to me
winging it
"Now Kurosaki-dono, the basics of kido are dependent of whether you are using bakudo or hado, but both require control and a certain level of power. If you are attempting bakudo you need to focus on the shape of the spell alongside control and the incantation. With hado it is the same, but instead of a shape you are to focus on the element you want to use." Hinamori explained.
"So if you only need shape or element, why the annoying chants?" Ichigo queried.
"You will have noticed certain things, like your state of mind and actions like swinging Zangetsu, affect the shape, power, and feel of your reiatsu. The purpose of the chant is to shape your reiatsu making it easier to cast a stronger spell; this is why someone needs to be familiar with a spell before they can cast it without a chant. Even then it is extremely rare to find someone who can cast even a mid-level spell without the chant at full power, one example of this would be nii-sama with rikujokoro." Rukia answered.
"Eh!? If Byakuya's so good with kido why isn't he teaching me?" Ichigo asked in surprise.
"Two reasons, one, taicho don't have a lot of free time during duty hours and as willing as some are to train you in their own time, of which I am sure nii-sama is one, it was decided to forbid it as the last thing the Gotei 13 needs is its leaders collapsing from exhaustion. Second, as good as he is with kido there are others who can teach you it, even if it's an uphill struggle. However there is no one short of the sou-taicho with great enough skill in shunpo to teach you. other than Soi-Fon taicho and as you heard her focus is on stealth, deception and quick kills that are meant for single man operations, not evasion, pursuit and mobility meant for a head on fight or working with a squad, so there is no choice but for nii-sama to teach you hoho. Rukia explained looking down, Hinamori copying her expression
"Alright, alright I get it I was just wondering, no need to feel as if I'm saying you can't do it. Look at it this way, out of every other taicho not teaching me anything you two are the best at kido, so that makes you better than them, that's eight of them, and any other fuku-taicho, hey? That's not to bad is it?" he encouraged
Ichigo didn't know when or why his words had started to carry weight with people outside his immediate group but the pair immediately started to look better. It was a study in contradictions to Ichigo, how could two people who had showed they were strong, emotionally, mentally and physically, need encouragement from him of all people?
"There are limits to everyone's strength Ichigo, and at one time or another you have proven that you can exceed the vast majority of limitations, is it so hard to understand that they seek reassurance from you?" Zangetsu whispered in the back of his mind.
"Really what it boils down to is we're badass and the world knows it!" the hollow interjected.
"Not helping!"Ichigo shot back before taking note of the curious looks from the two women in the room with him.
"Sorry, talking to Zangetsu and the maggot." he said.
"Maggot?" Momo asked.
"I'm with her, maggot?, seriously? Don't you have ANYTHING good to say about me?"
"No, not really."
"Harsh partner, harsh."
The 5th fuku-taicho blanched as she pieced together the possibilities of "maggot".
"You mean your hollow don't you?" she asked.
"That's right, he's not that different from me really, we are part of the same person after all. He has his own code of honour and, bar the crazed, homicidal urges, we are very similar. But I don't think this is teaching me kido, if you want a lesson on inner hollows I'm free Thursday." Ichigo said trying to guide the talk back to the lesson, and noticing the looks of horror and interest on their faces.
"Umm right, sorry. Now, when you complete a spell one of four things can happen, it can work, do nothing, explode, or go out of control." Rukia started, continuing the lesson.
"I can see lots of BOOOM in our near future." Ichigo chose to ignore the hollow and listen to his friend's lecture.
"Each result it reliant on different things working, or going wrong. If it explodes, like what happens to Renji, it means you didn't channel your reiryoku correctly for the spell. If nothing happens, you didn't put enough power into the spell. Any questions?"
"I have two. One, why, after over a year can you still not draw worth shit and two, how does a spell go out of control?"
Rukia's response was like his question, twofold. The first step was to belt him in the head with her sketchbook; the other was to start drawing again.
"Reiryoku, like Zanpakuto come I several different types. Mostly this is divided along a shape or the classic western elements of fire, water, wind and earth or the far more common occurrence of having no element or shape at all. We tried to have yours matched to an element but had no luck. This is good and bad, bad because if your reiryoku has an element it is generally far easier to learn spells of the same, good because it means you can learn any element you like without the inherent difficulties of someone with an icy reiatsu trying to learn fire spells, I have first-hand experience with that."
"Yeah ok, so you struggled to learn your favourite spells. How does this explain out of control kido and why did you even bother?" Ichigo interrupted, receiving another smack to the head for his trouble.
"I bothered because fire is the natural weakness to my icy Zanpakuto so I have a counter should I come up against someone similar to me, and it's this element or shape to your reiatsu that leads to out of control kido. This shouldn't happen to you, as we said your reiatsu has no shape or element. Any other questions or insults towards art before we start?" Rukia asked as she finished. Ichigo, who wasn't willing to risk another head smack, shook his head.
"Very well, you can start with hado 33 soukatsui, I'm sure you remember the incantation from me." Rukia finished with a smirk.
"Yeah, yeah, I know it." Ichigo replied with a board tone before turning toward one of the targets and beginning his chant "Ye lord, mask of flesh and bone, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of man, truth and temperance, upon this sinless wall of dreams unleash but slightly the wrath of your claws!"
As he chanted Ichigo could feel his reiryoku changing, he could only describe it as it turning fiery. Rukia watched from the side-lines with her partner, something was knawing at the back of her mind; she just couldn't put her finger on it.
"What's this feeling? We all expect it to explode so what's the problem?"
She thought over the instructions and the explanations of how kido worked before coming to two conclusions. One, they had not explained what happens if you put too much power into a spell, a foolish oversight but not one that would change the outcome and two, through the dancing, flaming reiatsu that flared up when Ichigo had channelled his power into the orb she had briefly noticed something.
"The orb was full, maybe he can pull this off. But that feelings still there."
Rukia would never be able to explain why she grabbed Momo and leapt out the nearest window halfway through Ichigo's chant, but it proved to be the right decision since the spell spectacularly went out of control, engulfing the training hall in deep blue flames in a matter of seconds. "What on EARTH happened?! This shouldn't be possible!" her thoughts screeched.
"Kuchiki-san, Kurosaki-dono is still in there!"Hinamori shouted.
"No I'm not." Ichigo calmly said as he walked out the front door.
"Walk out the front door of burning building without a scratch. Like I said partner, badass."
"Eh?! How are you still alive after that, let alone not having a single burn!" Momo cried, still half panicked.
Ichigo looked at them in curiosity "Why would my own reiatsu hurt me?"
His answer drew curious looks from his two teachers but before they could continue the conversation they were interrupted.
"Well, it looks like the kido lesson went a bit different from expected, but you will have to call it a day I'm afraid." an old gravelly voice said the three turned to find Yamamoto "We can't afford to replace a hall every time Kurosaki casts a spell, we will designate a better location than this for next week. In the meantime Kurosaki you have mail."
"You came out here yourself for a mail run?" Ichigo asked his oldest mentor.
"No, I came out here to retrieve you. Something tells me this is the sort of mail one should not delay with or read in public. That and it's bound to be interesting for everyone involved, which at some point or another is always me when your involved in anything."