An Old Alliance (DM)

After an embarrassing day with a mysterious girl, Katsumi decided to take the long way home. It was late in the evening. The sun was just over the horizon and a calm breeze was now blowing from the east. Katsumi walked through the shadows of the buildings thinking on his day at the training grounds. Lost in his day dreaming other shinigami began to look at him awkward. Not realizing he was talking to himself Katsumi kept his stroll home slow and steady. As Katsumi began to get closer to home he found himself passing the bar where loud music and voices filled the air. Katsumi fixed his hair back and as he did ran into a drunken shinigami. "Walk much rookie?!" "Excuse me." Katsumi said sincerely and calmly. He began to continue his stroll home when this man began to yell. "Excuse me. Ha!! You can't even face a man and show him respect. Instead you give me you back. I'll teach you how to respect others." His breath smelled like he had brushing his teeth with sake. "I'm Hideo! You...I'm not even going to ask your name." Hideo ran towards Katsumi swinging punch after punch. "I'm gonna give you a lesson to remember!" Not willing to fight a drunkard, Katsumi calmly dodged one after the other. By this time a crowd had gathered around and sides were taken. Most of the men were chanting on Hideo's side. Finally Katsumi got a hold of Hideo's arm and flipped him to the ground. "I'm not going to fight you. I just want to get home." Katsumi began to look around to see if anyone outside the drunken crowd saw him.

Tatsuya was enjoying a few drinks at the bar when he heard a commotion outside. He recognized one voice, that being Hideo, an unseated drunkard from the noble 8th squad, but could not figure out who the other voice belonged to. Though it sounded very familiar he had extreme difficulty remembering the last time he heard that person. Tatsuya sat by with a glass of sake in his hand as the two drew a larger crowd towards them, most of them chanting for Hideo. Tatsuya heard a collective yell as Hideo was flipped through the air and slammed to the ground. He didn't think that would be the end of it and he was right. "Lets get him!" One man yelled, causing the majority of the crowd to rush at the unknown person, but overall starting an all out brawl. Tatsuya was not one to butt in on a one-on-one fight, but he could rarely pass up a brawl. He quickly got up from his chair and casually walked over to the brawl taking place outside. The remaining bar patrons began whispering to themselves about Tatsuya, knowing that it was about to get more interesting. Tatsuya made it to the crowd and began fighting against his fellow shinigami, throwing quick punches, knocking them down to the ground. Tatsuya was just hitting and throwing anyone that got in his path as he made way towards the center of the crowd. Just as he got to the center he threw a right cross at the unknown man, but just before it connected he pulled it back. "You?!" A face of complete shock overcame his face. Tatsuya quickly moved behind the previously unknown man and kicked the man attacking him with a chair from behind, quickly turning back to the one he just protected.

Katsumi realizing he just made everything a lot worse then it already was knew there was no way out of this. "If they want a fight, they will get a fight." He began to fight them off on after the other. They weren't really difficult, however there was a lot of them. They began to over power him. From the corner of his eye, he saw one man taking them out from the back. "Who is this guy? He is coming right for me!" When the strange man got closer to Katsumi, Katsumi recognized the man. How can he forget his face. As he got closer he knew that Tatsuya would not remember him. Just then the man stopped from laying a blow right to his face. "No way. It can't be." In that split second, the crowd grew quite. Whispers of what just happened filled the air. "He's just a rookie! Finish him!" One man yelled from the middle of the crowd. The crowd grew violent again and wanted to finish the fight.

Tatsuya snapped out of his shocked expression when the crowd grew silent. "We'll talk later." He set himself up back to back against Katsumi, ready to take on the crowd. "Just like old times." He smiled and charged at the group in front of him. Tatsuya punched one man in the gut, dropping him to the ground then quickly leaping into the air and kicking another man in the head. As soon as he landed, he turned around and saw a fat shinigami getting ready to attack Katsumi from behind. He quickly flashed stepped into a jumping side kick, and connected with the fat man, sending him sailing across the street. "I always got your back." He moved on to another opponent, this time a veteran shinigami. "Why are you helping him?" He threw a series of punches and kicks that Tatsuya blocked and dodged. "Because he has been my best friend, since before I came to Soul Society." He continued blocking the attacks waiting for an opening and punching him square in the jaw, knocking him out cold. The crowd of brawlers was dwindling down as they were getting knocked out.

"Just like old time? Ha I remember what that usually meant. A night in jail and sore faces." Katsumi replied as the crowd got closer. Katsumi was focused on his opponents directly in front of him. Not realizing Tatsuya was jumping everywhere and flash stepping to other shinigami, he never looked behind him. "Thanks for that. I thought he would eat me." A hit to the nose quickly got Katsumi's attention. Punching the shinigami in the face and quickly throwing a kick to the mid abdomen sent the shinigami into his fellow drunkards. "Let's end this!" Katsumi said to Tatsuya and he charged the last remaining shinigami. Violently Katsumi began to throw punches from one to the other taking them down. He turned to Tatsuya and began to laugh. "Ha, looks like I got the last hit this time. What's the matter can't keep up?" The moon light began to grow a dark shadow on the neighborhood. Katsumi knoded his head to Tatsuya and began to fix his hair back.

"You got that last hit? Don't make me laugh. I clearly got in the last hit. Besides, I'm not the one with blood coming from his nose." Tatsuya laughed as he walked over to Katsumi. "I tell you what, lets call it a draw." He patted Katsumi on the shoulder. "It's good to see you again, Katsumi." He smiled while looking at the damage they had done to the men on the floor. He was happy there was no one from his squad on the floor, but not nearly as happy as seeing his old friend. "Come on, let me buy you a drink to commemorate our reunion." He began walking back inside the bar to his original location. "Kazumi, a sake for me and whatever drink my best friend wants." He politely asked the waitress who came to the table. "So tell me Katsumi, how long have you been in the academy?" He took a drink of sake.

"I'll just have some water." Katsumi said to the waitress. "You know me, don't like to drink while I'm in training." Katsumi sat there looking around. After a fight like that it's hard to remain calm. Besides that, the strange woman in the training grounds left a lesson instilled in his heart. His guard remained on red alert for a while. Katsumi seemed tense and unrelaxed. He sighes. "I've been in Soul Society for about 100 years. The academy accepted me in just 3 monthes ago. I tried to keep my training a regular habit before the academy. It was the only thing that reminded me of home." The waitress brought water to the table and smiled at Tatsuya. She bowed her head and walked off fixing her hair from her face. "Looks like your doing pretty well here Tatsuya." Katsumi smile and laughed. Things seemed like normal for the first time in over a hundred years. "A toast!"

"I'm glad too see you haven't changed much." Tatsuya commented about Katsumi's choice of drink. Tatsuya was well relaxed as he sat back in his chair. He looked at Katsumi who had a tense aura around him. "Relax Katsumi. One thing I learned here, was that being tense hinders your abilities. Besides most people around here are honorable and will not attack you twice in one night, especially with me around." He tried to reassure him and took another sip of his sake. "So you got here not too many years after me. It's a pity you didn't get into the academy at the same time I did. We would have been the talk of the academy." Tatsuya smiled up at Kazumi before continuing. "I know what you mean, I was the same way before I became a shinigami. Now, I feel like I have a better life than I ever did." He said proudly. "As for doing well for myself. Yeah I have. I'm 11th seat of the 2nd squad, under a great captain." He continued to proudly state. Tatsuya brought up his glass for a toast. "To best friends." He drank what was left in his glass. "I don't want to raise your hopes, but let me talk to my captain about getting you into the squad. I think he'd be glad to accept someone I recommend."

Katsumi realizing that the road of his life was going to change, grew a little nervous. Even as an unseated member of a squad you had missions. "I would appreciate the opportunity to let others see my skills and talents. I just hope I can learn more from the squad members." Katsumi looked down at his glass with a sigh. Caught in his thoughts, Katsumi decided it was time to call it a night. "Listen, it's been great seeing you again. Hopefully soon we would be able to take on some great missions. See you another time Tatsuya." Katsumi stood up and smilled one last time. Turned around and headed out the door to go home.

You'll learn as much as you want to learn. It's just that simple. And most of the squad members would be glad to help each other better themselves." He spoke sincerely to Katsumi as his friend took in the new opportunities that were being presented. "Great missions, indeed. I'll be in touch." He watched his friend get up and leave the bar. He walked over to the bar and spoke to Kazumi. "So what are your plans for tonight, Kazumi-san?" He smiled.