame Ryouta.” Suigyuu lifted a massive fist and punched down. Ryouta summoned his last vestiges of strength and flash stepped out of the way, appearing above Suigyuu.

“Ute. Raikou Arashi.” Yellow electric reiatsu seemed to flare in a circle around Suigyuu and take on the shape of a lion’s mane. The space in the circle seemed to become a lion’s face. “What the-?” Suigyuu looked questioningly around him. “What’s happening?” The lion’s mouth opened. High above him, Ryouta answered, “Senpuku no Tategami…Raikou Arashi’s ultimate attack. You die now, Suiyuu Komi.” The lion’s mouth snapped shut, and spears of lightning sprang from all around the circle, impaling Suigyuu all over the place.

“Damn. Damn you, Ayame Ryouta!!!” Suigyuu screamed as he disappeared into spirit particles. Ryouta sank slowly back down to the roof. That attack took a lot out of him, and it was all he could do to just lower himself down. Two of the Shinigami he was with appeared beside him. They took him by the arms and helped him to the Senkai gate. “That- that was some power, Ayame-san.” One of the Shinigami commented. Ryouta could only nod his thanks at the compliment; he was just too exhausted to do anything else. All he wanted to do was soak in one of the hot springs back at the Senkai rest station.

ooc: spirit power preferably, but if an admin feels strongly in a different direction, feel free to award beaucoup points there if you want

nice post; +2.5 spirit power

Now that he was the 2nd Division Vice-Captain, Ryouta was in charge of the Patrol Corps, and as such was now more than ever being sent to the Real World on patrol missions. It was irritating, really. For the past couple of missions, he and his men (and women) hadn’t encountered anything beyond one Gillian-class Menos, which had been easily taken down by their superb teamwork.

Ryouta’s patrol squad consisted of two men and two women, plus himself. Like all Onmitsukido members, their faces were covered, and he didn’t even know their real names- rather, they all went by codenames. Even he was referred to always as just ‘fukutaichou.’ Their codenames were as follows- the two men were Arachnid and Panther; the two women were Vixen (as in a fox) and Birdie. Ryouta had snorted in derisive laughter the first time he had heard them introduce themselves. However, he had to admit that the codenames suited them.

Today their mission was in the Real World city of Tokyo. It was a fairly routine mission, basically a search and destroy mission, so, he asked each of them to secure a certain section of the city. “Arachnid, you take the commercial district. Panther, you take downtown. Vixen, take the residential areas. Birdie, you take the financial district. I’ll do the docks and warehouses area.”

“Hai, fukutaichou!” Each of them shot off in different directions. During the next hour or so, Ryouta came upon several low-level Hollow that he dispatched easily and without effort. As the standard patrol mission time wound down, Ryouta went back to the building where they had first appeared using the Senkai Gate. He glanced around, looking for his patrol members. One by one, they appeared; flash stepping with perfect precision directly in front of him.

Birdie had a soul with her. He was a man dressed in a clearly very expensive business suit, but when he stood, he carried himself with a sort of casual arrogance. He had black hair that was immaculately slicked back and looked like it would not be disturbed even in a massive windstorm. However, he had icy blue eyes that seemed to view the world in a very calculating, cruelly logical way. As Ryouta looked at the middle-aged man’s features, he couldn’t help but feel a twinge of familiarity…and oddly enough, hatred and loathing.

“…Birdie…why’ve ya brought this man here? …Soul Burial?” Ryouta asked.

“He wouldn’t let me,” responded Birdie. “He insisted that he take me to my commanding officer.”

Ryouta chuckled. “So? He’s not the commandin’ officer; I am. Ya don’t take orders from souls.”

Birdie looked somehow ashamed, even underneath her Onmitsukido uniform. “He was very insistent.”

“That’s no excuse. But since ya’ve brought him here already, I might as well grace him with my attention.” Ryouta approached this strangely familiar man and looked him up and down. “So? What d’ya want?”

“You don’t recognize me, Ayame…-kun? Why, I’m insulted. I would think that someone whom you so angrily referred to as ‘a coldhearted son of a bitch who cares only about profit’ would remain with you, even into death,” the man said. “But to jog your memory, my name is Kouka. And remember? ‘It’s just business.’”

Memories of his past came flooding back…

Ryouta stood in his lab working on a new drug that would treat cancer patients. Essentially, the drug would block rapidly dividing cancer cells protein receptors; basically starving them until all the cancer cells died. Ryouta turned at the sound of footsteps.

A man wearing an elegantly cut, very expensive suit walked in. He wore designer sunglasses and a Rolex watch. Ryouta brushed his messy hair back in an attempt to look a little more presentable in front of such a prestigious looking man; his hair stayed back for a full second before flopping back. “Can I help ya?”

“Yes, are you the scientist, Ayame Ryouta? My name is Kouka. I am here to talk to you about buying the rights to distribute the drug you have created,” Kouka said.

“Kouka huh? The owner of that pharmaceutical company…yeah, the answer’s no.” Ryouta replied. “I don’t want my drug to be overpriced and push many people into unnecessary debt just to line your pockets. No offense.”

Kouka’s eyebrows drew together. “I would be willing to offer you a generous amount of the profit the drug brought it. You would be able to build a lab of your own, a luxurious home; you could afford anything you ever wanted.”

“Yeah, and all that stuff would be paid for by people who need the money more than I do. No thanks,” Ryouta said as he turned his back on Kouka. “I have no intention of selling the rights to ya. Again, no offense.”

Kouka smirked. “None taken. Of course, you realize this trip down here was only a formality. The truth is, I already have the rights to your drug- I was just on my way down here to offer you your share of the profit. But since you don’t seem to want it, I’ll be happy to take it for you.”

Ryouta turned to face him again. “What!?! Whaddya mean by that?”

“What I mean, my brilliant friend, is that I have already bought the rights from your partner, the owner of this laboratory of yours. Since the drug was created here, it is technically his- and his to sell. Good day, Mr. Ayame.” Kouka turned to leave.

“Ya coldhearted son of a bitch…ya only care about profit, don’t ya? Ya can watch people suffer just so ya gain…you’re filth. I’m done speaking to someone like- like- arrgh!” Ryouta gave a growl of frustration as Kouka left- he was too angry to speak coherently. He was angry at the betrayal of his partner, someone he had thought of as his friend. And he was angry that Kouka, a human being, could treat his fellow man so.

Ryouta’s memory flash forwarded.

He was in a courtroom, arguing that the rights to the drug were rightfully his as he was its creator. Kouka was there, as was his partner and former friend. Ryouta didn’t make eye contact with them a single time…

Ryouta blinked as he looked at Kouka again. “Tch.” He punched him in the face. Kouka fell to the ground, looking somewhat surprised. “That’s not like you, Ayame,” Kouka said from the ground.

“Fukutaichou!” protested Birdie. “Why’d you do that?”

“Because this man is more than deserving of it- and much more.” Ryouta drew one of his ninjato and pointed it at Kouka’s face. For the first time, Kouka’s in control, relaxed demeanor wavered. It flickered with fear.

“You’re going to kill me, Ayame? After all that talk about righteousness? The highest form of hypocrisy,” said Kouka with malice in his voice.

“Ya’ve no idea how much I’d like to do that…but you’re already dead- so I don’t need to worry about that. I’m not going to kill ya.” Ryouta said.

“Oh good, because then I wouldn’t have time to tell you this. I’m sure that you know the circumstances of your death, right? As someone already dead, it is a natural assumption,” Kouka asked slyly.

“Yes, what of it? I was killed in a drunk driving accident,” responded Ryouta. “What’s your point?”

Kouka chuckled. “Oh, it was no accident. You see, I arranged for that ‘accident’ to happen. You were becoming far too troublesome in court- you actually stood a chance of winning the case. So I contacted my friends in the Yakuza, and well…you know the rest. Actually, it was just for good measure I did the same to your partner. He had outlived his usefulness.”

Ryouta’s grip on his Zanpakuto tightened as he fought to keep from lopping the man’s head right off. Hatred and loathing like he had never felt before surged through his veins. He saw his blade cutting through the flesh and bone- saw the blood spurting copiously from the wound. He saw it splashing on his robes and skin- he saw himself enjoying it. This image; it shocked him into calm.

“You’re not a Hollow- so I can’t kill ya. But…judgment awaits anyway.” He tapped the man’s head with the hilt of his Zanpakuto. “We’ll see what the world has to say about the nature of your sins.”

Kouka began to glow blue- but then the glow became an eerie red. Behind him, the air seemed to shimmer- and a terrible sight emerged. The Gates of Hell. Ryouta gasped inaudibly; he had never seen them before and they were a terrible sight. The doors opened and a wave of heat escaped. Kouka turned and faced it; he screamed in horror and fear. From the flickering flames inside, the face of a demon stared at him. An enormously long blade shot from within and stabbed Kouka right through where his heart would be. He screamed again, this time in pain. Ryouta watched impassively as the unfortunate soul was dragged into Hell.

As the Gates closed, he turned to his squad members. “All right, show’s over, let’s go back.” A Senkai Gate opened invitingly right in front of him. Arachnid, Panther, and Vixen all entered and passed through. Birdie placed her hand on Ryouta’s shoulder.

“Fukutaichou…you are more to be admired than I first thought. You confronted a demon from your past- but you did not succumb to wild emotion like hatred or rage. You…are a worthy fukutaichou.” With those words, Birdie left him and entered the Senkai Gate. Ryouta pondered her words silently for a moment, and then followed her through. He would find his partner and old friend and deal with him later...provided he had not been Soul Buried already- or turned Hollow.

ooc: spirit power please

+1.5 spirit power

Ryouta appeared alone in the middle of the industrial area of Tokyo. This was no mission- this was something he had to make amends with for himself. No…not make amends. This was different. Ryouta spoke his thoughts aloud. “Kuzoku…why did ya let somethin’ like money get in the way of somethin’ like what’s right and wrong?” Ryouta shook his head and headed in the direction of the old lab.

When he got there, he saw that the building was now for sale- in fact had been sold, though was clearly waiting for renovation and remodeling. “I wonder if Kuzoku’s soul is here?” Ryouta wondered aloud. It had been his lab, after all. Then again, there might have been a more important place to him in life. Still, checking this place was worth a try. Ryouta walked through the cold sterile halls with ease- if forced to draw out a blueprint of the building, it was unlikely he’d be able to come up with an accurate representation, but somehow he seemed able to navigate the entire building with maximum efficiency.

Kuzoku wasn’t there. Hmm…there had been no record of Kuzoku entering Soul Society…either he was still in the Human World, or he was a Hollow. “Tch…” Ryouta made a small noise of disgust. He wasn’t even entirely sure of his decision to go after Kuzoku. “Probably the scientist in me,” he said to himself. “Always wantin’ to know everythin’.” The voice of Raikou Arashi seemed to ring in his head. Or maybe…you harbor ill feelings toward your former colleague and are eager to see him suffer the same fate as Kouka. Is that true?

“Eh? …” Ryouta didn’t answer. He knew that Raikou Arashi spoke some truth- after all Raikou Arashi was an extension of his own soul. Part of him wanted to see Kuzoku dragged to Hell the same way that Kouka had been. As much as he hated admitting it…he did have a brutal, primal side to him. Beware the fury of a lion, Ryouta. Raikou Arashi’s voice rang in his head again. Beware of *your* lion’s fury.

Ryouta nodded. “Right. Well, it doesn’t look like it’ll be tried here- Kuzoku isn’t here.” Ryouta exited the lab and scratched his head. “Where else could he be…?” Do you know where he used to live? Perhaps that is where his soul is now tied. Raikou Arashi advised him.

“Might as well try.” Ryouta appeared to vanish as he flash stepped away. Shortly after, he appeared in a small urban neighborhood in front of an average looking home. “As far as I know…his wife and kid didn’t die…so they must still live here. Maybe it would be better if I just knocked.” Ryouta pulled out the portable gigai in modern dress that he had obtained from 12th Squad. He blew it up, and the gigai popped out, wearing modern clothes and all. Ryouta dove into it; the experience was very strange- he seemed to white out for the smallest increment of time, then the body was his own.

Ryouta walked up to the door and knocked. A woman answered- she seemed vaguely familiar to him. Probably his wife. She took one look at him and fainted. He scratched the back of his head ruefully. “Oh yeah, I forgot, I’m dead. Oh well.” Ryouta stepped over her prone form and closed the door. He explored the home quickly and found something significant- photographs of a wedding between the unconscious woman and some unknown man…non-Japanese, he looked like. “Hmm…maybe Kuzoku’s wife was having an affair and he thought could win her back with money?” Ryouta mused to himself. “That’s just speculation though…I’d like to hear it from his mouth.”

Just then, he heard an ominous sounding click. He turned to see the man in the pictures pointing a handgun at him. “Who are you, and what’ve you done to my wife?!” the man demanded.

Ryouta shrugged and covered his eyes with the visor of his cap. “Nibantai fukutaichou, Ayame Ryouta. Your wife fainted on seeing me.”

“What Vice-Captain, you’re police? What’re you doing here?!” the man waved his gun at him.

“Ya realize that if I am police, yer threatenin’ an officer there, boy. Lucky that I’m not an officer in a group ya’d be familiar with. Bakudo no Ichi: Sai.” The man’s arms snapped behind his back. “I’m sorry, I will only remain in yer home a bit longer…just tell me somethin’…does the name Kuzoku mean anything to ya?”

The man struggled uselessly for a couple of seconds before giving up. “He was my wife’s first husband. Why?”

“Did ya *know* her before his death? And was he aware of it if ya were?” Ryouta asked. “And don’t beat around the bush- I’m not here to punish- just to find some stuff out.”

“…Yes. We were having an affair. Kuzoku knew- but he tried to win her back with money. I had a contact who-” Ryouta cut him off. “So ya cut a deal with Kouka huh? Hmm…interesting, but it’s not my place to deal with ya.” The man looked amazed that Ryouta seemed to know so much. “One more question- other than here, where would ya say Kuzoku was most attached to in life?”

“I dunno…wait, he owned a little patch of land where he made a Zen garden and a temple or some crap like that. It’s up in the mountains. He’d go there all the time or something; I really don’t know anything else!” The man proceeded to describe exactly what the place looked like and where it was. Ryouta memorized what he said and then exited the house. As he did so, he released the unknown man, and also stepped out of his gigai. Ryouta flash stepped away toward Kuzoku’s haven. Raikou Arashi commented You know, you seem to be going through an awful lot just to find out one little thing that you already know.

Ryouta answered aloud. "Some things...need to be seen all the way through."
This means more to you than I first realized. His friendship and betrayal made that much of a mark on you, did it? Ryouta ignored Raikou Arashi's query- he felt it was obvious what he felt- and besides, Raikou Arashi was a part of him. He should already know.

An hour later, he appeared in a place that matched the man’s descriptions and directions. Raikou Arashi’s voice rang in his head again. I am beginning to feel that your own feelings regarding this situation are becoming more pure- perhaps you feel sorry for your old friend? Ryouta ignored Raikou Arashi’s words. He looked around. There was a sort of residual reiatsu here. “Hmm, if he was so attached to this place- I bet it would bother him more than a little if I pretended to step on that oh so carefully lined sand.” Ryouta lifted his foot and placed it over the sand as if he was going to stomp down hard.

“No! Stop!” a jarringly familiar voice pleaded with him. Ryouta turned to see the soul of his old friend and coworker, Kuzoku. The familiarity carried warmth with it- Ryouta was heartened to see he was glad to see his old friend. However Ryouta’s eyes narrowed upon closer inspection, though out of concern, not anger; Kuzoku’s chain was pretty short- it would probably only be another week or so before he became a Hollow. Kuzoku’s eyes widened in shock.

“Ryouta? Oh gods, it is you…but you’re dead!” Kuzoku exclaimed loudly.

“Uh duh,” said Ryouta. “Yer dead yaself. Why should yer own case be any different from anyone else’s?”

Kuzoku could only stutter in response to that. “Why, why are you wearing stuff like that?”

“I’m a Shinigami. But that’s not important- I wouldn’t have come all the way up here if I didn’t want to ask ya somethin’. Why did ya betray me? Our friendship? Every cancer patient in every fuckin’ hospital everywhere?!” Ryouta punctuated his last statement by picking up Kuzoku by his shirt and shaking him roughly. “Well!?!”

Kuzoku began to stutter and cry a little. “I’m so sorry Ryouta. I- You don’t understand- I needed the money. She was going to leave me- and I loved her too much! I would’ve been willing to die just to know that she loved me! Please, it was nothing against you! Please don’t kill me! …again. Please!”

Ryouta unsheathed one of his blades. Somehow, the initial warmth he had felt had faded. This quivering soul in front of him- seemed so pathetic, so pitiful, so vulnerable, so…hateful. Ryouta raised his Zanpakuto and brought it down and across. Ryouta, no! Raikou Arashi’s voice seemed to echo in his head. At the last second, Ryouta retracted so that he only left a small cut across the bridge of Kuzoku’s nose. Kuzoku whimpered piteously. “Tch.” Ryouta lifted up Kuzoku’s chin and looked into his eyes. “Look, I know why ya did what ya did…and I understand. I can also…find it in myself…to forgive ya. And now I’m gonna give ya a gift- so long as ya don’t go lookin’- ya won’t remember any of this, any of the pain ya felt in life.”

Kuzoku looked up at him with an expression that seemed to mingle awe and gratitude. “Thank you, Ryouta. You forgive me. That is-” Ryouta impulsively pulled him into a quick hug. “We’re still friends…no matter what yer stupid-ass does. Nothing can change the past- but I have to remember- in the past before that, we were good friends. That honor is plenty to allow ya this gift.” Ryouta reversed his grip on his Zanpakuto and tapped Kuzoku on his forehead with the hilt.

Kuzoku glowed blue, and then vanished. There was a look of peace and happiness on his face- as if all his troubles had disappeared. You had me scared there for a second, Raikou Arashi commented. “I…did what I felt was right.” You have grown, my little cub. Ryouta smirked. “Cub, huh? Well well, we’ll see if I can’t alter that opinion. Let’s go home.” Ryouta headed back to the Senkai gate.

+2 spirit power