Ryouta appeared amidst several members of the Covert Ops squad, touching down lightly on the ground. He had been relieved of his Zanpakutō, and had been told this would be a fairly simple exercise in Shunpō. It was eerie, really, all these people dressed in ninja-like attire, just staring impassively at him from the slits of their headpieces. “OK…”

All of them continued to stare at him silently. Then one of them spoke. “Now begins the speed exercise. You will face challenges that will test your Shunpo and Hakuda abilities. That is all you need know.”

Ryouta nodded his understanding. A single member stepped out from the crowd. He stood about as tall as Ryouta, though he was perhaps a shade thinner than Ryouta was. It was difficult to tell, considering how his clothing covered every bit of him except his eyes. Ryouta adopted a standard hand-to-hand defensive stance. The man flash stepped behind him with impossible speed. Sh*t!! He’s fast! Ryouta spun to counter the attack, which came in the form of a kick at his face. Just as he raised his arm, the man flash stepped again, above him. Ryouta tried to react in time, but he felt a devastating blow where his neck and shoulders were joined and fell to the ground.

Damn, that hurts like a b*tch! Ryouta hit the ground on his knees. His assailant looked down on him from above. “Your spirit power isn’t half bad, but you’re too defensive. To be Covert Ops is to be always on the offense. The best defense…is a good offense!”

Ryouta let his spirit power increase. He flash stepped from his kneeling position, appearing behind his opponent, swinging in with a powerful right hook at the guy’s head. The man spun and dodged the punch, brought his arm alongside Ryouta’s grabbed it, and threw him. Ryouta went flying, but he was able to use Hohō to prevent him from hitting the ground.

“You’re slow! Get faster! Train harder with your Hakuda!” The man flash stepped to Ryouta and aimed a kick at his face. His instincts told him to bring up his left arm in a standard block and go from there. But…the best defense is a good offense- the man’s words rang in his head. Ryouta brought his left arm up, but instead of blocking, he used the flat of his palm to knock the man’s foot up, deflecting it, and possibly tearing some muscle. The man flipped in midair and turned his flip into an attack, this time leading with his other foot to kick Ryouta in the chin.

Ryouta brought up both his arms to push the kick down, but this resulted in the man twisting and smacking him in the face. Ryouta literally slid across air, desperately using Hohō to regain his position. “Not bad, not bad. You’re learning. But still, if you’re going to be Lieutenant, you’ve a ways to go.” The man flash stepped at him, coming in with a kick aimed at Ryouta’s chest.

This time, instead of trying to block the attack, Ryouta flash stepped up a little, this time launching a kick of his own at the man’s chest. “Ooomph!” The man flew backward and hit the ground, but was instantly on his feet again. Ryouta appeared right in front of him and began aiming a series of right hooks and left jabs at his face. The man blocked each move deftly, but didn’t seem able to turn them against Ryouta. Ryouta spun and launched a roundhouse kick at him. The man caught his foot, but without missing a beat, Ryouta twisted and landed a kick on the man’s face.

Ryouta flash stepped behind him and brought his elbow into the small of the man’s back as he flew backward. As the man flew forward again, Ryouta flash stepped in front of him and kicked him upward, then he flash stepped up above him and brought two fists down on the man’s back, sending him crashing to the ground. He didn’t get back up.

Another man stepped out from the crowd. “Good work. Bit flashy. Try harder to take him out more conspicuously next time. 5 minutes rest. Then we start again.”

Ryouta nodded in understanding.

OOC: +2 to speed.

Five minutes later, Ryouta stood at the ready. Two members of the group of Covert Ops stepped out. “Now you will fight against two opponents.” They flash stepped, one coming in from his left, one from his right, both aiming spinning kicks at his shoulders. Ryouta smirked. Such an obvious move. Clearly they still thought he was incompetent. That would be their mistake.

Ryouta ducked and spun, brought his legs up to catch the leg of one of the attacker’s. The veins in his arms stood out as he rotated like a top, throwing this attacker into the other attacker. As he let go of the man he had just thrown, he flash stepped between them and aimed a kick at the face of the man he had thrown his assailant at. Ryouta saw the man’s eyes narrow- then he (the man) flash stepped, appearing behind Ryouta. Unfortunately, Ryouta was now occupied with the man he had thrown, who was now throwing punches and kicks at him from what seemed like every conceivable angle.

A sharp pain between his shoulders told Ryouta that he had just been kicked, and he crashed into the ground. Dazed, he got up, only to be elbowed in the ribs, and then getting an uppercut in the face. He flew upward. Damn it…I need to outspeed these guys, keep ’em close together. Or take one out. He flash stepped to avoid the blows of one of the guys, who had jumped up to follow his trajectory. Ryouta appeared behind the other one, slightly above him, and aimed a powerful kick at the man’s coccyx, a move that he had learned after reading in the 2nd Squad library. The effect was instantaneous and almost completely unexpected- the man’s legs seemed to just give out, and he fell to his hands and knees.

“Koshijutsu!” exclaimed the man Ryouta had dodged. “Where did you learn that?”

Ryouta flash stepped up and began aiming a series of punches and kicks at lightning speed at the man. “That’s not important. What’s important is that I beat you, no matter what it takes!” He flash stepped behind him and was met with a swinging back kick. Ryouta caught it with a hand and spun, sort of throwing him back, but not very far. He flash stepped up to him and aimed several precise but potentially devastating jabs at the man’s ribs, larynx, and clavicle, but they were all deflected. Still, they weren’t deflected with apparent ease, and Ryouta was heartened by the fact that he was improving.

All of a sudden, he felt the approaching reiatsu of the other man- damn; he had forgotten that the effects of that move were not permanent! Ryouta flash stepped blindly; he got lucky, appearing away from the both of them. As he watched each of them, they both flash stepped. One was right in front of his face; the other was coming up below him. Ryouta deflected blow after blow aimed at him by the first, then at the last second, ducked, spun, and brought his knuckles down sharply on the carotid artery of the man coming up. Again, the effect was sudden- the man fell limp and began to fall.

Under normal circumstances, Ryouta would have helped the man, but he still had one more opponent. That was the way of 2nd squad- and besides, he was sure that the man’s other colleagues would catch him. Again, Ryouta focused on his second opponent. He threw a punch at the man’s solar plexus, but it was blocked and the man retaliated by aiming a kick at Ryouta’s ribs which he just barely dodged. Wait a minute! I could’ve used that to my advantage. Hopefully he’ll do that again, Ryouta thought.

They continued exchanging blows, neither one of them gaining ground. Ryouta let his spirit power increase to as high as it could go- his attacks seemed to be significantly faster and stronger now. Ryouta nearly landed a kick on the man’s larynx, but was foiled when he spun and launched his own attack on Ryouta’s ribs.

The fight became almost rhythmic, for every three punches that Ryouta launched, the man responded with a pair of kicks. Ryouta would counter with kicks of his own, and they would be met with some punches. Then the man flash stepped behind Ryouta, aiming a spinning kick at him. An opening! Ryouta flash stepped slightly below and behind the man, punching him in the back of his knee. He buckled for an instant. That was enough. Ryouta flash stepped up and brought an elbow down on the man’s right clavicle, breaking it, thus rendering his right arm useless.

As the man touched down on the ground, he ripped off a piece of his uniform and tied it around his injury. “I can still fight.” He threw himself at Ryouta, though Ryouta saw a distinct difference in speed. He was slower. Ryouta flash stepped behind him and responded with a devastating kick to his side, aimed at his kidney. The man crumpled, like a marionette whose strings had been cut.

Ryouta stood over his now defeated opponent, and then turned to face the rest expectantly. “Much better. Take five.” Ryouta nodded. He was beginning to like working in 2nd Squad.

ooc: this entire thread is for speed...forgot to write that in previous post

Approved +2 nice work man.

Five minutes later, Ryouta shrugged, feeling his shoulders crack a little. “Let me guess, now I have to fight 3 of you at once?”

“No. Four of us.” Four men stepped out from the group of Covert Ops and took offensive stances.

Ryouta smiled. “Nice. Here I go!” He flash stepped behind one of them, aiming a kick at his temple for a quick unconscious one. One of the others flash stepped as well; his foot came in and blocked the strike. The other two flash stepped on either side of Ryouta and kicked him on either side; the one he had attempted to kick kicked upward, sending Ryouta up into the air. “Damn, there’s gonna be a bruise there tomorrow morning…”

I have to separate them; otherwise they can come to each other’s aid easily. Ryouta pointed a finger at the four. “Hado no Nijusan: 36 Pound Cannon!” A blade of condensed air shot from his fingertips towards the group of four. They were forced to scatter in different directions to dodge the attack. Ryouta flash stepped to the closest one; the Covert Ops man threw a punch at Ryouta, but Ryouta caught his wrist and twisted around the man. “What the-?” Ryouta had wrapped a leg around the caught arm. He flexed and broke the man’s arm. “Aaargh! Jutaijutsu!” Ryouta unwrapped his leg, pushed the man down and gave him a sharp blow to the carotid artery which resulted in the man dropping unconscious to the ground.

Ryouta was then accosted by the three remaining members, all of them coming in with powerful roundhouse kicks that were interspersed so they would come at different times and at different places, making them more difficult to dodge. Ryouta flash stepped to avoid the first kick, then caught the second kick and twisted to avoid his head being kicked by the last. He spun, planting a foot on the chest of one of them and pushed off. The two he hadn’t pushed off of flash stepped up to him.

“We’ve got you now!” One of them launched a knee at Ryouta’s gut while the other came in from behind with a spinning kick. Ryouta twisted, and let the knee glance off his side- a painful, but superficial injury. As he twisted, his fist lashed out and punched the kicking one in the septum. That would keep him disoriented for a while. He turned to engage the one who had tried to knee him, but was interrupted by the appearance of the third man, who was coming in with a right hook.

Ryouta flash stepped to avoid the attack, and then drove his knuckles into the man’s floating ribs. He heard a crack, but it was not likely to cause significant internal damage. He spun and flash stepped behind the original man he had planned on attacking. That man was attacking with a straight kick to Ryouta’s face. Ryouta sidestepped and punched the man in his inner thigh, which caused him to cramp for a couple seconds. Ryouta grabbed an arm, stretched it straight and drove an elbow into it, effectively breaking the arm. As the man yelled in pain, Ryouta pushed off of him and attacked the man whose ribs he’d just cracked.

Ryouta came in with a powerful roundhouse kick aimed at his throat in an attempt to cause his windpipe to convulse, but the man ducked under his kick and aimed a punch at Ryouta’s solar plexus. Ryouta twisted and just barely managed to get the punch to glance off of him. This gave Ryouta the chance to give the man a good clout in his temple, and he began to fall, unconscious.

Wasting no time, Ryouta flash stepped back to the man whose arm he’d broken and drove his knee into the man’s solar plexus. He fell to the ground as his other two comrades had. Then Ryouta faced the last one, the one whom he had disoriented by punching in the septum. The man held up a hand, and then, a knife popped into it. He flash stepped at Ryouta and stabbed down at the spot between his shoulder blade and clavicle.

Ryouta dodged the attack by moving to the side. “What happened to Hakuda?”

“Win by any means necessary.” The man made another slash at Ryouta, this time horizontally at his chest. Ryouta made a snorting noise. He flash stepped right in front of the man and gripped his knife hand tightly. He flipped backward and employed Jutaijutsu again, breaking the man’s knife arm. Ryouta finished the attack by chopping down on the man’s carotid artery. As he fell, Ryouta said, “A win gained without honor is not worth winning.”

He landed on the ground amidst the Covert Ops again. "Be ready in five minutes, I guess."

I like the very simple beat 'em up theme here. +1 to speed simply becasue it was more fighting skill for me but thats not what you wanted.

Ryouta returned to the large group of Onmitsukido. One of them spoke up. “With all due respect Sir, that is not what Onmitsukido is about. Being Onmitsukido is winning no matter the cost, or at least surviving to fight another day. Being Onmitsukido is being dishonorable and attacking from behind if you need to. Being Onmitsukido is sacrificing a teammate to win, if it is necessary to win. Being Onmitsukido is leaving a teammate behind to die if you are not capable of doing any of the above- so that you may survive and fight another day. That is what it means to be Onmitsukido. Do you understand?!”

Ryouta was taken aback by the speech. It sounded so…harsh. But he understood. He would have to toughen up to be an Onmitsukido member. That was what was required. “Next step in speedwork please,” he said.

“Well, we could just continue as we have, doubling our numbers every time, but that eventually only serves to improve your fighting ability- which isn’t what we are here for. So instead…” every member (that was still standing) pulled out a red ribbon and stuck it in his/her sash. “Your job will be to get the red ribbon from each of us. Go.” Every single one of the group flash stepped off. Ryouta was sure there were about fifty of them, and that number did not include the members he had maimed in various ways before.

“F*ck,” he swore. “This is gonna be such a b*tch to do.” He flash stepped off toward the nearest Onmitsukido member he could feel/see, landing right below them. He swiped out with his hand to grab at their ribbon. He/she nimbly dodged the swipe and jumped away to an adjacent roof. “Oh no ya don’t!” Ryouta flash stepped directly in front of him/her and drove his shoulder into his/her stomach, grabbing the ribbon as he did so. “Ha! One down, forty-nine to go!”

“Actually,” said the woman (as confirmed by her voice) as she rubbed her stomach, “There are I think more like sixty-five of us total that you have to catch.”

Ryouta swore again. “Damn it, I need a pay raise for this.” He flash stepped off toward the next androgynous person. This person was in the middle of a courtyard- on sighting Ryouta, he/she ran toward the courtyard wall. Ryouta followed in hot pursuit and quickly gained on him/her, as he was not wearing shoes (he had forgotten to put on his flip flops earlier). As he/she neared the wall, the Onmitsukido member leaped up to get over it; Ryouta appeared right in front of him/her and grabbed the ribbon. “I’ll take that, thank you! … Sixty-three more to go!”

Ryouta looked around wildly and spotted his next target. He ran after his next target/victim that appeared to be loitering around a Seireitei street corner. “You’re mine!” Ryouta flash stepped right above the person and swiped at their ribbon. The Onmitsukido member flash stepped to avoid Ryouta and appeared several meters away; Ryouta flash stepped after him/her. As he flash stepped after him/her, he realized that the flash stepping was becoming easier for him. Maybe 2nd Squad wasn’t so bad, despite its affiliation with Onmitsukido. Ryouta focused his reiatsu and concentrated on catching his target. He gathered his reiatsu- and projected himself forward, effectively tackling his target and grabbing the ribbon as he went.

+1.5 speed

Ryouta was breathing very heavily now. “Goddammit this is exhaustin’ work,” he said to himself. He had stolen the ribbons from all but three of the Onmitsukido members. Under normal circumstances, it would not be overly difficult to steal the ribbons from these remaining four, but Ryouta was exhausted, definitely nearing his limit. His muscles burned with lactic acid from flash stepping so much.

Ryouta focused on the Onmitsukido member closest to him. This one was wearing his/her ribbon pinned to their left shoulder. If this had been an actual mission, Ryouta would use kido to help retrieve the ribbons- but since this was speed training, he had resolved to only use his running and Shunpo ability to get to the ribbons. Ryouta began running toward the Onmitsukido member, who somehow managed to convey an expression of bemusement behind his/her covered face.

As he neared his query, Ryouta leaped up into the air and came down at the man/woman’s shoulder. His exhaustion made him leave himself open though, and his carelessness was rewarded with a powerful kick to the stomach, followed by the Onmitsukido member running away again. Ryouta gasped as the air left his lungs and fought the nausea the kick had induced. “Grr…” Ryouta growled his annoyance, and then ran after the fleeing Onmitsukido member. He summoned up the Reishi all around him and infused his feet with them, then flash stepped. He appeared just behind the member- Ryouta made a wild grab and managed to tear the ribbon from the member’s shoulder. However, he was unable to prevent himself from hitting the ground hard after having done so.

“Damn it, two more.” Ryouta looked about and saw the next member standing on the roof of the 4th Squad HQ. “Hmm…” Ryouta said to himself. He ran in to the building and emerged a short while later with a pill that had a skull painted on it. “Here goes.” He swallowed the stamina inducing pill whole. All of a sudden, he felt refreshed. “I better not push it though- I feel better, but if I push too hard I’ll end up damagin’ my muscles.”

He saw that the Onmitsukido member was still standing on the roof of the 4th Squad building. Ryouta jumped and flash stepped, bringing his shoulder into the stomach of this member with incredible speed. “So much for holdin’ back…” he muttered. As the Onmitsukido member fell, he snatched the red ribbon from his/her sash and focused on the final member he was to pursue.

This one had their red ribbon tied around their head like, well, a headband. Ryouta looked at him/her analytically. I don’t wanna push myself too hard… He ran for the remaining member. “That ribbon is mine!” Ryouta leaped for the ribbon.

The Onmitsukido member whirled with startling speed and kicked at Ryouta’s chest. Ryouta took the blow so he could grab the member’s leg. They fell together; Ryouta snatched at the headband. The man or woman brought his/her head back to prevent his grabbing it. Ryouta shoved the member off him then tried again. This time he grabbed the member’s shoulder and lifted himself up and around, finally grabbing the ribbon as he did so.

Ryouta stood triumphant holding the last ribbon. “Whew!” He sat down and closed his eyes. “I need a nap.”

+1.5 speed