Author's Note: Yo. Chapter 5 here.
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Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach.
"Rukia" - Regular Speech
'Ichigo' - Thoughts
*Kaien-dono* - Zanpakutō speech/thoughts
"Bankai!" - Spiritual Technique
Chapter 5: Kirika-sensei
With Kirika and Urahara
"That was unexpected." Kirika remarked as the Last Quincy, Ishida Uryū, went down fighting against a redhead with a pineapple hairstyle, who she suddenly recalled was Abarai Renji, Rukia's childhood friend.
"Not entirely." Urahara replied, "Ishida-san may be a stuffed shirt most of the time, and far too caught up in his 'Pride as a Quincy' for his own good, but he is honourable. He owes Ichigo a debt, and he tried to pay him back…although a Lieutenant in the Thirteen Court Guard Squads, even restricted to 20% of his real power, is an opponent far beyond him."
"You could sound at least slightly concerned for him." the masked Soul Reaper responded, still sounding like Darth Vader, "Unlike us, he fights in his real body. He could die of those wounds."
"Quincy are too stubborn to die that easily." the ex-Captain waved his hand airily at her; "Don't worry about him…worry more for your brother. Here he comes now."
"His Reiryoku Control is really appalling." Kirika sighed, even as she readied herself to charge in if Abarai or the Captain, who was Kuchiki Byakuya, went too far and tried to kill Ichigo or Uryū, "I'm going to kick his ass into gear after we invade Soul Society."
"Don't interfere unless they make any moves to kill them." Urahara warned her, "The longer we can keep you a secret, the better."
"I can raise my Reiatsu level with this new mask, correct?" Kirika asked rhetorically. It had been one of her demands when Urahara had recreated this mask. "I'll be fine. Under the Gentei Fūin, Abarai over there has the Reiryoku level of a Sixth Seat. Byakuya is more problematic as he has the level of a powerful Lieutenant, even with his power sealed."
"Kaien's memories are leaking through, aren't they?" Urahara asked sharply.
Kirika sighed. "Yes. For the last month, the odd flash of memory has been leaking through. I think it has something to do with Rukia being nearby."
The memories she had been receiving were odd ones. A couple were from his time growing up with his siblings, Kūkaku and Ganju. A few involved the various Hollow extermination missions that he had taken part in. Still others were various Zanjutsu and Hakuda techniques that he had known. The rest had been memories about Rukia.
"Looks like we'll need to strengthen the Bakudō at some point." Urahara mused as Ichigo and Abarai locked blades.
"I'd prefer it if you didn't." Kirika retorted, her hand gripping the hilt of her Zanpakutō tightly, "We're going up against the entirety of the Seireitei soon; we need every advantage we can get. Kaien's memories and knowledge could be the balance breaker that we need."
"I'll get Tessai to look you over anyway." Urahara said after a moment, wincing when he saw Ichigo be hit by Abarai's Shikai, Zabimaru, "It's better to make sure that at the very least the memories don't crash over you in a single wave."
"Understood." Kirika nodded, before a massive wave of undirected Reiatsu washed over her, "Geh! Now what's Aniki doing?!"
"Looks like he's trying to focus his Reiatsu so he can overwhelm Renji-san." Urahara replied, stating the obvious, "Looks like it isn't working as well as it could be, but it should be enough to deal with Renji. Ichigo has disarmed him and looks to be charging in to finish it…ah. Looks like it's over."
Kuchiki Byakuya had just used Shunpo to flash past Ichigo, cut his sword in two a couple of inches above the tsuka and then appeared behind him, stabbing her brother twice in the centre of his body, piercing both his Saketsu (Binding Chain) and his Hakusui (Soul Sleep), condemning him to life as a powerless Soul, should he survive such a strike.
"Senka (Flash Blossom)." Urahara said grimly, "An advanced Hohō technique that Kuchiki Byakuya specialises in, using it when he wants to end a fight quickly and cleanly."
"I am going to hurt that bastard for doing that!" Kirika snarled as her brother collapsed.
"Get ready. If either of them is going to do anything, it will be now, while their opponents are both helpless." Urahara warned her.
Kirika tensed. She saw Abarai furiously snatch up his sword from where it had landed after he had been disarmed by Ichigo and stamp over to where her brother lay, completely unable to defend himself as Abarai raised the segmented blade high in preparation to strike.
Before she knew it, Kirika entered Shunpo and charged at her fellow redhead, already muttering the incantation of a Hadō under her breath.
"Tetsu ketsui, danko ketsui. Ikari to Honō no Arashi ga sekai o shōhi! Imakoko no bubun ga kakō shimashou! (Iron resolve, adamant determination. A storm of fury and flames consumes the world! Let a portion descend here and now!)" She muttered as she drew her blade and pointing it at one Abarai Renji, who whipped around as he sensed someone approaching him from the side.
"Hadō # 39: Kongōbaku! (Way of Destruction Number Thirty-Nine: Adamantine Blast!)" She shouted.
Rukia's Perspective
A Handful of Moments Before Kirika's Attack.
Kuchiki Rukia was a hundred and fifty years old. In that time, she had known pain, suffering and heartbreak, but not nearly as much as she felt right at this very moment.
Uryū and Ichigo lay battered and beaten on the ground, both with severe wounds that could kill them if they were not given immediate treatment. Rukia wanted to move, but she was filled with so much loathing for herself that she was paralyzed.
She should have told Ichigo that Zanpakutō were more than mere swords, that they were a part of the Soul Reaper given form. She should have taught him Zanjutsu, Hadō, Bakudō, Hakuda and Hohō. Instead, she had hoped that her powers would return before the grace period of a month was over and gotten caught up in the lifestyle of a modern day Human Highschool student.
Ichigo's crazy father, Karin, Yuzu, Kirika, Orihime, Chad, Tatsuki, Chizuru, Keigo, Mizuiro…spending each day with them had been warm and happy. Such feelings were not need in Soul Reapers, she knew. Rukia had spent far too much time in the World of the Living, interacting with humans.
This was her punishment, then, for enjoying the last month; seeing Ichigo, who bore such a striking resemblance to Shiba Kaien, lying on the ground, dying at the hands of her adopted brother.
"Damn Human trash!" Renji snarled as he grabbed Zabimaru from where Ichigo had sent it flying, "I'll show you! If you're gone, Rukia's powers will return!"
"Stop it Renji!" Rukia shouted in fright. The thought of Ichigo being killed directly by her oldest living friend made her heart ache as if she had been the one impaled by Byakuya.
"Rukia, it's the only way to get your powers back!" her friend -whom she had not seen in nearly forty years- replied as he raised his Zanpakutō above his head, "It's for your own good!"
Suddenly, Renji stiffened and looked to his left. Rukia turned also and saw a familiar cloaked and hooded figure appear in midair, with her sword pointed directly at Renji.
"HADŌ #39: KONGŌBAKU!" boomed from the figure as a red blast formed at the tip of her Zanpakutō. She whipped it up before hurtling the Hadō straight at the redheaded Lieutenant.
"What the-!" Renji Shunpo'd out of the way just in time to avoid the powerful Kidō spell, which passed through where Renji had been standing a second before, crashed through several trees and exploded. Skidding to a halt to the side, Renji barely managed to raise his blade in time to intercept the blow that the caped figure struck at him with after appearing nearby using a Shunpo.
"Kokken Asa!?" Rukia exclaimed in surprise. She had not seen the masked Soul Reaper since she had left the Urahara Shōten over a month ago. Why was she here?
"Who the hell are you?!" Renji demanded, "What squad are you from?!"
"I swear no loyalty to the beaten dogs of the Seireitei." Kokken replied in a dark, machine-like voice that chilled Rukia's heart, "What do you think you were about to do, fool?"
"Say what?!" Renji snarled and pushed back against Kokken's Fūingata Zanpakutō with his own released blade.
"Soul Reapers are Balancers. Their duty is to maintain the Balance of this world, not play with it to satisfy their own whims!" Kokken lambasted Renji, "Removing his powers is one thing, but slaying him is far beyond your remit."
"We were sent here by Central 46, with orders to retrieve Kuchiki Rukia at any cost!" Renji bit out angrily, "If this Human wants to get in the way, he's just collateral damage!"
"He is powerless to oppose your capture of your target at this point." Kokken replied as she disengaged and pointed her blade at the Lieutenant, "Take her and leave. I cannot prevent that, but I will stop you from taking his life, Sixth Squad Lieutenant Abarai Renji."
A blurred figure raced past Renji and appeared behind Kokken. Kuchiki Byakuya, face impassive, once more executed a perfect Senka, this time upon Kokken Ami.
"The likes of you do not have the right to tell us of our duty." the Captain of the Sixth Squad stated calmly.
This calm visage did not twitch an inch when the 'body' of Kokken Ami blurred and vanished from his blade. He merely turned around and blocked the sword strike that Kokken sent at his head.
"That technique just now…was Utsusemi." he stated calmly, "Only the Onmitsukidō use it and yours was performed imperfectly. Who is your master?"
"I really couldn't say…Byakuya-sempai." Kokken replied. You could almost hear the smirk in her voice as she spoke.
Eyes narrowed, Byakuya forced her back with barely any effort before sheathing his Zanpakutō and turning away.
"Lieutenant Abarai…come. We have acquired Kuchiki Rukia. There is no longer any need to remain in the World of the Living any longer." he said emotionlessly.
"Taicho!" Renji protested.
"Now, Lieutenant." The tone was mild, but the aura of command made it a reprimand.
"Hai, Taicho." Renji grumbled as he threw a poisonous look at Kokken and resealed his own blade before sheathing it.
Rukia followed them silently, already resigned to her fate. She only stopped when Ichigo called out to her.
"Rukia!"
"Return to your everyday life, Ichigo." she said, her voice trembling at the effort she was putting in to looking and sounding calm, "If you don't stay there…I won't forgive you!"
"Calm down, Kurosaki-san. You're aggravating your injuries." Kokken chided him as she knelt at his side and started examining his wounds, "Kuchiki Rukia-san…set your mind at ease. He shall live."
This drew a small smile of relief from the petite ravenette. "Thank you, Kokken-san. I leave him to you then."
With that, the three Soul Reapers passed through the Senkaimon, leaving no trace of their passing. Ichigo groaned once, before losing consciousness.
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Two Hours later
Urahara Shōten
"Is my brother alright, Tessai-sensei?" Kirika asked anxiously.
Tessai was kneeling next to Ichigo and using Kaidō on him, his hands wreathed in the green energy of healing Kidō. Kirika was hovering at his side.
"Have no fear, Kirika-chan." Tessai told her reassuringly, "Your first aid was enough to tide him over until I got to him. He will not wake up until late morning, however. Having your Saketsu and Hakusui pierced like that is very tough, for even the strongest of Soul Reapers."
"How the hell are we going to fight against Aizen now?" Kirika asked bitterly, "Rukia's been taken, Aniki's been disempowered and everyone else has probably had their memories erased! What are we going to do?!"
"Ara, Ara…calmly does it, Kirika-chan." Urahara said lazily as he sauntered in, "The only powers that were removed from Kurosaki-san here were Rukia's powers that he took from her. His own powers, the powers he was born with, are still there, locked inside him. We merely have to draw them out, although there is a risk in the way it has to be done."
"Wait…you aren't thinking of using the Shattered Shaft Method…are you?!" Kirika asked in disbelief. She had read about it in one of Urahara's scrolls. It was one of the few methods to restore a Soul Reaper's power if they managed to retain even a shred of their power. The risk of Hollowfication was high, however, and it was almost never used because of that.
"We have no other choice; the other methods take far too long." Urahara said seriously, "I have confidence that Kurosaki-san will pass the test splendidly. You have another duty, however."
"What?" Kirika couldn't think what the man was up to, but it would be something that kept her away from here for quite some time. The Shattered Shaft took five days to complete and in all honesty, she doubted she could stand the knowledge that her brother was in pain and be unable to do anything about it while being nearby.
"Hai~." Urahara replied as he whipped out another stupid fan and waved it in front of his face, "You see, two of Kurosaki-san's friends will likely contact us in order to ask for training. Yoruichi would be the one I would normally send, but you are their age AND you know them fairly well, so you make a better candidate for a teacher. In your persona as 'Kokken Asa', of course."
"What about Uryū?" she asked. The Quincy had been healed up easily right where he had been defeated and had then departed, telling them to inform Ichigo that he was the only person who could save Rukia.
"He'll likely show up on the day we depart for Soul Society." Urahara replied with a shrug, "He's quite the Tsundere, really. Anyway, I'll train Kurosaki-kun for ten days, recovering his Soul Reaper form in the process, while you train Chad-kun and Orihime-chan. Seven days after that, I'll open the Senkaimon and send you all through, with Yoruichi leading the charge."
A fist smacked onto the back of Urahara's head, sending him flat on his face with a loud thump. An irritated looking Yoruichi stood behind him.
"Don't tell other people what I'm going to be doing before you tell me, baka!" she said angrily, "Really! Over two centuries and you still can't tell where pitfalls are!"
"Yoruichi-dono, could you kindly not discipline the manager near my patient?" Tessai requested politely, "Kirika-kun, pay attention to how I do this. Your next lesson is how to properly utilise Kaidō."
"Hai, sensei." Kirika knelt next to Tessai obediently.
"I get no respect around here." Urahara grumbled as he got to his feet.
"Nope; you get all the respect you deserve, precisely none." Yoruichi smirked.
The Next Day
Abandoned Factory, Karakura Town
"This…this is the right place, ne, Chad-kun?" Inoue Orihime asked nervously as she stepped into the building.
"It's what was written on this note we both received." Sado Yasutora, aka Chad, replied. The large Mexican youth followed the orangette into the building, subtly ready to move to defend himself and Orihime at a moments notice.
Not that Orihime really needed protection. She was a strong martial artist, trained by Arisawa Tatsuki herself in karate. She was unfortunately just a pacifist who strongly disagreed in any form of combat except self-defence.
"Welcome." a voice boomed from the darkness, making the two highschoolers tense. Peering into the darkness, Chad couldn't see anything.
Suddenly, both of them were touched on the back of the head, one after another, making them whirl around to find the person responsible. Nobody was there.
"I'm behind you." the voice spoke again, slight amusement evident in the speaker's voice.
The two spiritually aware teens turned around yet again to find a figure standing not two feet in front of them. Wearing a plain brown cloak with its hood up, the figure was rather mysterious looking. When the figure lowered its hood, the black mask was revealed to actually be a helmet that covered the entirety of her head.
"I am Kokken Asa, your teacher for the next seventeen days." the figure introduced herself, "By your being here; I take it you wish to assist Kurosaki Ichigo-san save Kuchiki Rukia?"
"That is the case." Chad agreed. It had been…freakish, to say the least, to arrive at school that day, to find that everyone but they and Ichigo had forgotten about Rukia. The only saving grace had been the notes dropped in their locker explaining about why everyone had forgotten Rukia and directions to ask Ichigo for more answers before coming to this address.
"Ano…Kokken-san? Are you…a Soul Reaper? Like Kuchiki-san?" Orihime asked hesitantly.
"That depends on your perspective I suppose, Inoue-san." Kokken replied wryly, "On one hand, I do possess all of the powers and abilities of the Soul Reapers. On the other hand, I did not attend the Shinōreijutsuin, the Soul Reaper Academy, nor have I ever sworn loyalty to the Thirteen Court Guard Squads. I have yet to find a word to describe myself, but 'Soul Reaper' is an adequate term for the moment."
"Soul Reapers go to school?" Chad asked in bemusement.
"Certainly. It takes quite a bit of time to become a Soul Reaper…about six to eight years to learn the absolute basics of the four basic styles used by Soul Reapers, Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Hohō and Kidō." Kokken stated, "Once they graduate, they are assigned to the First Squad, where all Soul Reapers start off. Over the centuries, they shift around the Squads on a rotation basis, until they die, they find a Squad that fits them or the Squad Captain requests them to stay in the Squad. More rarely, a specific Soul Reaper can be requested to a specific Squad as soon as they have graduated. Almost always, they are assigned a Seated Position within that Squad."
"Seated?" Orihime asked in confusion.
"In each of the Thirteen Guard Squads, there are, at any given time, at least two hundred Soul Reapers." Kokken explained, "Most are actually fairly weak and are only able to go after Demi-Hollows and fairly weak Hollows. The ones to be most concerned about are the twenty Squad Officers. These are referred to as 'Seated Officers' and aid the Captain in the day-to-day running of the Squad. The Twentieth to Eleventh officers are usually only slightly stronger than an Unseated Soul Reaper, and the difference in power between them all is fairly minor."
Her voice became grim as she continued to speak. "The Tenth through to Third Seats are a different matter altogether. The jumps in power are more pronounced and obvious. A Third Seat would be able to handily hold off an attack by a Seventh Seat, just to give an example."
"What about the top two Seats?" Orihime asked, "You left those out."
"The Second Seat is called the Squad Lieutenant and possesses a considerable amount of Reiryoku." Kokken replied, "They can be identified by an armband on their left arm, which will have their Squad Symbol and Number on it. At the very top is the Captain. Captains are identified by a white haori with their squad number on the back. They possess easily three times as much Reiryoku as a Lieutenant, so is you spot someone in a haori, run. You do not stand any chance against them."
"How strong are you?" Chad asked quietly.
"A good question." Kokken said approvingly, "I am at the high end of a Sixth Seat in terms of comparative strength. You two, just so you know, are hovering at around about Nineteenth Seat Level."
"S-such a difference!" Orihime muttered worriedly.
"And Ichigo?" Chad pressed on.
"At the moment he isn't even on the scale." Kokken replied sourly, "When the Soul Reapers took Rukia, they hit two vital points on his Soul's Spiritual Body, his Saketsu and Hakusui. Without them, he is little more than a powerless Soul. My sensei are working to remedy this as we speak."
"You speak as if you were there." Chad observed.
"I was." Kokken confirmed, "The two that took Kuchiki Rukia were a Lieutenant and a Captain. It was all I could do to preserve the lives of Kurosaki-san and Ishida Uryū. Attempting to stop Rukia-san from being taken would have been suicide, even if they were limited to twenty percent of their powers here in the World of the Living."
"Why would they be limited?" Orihime asked.
"Captains and Lieutenants have so much Reiryoku -spiritual power- that it can affect Humans, giving them spiritual powers if exposed long enough. Pretty much what Kurosaki-san and his eldest little sister did to you two." Kokken replied, "To counter this, they receive special brands on their body called 'Gentei Fūin' that tamp down their Reiryoku to a mere twenty percent of what it usually is. Even that was beyond my ability to win against, as I said."
"Wait…Kurosaki-kun and Kirika-chan gave us our powers?" Orihime asked.
"Spiritual Contamination is the technical term for it, Inoue-san." Kokken replied, "But no, they only supplied you with the raw power. Your powers each evolved according to the kind of person you are. They awoke when you felt desperation and despair. When you cursed your own powerlessness and desired to become strong. One side affect of this is that the memory alteration Kidō used by the Soul Reapers to remove memories to do with Kuchiki Rukia-san has little to no effect on the pair of you. In fact…"
Kokken walked over to Orihime and touched the centre of her forehead with a single finger. "I return what was lost. Break, Spell of Amnesia!"
Orihime staggered back as memories flooded her mind. Ichigo…a Hollow…her brother!
"Sora! How…why did I forget?" she panted, tears falling from her eyes as she spoke.
"Inoue-san, are you alright?" Chad asked calmly.
"She's fine. All I did was break the spell cast by Kuchiki Rukia's Kikanshinki device. It would have happened in a few days naturally, but I hastened the process." the masked Soul Reaper said dismissively, "She'll recover momentarily."
Sure enough, Orihime recovered after a moment. She looked at Kokken curiously and asked, "How did you know about Kuchiki-san erasing my memory?"
"I have been keeping watch over Kurosaki-san and Kuchiki-san ever since a month ago." Kokken replied, "Had anything happened that was beyond Kurosaki-san's skills, I would have stepped in. Acidwire, Shrieker, Grand Fisher, the Demi-Hollow, the Hollow smorgasbord, the Menos Grande…throughout all of those incidents, I was hiding in the shadows, an insurance policy against them or any of you being killed or eaten."
"Why?" Chad asked, mild confusion in his voice, "Why go to all the trouble of protecting us? Who do you work for?"
"'Why' is something that even I am unaware of." Kokken replied, "I would have preferred a more direct intervention myself, but I was overruled. As for whom I work for…let us just say they are not people that I can go against and leave it at that. Now, to move on to your training…I will need to see your individual powers before I can create a training schedule. Sado-san, you first if you please."
Orihime and Chad exchanged glances before nodding. They had no choice if they wanted to help Ichigo. The large Mexican youth concentrated for a moment as he clenched his right fist. A black liquid seeped out and spread across his arm before solidifying around it.
Kokken observed the result for a moment. Chad's arm was now black, with a long red stripe down the middle, a white border between the two. Wing-like extensions stuck out on either side of his wrist and the armour extended past his shoulder in a fin-shape.
"Impressive." she commented, "How do you activate it?"
"I focus on my will to protect." Chad replied as he flexed his armoured hand, "Even then, I cannot activate it at will as of yet."
"That's because you only just attained your power; all abilities are like that." Kokken told him, "With time and practice, you will be able to utilise your power whensoever you wish. Now, what can it do?"
"While I have it active, my strength and durability increase." Chad replied indifferently, "I can also use a spiritual energy blast of some kind. I can only use it twice a day before I'm tired though."
"Considering you withstood having a steel girder dropped on you with barely any injury at all AND were able to pick up a telephone pole, saying that you get even stronger and more resilient than you are already is kind of intimidating." Kokken said with a shake of her head, "Alright then; let's see this blast of yours in action. Fire one at the wall over there. Don't worry about people coming; I had one of my sensei put up a Kekkai to prevent anyone without Spiritual Powers noticing what happens in here as soon as you two came in."
"Ano…isn't that destruction of private property?" Orihime asked timidly.
"The person who owns this place obviously doesn't care about it or they'd have either sold it or knocked it down and built something on it before now." Kokken replied with a dismissive wave of her hand, "Sado-san, if you please."
Chad nodded before drawing back his fist and letting it fly, unleashing a blast of blue spirit energy that tore through the designated wall like it was tissue paper. Kokken nodded.
"I see. That is indeed a powerful attack, Sado-san." she said, "The reason you cannot fire more than two shots a day is that you have insufficient stamina, I would guess. As I said earlier, time and training will solve that problem. Once that is taken care of, we will work on making your blasts move faster. A member of the Onmitsukidō could easily dodge that, as would anyone of the Fifth Seat upwards."
Chad nodded. He hoped that the training would improve his abilities somewhat, as collapsing after just two blasts was not convenient at all.
"Now, Inoue-san, I understand your power involves your hairpins turning into fairies." Kokken stated as she turned to the busty girl, "Please try and draw out your power."
"I'll try, but I haven't been able to do so since that Hollow attack." Orihime replied. She had tried every single day since then and hadn't succeeded, not even once.
Despite her best efforts, she wasn't able to draw out her spirits.
"Let's leave it at that for now." Kokken sighed, "I'll have a training menu ready for you tomorrow, Sado-san. Inoue-san, we will work on drawing your power out more tomorrow. I might have to ask one of my sensei to drop in, but that cannot be helped. Now, I bid you farewell. I'll see you at the same time tomorrow."
With that, Kokken Asa vanished in a blur.
"I wonder what Ishida-kun's doing?" Orihime wondered, "Kokken-sensei said he went off by himself after Kuchiki-san was taken."
"He's likely training by himself." Chad opined as the two left the factory and started heading home, "Sensei did say that he got beaten pretty badly by those Soul Reapers. That had to have hurt his pride."
"We should go and see him and get Ishida-kun to train with us!" Orihime declared.
"It's worth a try." Chad said, although deep down he doubted that Ishida would agree to it. He didn't know the glasses-wearing boy well, but from everything Ichigo had told him about Ishida, the boy was a natural loner and would prefer to train alone. Still, as he had said, it was worth a try.
Above them, the cloaked figure of Kirika watched them from atop a power pole before vanishing in another blur of Shunpo.
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The Next Day
Scrap Yard, Karakura Town
"Yoruichi-sensei, this is Sado Yasutora and Inoue Orihime." Kirika introduced her sensei to a mildly disbelieving Chad and Orihime, "They need your guidance, especially Inoue-san."
The main reason that the two spiritually aware humans were in a state of disbelief was because Yoruichi, feeling mischievous, had shown up in her cat form.
"Why hello there." the werecat said with a twitch of her tail.
'3...2...1...Now.' the masked Soul Reaper counted down mentally. Right on schedule, Chad and Orihime's jaws dropped. Well, Chad merely looked surprised. It took a lot to accomplish that much, she knew. To the best of her knowledge, Chad was usually the next best thing to unflappable, so managing this much was a victory for her sensei.
Orihime, by contrast, was rather excited about a talking cat and it took a while to calm her down and send her off to get her power unlocked by Yoruichi, leaving Kirika to train Chad.
"OK, Sado-san. The main problem is that your blasts are really powerful, so powerful in fact that they drain all of your Reiryoku reserves after two shots." she said to her first student, "What I think we should do is reduce the strength of the blasts, then build up your stamina and Reiryoku until you can fire multiple blasts at your current power level. Sound good?"
"Hai." Chad nodded. It made sense. Having a powerful attack was all very fine and dandy, but it could be a double-edged sword if you didn't have sufficient stamina to use them and still keep going. "What should I do first?"
"Activate your power." Kirika directed.
The large Mexican youth nodded and soon, the black armour that was his power covered his arm. Kirika motioned towards the nearest pile of cars.
"That's your target. What I want you to do is build up the power for one of your spiritual energy blasts, but try to reduce how powerful it is until it is only a third as powerful as your current attack." she told him, "Feel the flow of your Reiryoku as it moves to your fist and restrict it to the amount you want it to be."
Chad listened with a serious face and nodded. He raised his fist, closed his eyes and concentrated. After a few moments, Chad's eyes snapped open and he flung his fist forward, unleashing a blast that, while powerful, was not nearly at the same level as the one from the previous day. The pile of scrapped cars was still shredded
"Very well done, Sado-san." Kirika complimented him, "I would gauge that you successfully throttled about forty percent of your technique's power, an excellent start. Going by your past experiences, how many blasts of similar size do you think you can fire?"
"Another four times…I think?" Chad guessed.
"Very good. Now, try again, and attempt to put less power into your attack." she instructed. As Chad moved to follow her instructions, Kirika was wincing subtly. Yoruichi had not been happy about Kirika having to use her as-yet incomplete version of Utsusemi, and had given her a beat down in Hakuda as punishment the previous night. Her body was still sore from it!
The training session continued and Chad progressed slowly but steadily, finally achieving the original goal of only using a third of his energy blast's original power, which Kirika conservatively estimated he could shoot over a dozen times without exhausting himself.
Right about then, Yoruichi came back, a dejected Orihime in tow.
"What's the prognosis, Sensei?" Kirika asked.
"She can now summon her fairies, but…there is a problem." Yoruichi replied as she hopped up onto Kirika's shoulder to watch Chad with her, "Each of her six fairies is based off of someone in her life that she knows well and can combine together for an attack, a defence and a healing technique, of sorts."
"Sounds like she has all her bases covered." Kirika observed.
"Unfortunately, the Shun-Shun Rikka (Six Princess Shielding Flowers) are dependent on Orihime's belief in herself in order to function." the werecat replied, "Doubt undermines them and conviction empowers them. You can guess where she's falling short."
"She hates to attack, because she's a pacifist." Kirika sighed, "Right. Should have seen that coming. She didn't have any problems against the Hollow during Ishida's little game, though."
"Apparently it's only humanoid targets that she takes issue with." Yoruichi sighed in irritation, "If it were just me, I'd leave it at that but you know her better. Think you can break through to her? Oh, her Attacking Spirit, Tsubaki, is a fiery little hooligan as well. Evidently, he was based off of Orihime's initial impression of Ichigo."
"…you seriously want me to talk up my brother to a girl who already has a ginormous crush on him?" Kirika asked harshly, but quietly. Orihime's crush was readily evident to all and sundry, except Ichigo that is.
"She needs a talking to and Tsubaki is a pale imitation of who Ichigo is. You know Ichigo better than almost anyone and you know her fairly well as well." Yoruichi replied, "If she goes into the Seireitei as she is right now, she'll be totally dependent on the others to protect her. Her defensive technique, the Santen Kesshun (Three Sacred Links Shield), is powerful, but is unidirectional at the moment, a fatal weakness when dealing with any opponent with a high-speed movement technique like the Shunpo."
Kirika sighed. "Alright, alright. I'll do it. I'll teach her Byakurai as well. No harm having a backup attack not dependent on her Shun-Shun Rikka. You say that all six fairies have their own personalities. Like a Zanpakutō?"
"Yes, which was what I expected, roughly speaking." the werecat replied, "Chad, on the other hand…"
"Yes, his power isn't like a Soul Reaper or even like a Quincy." Kirika agreed, "His Reiryoku is far too dark for that. But that leaves…it can't be…"
"I'll speak to Kisuke; he probably has a very good idea of what Chad-kun's power is." the werecat drawled, "Getting him to talk will be like getting blood from a stone, however."
"As usual." Kirika grumbled, "I still don't trust him."
"Why is that?" Yoruichi asked in surprise. She had thought Kirika had gotten over her resentment of Kisuke's machinations.
"You and Tessai-sensei trust him so much because you have known him for all your lives; the rest of us have a hard time trusting someone who hides behind the mask of a fool ninety percent of the time." Kirika replied dryly, "Most of the time I don't even have to look at you or Tessai-sensei to see that you agree with him, like when Aniki became a Substitute Soul Reaper a month ago. I am overruled every time, because you all know what the plan is and I do not. Because you three know each other so well that you can communicate without words. I'm a puppet on strings and I hate it. I'll help you all until we finish invading Soul Society, then I will walk my own path. I'll leave Chad's training to you for now."
Yoruichi jumped down as Kirika headed over to talk to Orihime. She had known that Kirika was chafing underneath the restrictions that had been set upon her, but she had never dreamed that things would reach this point so soon.
'Looks like she's taking after her brother in that respect too. She can't abide being ignored and pushed around.' the werecat thought with another sigh. This would complicate things greatly. Up until now, Kirika's growth had been restricted by the World of the Living and its lack of spiritual particles compared to the Soul Society.
Once she returned to the Soul Society, her growth would speed up tremendously. Kirika was currently in the upper-half of the power level of a Sixth Seat. With combat experience and the Reishi-thick environment of the Soul Society in general and the Seireitei in particular, the former Commander of the Onmitsukidō had little doubt she would get up to the level of Lieutenant by the time they rescued Rukia, or at least headed in that direction.
Kisuke would not be happy about having a wild card that, while he could predict her actions, couldn't be controlled. Yoruichi knew that Kirika would probably help her brother out, but still.
"Why can't anything ever go according to plan?" the werecat muttered, "Damn you and your suspicious nature Kisuke; you might have caused irreparable damage!"
With Kirika and Orihime
"Inoue-san." Kirika greeted the orangette girl. Orihime was still looking depressed about her Offensive Fairy acting…well, offensive to all and sundry.
"Kokken-sensei…" Orihime looked up and gave her a fake smile, "How can I help you?"
"I understand you and your power are somewhat at odds with each other." Kirika replied.
"No, no, no, no, no!" Orihime protested, "I get on with them well…about five out of six of them."
"I see. You have a much harder time of it than Soul Reapers do. We only have a single manifestation of our souls to deal with." Kirika replied.
"Ano…what do you mean?" Orihime asked in confusion.
"Unlike Sado-san, your power manifests in a similar fashion to a Soul Reaper's Zanpakutō." Kirika explained, "A Zanpakutō is the manifestation of a Soul Reaper's soul. It is something all Pureblood Soul Reapers are born possessing and that other spiritually aware people can develop at the Shinōreijutsuin. Each Zanpakutō is unique to its wielder and can be male, female or even genderless."
"Wow…" Orihime said.
"In order to grow powerful together, one of the key things a Zanpakutō and its wielder must do is understand one another." Kirika continued, "Tell me about Tsubaki. His personality, attitude and what he can do."
"Ano…well…Tsubaki dresses like a ninja…and his attack, the…Koten Zanshun (Solitary Sacred Cutting Shield) allows him to reject…both inside and outside the shield." Orihime said hesitantly, "It cut a Hollow in two when I first used it. As for his personality…he says he's based off Kurosaki-kun…but…Kurosaki-kun isn't crude like Tsubaki is! He also doesn't hit people just for irritating him like Tsubaki does!"
Kirika had to chuckle at this. "Let me guess. He gets angry with you for constantly wavering about attacking people and then swears at you and hits you. Correct?"
"H-how…?" Orihime squeaked.
"I would say you understand Kurosaki-san better than you might think." Kirika said in amusement, "You see, Tsubaki is your Attacking Spirit. His power stems from your will to attack but you, being a pacifist, have next to no will to attack when the target is a humanoid figure, even if that target seeks to hurt you, correct?"
"I…I just hate the idea of hurting someone when it isn't necessary." Orihime mumbled miserably.
"And now we reach the crux of the reason why Tsubaki is irritated with you." Kirika said seriously, "He is irritated because you place the wellbeing of others, even those who would attack you, over your own."
"I don't!" the girl protested.
"Don't you? Inoue-san, we are going to be infiltrating the central headquarters of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads, meaning that our opponents will number at least twenty-six hundred Soul Reapers, not including the Onmitsukidō and the Kidō Corps." Kokken said grimly, "We will need all the help we can get and every advantage we can scrape together. If you can't attack, you will be restricted to your defence technique, which any Soul Reaper can circumvent with this move."
In a blur of motion, Kirika vanished in a Shunpo, appeared behind Orihime, and tapped her in the two locations that Byakuya had pierced on Ichigo, making the girl yelp in shock.
"Those two places I touched were your Hakusui and Saketsu. Had I pierced them, you would be helpless and possibly dying right now." Kirika said coldly. She wished she didn't have to be so blunt with her, but she honestly didn't want Orihime to be hurt during the infiltration. The real targets, Aizen, Gin and Tōsen, would be ruthless against them, with the rest of the Soul Reapers not far below them on the scale.
Righteous anger at having the Seireitei infiltrated and all that.
"H-How did you…?" Orihime asked in shock.
"One of the four basic Soul Reaper techniques, Hohō. That move is called Shunpo, the Flash Step. All Soul Reapers are capable of using it to some degree or other." Kirika replied diffidently, "Your Santen Kesshun only defends from one direction, so Yoruichi-sensei tells me. Any Soul Reaper will only be taken off guard once by it, then flash around it to attack you directly. Either that or break it. The only card you'd have left in that situation is to use Tsubaki."
"But…" Orihime's face was conflicted.
"I see. You won't attack no matter what if your target is human-shaped." Kirika's voice was impassive, even through her Darth Vader-like voice changer, "I would like you to close your eyes and imagine the situation I am about to describe to you. Can you do that for me?"
"O…OK…" Orihime closed her eyes.
"Kurosaki Ichigo is lying on the ground, beaten and helpless." Kirika said flatly, "Sado-san, Ishida-san and I are engaged with the enemy, but you are not. Suddenly a Soul Reaper appears above Kurosaki san and makes to stab him in the heart. Your Santen Kesshun is too slow to reach him and you are too far away to physically interpose yourself. The only option you have is to use your Koten Zanshun to attack the Soul Reaper in order to save Kurosaki-san's life. What do you do?"
"I…" words seem to fail Orihime as she considered the problem. Kirika knew that, despite the girl's spacey attitude, Orihime was a very intelligent girl and that she knew what the right choice was in this situation.
"That isn't a fair question!" the girl recovered herself after a moment, "I wouldn't let anything happen to Kurosaki-kun! I l-"
She broke off abruptly and blushed bright red at what she had almost blurted out in the heat of the moment.
"You have a very large crush on Kurosaki-san. Yes, of course I know that." Kirika said with a smirk under her mask, "You aren't really very subtle about it, you know. Kurosaki-san is very dense about matters of the heart, which is the only reason he hasn't realised your preference himself."
"Auuuuuuu~!" the girl's flush deepened tenfold at that proclamation.
"The point of the question was to see exactly how far your pacifism extended. If it had extended to being unwilling to attack even if it got one of your friends hurt, you wouldn't have been coming to the Soul Society with us." Kirika explained in a clipped and precise tone, "I now understand that you value the wellbeing of your friends above your own. I personally disagree with your stance, as would Kurosaki-san and your martial artist friend, Arisawa-san."
"E-Eh?"
"What do you think Arisawa-san would do if she found out you were hurt because you weren't willing to do everything in your power to defend yourself?" she asked the orangette, "Or even Kurosaki-san? You know he'd blame himself if you were hurt, whether it was actually his fault or not. Learn to take care of yourself better, Inoue-san, or those close to you will be the ones to suffer."
"I…I need to think about this." Orihime said quietly.
"That's a fair request." Kirika nodded, "Now, kindly bring out the fairies of the Shun-Shun Rikka. I think it's time I met them."
"Err…OK." Orihime said with a shrug, "Ayame, Lily, Baigon, Hinagiku, Shun'ō, Tsubaki! Come on out!"
In a flash of light, her hairpins vanished and then there were six six-inch fairies flying around Orihime's head. Four were male, two were female and all were dressed in wildly different clothing. Almost immediately, the one dressed in a black ninja-like outfit charged at Orihime and smacked her on the head.
"Why the hell did you call us out again when there's no enemy to fight, you ditz!" Tsubaki scolded her loudly, punctuating every word with a blow to her head.
"Ow-ow-ow-ow-ow!" Orihime whimpered.
"Bakudō #1: Sai!" Kirika spat out, swiping her hand at the Offensive -in both senses of the word- Spirit, forcing his arms behind his back.
"What the-!" Tsubaki squawked before Kirika grabbed him out of the air and held him in front of her masked face, "Who the hell are you?!"
"Kokken Asa, one of Inoue-san's teachers." Kirika replied, "And you are Tsubaki, the only one of Inoue-san's Shun-Shun Rikka that can attack. A pleasure to meet you, I'm sure."
"Hey!" the spirit with blond hair, who looked female but was actually male, shouted at her, "Let Tsubaki go!"
"Not until we set down a few ground rules." Kirika replied firmly, "First, Tsubaki. No hitting Inoue-san. Second, you have to explain all of your reasons for being so irritable and moody with her. Understood?"
"Why the hell should I listen to you? You aren't my wielder!" Tsubaki sneered, before Kirika flicked him lightly with a finger, "OW! You bitch!"
"So, you admit that Inoue-san has authority over you. That's a good first step." Kirika said, enjoying the look of surprise and consternation that came over the masked spirit's face as he realised what he admitted, "The reason is simple. You six fairies are very much like the Zanpakutō of a Soul Reaper. Your Fūingata is the hairpins and your Shikai forms are yourselves while you are out like this. In order to become stronger together, each of you has to bond and trust Inoue-san. This means telling her why you are so irritated with her, Tsubaki."
The scowl that Tsubaki sent her way was not even remotely intimidating, despite what she knew his Koten Zanshun was capable of. At length, he grumbled a bit, before biting out, "Fine. Now let me go!"
"When I do, you and Inoue-san will go over there to talk to each other, while I speak with your fellow spirits." Kirika told him before releasing him from her hand. He shot up and shook his tiny fist at her, the Bakudō having long-since ended.
Hardly surprising, as Sai was an incantationless Bakudō, meaning it was weaker than even half of the other weak binding spells that had incantations.
As Orihime and Tsubaki went off for their long overdue talk, the other five fairies of the Shun-Shun Rikka all looked at Kirika, with Shun'ō being the one to speak up.
"Who are you? Why can't we sense your Reiatsu?"
"I am a woman wearing a mask. If I wanted you to know who I was, I wouldn't be wearing a mask or a cloak that conceals my Reiatsu, would I?" Kirika asked with a small chuckle, "The time will come for my true identity to be revealed, but for the moment, I am Kokken Asa. Now, I need to ask something about Tsubaki's Koten Zanshun. Aside from Inoue-san's lack of willingness to fight, does it have any weaknesses?"
"Well…" Shun'ō paused hesitantly before continuing, "Orihime's lack of will to fight is a big factor, but Tsubaki is…fragile as well."
"Fragile?" Kirika asked curiously.
"Tsubaki's geared so much towards attack that he's very vulnerable to counter-attacks." Shun'ō explained, "If Orihime doesn't have the will to attack; Tsubaki could be badly wounded, or even killed as a result. On the other hand, the more Orihime wants to attack, or if she feels the intent to kill, the faster and stronger the Koten Zanshun becomes. At his most powerful, Tsubaki could cleave an entire building in half, easily."
"I see…it figures that Inoue-san's attack would have the potential to be so powerful, if she wasn't so concerned about hurting other people." she muttered, "What about the Santen Kesshun?"
"Baigon, Hinagiku and Lily, the three who form the shield, are far more robust than Tsubaki is, as their main focus is defence." Shun'ō replied, "It allows Orihime to reject anything outside the shield. If the shield is broken for whatever reason, they don't get hurt at all."
"A lucky thing for Inoue-san." Kirika said, "What about the healing technique?"
"Ah, the Sōten Kisshun (Twin Sacred Return Shield)." Shun'ō said with a grin, "Ayame and I are the two who are used for it. It allows us to reject anything Orihime wants from inside the shield."
"Reject? Not heal?" Kirika asked.
"Nope. We reject any damage under the shield and return the target back to how it was before the damage was dealt." Shun'ō replied, "Even we don't know exactly how though. Right, Ayame?"
The shy looking fairy nodded.
Kirika thought about that for a minute. There were more than a few methods that could accomplish that. Time Regression and Spatial regression being two such examples. Both of those, according to Tessai-sensei, required a not inconsiderable amount of Reiryoku in order to execute.
"What about Reiryoku? Can you replenish that?" she asked.
"Reiryoku? Spiritual Energy? Yes, we can, but I don't think we can do it very quickly." Shun'ō replied with a thoughtful look on his face, "I say that, but we haven't had to heal anybody but humans with little to no spiritual energy in them… except that Arisawa Tatsuki girl. She has almost as much Reiryoku as Orihime."
"It is odd then that she hasn't developed powers of her own." Kirika mused in concern. She was worried about Tatsuki. If she didn't develop powers soon, she'd Soul Suicide. Reluctantly, she put Tatsuki out of her mind and returned her attention to the Shun-Shun Rikka fairies.
"Some people just don't have the potential for individual powers, y'know?" Shun'ō said with a shrug, "Why do you sound so worried?"
"If Arisawa-san does not develop individual powers soon, she will commit Soul Suicide or Hollowfy." Kirika replied harshly, "In other words, she'll either die horribly or turn into a monster."
The five fairies looked distressed at that.
"Isn't there anything that can be done?" Shun'ō asked anxiously, "If Orihime loses Tatsuki, she might not recover from the shock!"
"There…might be." Kirika replied slowly, "It isn't a safe bet though. There is a one-in-three chance it will work, a one-in-three chance she'll die and a one-in-three chance that both she and the person administering the treatment could die. It's not an exact science, turning someone into a Substitute Soul Reaper."
"Isn't that why Kuchiki Rukia's in so much trouble right now? Because she made Ichigo a Substitute?" Shun'ō asked curiously.
"It's against the laws of the Soul Society." she agreed, "If you read the law closely however, it only forbids the transference of Soul Reaper powers to a human by a member of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads, Onmitsukidō or Kidō Corps. I have never been a member of those organisations, so the law doesn't pertain to me."
"Isn't that just a technicality though?" Shun'ō pointed out.
"Technicalities are the soul of the law." Kirika countered, "Look, Inoue-san is coming back with Tsubaki. Do not tell them about Tatsuki; she cannot do anything to help solve the situation and Tsubaki would tell her just to get back at me for using Bakudō on him. Please. She'd just worry about it and she doesn't need the distraction right now."
The five fairies looked at each other before nodding slowly.
"We won't tell her, but if she asks us, we have to tell her the truth." Shun'ō said firmly, "Even if it's for her own good, a lie of omission is….not something we like to do to Orihime."
"Zanpakutō are the same." Kirika assured the five fairies, "As a reflection of her soul, it is the next best thing to impossible for you to lie to her. Now, I'm curious…If Tsubaki is based off of Kurosaki Ichigo, who are all of you based off of?"
"Hmmm…in my case, I'm based off of Arisawa Tatsuki." Shun'ō replied, "I represent the concepts of 'Energy' and 'Happiness' to Orihime."
"I see…" Kirika nodded to herself. She had wondered why the blond fairy had felt familiar to her. Go figure.
"Baigon here is based off of Chad." Shun'ō continued, gesturing at the heavily muscled and bald fairy, who waved once before returning to examining Chad's training, which was Yoruichi's favourite game of 'Flash Tag', otherwise known as Yoruichi's 'running around like a fool until you fall on the floor exhausted' game, "He represents the concepts of 'Stoicism' and 'Defence' to Orihime."
"A very fitting role model." Kirika commented to Orihime, who blushed at this praise. Shun'ō flew over to the shy fairy Ayame, who tried to hide in her large kimono-like jacket as she was grabbed gently by the blond fairy.
"Ayame, my partner in using the Sōten Kisshun here, is based off of your childhood memories of yourself." she said with a grin, "She represents the concept of 'Inner Child' and 'Inner Peace' to you, Orihime. Her 'Inner Peace' combines with my concept of 'Energy' to form the Sōten Kisshun."
Ayame, blushing like a cherry tomato, quickly bobbed a bow to Orihime and Kirika before fluttering away to hide behind Baigon.
"She's…a lot like you were as a kid; shy and insecure. Don't take her shyness personally." Shun'ō said with a cough to hide his amusement, "Hinagiku over there represents the concepts of 'Intelligence' and 'Cunning' and was based off of your brother, Sora."
The eyepatch-wearing fairy smirked at Orihime and saluted her when she looked at him.
"Lily over there is based off of Honshō Chizuru, and represents the concepts of 'Inner Adult' and 'Gratification'…for obvious reasons." Shun'ō said, wrinkling his nose at the mention of the lascivious libertine.
Lily, dressed up in provocative clothing with a futuristic look about it, winked at her mistress from behind her yellow-tinted goggles.
"Chizuru-chan is just a little too active, that's all." Orihime protested feebly.
"We are a part of you Orihime; you don't believe that any more than you believe that she only likes you platonically." Shun'ō told her firmly, "Anyway, when Hinagiku's concept of 'Cunning', Baigon's concept of 'Defence' and Lily's concept of 'Inner Adult' combine, the Santen Kesshun is created."
"Might I ask what concepts Tsubaki embodies if he's based off of Kurosaki Ichigo?" Kirika asked curiously.
"Tch. I'll answer that." Tsubaki grunted, his arms crossed as he glared at Kirika, "I represent Orihime's concepts of 'Anger and Rage', 'Aggressive Defence', 'Justice' and 'Retribution', all combined into this body. When focussing on my concept of 'Anger and Rage', my ability, the Koten Zanshun, takes form."
"You have a few unused concepts." Kirika observed, "Can you combine with other fairies aside from the combinations you've previously mentioned?"
The six fairies of the Shun-Shun Rikka looked at each other for a moment before shrugging as one.
"We think so, but…we aren't certain." Shun'ō replied, "When Orihime created us, we were born with the knowledge of who to combine with and what techniques would be created as a result, along with a general overview of what they could do. Any other combinations might cause Orihime or us harm."
"Zanpakutō have always got more attacks up their sleeves than they let on." Kirika stated, "Soul Reapers have to gain the respect of their Zanpakutō in order to gain access to them. Sometimes by fighting, sometimes by proving themselves in combat to a worthy foe and sometimes just by having the courage to do what is right. I can think of at least one combination that will likely cause no harm, and leaves the two healing fairies free in case it does go wrong."
"Really?" Shun'ō looked curious at this.
"The standard Santen Kesshun, with Tsubaki adding to it using his concept of 'Aggressive Defence' instead of 'Anger and Rage' as he usually uses." Kirika explained, "Sound like it would work?"
"It…might." Tsubaki conceded reluctantly, "but Orihime needs to defend against something for that to be tested."
"I will supply the need." Kirika replied as she drew her sword for the first time in the presence of her students, "Inoue-san, defend with the Santen Kesshun. When I attack, include Tsubaki, concentrating on the idea of aggressive defence. A better way to put it is 'Passive Aggression', I would say."
"R-right. Hinagiku, Lily, Baigon! Santen Kesshun, I reject!" Orihime chanted. The three mentioned fairies went into a large triangle formation in front of her and generated an orange shield that stood proudly in front of her, blocking Kirika from her.
"Here I come." Kirika said as she raised Nejibana, "Defend yourself!"
As Kirika charged forwards, she could see the indecision in Orihime's eyes fade away and a new determination take root in them. Whatever she had been talking about with Tsubaki had obviously helped somewhat, so that was something, even if this new technique didn't work.
"Hinagiku, Lily, Baigon, Tsubaki! I reject!" Orihime shouted. She couldn't say a technique name because she didn't know what this combination would do, but it seemed to be enough to jumpstart the new technique.
Tsubaki changed into a flying arrow shape and was integrated into the centre of the shield, just as Kirika's blade slammed into the Santen Kesshun.
Light played over the shield for a moment as Soul Reaper Reiatsu clashed with Orihime's own. Then, a beam of light from each of the three fairies making up the three corners of the shield reached out and were absorbed by Tsubaki, who started to emit a bright light that screamed 'DANGER!' to Kirika's instincts.
The spiritual energy blast from Tsubaki was faster than her own attack, but she kicked away from the shield and just barely managed to twist herself out of the way of the beam before it struck her. Absently, she heard the sound of metal being blown to smithereens behind her.
'Lucky for me that I attacked in an angle away from Chad and Yoruichi-sensei.' she thought as she regarded the hole in her cape that Urahara had assured her could withstand a low powered Byakurai without being pierced.
"That was more than slightly impressive." she said to a gaping Orihime and her six fairies, "I believe that we have found a new technique for you, Inoue-san."
"H…how did you do that?!" Tsubaki demanded incredulously, "That was one of the fastest damn attacks I've ever done!"
"It was the first time you used the technique, so the execution was slow. I read the direction of the attack and avoided it by not being where I was when I struck the shield." Kirika explained, "Do you have any knowledge about that attack now?"
"Yeah…it's called the 'Shiten Kōshun (Shield of Four Heaven's Resistance)' and it is, as you probably expected it would be, a passive aggressive technique that absorbs the accumulated force of an attack and return fires it back along the opposing trajectory as a spiritual energy blast." Shun'ō explained.
"How much of Inoue-san's Reiryoku did that use?" Kirika asked curiously.
"Double the amount of the Santen Kesshun." Shun'ō replied after a moment, "Orihime can only pull that of a couple of times without being exhausted."
"Stamina training for you as well then." Kirika said, "Physical training and meditation allows the growth of a person's spiritual energy. I'll also be teaching you two Soul Reaper Kidō techniques; the healing Kaidō technique and an offensive Hadō called Byakurai."
"Hey! Orihime has us for healing!" Shun'ō gestured at himself and Ayame in protest.
"True, but you admitted yourself that your ability to replenish someone's Reiryoku isn't very fast." Kirika replied, "Kaidō works by inserting one's Reiryoku into the target of your healing and then restoring it to full first. By its own nature, Kaidō can restore Reiryoku with great ease. The second step is merely using the target's own Reiryoku and your own external Reiatsu to encourage the target's body to heal itself. When there are no injuries, the restoration of Reiryoku is even faster."
Shun'ō and Ayame didn't look happy, but they nodded reluctantly, apparently agreeing with her reasoning. Kirika turned to Tsubaki then.
"I am surprised to not hear any complaints from you, Tsubaki." she observed.
"In battle, the more options you have, the more likely you are to survive." the ninja-like fairy grunted, "As long as she doesn't forget the fact that I am her primary offensive weapon, she can learn whatever other spells or whatever the hell she likes."
Kirika had to admit that Tsubaki was more like Ichigo than she had first thought. Yes, he was crude, rude and more volatile than her brother was, but that practicality right there could have come from Ichigo himself. He would do anything to protect his friends, and heaven help anyone who got in his way.
Tsubaki was willing to allow his primary role as Orihime's sole offensive weapon to vanish as long as she learned something that helped her stay alive. So like her brother.
"Well then...shall we start?" Kirika asked.
The girl and fairies shivered at the wicked tone in the machine-like voice. They had a feeling they were not going to enjoy this.
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Next Chapter: Return to the Seireitei
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