AN: Sorry for the wait guys, but I have had a lot on my mind lately. Enjoy the new chapter, the battle tournament will start in the next chappie

Chapter 21

Kitty quickly finished tending to Soi Fon taicho's injuries and left, telling Soi that if she did as Unohana asked and sat still she was going to be out of the 4th in a few days, hiding a smile when Soi Fon groaned and muttered 'thank god.'

Kitty closed the door smiling as Kin stood ready. "Shall we go then?" Kitty asked.

"To that guy Shihouin san told us about?"

"Yeah, Kei sensei wasn't it?"

"Hai" Kin said smiling as she and Kitty walked out the door going off to train for the battle tournament. After about 15 minutes Kitty and Kin stood in front of a dojo named Sensei Kei's dojo. Kitty and Kin shared a quick look before entering. Inside it was dark and quiet, the only thing Kitty and Kin saw, was a man calmly going through a series of tai chi moves.

"Excuse me" Kitty said gently, making the man open his eyes and look towards her and Kin.

"Hi, sorry to bother you, are you Kei sensei?"

"Hai, that is me, how may I help you?"

"I have a small problem with my battle style;" Kitty said bowing gently to show respect. "Shihouin Yoruichi sparred with me and suggested I go to you."

"She did now did she? Well who am I to talk against such a woman."

Kitty smiled and looked closer at Kei sensei. He was about 6 feet tall, and looked old, in a wise and experienced way. He was wearing nothing but a pair of hakama and was covered in scars on his torso as well as one on his face that ran from the top of his left eyebrow and ended right over the nose root at his right side.

"Well then let me see your problem" he said beaconing to Kitty.

Kitty walked up and drew her sword and called out Toratsune. She grunted as she felt her balance shift and leant to the floor with one hand. Master Kei nodded.

"I see why she sent you here. Now let me guess, your balance shifts and you try your very best to stay on 2 legs right?"

"Hai" Kitty said.

"Now here is a wild thought" Kei sensei said smiling gently. "How about, instead of fighting your balance, you work with it, and try to fight on all 4?"

Kitty blinked and Kin gaped.

"You mean… like an animal?"

"Let me ask you a question, who do you see as the most dangerous beings on earth?"

Kitty smiled. "Well humans are dangerous because of your mind, without it we would have died out long ago. But if we talk about raw strength… bears, different kinds of felines, wolfs etc."

"True" Kei sensei said smiling. "And your zanpakuto seems to me like works best on 4 legs."

Kitty smiled suddenly understanding why she was here. Yoruichi san could turn into a cat, which meant that she probably went and learned to fight in her feline form once. She rose as high as she could in shikai mode and bowed gently to Kei sensei.

"Please teach me, I will be forever in your dept."

Kei sensei only smiled. "It would be my pleasure Kitty san."

About 3 days went. Kitty was making big progress in her training, and Kin had started taking refuge in the woods training her, away from where she could harm anyone by accident. Kitty currently had reception duty and sat and finished up some of her paperwork when suddenly someone cleared her throat. Kitty looked up and blinked as she saw Soi Fon taicho. She was wearing her standard attire again, no longer forced to wear the 4th squad's sick bay uniform.

Kitty smiled. "Finally getting out of here then taicho?"

"Hai" Soi Fon said trying her best not to jump for joy. "Unohana told me to give you these." She handed Kitty her release papers and Kitty nodded.

"Very well, we have your zanpakuto in the back; I shall get it for you."

Kitty started to walk and then stopped and turned a little embarrassed. "How does it…?"

"Its sheath is blue with a yellow end, the guard is oval and kind of beige, the hilt is yellow." Soi smiled, explaining before Kitty even had a chance to finish the question.

"Arigato" Kitty said and continued walking until she reached the store room where the 4th kept the zanpakuto's belonging to the various shinigami's who was resting at the barracks.

Looking around she quickly saw Soi Fon taicho's zanpakuto. It fitted the description perfectly, and as Kitty saw where it sat for itself, the one who had put it in here knew who its owner was and had taken care of treating the sword with enough respect to place it for itself. Kitty gently took it down from its perch and walked out to Soi Fon taicho again. She smiled as she noticed Soi Fon taicho's fingers twitching.

"I will remind you of Unohana taicho's orders" Kitty said all business still holding Suzumebachi for effect. "Light workouts, nothing straining, is that clear?"

"Hai" Soi said nodding, not bothering to remind Kitty about forgetting to address her as taicho.

Kitty smiled and held out Suzumebachi, which Soi took at once, smiling gently. She said something gently in Chinese, Kitty not bothering to tell Soi that she actually had taken a few Chinese classes in her spare time and knew that she had said 'how I have missed you old friend' to Suzumebachi.

"May I ask you something before you leave taicho?"

"Hai" Soi said, fastening Suzumebachi at her back, once again the feared 2nd squad taicho.

"At the academy, I heard a rumor about your zanpakuto… is it true that it can kill in 2 hits?"

"Well it depends" Soi Fon said smiling. "In released form, if I hit an opponent once, they get marked with a homonka. If I hit them once again in the exact same place once again, in the middle of the homonka, they die. Well I should get going; I don't even want to know what damage Omaeda has done to my squad. Bye Petro san, say good bye to Tochigi san from me would you?"

"Hai taicho, and remember to take it slow ok?"

Soi just smiled and left, and Kitty was not surprised when Hanataro came in about a minute later asking why Soi Fon taicho had done somersaults out of the grounds laughing joyously.