Focusing Energies (solo)

His abysmal performance with kido not withstanding Arawn still took the time to study up on new skills. His new rank did give access to check the higher rank books. Access was one thing, comprehending them was another. It took a week just to work out his first new spells. He jotted down some quick notes just in case anything went wrong, and proceeded to the practice grounds.

He chose a wide target for the session should he miss. Although he knew it was doomed to fail he tried the conventional method. He let his reiryoku gather and chanted "An array of bees sting you with the force of many. Hado #13: Killer Bee." A small lightning bullet released from his outstretched hand. The shot hit the target vanished. Arawn was genuinely surprised, he couldn't believe it worked. "Wait that's can't be this easy." He quickly looks to his notes. He groans in disappointment, it was supposed to create multiple bullets. Again he tried to gather his energy and then project it. This time he created three lightning shots, but they seemed weaker than the first one he created.

"Well at least I tried." He muttered. With a sigh he released his reiatsu outward. As the energy pulsed through him he chanted, "An array of bees sting you with the force of many. Hado #13: Killer Bee." This time the result was more pronounced. A large spray of light exploded from this fingers; a torrent of the previous lightning bullets. It was like a shotgun blast as the hail of shots hit the target making deep dents in it. The small bolts exploded into the ground making a honeycomb of it.

Kido training:
Hado 13: 278/230

The first spell's success spurned him towards completion of the next one. Another offensive spell was on his notes of kido. He looked at the already damaged target. "Might as well finish this guy off." he chuckled. He was abit confused about the directions on the spell. It seemed there wasn't an immediate effect to this spell. That was different for a hado spell.

As always he wanted to try casting without relying on reiatsu. He took a deep breath and gathered reiryoku. The power trickled forth. "Fenrir cry your mighty howl, cage the sin of motals betwixt your jaw and tear from them the will to oppose your wrath. Hado #18: Lunar Strike!" Nothing happened. He attempted again, but this time his hand began to glow faintly, but then quickly faded. He had expected as much, but the effect was supposed to create some form of light. The regular attempt had failed yet again, but he was happy there was some reaction. It meant he wasn’t too far off.

Arawn poured all his reiryoku outwards. The usual rush of energy pumped through him. “Fenrir cry your mighty howl, cage the sin of motals betwixt your jaw and tear from them the will to oppose your wrath. Hado #18: Lunar Strike!" A ball of light grew from his finger. Once the ball is the size of a baseball it rises afew feet into the air above his head. The ball of light just sat there. Arawn looked at it abit disappointed, can’t be all it does. Just as he is about to look at his notes he remembers the spell has a delay. Looking at the ball of light more closely he notices it’s grown in size. The ball is now triple it’s original size Arawn can see the energy swirl around it. Suddenly the ball shoots down at the target. The flash of light startles Arawn making him step back. The light fades, the ball of light and the target are both gone. Arawn pulls out his notes and makes a comment on the side; ‘Slow but powerful.’

Kido Training:
Hado 18: 349/280

Arawn found casting Hado very easy. The effects were more direct so it was easy to tell if they were successful or not. When it came to Bakudo he had to use the special targets that reacted to kido by changing color. But even then there was no way to tell if it was successful. This time he happened upon a spell that he could actually test on himself. It wasn’t a dangerous spell that could potentially kill him. And the duration was short enough without any adverse effects. He didn’t need to change targets for it; he only had to move to more open space as to not catch anyone else in the spell’s area. Arawn didn’t bother with trying only reiryoku. This time he focused on releasing reiatsu from the start. As the familiar energy filled the air, he starts his chant. “Relinquish their power, all freedoms revoked, enforce the laws. Bakudo #11: Seigen.” Arawn raises his hands into the air. At the chant’s end he presses both palms to the ground. A circle of light expands upon the earth around him. It shines brightly then dims into a slight glow. Outwardly that’s all that happens, but Arawn knows better. This spells restricts movement of anything within it’s range. His first test is to just try moving. Arawn takes a step forward and finds he is moving well below his average speed. Even though he pushes off with all his strength he moves at a crawl. It’s a strange feeling. He tries to jump, but can’t get even an inch off the ground. His body doesn’t feel heavy or anything, it’s just that something holds him down. He laughs despite himself, and just like that the effect wears off. He moves at normal speed once more.
“It’s a shame the area of effect is stationary. Otherwise it’s very interesting spell.”

Kido training:
Bakudo 11: 312/210

OOC: Forgot about the cooler Hado for my level >.>

After completing the more complex spells Arawn looked over his list. Nothing really grabbed his attention. "Tsuzuri Raiden?" He read his translation note to the side of the name, “Bound Lightning.” The name sounded odd for a Hado class spell. Had he made a mistake in writing it down? He read the notation again. It said ‘Hado’. The second odd thing about the spell is that it needed a medium. He looked around for something to use as a medium. But there were only practice dummies in the area. The spell was already starting to annoy him, quite situational if you need a medium to cast it through. Then he had a sudden thought. He pulled his sword from his back and held it aloft in his right hand. “I guess this can work.” Since he would use his sword, he needed find a closer target. The long range target was useless. He shifted to a simple straw dummy. He pointed his sword at the dummy and pierced it with just the tip of his sword. His reiatsu flooded outward as he chanted. “From my hand fly, a thousand fangs dig my enemy’s flesh. Hado #11 Tsuzuri Raiden.” There is a small crackle as he saw bits of electricity manifest around his hand holding the sword; it only stayed there a moment before racing up his hand and down the length of the blade. The electricity then hit the dummy which burst into flame as the lightning touched the dry straw. “Wow.” Was all he could say as the dummy burned to ashes.

Kido Training:
Hado 11: 263/210

OOC: Gotta say I think White crawl should be a Bakudo. The sleep effect is what makes me say this. To be truly destructive, it would just lay waste to the whole area.

The new spells gave him little variety, but Arawn wanted to be well rounded. His next spell would have to be a bakudo. The problem was which one? They all restricted movement in some way. Bind the head; it would hinder the enemy’s attacks and field of vision. The arms; the enemy wouldn't be able to attack him. Instead he decided to try something to stop the legs. By restricting movement he gave himself more advantages over his enemy than restricting their hands or head. They could still flee or dodge in either condition. Now the problem of a target came forth again. Seeing as it was non-lethal he resigned to trying it on himself. This too was for the best, since he could know first hand how effective it was. "Although that's not saying much since I'm quite weak." He hoped he could unlock it once cast. It would be quite embarrassing to be found trapped by his spell. He started to gather his reiryoku and funneled it outward. As the reiatsu filled the air he began to chant. "The earth, what one falls upon when nature binds the lower appendages. Bakudo # 17 Keikainatorappu." He pointed at his own legs which he had slightly spaced apart. When the spell finished his legs suddenly pulled together as if tied by an invisible rope. He couldn't even bend his knees. He tried hopping forward and started to topple over; he pin wheeled his arms to keep balance and somehow kept from falling. He stood perfectly still and tried to separate his legs, he could not. "Now how do I unlock it?" He tried to funnel the same energy again this time without chanting he thought 'release' inside his head. He must have done something right, the grip on his legs vanished. He could move them again. "A very effective spell." He muttered.

Kido Training:
Bakudo 17: 311/270

Arawn was proud of himself for his diligence. “I think I’ve earned myself a free day.” He had been in the library for nearly a week memorizing spells. A break would do him good; he stretched his arms over his head and yawned. As he did so his note page fluttered free from his breast pocket and fell to the ground. Since he was done studying he really didn’t need it, but didn’t want to leave his notes lying around for some student to find. He bent to pick up the paper and his eyes locked onto something written on Hakufuku around it he had made a circle and a small notation; Wide area effect causes sleep. Why is Hado? He recalled his curiosity upon first finding the spell, but he had completely forgotten about it once on the practice grounds. He had yet to leave, so he might as well try it out. A wide area sleep would be an interesting tool should he be surrounded But what kind of target should he get. Some reactive post targets would work he guessed. He asked the attendant and got a circle of the reactive metal post set up in a small circle around him. The post would change from metallic silver to a crimson red if the attack was successful. It was the only way to test these kinds of spells with secondary effects if not test them on himself. The circle of targets made a twenty foot circle around Arawn. There were four each taking a cardinal direction. “Is this good enough?” the attendant asked as he finished the setup. Arawn looked at the set up and nodded. “Perfect thanks for your help.” The attendant stepped outside of the circle, as Arawn walked to the center. “What spell are you practicing now?” he asked, there wasn’t much else for him to do at that time, so he decided to watch. Arawn looked at him and grinned “It’s just a sleep spell.” The attendant smiled, “Maybe I should move closer and hit me too. It would be a good excuse if anyone sees me asleep.” Arawn chuckles, but notices the man inch towards the edge of the circle. He sighs and pours out his reiryoku into the air, the area starts to vibrate with his reiatsu. “O broken man, you stand on the cusp of salvation. Abandon your hope, and fall to ruin. Hado #20 Hakufuku.” As he speaks the words Arawn notices motion from the corner of his eye, but ignores it and finishes the spell. He sees the motion again, but this time in front of him. There air distorts. Nothing like when he uses his reiatsu, the air wavers and shifts. The dummy in front of him turns red then explodes into pieces as if something had struck it. Arawn looks on in utter shock. He looks at the other dummies and they aren’t destroyed, but show signs of damage. As he examines the dummies he sees the attendant on the ground. “Are you crazy!?” he shouts. Arawn quickly apologizes “I’m really sorry, I thought it was a sleep spell, I didn’t expect this.” He man eyes him as he’s helped to his feet. He looks at him a moment longer then walks away in a huff. “Stupid amateur.” Arawn looks down at his notes again, “Well that’s why it’s a Hado.”

Kido Training:
Hado 20: 569/300

OOC:I know I've done the required 5, but for some reason I wanted to do this one anyway.
Hakufuku as listed on Bleach Wiki page. Looking at the manga it says that's what she used to make a huge hole in of her cell. So very confusing >.<

Another long night in the lab and Arawn was ready to throw himself off the tallest building. The thought of doing so increased as he has to make constant deliveries instead of working on his own items. He didn't mind them at first, but it seemed like everyone was giving him his their workloads. The thought of falling off a building reminded him of trip to the human world not too long ago. Dangling from a crane he had to climb down and save his companion that was buried alive. Thinking about it inspired him to forward his training rather than work on his gadgets. One of the privileges of being in a squad was that he could purchase kido books and have them delivered. He spent the rest of his day studying spells to use in odd situations.

The next day he got up early to do deliveries. In truth he made a detour to the kido grounds. He rushed. There were more people than usual on the grounds. He rarely trained so early, he figured others used the early mornings as well. He signed off a target area and pulled out his notes. He groaned. The first kido on the list wasn’t one he wanted to learn. But it had merit. He pulled his sword and sheath from his back and held it before him. He drew the blade out just enough so only an inch of blade was visible. On the open part of the blade he pressed his right thumb. He shivered as his finger touched the cold metal. Grimacing he put more pressure on the thumb and skin parted as the sharp metal wedged in. When he felt the sharp pain he drew back his thumb and it shown crimson as the blood spilled out slowly. Arawn staggered. He could deal with blood, but not the sight of his own. It was an odd quirk. He kept his eye off the wound and tried to focus on the task at hand. The words escaped him as he pointed his hand at the target. He tried to focus his reiyouku, but then let it pour out into the air around him. The resulting reiatsu made the air vibrate. His head started to spin, the sight of his own blood still rattling him. “My blood become my bow, let my breath become the mist. Hado # 14 Blood Arrow!” The small string of blood suddenly started to quiver and change. It soon became the shape of a rudimentary bow with string. The dizziness increased, but he forced himself to grab the string with his left hand and arrow of blood took shape instantly. The feeling was almost like touching warm jello. He took aim quickly, he didn’t want to keep this spell going for long, or more like he didn’t know how long he could hold it without fainting. He had never used a bow before, but he read books and watched movies. Drawing his left and back to his chin he eyed the target and then released the string. A loud snap and the arrow shot forward and exploded once it hit the target. The arrow shattered and the area became filled with a red haze. The bow dissolved from his hand like smoke. He quickly wiped the blood from his thumb and sucked on the wound. The taste of copper filling his mouth.

Kido Training:
Hado 14: 569/240

The small cut on his finger has stopped bleeding, but he still felt light headed. Still he pressed on. He looked at his list of spells, and scanned the page looking for one that didn’t require a lot of effort. Luckily he did indeed have such a spell. But was abit troublesome to perform. It’s purpose was to erase his spiritual presence. But for him to use spells his presence became more pronounced due to having to use reiatsu. Another complication with the spell was determining if it was working. He was unable to sense spiritual powers. And if he did how was he to sense his own if the spell was working. Wouldn’t he be unable to sense anything if the spell was working? So either way it was completely impossible to know how to practice the spell. The possible paradox ran through his head. Finally he dismissed it and asked an attendant for help. The robed shinigami was slight short fellow with brownish hair, he looked of average size. “What can I help you with today?” he asked he seemed nice enough.
“I need help with my kido practice, I can’t do it alone it seems.” Arawn didn’t want to force the man to help, but figured their job was to assist in some way when possible. “By chance are you able to sense spiritual power?” The man looked at Arawn and nodded.
“Yes.” he replied not quite understanding how that helped.
“Excellent, they spell is called Energy Fade.” began to explain, but the man brought up his hand.
“I get it. I’ll help.” he smiled again. Well this was going to be easy he thought.

Arawn read the notes on the spell and then tucked them away in his shirt. He summoned his reiatsu. The man’s eyes got wide.
“What are you doing?” he asked, and Arawn stopped his focus broken.
“I’m casting.” he replied simply
“Yes, but why all that pressure?” He asked bewildered.
It took afew minutes for Arawn to explain his habit of casting and lack of proper focusing. The man laughed at the end. “Well you shouldn’t need me after all, it seals your reiatsu once you cast it.” Arawn was abit shocked, he didn’t read that about the spell. Apparently the man knew more about it. “Go ahead and cast, you’ll see for yourself.”
Arawn released his reiatsu once again, then started his chant. “The fires within burn bright, the cold wind blows. My soul withers. Bakudo # 19: Energy Fade.” Suddenly his reiatsu cuts off like a switch has been flipped. It’s a strange feeling . Like he’s being deprived of breath. He looks at the man in shock.
“See?” He smiles again. “Try casting a spell.” he points at the target down the range.
Arawn tries to pump out his reiatsu, but nothing happens. He tries to gather energy the regular way and still with no results. “Wow, this is very interesting.” The attendant starts to walk away.
“It should wear off in a few moments. Good luck with the rest of your training.” Arawn laughs. Guess he didn’t need the help after all. Still it was good to know about this effect. He thought it only masked the presence, but it also restricted the caster. He would have to use it with caution. After a fashion the chill ebbed and he could resummon his power. On to the next spell

Kido Training:
Bakudo #19: 514/290

Arawn looked at the target at the end of the range. So far it was untouched except for the mist of blood. Just the thought of it made him queasy again. He needed to take his mind off it. He dug into his pocket and looked at his notes. He should have brought the book with him, but there wasn’t a comfortable place to sit and read. A different kido caught his eye. “Needle release.” he spoke, seemed more defensive than offensive, but geared towards close quarters. While he couldn’t see the offense such a technique was a great way to thwart an attacker advances. He looked again at the target range, this spell would be tricky to perform. The ranges were walled off to avoid stray fire if he moved closer to the target he could fire the kido safely. As far as he knew you were supposed to use kido from afar. He looked around and didn’t see the attendant. He swiftly ran down the small alley to the metal target post. He still looked around to see if anyone came to peek around the corner. There was no one. He felt uneasy, like he was breaking a law. But he didn’t recall any such rule being in effect. He brought out his paper once more and studied the chant. It seemed easy enough. It took only a few seconds to memorize. He took a deep breath and let his reiatsu flare out. It was getting easier for him to do this, but it was still tiring to cast multiple spells. my skin, “ I release the porcupine's spines. Inject the target. Hado # 12; Needle release!” No sooner had the words left his lips when he felt a sudden tingle race through his body. He tried to aim at the target pole, but somehow he knew that wasn’t going to happen. A spray of long needles exploded from his body into every direction. The ones that exited the front hit embedded themselves into the pole while some sank into the ground. The needles that fired from the sides hit either wall. He spun in place to see if any needles had come out behind him. Sure enough there were some needles in the ground where he had been standing. He could only hope the one that had gone from directly behind him didn’t go far. He quickly rank to the front of the target alley and peeked around the corner. The coast was clear so he took his place at the end of the target range as usually. He tried to look around causally to see if the needles had anything. After seeing no damage the nervousness wore off. He made a mental note to restrict the use of the spell. “Better be sure no one friendly is in range when it goes off.”

Kido Training:
Hado #12: 477/220

The morning was cold, and Arawn hated the cold. He didn’t have much of choice in the matter. He had asked for a day off, and they had literally given him the day. He had a late shift in the labs that would take him well into the morning of the next day. He sighed and looked at his list of spells. The wind ruffled the paper in his hand. He wished he had brought a coat. He wondered if there were any indoor training areas, but quickly thought about how foolish that would be when it came to kido. He sighed and tried to focus on the list.


The first spell seemed simple enough, bakudo usually were. In this case it was meant to hinder a opponent’s field of vision as well as distract them. Not quite a smoke screen, but it worked. He was about to push out his reiatsu then stopped. Perhaps he should attempt a normal casting for old time’s sake? Doing it his way was tiring, and he wouldn’t get any better at unless he kept trying. Another sigh and Arawn attempted to pool his energies the normal way. He tried to funnel the energy, move it outward. He could feel his power swell. He quickly recited the chant.
“Swarm all those that creep and crawl divide those who wish to lay eye and ear upon me. Bakudo 15:Bunbun'unarumure. ” He held his hand outstretched and waited. He thought he heard a slight buzzing sound, but it quickly faded. Arawn tried to summon his energy again.
“Swarm all those that creep and crawl divide those who wish to lay eye and ear upon me. Bakudo 15:Bunbun'unarumure!” this time he was louder, hoping that would change things, but it didn’t. The buzzing sound faded quickly as Arawn thought he saw something in move. Arawn gave a sigh, he hadn’t expected much a result, but this was less than half the desired effect. He grunted as he summoned forth his reiatsu. As the energy hummed around him, he felt less cold. He made a mental note of the change in temperature, but focused on casting. “Swarm all those that creep and crawl divide those who wish to lay eye and ear upon me. Bakudo 15:Bunbun'unarumure. ” This time there was an effect; a cloud of black insects shot from his hand. With the insects came a loud buzzing sound as loud as a chainsaw. The swarming black cloud quickly flew to surround the target peg at the end of the field. They hung around the target for several second and then vanished like smoke.

Kido Training:
Bakudo 15: 328/250


Arawn kept his reiatsu flowing out. He liked the added warmth it gave. But he knew he couldn’t keep his power going for too long. Keeping it like that would only tire him out quicker. He looked at the next item on his list of kido. “Another bakudo would be boring.” He said aloud. He picked out a hado class kido spell below it instead. A wind attack was quite promising. He recalled how potent Hado #4 had been. His power still bubbling out he aimed his hands at the target.
“A single feather flutters. Sojourn on the clouds, bend the wind on my wings. Hado #16: Sonic Wave Arrow!” A rush of wind blasted his face, suddenly the target grew scarlet. Arawn stood in amazement. What had happened? He didn’t even see the projectile. The spell couldn’t have failed, the target changed color indicating something had hit it. He decided to try again, this time keeping his eyes locked on the target.
“A single feather flutters. Sojourn on the clouds, bend the wind on my wings. Hado #16: Sonic Wave Arrow.” Again there was a blast of air, and again the target turned red. He was successful, but something about not seeing the attack bothered him. He looked at the note page he carried. Sure enough it only said a wind blast of concentrated wind to cut or blow away a target.' as he thought about, he realized that air wasn’t visible, so a wind attack would probably be the same. He shrugged his shoulders, the target was hit by SOMETHING, so that would have to be good enough for him.

Kido Training:
Hado 16: 270/260

After the last spell disappointment Arawn decided to skip to another destructive art. He wasn’t about to admit he enjoyed destroying the target dummies. But it was part of the excitement. The young shinigami looked down at the still standing metal target post. The last attack hadn’t left a mark on it. He released his reiatsu, and the cold air rushed to him. He would attempt a normal casting first this time. The truth was keeping his reiatsu out and casting two spells had made him slightly tired. He felt the familiar trickle of energy build up as he aimed his hand at the target. Even before casting he knew it wouldn’t be enough.
“The pillar of heaven falls, damn thy fate. Crush the wicked. Hado #17 Smite!” A strange purple haze gathered around him a long shape started to form, then shattered. The haze vanished with it. Arawn hated when he right sometimes, this was one of them. He took a breath of the cold morning air and pushed his reieryoku out. He air warmed around him once again, and he aimed his arms forward.
“The pillar of heaven falls, damn thy fate. Crush the wicked. Hado #17 Smite!” This time there was no haze, a long purple shape sprang into existence before him. His eyes widened in surprise, it was bigger than he was. It hovered before him only a moment before it hurled itself at the target. Arawn was shocked it could fit down the target alley, but it easily sailed down the lane and crashed into the target. There was a thunderous sound as they impacted, the purple log was gone. As the dust settled he saw the target bend backwards, the base of the target was pulled out of the ground slightly from the strike. Arawn whistled impressed.

Kido Training:
Hado 17: 303/270