Chapter 1 – We'll Make It Through Together Somehow

Seireitei looked nothing like they had expected. The place was magnificent, not at all like the poorer 72nd District.

Shizuma chuckled contentedly. His life was finally looking up. Only moments later, would he accomplish his dreams of becoming -

"Shizuma!"

The boy turned, once again, to find himself looking at Shugo's massive frame. "Hey, big guy, how's your life goin'?"

Hikaru joined them, appearing from out of nowhere. "You don't need to look so smug, Shizuma, we all got the invitation."

Shizuma's smile stretched a bit further. "That's great!! We can all be –"

"We won't necessarily be put in the same squad, idiot…"

"Oh…"

"…doesn't mean we won't be seeing each other, moron."

"Hey…"

Hikaru looked up into the sun. "Nice weather. Never noticed the sky was this nice." The other two followed suit, and nodded in agreement. "So much has changed today. The two of you had better not screw this up. We gotta make it, alright?" Once again, Shizuma and Shugo nodded.

"Good. Then let's go tell them we're ready." Hikaru yawned. "Good luck, guys…"

Shizuma whooped. "YEE-HAW!" Shugo grinned, and raised his fist in the air. Hikaru, in turn, raised his, and, last, Shizuma brought his up as well. Then, each of them parted to their respective assigned testing areas.

-

The youngest was the most nervous out of the three, as expected. Knocking timidly on the door of the 4th Squad building, Shizuma swallowed, feeling a burning sensation in his throat. This would decide how he would live the rest of his life from here on out. He only had one chance. As the door slowly opened, he held his breath and walked in.

So far so good. He quickly inspected the room. It took the form of a kind of dojo, save the balconies to the left and right. The only light which helped him see anything came from rafters above his head and lining the ceiling.

Suddenly, a voice wafted from behind the further wall. "Welcome…" it said soothingly.

The nervousness inside Shizuma suddenly vanished at the call of the voice. He had expected his examiner to be gruff, harsh, and punishing, but this voice…it made him forget his life was riding on this one test. "Come on in, it beckoned." The boy caught sight of a sliding door at the far end, and quickened his pace. It only took a few moments to reach it, and he pushed it open without hesitation.

A young girl sat in the center of this next room, which was considerably smaller than the last. She's real pretty… Shizuma thought to himself, blushing. No, wait! I can't forget what I'm here for…!

"Um…excuse me…I'm Shizuma, and I'm looking for, uh… - "

The girl smiled. "Shizuma Honou, Western Rukongai, District 72. Invited to the Gotei 13 along with 2 other boys in honor of their brave performance in the face of a Hollow. I, Furi Ariake, will watch over you throughout the course of your test."

Shizuma chuckled nervously. "H-Ha…uh…you're not pullin' my leg, are ya…?" The girl smiled again. "Whenever you are ready, we will begin right away." The boy continued to stare in disbelief for another half minute, then shook himself. "Got it…I'm ready now…let's go!"

Ariake nodded. "This way," she said softly, and led him back to the first room.

The two of them took places across from each other in the middle. "First, I need to test your level of reiatsu," the examiner said. Shizuma blinked. "Reia-what?" The girl giggled, and he felt his face redden. "I need to see how strong your spiritual power is." "Oh," he replied. "Uh…how do you do that?"

The girl just kept on smiling. "It's easier for me to sense your reiatsu when you're in a state of dire panic and release it subconsciously." Shizuma scratched his head. "Wait, so all you have to do is… - hey, what?! State of panic?!?! I don't think I'm – AAAAH!!!"

Shizuma barely ducked in time as Ariake quickly swiped her sword at him in an about-face. The boy had barely time to catch sight of it sliding out of its sheath. "H-Hang on! I don't think I'm ready after a – WHOA!" He jumped back, but this blow did not miss, and soon the front of his ragged shirt was stained in red as he tried desperately to avoid the death god's unwavering attack. "P-Please stop!!" he cried, as another cut soon lined his cheek.

The girl stopped smiling, but did not stop. "You're almost there. Try harder!"

Shizuma did not try to listen. "My life's already flashing before my eyes, I can't push it anymo - " Ariake lashed out once more. The boy no longer felt any strength in his legs. Some test, he thought, as he tightened his body and prepared to be killed. Goodbye, Hikaru. Goodbye, Shugo. And goodbye to you too, scary examiner girl. I've lived my afterlife without regrets. He shielded his eyes.

But it never came. The sword hovered dangerously close to his throat, the tip grazing his chin. Shizuma's eyes widened in shock, and almost dropped his jaw had he not realized that, if he did, he'd lose it. Ariake smiled and nodded, then finally let her sword arm drop to her side. "Did you feel that, the moment Gojuuchimei nearly struck you?" The boy nodded. "Yeah…! What was that?" he asked. And did she just name her sword?! She may be pretty, but she's weeeiiiird…

His examiner smiled. "I think you already know the answer to that question. In the future, you will learn to release it on command rather than instinctively, but that will come with time."

"Your spirit energy is sufficient. You pass the first test."

Shizuma groaned. "There's more than one?" The girl giggled again, and he felt uncomfortable. "C'mon now. Are you ready?" The boy gave her a dispirited thumbs up. "Great! On to the real test!" Shizuma opened his mouth to argue, but stopped. Instead, he felt curious. "Uh…Ariake-san…how long does the soul reaper training usually take…?" The girl stopped for a moment, thinking, then finally replied, "Oh, only about…6 years or so…"

"WHAT?! 6 YEARS?!?! THAT'S - !" The girl smiled. "Don't worry. With the training we're going to put you through, you'll be done in about…a week."

Shizuma was ready to complain again, but dismissed the idea. 7 days compared to…a lot more…besides, it couldn't be that bad..."Alright…I'm really ready now. Bring it on!"

Furi then motioned for him to follow, as she led them to another room on the east side. She slid the door open, told him to wait, then went inside. Moments later, she emerged. "Ok, it's ready. Now go inside on your own. Don't choose wrong."

"That's all I have to do?"

"Yup."

"But wait, don't choose the wrong what - ?"

"Hurry up!"

"…h-hey, don't push me…! Ok! Sheesh…"

The doors slammed shut eerily as Shizuma entered the strange room. "So it's not just a broom closet after all," he thought aloud.

In fact, the "broom closet" took the shape of a giant grassland. The only difference was, grasslands don't usually have soul slayers protruding out of the ground every few feet, name tags included. ""Don't choose wrong,"" he mimicked childishly. "Kinda hard here…"

The boy wandered about, passing row upon row of swords. "How am I supposed to know which one to pick?" Shizuma began to read the name tags on a few of them. ""Gyuutou, the Cleaver?" Sounds kinda plain…" ""Kyuuketsuki, the Vampire"…creepy…" ""Enishida, the…Broom…what the hell?!""

Shizuma sighed. This second test wasn't doing much good for his confidence. How was he supposed to know which to choose? This had better not be one of those, "Open your heart and you will find what you desire" situations. This had really, really, better not be…oh no…

The boy groaned as he noticed one of the blades in front of him glowed. No, no, no…he reached his hand forward and, grasping the hilt, pulled it free from its stand. He bent down to read the tag. ""Seisuiki, the Purifier" …better than "Broom Stick", I guess…well, I'm done here…"

-

The 10th Squad examiner applauded. "Well done, Hikaru. Your reiatsu level highly exceeds the required base amount, and you've already found your zanpakuto. Now, are you ready for the next test?"

Hikaru nodded. "Anytime." You guys…don't screw it up…I don't want to have to cook for you any more…

The burlesque man unsheathed his sword. "Draw it now, and show me how well you can adapt." The shinigami-in-training did as he was told. "You won't be disappointed." Hikaru said, his face sharpening. His muscles tensed, gripping his sword tightly, and he calmly let his energy flow into the blade. The man's mouth opened slightly. "At this stage…amazing…"

His student raised his weapon and pointed it at the teacher. "Please don't hold anything back. Now…dasu…!"

-

Shizuma found the door again after a half hour. "Geez…it took me longer to find the starting point than my sword…" Shaking his head, he pushed it ajar. "Hey, Furi-chan! I've found it! I hope…"

-

"Huff…huff…whew…man, this is actually pretty fun…"

Shugo took a fighting stance, keeping his sword out in front of him. His forehead was dripping in sweat, but a funny smile lit his face. The time he would spend as part of 11th Squad seemed like it would be more enjoyable than he had expected. "Alright, Ranmyaku," he muttered, stroking the edge of his sword, "let's you and I wrap this up quick and get the real party started. Go!"

-

"HAAAAAH!"

"WHOA!"

"Quit running! You're never going to improve like this!"

"I-I'm tryin! I'll get this eventually!"

"Put more power into your strokes!"

"Not with you trying to cut my head off every time I try, I can't!"

"HAAAH!!!"

"HEY!"

The two of them exchanged blow after blow. Shizuma was beginning to tire, but the girl looked as fresh as she had from the start. "Ok, stop for a moment." Shizuma breathed deeply. "Final - WH - ?!" Ariake's punishing blade cut another gash across his chest. "Th-That's not fair!" Fuki shook her head and sighed at her hapless pupil. "Rule number one. Never let your guard down!" Shizuma heaved his sword at her, and she parried it effortlessly. The zanpakuto swung around clumsily and got caught in the ground. "Oh, that's just nice, tell me after you cut me down…" he panted.

The 4th Squad examiner shook her head again. "Maybe you're not cut out for this after all… - " she started. The boy spluttered. "What?! NO! I can't stop here!!"

"Then give it your all. Save your breath for fighting instead." She threw back at him. Shizuma wiped his face with the back of his hand. "Alright…aw, man, there's gotta be a faster way to – oh no…oh…no…" He stepped backwards slowly as Fuki smiled and nodded. "Ok. You asked for it!" "N-No, that's not what I meant, no - !!!" "Too late," she giggled. "Stand tall, Gojuuchimei, teach him a lesson!"

"…crap…!"

-

"Phew. That went better than expected." Hikaru was tired, but content. He stretched and yawned, relaxing on the wooden balcony floor. Shugo suddenly materialized from around a corner, and joined his friend, laying himself down. "How did it go?" he inquired. Hikaru waved him off. "Wait til Shizuma gets out, then we talk about it." "Say, where is the little man anyways?" "Not done, apparently." "Aaaaaah…"

-

"…urk…"

"Never drop your sword! Haaaaah!"

"!!! …nng…"

"Stay focused and relaxed!"

"…nnnnng…haaaah!"

"Faster! More effort into your slashes! Don't lose your stance!"

"…aaaaarrghh…! Shut - !"

"What was that?"

"…n-never mind…hraaaaggh!"

Shizuma's zanpakuto went sailing out of his hands, and clattered softly on the ground as it landed. Coughing and trying to get his breath back, he made a run for his sword as he barely avoided getting cut again. "You've been cut 28 times. Feeling it yet?" his teacher asked, meaning no ill will. The boy did not relent. "Haaaah…this is…cough - ! …gaaaah…i-it's nothing! It'll take more than this to stop me…haaaa…cough…"

Fuki let him rest for a moment. "You're not going to improve unless you know how to master your sword! These are the basics to fighting Hollows! C'mon, Shizuma put all your heart into it if you want to become a shinigami so much!" He was finally able to suppress his coughs, and spoke more clearly. "Easy for you to say…you've been in the business for, what, a coupla centuries?" "It has nothing to do with that…listen, all you have to do is believe in yours - "

Shizuma groaned. "Again with that stuff. What, first you name your sword, and as if that wasn't weird enough, now you're probably gonna go telling me that I should believe in my sword.

"Oh yeah, that's gonna help when I'm getting HACKED INTO PIECES! What kinda - "

"…sure. Whatever you want. Tell that to your buddies back in Rukongai."

" - brilliant person you are! I would never have thought of that on my own, great plan, I'll try it…"

"Hurry up."

"Hang on…uh…ok…c'mon, sword…glow again…do something…please…?"

Fuki sighed. "The only way you can get into the 4th Squad by your standards now is to call your zanpakuto by its name."

"Haha, ok, now we can be crazy together - "

"I'm you'll enjoy telling that one a lot to - "

" - but what do I know?"

Shizuma scratched his head. "Its name…its name…ok…Seisuiki…"

"Now say something to it."

"I don't see how that's going to help… - "

"I predict that you're going to find yourself in rags again."

"Ok, ok…uh…ok, Seisuiki…dance."

"…"

"Why're you giving me that look? I said something to it, like you told me to."

"…call it…"

"Uh…Seisuiki…c'mere, boy…"

"…you're hopeless…"

Shizuma slapped his forehead. "What the hell am I supposed to do then?!" "Call it out," Fuki repeated. "Open your heart to it."

"Oh sure, you couldn't have told me that in the first place…"

"…ah, wearing rags and eating dirt…"

"Cut it out! I'm…unng…this is stupid…I'm opening my heart to it…here goes…"

The boy tried to relax his body. He closed his eyes for a moment, and looked like he was concentrating, hard. His examiner waited patiently for a few minutes, then, noticing her student's face twitch, asked excitedly, "…did you find something?!"

Shizuma stirred, and opened his eyes slowly. "…yes…I've found…" he said flatly, "…that you are most definitely insane… - "

"Shizuma!"

"Furi-chan, I don't understand… - !"

"Shut up and try harder! You won't get it if your mind is clouded. Now concentrate!"

Shizuma nearly tore his hair out in frustration. "You keep telling me that, but what is it exactly I'm supposed to do?" The girl sighed, brushed her hair aside, and spoke as calmly as she possibly could. "Find a good reason for your being here and focus on that. Then, call out to your sword."

The boy was desperate to try anything by now. "Once more…" My reason for being here…is to become a soul reaper…his sword glowed for a moment…to help save lives…his sword glowed brighter still…because…that is my dream…

Seisuiki vibrated intensely for a moment, and Shizuma's eyes lit up, but then, it came to an abrupt stop. "Aw man…I'm never gonna get this - " he started, but was interrupted by a voice from behind. Are you truly ready for what lies ahead? "Wh-What's goin on…?!" Shizuma cried. Suddenly, the room was pitch-dark. He couldn't see anything, and couldn't hear anything, except for the voice.

What is it that you desire…?

"…uh…pancakes - "

What is your goal here?

"…to become a soul reaper…"

Is your resolve set?

"Come again?"

Do you have any doubts about your goal?

"…no…I don't have any doubts…"

Then call my name.

"S-Seisuiki…"

Idiot…do it right…

"What…? You told me call…wait, you're serious? You're my - "

Call me again. Focus on what you need most now, and call me…

"Ok…Seisuiki…what I need most…food…"

For the love of –

"One more time! Uh…man, I'd think better if I had some light - "

What's wrong?

"…I-I think I got it…here it goes…"

Don't hesitate. Pour everything you got into it.

"Gotcha. Now…Seisuiki…shine!"

-

Shugo yawned first. "Oh, jeez, how much longer is he gonna take…?" Hikaru checked the sky. "Well…considering it's Shizuma we're talking about here…it hasn't been that long…"

The big boy slammed his fist on the ground. "Damnit, Hikaru, it's night and he still hasn't finished!" His more patient friend gave him a pat on his back. "At most, he'll take a coupla days…I hope…" Shugo shook his head. "That's enough! I don't care if he fails the damned test, I'm going to go get myself some food - "

"Hey, wait up for me!"

Shizuma hurried over to his friends, waving and grinning. "I'm done! I've passed! I'm a shinigami now, haha!" Holding out his arms to show them his new uniform, he grabbed both by the chest and pulled them into a hug. "YA-HOO!!!"

Shugo shivered, and feigned death, falling to his knees and screamed excessively in an agonized tone. "Never…do that again…" he sighed, as he got to his feet and put his smaller friend into a headlock." The middle one just smiled. "Enough, you idiots…let's just go eat…" Shugo dropped Shizuma and led the party. "Finally!"

"Man…I'm hungry too…yawn…hey, so how did you guys do on the test? Hard, huh?"

"No. I got 11th Seat, actually."

"Aaaaah...Hikaru, you beat me by a spot…12th Seat…"

"Wh-What…?!"

"Shizuma, what place did you get?"

"Y-You don't need to know…let's just eat already, I'm starved!"

"Haha…what ever you say, little man…"