Taking things seriously (solo)

I can be tough...

I can be strong...

The words seemed so easily lost that it had taken all her restraint not to scrawl them over every open surface. Kaiyo needed to remember them, to learn them, to live them. Need, as in most cases was intersected with desire; as the blue haired girl would learn, what she needed was different.

Her hand ruffled the front of her hair, enjoying the fruity smell of the shampoo she used. The enjoyment was lost though, buried beneath the worries that seemed so insurmountable. Her bare feet bounced slightly on the wooden floor, her eyes lost out the window with possibilities. She was feeling far too agitated to just stay in her room today. Given her condition, Kaiyo had been put on bed-rest again and whilst her usual self-loathing consumed such time effectively, it seemed that she had finally snapped. A sharp inhale of breath was steadied by her hand grasping her side as she rose, bandaged all around her torso and arms. It was probably the worst she'd been.

Her inability to find any form of fighting spirit had meant the forced sparring sessions only left her with injuries and finally, the teacher had gotten bored of her simply dodging. The tears had dried but the lump was still lingering at the back of her throat and her desperate need to run had gotten the better of her. For the first time, she grabbed her Zanpakutou on her way out, sheathing it at her left hip as she hobbled out with her crutches.

Kaiyo kept her head down as she moved, her body fighting against her instinct to run away as she moved feebly slowly through the halls. The end was in sight, the bustling corridors bumping and nudged the girl with a malice that only she recognised. In the Soul Reaper academy weakness was not tolerated and even without her obvious wounds, Kaiyo was weak. It was written across her face and even one glance at the girl would have her curling in on herself. Weakness. Fear...She kept moving. A few times she lost her balance in the crowd, stumbling a few paces she kept her footing.

Finally she was outside, the rush of cold air hit her face like a whip. Her eyes blasted open as she dropped her crutches. She only really needed them for stairs, her feet and legs weren't the main cause of her pain and even she felt pathetic with the walking aids.

- - -
'Why are you still here if you won't fight?!' The snarling voice of her opponent stung Kaiyo deep. Deep down, she got some sense of satisfaction from how tired he was. The man was brute strength and having been chasing Kaiyo around the ring for twenty minutes, he was exhausted. She was bleeding a fair amount, but they were just surface wounds. Of course they still seemed to hurt as much as being stabbed. Not that Kaiyo had ever been stabbed. The wuss.

As usual she had no answer, nothing but her hurt expression to throw back at him and a feeble throw at that. The silence was filled by their panting, her chest rising and falling rapidly as she began to panic more. Kaiyo just hoped she wouldnt have another panic attack, it had happened once already and she didn't exactly enjoy the sensation of losing consciousness.
- - -

I can be tough...

I can be strong...

The wooden sticks clattered against the concrete and Kaiyo set off. Her slow hobble only piercing her deflated ego further as she began to pick up her pace. Desperation had crept so slyly up on her and now the games were over, now she had to be serious. The wind brushed against her loose robes, flapping around her body with encouraging flips. Her bandaged arms began to pump faster at her side, the searing pain in her chest subsiding as she felt something inside her stir. For the first time ever, the cool relief of her own spiritual energy. It wasn't great and all her pain didn't suddenly just vanish, but there was a calming subsiding of pain, perhaps it was just the kick of adrenaline. Whatever it was, Kaiyo sped up. Suddenly realising exactly where she was going and behind a wall, a purpose was rising, bubbling through the cracks.

- - -
'That's enough!' Their sensei had flung her previous opponent backwards, the apparent ease of her strength crushing through the man's ribs as he flew backwards. Panic hit. The familiar shaking of fear made the reflection from her blade quake along the ground. Goodbye hope. Kaiyo just looked at the frightful woman. Unable to respond as she unsheathed her own blade, and began gating the girl like prey. Her mouth dried up as she tried to talk her way out of it, dropping any semblance of combat as she raised up both her hands. 'I....' she croaked. The woman vanished. Then there was pain. That was all Kaiyo registered in that moment, she had flash stepped right past his and sliced her blade straight through her side. Tears welled in Kaiyo's eyes as she staggered round to face the woman. 'You'll die if you don't fight back! Now attack me!' The fear of pain was her limiter and Kaiyo practically fell on the woman, her arms flailing in an un-coordinated manner as her attack was not only blocked, but her blade was cut free from her when her hand was struck. The stench of blood was battling a gag reflex as her shaking became severe. Her hands moved up to a boxing stance. The sensei was merciless, in fact she seemed only more angry now. 'Like you mean it!' she roared, a pulse of reiatsu pushing down on Kaiyo as her knees buckled. Beads of sweat rolled down the side of her face as she looked up at the assailant. A kick to the jaw as her frail body flipped backwards. The woman towered over her, the class silenced by such overt aggression. Maybe they'd all seen it coming, maybe they knew what Kaiyo didn't. The tendrils of black smoke ebbed around the corners of her eyes, drifting across her vision as darkness faded across her world. The woman's last words were muffled and lost in her transition across to another wake-less dream.
- - -

She'd arrived. The decrepit walls swerved with every hot inhale of breath, she'd opened the stitches on her arm but she couldn't have cared less. The dust clouds swirled in on themselves at the doorway, flowing off the street with the wind that seemed to have picked up. The metal sheet roof shook, rumbling like thunder as Kaiyo unsheathed her blade. Ignoring her own panting as her warm hand gripped the dark metal blade. Her left hand brought up into stance. She paused for a moment. For a breath. For a feeling.

The home was where she had lived briefly before joining the soul reaper academy. It was her last comfort zone, and she was about to burn it to the ground. Kaiyo saw no other choice; because she'd been hiding and running and now she had to be different. Her strength wouldn't come from strength itself. It could be only the power she actually possessed. The unravelled bandage whipped around her body as the wind kicked through the door. Her hair flicking her neck as anticipation rose. She waited a moment longer, exhaling steadily as she spun. Bringing her right foot around as she booted the door straight off it's crooked hinge. It shattered in the air, blistering debris around the abandoned path. She spun on her side, twisting her body as her blade came down through the wall. For once, there was no thought. No worry. Kaiyo wasn't wondering why she felt like she had to do this, she was just following her instinct. Within minutes, the woman was standing amidst a mountain of rubble. Her dark blade held with a strong grip in her hand as she just stood there. Absorbing the destruction that had befallen her last hiding place. Now she was out in the open, now she was ready to take things seriously...

- - -
'Kaiyo...You can be tough and you can be strong, you just need to believe you can'

Her jaw locked, mouth a-jar. Her last ounce of breath seeped from her gasp. The scar at her side...For some reason Kaiyo had assumed that her new alive-beyond-death body wouldn't scar. She had been wrong. The wound was healed, but the mark remained. The scathing reminder. She released her shirt, watching material sway so innocently over the scar. Her tears had long since dried up, leaving only the same girl, the same girl who was about to change completely.

It had occured several times that Kaiyo could just quit and live out her eternity like any other normal soul. However close this dream had come, it had never seemed a truly viable option for the girl and she could never place exactly why she had to stay. The sound of material sliding against itself was the only noise. The room was empty but for the girl. After smoothing down her uniform Kaiyo finally paused to get a good look at herself. There were still a few small cuts on her face but Kaiyo didn't even notice them, no, all she could see was the first genuine smile on her face that she could even remember.

A true smile reaches the eyes!
She giggled at her own inner monologue, unable to tell if it was sarcasm or not but amused by the notion none the less.

Today is the first day of the rest of your life. It seemed an appropriate thought; even if it was a little cheesy. Kaiyo inhales slowly, reaching across her bed as she flicked out two bundles of bandages. One red. One blue. She began wrapping the bandages around her hands and wrists,blue on the left and red on the right. They were her new gift to herself, her fighting spirit. She'd need it today.

Kaiyo had signed up for a tournament. A hand to hand combat tournament for any Soul Reaper's in training who thought they could win...Kaiyo wasn't sure if she could, but she'd be damned if she didn't try.

The over-cast sky held a surprising warmth to the day, rustled away by the fog that had sunk to the ground, planted in its place by the still winds. Visibility was okay, but she could still use it. Her soft shoes padded against the grass, silently stalking towards the sign up table. It was early, so the sun was still lingering low in the sky.

Kaiyo walked with as much assertion as she could muster. The crowds were already starting to emerge and it seemed as if most of the combatants had already arrived. These facts did not shake the girl, her resolve more solid than she could ever have imagined. She met the nearest corner of the table, the five judges eyed the girl with clear disregard. 'First year student Kai-'
'Here's your number, first year' The man was in formal shinigami uniform, clearly one of the guest judges. Kaiyo's hand paused, hovering over the table as her head creaked around to the side. She really hadn't thought she'd be the only first year to sign up....

The blue and red hands would hopefully get her noticed, if the large number 1 plastered on her back didn't. She assumed it was some twisted irony that the only first year were given the number 1. A sinking feeling was being forced aside, with all the blue haired girls might; she couldn't lose especially now. Kaiyo was sat with the other fighters, the large score board was suspended on the judged platform at the side of the arena. It was bigger than any area she'd been allowed to fight it before. Then again, she'd never really 'fought' before. That regret that she'd been humming out of her head, it exploded into full view as Kaiyo watched the first round.

Two third years, fast and strong and accurate. She was screwed. A single bead of sweat dropped from her face. The sheer energy behind the strikes were moving the fog, but the first pair hadn't thought of manipulating it yet. That so far was her only hope. Her eyes shot open as she saw the end of the round, two broken arms and obviously broken ribs...Maybe she could sneak off without anyone even noticing she'd arrived.

'Numbers 1 and 16 to the ring!' The crowd buzzed, clearly they'd heard about the first year who'd always refused to fight entering the tournament. To make matters worse, there were more than students a the event. Shinigami and officials of all standing. Kaiyo rose to her feet, trying to not fall on her way down as she tensed her muscles; trying to anticipate the fight. Kaiyo kept her head down as she made her way to the centre of the arena, only glancing up moment before the start to get a look at her opponent. It looked like the Hulk and Godzilla had children. The man was clearly a giant about to start chewing on her bones. Her instinct to run pulsed through her mind, beating in time with her heart as she stared up at the man.

Her mind races and her heart stops, but she can still feel, she can't not.

'Begin!'

She froze. Watching silently as time jarred in slow motion. The hulk leapt forwards, his meaty arms slamming through the fog as he bounded forwards. There was no grace, no speed no precision; just power. The spark hit. The possibility and hope that just maybe, she could win. Kaiyo snapped back to reality just in time, springing into control of her body as the fist bigger than her head game hurtling downwards.Her body-weight shifted, stepping so quickly to the side that the man's fist was still falling when she attacked. Her arms moved outwards in a fluid motion, leading the shoulders as she flipped, almost completely horizontal as her spinning heel came crashing down into the man's neck. Kaiyo rolled forwards back into stance as she turned back around. Her heel was throbbing. Having tried to attack the weakest part of the man, her second foot can jabbed into his collar bone and was feeling really quite sore. He was struggling to breath at least, and clearly quite mad.

The fog had curled around the girl on her attack and had created some kind of smoke screen for Kaiyo. Her back foot fanned up and round, dragging up more fog around her as she dropped back into her stance. Now was the real speed test. Adrenaline coursed through her small frame, the tingling sensation of power was new though. He lunged forwards, his bare skin prickling the air as Kaiyo slowly moved back. Leaning onto her hip at the side as she twisted around with a counter kick, landing lower to the ground to avoid his own roundhouse. In the distance, far off, Kaiyo could hear the muffled aches of the crowd, gnawing and wailing for each strike to connect. She was faster than him, by now they both knew it, but he was still stronger. She tilted her head back, her chin catching the tip of his fist as she tumbled backwards. Her bare skin caught by the abrasion of the hard ground. The earth tilted as she wobbled to get her sight back, catching him just in time to roll away from his kick. Kaiyo threw her body over, still on the ground as her hands caught her front. Spurred on by fear and panic, she leant over her hands quickly, throwing her legs up as both feet caught the man in the face. She flipped back up to her feet, over his body. Kaiyo had only a moment to blink hard, ridding at least her double vision as he slurred back up to his feet. He was knackered by now, so many swings and misses would tire a man out. Her small hands clenched over the material. Her guard came up as she began to side-step the man. They circled for long enough to get the crowd going. All their movement had cleared the fog from them entirely, so in full view of everyone, he moved in.

It happened again, the slow paced speed of the world nicked on the girl. His right fist went for the cross, she inhaled slowly, stepping weight onto her left foot as her corresponding hand came up. Blue glove, open palm, knocked his attack aside, opening up a gap. Slow exhale, keeping her guard high, red glove drew back, first two knuckles leading the punch as her shoulder and entire body weight followed the strike.

The thud shook back the roaring crowd. Colour re-emerging as Kaiyo looked down at her fallen opponent, out cold. There stood the victor, utterly bewildered. 'Number 1 takes round two!'. The surprise was palpable in the air and Kaiyo felt more shell shocked than anything else. She was on a high, lost of her pain and carried by the rush of her victory. Without thinking or remorse, she'd calculated and moved and beaten her opponent. Not only had she fought but she'd won. Her heart beat had transferred to her hand but she didn't care. Regardless of the outcome now, she hadn't lost.

Her face met the ground with a painful greeting. Her arms and legs were sprawled and just as she tried to get up, a heavy kick landed in the small of her back. She arched backwards like a rearing horse, throwing herself away from direct harm as she began crawling backwards from the woman. Who'd have thought you could actually draw blood from a single strike, Kaiyo certainly hadn't. Like most things today, she had been wrong. A single chop above her eye and blood had began to pour. Leaving only her right out to watch the chaos that unravelled. The woman, a second year student, had taken full advantage of this new weakness and practically disabled Kaiyo's only saving ability to dodge.

Her defeatist approach had so far not struck any luck in this match, so it seemed fair to try a new approach. The concept of honour had never really been explained to Kaiyo and to her understanding, it was just arrogant Shinigami who yelled about it when they 'graciously' let their opponents live. All things considered her actions didn't seem to be involved in 'honour'.

Kaiyo rolled onto her front with a groan of pain, her hands grasping as the dusty ground as she waited. Holding such a position for even a beat longer felt like a stupid idea but so far stupid was all she had. In fact, Kaiyo figured this could only end well for her. When she felt the woman towering over her, Kaiyo spun round. Flicking two hand-fulls of dirt into her eyes as she leapt at her. There was no formal combat name for what she did next, but more accurately it could be called a dump tackled. Kaiyo could feel this was her only chance, and having caught her opponent off guard, she'd successfully managed to grapple on top of her.

Like a hamster caught on caffeine in a rage, Kaiyo hit as hard and fast as she could. Her hand protected from most cuts as she swung her fists left and right at the woman, striking her head on in a flurry of attack. Her muscles waned at their over-usage, surely if she could just keep going and hold on for a little longer, she could win. Of course this thought didn't register in Kaiyo's mind, because she wasn't thinking at all. This new combat sensation appeared to block off any cautious aspects of her mind that could falter her tournament mind. Unfortunately, whilst her resolve may have been solid, her body was not. In a moments pause whilst her arms screamed for oxygen, the panting girl was turned on her back, taking her turn to try and block the onslaught of strikes. Her entire body felt weak; all she could do was squeeze shut her eyes and hold her fists against her head to block the direct face hits. Her body jolted with the power of each strike, like it was detaching her innards.

Kaiyo opened her eyes slowly, still jarring from left to right as she was being pounded like soft clay. There, in front of her good eye was her way out. The very last hope. It wasn't exactly hand to hand combat skill, but neither was throwing dirt and nobody had stopped her doing that. Plus when someone's beating you up with nobody stopping them for a solid ten minutes, well you tend to lose your strict moral code.

Slowly, without trying to attract the woman's attention, Kaiyo left hand slipped down an inch or so. Catching the edge of material from her right hand, she moved her hands back up together. She'd have to be able to catch her off guard, which meant a quick trip to the side. Of course the woman's thighs of steel had so far suppressed her quite effectively. 'Come on!' she screamed inwardly, gearing herself up for her victory. Ever the optimist.

Relying on her core muscles, and following her shoulder to her right, Kaiyo twisted to the side. The split second of uncertainty was her window of opportunity. Her hands lashed forwards, parting as Kaiyo wrapped the material around the womans next, gripping onto the fabric like her life depended on it, she tossed the girl to the opposite side by her neck. She flew off her, bashing her bead against the ground as she rolled to a silent halt. Kaiyo inhaled deeply, dragging herself up to her feet as she expected the woman to rise seconds later...She didn't.

'Number 1 takes the round!'