Hey everyone. First things first, sorry for the delay in updates. The story will probably be updated a bit less frequently for a while. Between finals, Christmas, and the fact that I'm still mapping out what exactly I want to happen in the next few chapters bringing us into the Soul Society Arc, it'll take me longer than it has been to get everything put together.
In the good news department, major thanks to Tsebe Uchiha for the reviews. I tried to put your suggestions into play here, specifying who is speaking and trying to be more descriptive.
Final thing before we get into our new chapter: Bleach still doesn't belong to me.
Chapter 6: Time to Adjust
As Kakumau slowly began to open his eyes, he couldn't help but notice the vaguely familiar white ceiling that was over his head. "You gotta be kidding me. Two days I've been in Seireitei, and two mornings waking up in a hospital. One of these days, I'll have to figure out what it's like to wake up in a normal bed."
"While I certainly am not opposed to your company, I must admit that it would be nice to know you can go a day without requiring my treatment."
Recognizing the voice, Kakumau, turned his head towards the door, and said with a big grin, "Thank you, Captain Unohana. I hope to see that day as well." His smile shrank, though it didn't leave his face entirely, when he saw the Captain Commander and another captain, one with brown hair and glasses, standing beside Captain Unohana. "I assume this means my fate has been decided?"
"Indeed it has. Kakumau Konrinzai, you will serve as the 5th seat in Captain Aizen's 5th Division," replied the Captain Commander.
His smile now replaced with a look of shock and confusion, Kakumau could not contain his thoughts. "I am honored that you think me worthy of such a position. However, I am…well, confused. With my lack of knowledge about the workings of Seireitei, the divisions, and fighting hollows, isn't the 5th seat a bit high?"
At this point, the other captain, he could only assume it was his new captain, Captain Aizen, stepped forward with a smile. "Not at all. The fact of the matter is that your lack of knowledge and your currently untrained fighting style are the only things that kept you from being made at least a third seat, if not a vice-captain in another division. Madarame Ikkaku is the strongest 3rd seat in the 13 divisions, and you beat him. 5th seat is not too high a seat for you. It may well be too low, in fact."
After suppressing his desire to sigh, Kakumau forced another small smile to his face. "Very well then. I look forward to working with you, Captain. When do I start?"
"You will take the next couple of days to continue healing, and then Captain Aizen will begin your training," spoke the Commander.
"Understood, sir. I will make sure you do not regret offering me this opportunity."
At this, Aizen smiled and said, "I have no doubts of that whatsoever," and left with the Commander and Captain Unohana. With the room now empty, Kakumau decided it was about time he and Kishin discussed their situation.
After closing his eyes for a few seconds, he opened them again, finding himself in the familiar courtyard that was his mindscape. There, leaning against one of the many trees, sat the old samurai. "Well Kishin, what do you think?"
Shaking his head with a hint of a smirk on his face, Kishin responded, "You know better than that, boy. It is your wisdom which must grow first. I will help you fill in any blanks I can, but only after I have heard your thoughts on the matter."
"Ok then. Let's start with survival assessment. Any of the 13 captains could kill me before I would have an opportunity to draw my sword. I don't have a solid feel for their strengths at this point, having never seen them in action. Hell, I haven't even had a chance to differentiate most of their reiatsu yet. It is clear, however, that the Captain Commander did not gain that title simply by virtue of seniority. It felt as though he could most likely crush any two other captains in a fight, and that is with him clearly holding back his reiatsu…"
"Yes, but as were all the others," chimed in a nodding Kishin.
Kakumau nodded thoughtfully, absentmindedly running his hand through his brown hair. "That is true. That actually brings me to my own captain, Captain Aizen. Based on the feel of his reiatsu, while he is certainly powerful, it would seem as though he is far beneath the other captains in terms of strength."
Raising one of his wizened white eyebrows, Kishin asked, "Seems? You sound unconvinced."
Kakumau turned his head to hold eye contact with Kishin, his silver eyes holding a mixture of anxiety and confusion. "You could say that. His confidence does not match his power. He carries himself as though nobody could challenge him, and yet he didn't seem arrogant or smug. I'm more inclined to believe he is a mid- or high level captain with more control than any of the others. This brings me to the two things that bother me. I mean, I can't really put my finger on it, but what motivation does he have for hiding his strength like that around friends and an obvious non-threat like me? Even if the power he were showing were all he possessed, on our best day he might break a sweat. " Kakumau paused to collect his thoughts before continuing. "More than that, though, were his eyes. They were distant and empty, like the entire time he was here, his mind was actually years away. I know it shouldn't bother me so much, but, for lack of a better term, it gave me the creeps."
Kishin nodded, never breaking the eye contact, "Yes, the man is an illusion. While I have no idea his plans or motives, I think you should be wary of your new captain. On the other hand, it does seem that he will be able to help us considerably in our growth." Kinshin's face changed from his look of concern to a small, proud smile as he continued, "Your perception has improved greatly. You accurately gauged the captains. While you may indeed be capable of a great deal already, you are many, many years removed from being a real threat to anyone of captain class. Even more impressive, you managed to get a good read on one such captain in spite of an obvious attempt to hide as much as possible from you. Well done. Now rest, we'll have plenty of time to talk after you've recovered."
Kakumau simply nodded before drifting off to sleep. While he still had no idea what he'd gotten himself into, he was confident that opportunities for rest would be few and far between.
Two days later found Kakumau signing the last of his paperwork to leave the hospital when he was approached by a small shinigami with her hair pulled back into a bun on the back of her head. Her eyes were friendly, but a bit nervous. Her uniform was essentially standard, though Kakumau noticed an arm band on her arm. Once he was done with the paperwork and preparing to leave, he was surprised to see the young woman approaching him tentatively, like she had a question but was afraid to ask. Kakumau put on his best smile to try and put her at ease. "Hello, miss. Can I help you with something?" he asked, with nothing but kindness in his voice.
Noticing his relaxed attitude, she relaxed as well. "I'm sorry to be rude, but you wouldn't happen to be Kakumau Konrinzai, would you?"
Maintaining his same smile, he bowed slightly. "At your service. I never thought I'd have a fan club. And so soon into my stay, no less!" he returned with amusement evident in his voice and a wink, which he intended to signal the joke, though it was received somewhat…ehem, differently.
"What!?!?!? I am not part of anybody's fan club! I am Hinamori Momo, vice-captain of Captain Aizen's 5th Division!" she screamed with a slight tinge of red coming to her face while pointing to the badge on her arm, which Kakumau finally noticed did indeed state her position.
His smile turned sheepish, and his eyes held an almost child-like innocence that calmed her down quite a bit. "My sincerest apologies, Vice-Captain Hinamori," he said while bowing. "I certainly meant no disrespect. It was a poor attempt at humor."
Having been sufficiently pacified, Hinamori finally realized that this whole drama had indeed played out in the lobby of the 4th Division, and they had managed to draw quite the audience. Her face once again turning red, though out of embarrassment rather than anger this time, she quickly accepted Kakumau's apology, and even more quickly led him out of the building. As they walked, they settled into silence. Kakumau seemed oblivious to the awkwardness of the earlier situation, but Hinamori was keenly aware of it. Once they had walked long enough that she had regained her composure, she decided it was time to break the ice a bit with her division's new 5th seat. "5th Seat Konrinzai, I apologize for overreacting earlier. I thought you were mocking me." Once she had finished, she stopped walking and turned to look at her new charge. To her shock, he simply smiled at her. It wasn't the smile that shocked her, however. No, it was his eyes. They were a stunning silver color, but in spite of their metallic hue, there was nothing cold about them. In fact, everything about the man radiated a warm safety. His eyes, his smile, even the completely relaxed stance he was standing in, all of them screamed of someone who had never known battle or loss. In spite of being physically much more adult than her good friend, Toshiro Hitsugaya, he seemed every bit the child.
"Vice-captain Hinamori, please, do not apologize," he said before bowing again. "I am the one who was in the wrong. You were clearly sent by Captain Aizen to help me, and I responded disrespectfully. Even without having known you were a vice-captain, it was stupid of me. However, if I may risk poor manners again with a question?"
It was at this point that he finally looked up from his bow while maintaining his low posture, his eyes showing an honest and innocent curiosity. Hinamori found that, looking into those eyes, she felt that she was peering into the depths of him. It was a new and terrifying experience for her. After all, everyone puts up walls on certain parts of themselves. Even Toshiro wouldn't let allow her such transparency, and they had known each other for almost their entire time in Soul Society. In awe of his willingness to make himself so open, she could only nod, with her own eyes showing a mix of confusion and curiosity as to what his next question could be.
"Well, with all due respect, Vice-captain, why are you the one picking me up? I figured I'd be lucky to have a seated officer show me to the barracks."
At this point, all apprehension and hesitation instantly left Hinamori's face, replaced with a smirk and twinkle in her eye that, while Kakumau couldn't quite place it, made him uncomfortable. "Oh, well, you see, I'm not taking you to the barracks," she said, noticing the sudden change in Kakumau's expression from curiosity to anxiety bordering on fear. "Captain Aizen has asked me to oversee your training. We're going to spar so I can see where your abilities stand currently. The other seated officers will be watching as well."
Kakumau's head and shoulders both drooped at this news. "Do we have to?"
Momo was shocked. Was he scared she'd embarrass him? Or was it something worse? "Don't tell me. You're underestimating me too. I'm so tired of people constantly assuming that I'm weak!"
"My apologies, Vice-captain. It seems once again I haven't made myself clear," Kakumau said with an apologetic tone that brought her eyes back to his, where she was surprised again at how clearly she could see his sincerity. "My question had nothing to do with your strength. In spite of your control, I can still sense your reiatsu, and it's formidable. If we do fight, you'll probably defeat me. But that isn't my concern either. Honestly, I just hate fighting. Especially since you aren't threatening anyone, I hate fighting without reason. "
Struggling yet again to regain her composure, Hinamori found herself wondering yet again if this man was truly capable of being a warrior. She trusted Aizen's eye for talent, but still, this naïve pacifist didn't seem to have the fighting spirit that the life of a shinigami required. "Look, Konrinzai, I can appreciate what you're saying, but this fight isn't just for entertainment. For one thing, I need a chance to get a real grasp of your current skills so I know what training we should pursue. As for the other officers, it's natural that many of them will be resentful of your position as 5th seat at first. The best way to deal with that is for you to demonstrate what makes you worthy of the position. If you put up a good fight against me, it will make your life in the division much easier much sooner."
"Alright then, Vice-captain," came his obviously disheartened voice. "If those are the orders, I'll carry them out. Please, lead the way."
A few minutes later found them in one of the 5th Division's training grounds, swords drawn with the entire 5th Division, minus one Captain Aizen, eagerly waiting to see just what the new guy was made of. Prior to getting things started, Kakumau took a few moments to discuss strategy with Kishin.
'What are you thinking, Kishin?' 'Well, she clearly didn't achieve her position by overwhelming force. This will be a very different fight than Ikkaku. My guess is she will use a combination of quick strikes with her zanpakuto and a heavy dose of kido.' 'I kinda figured that, old man. I meant should I go all out or hold a little back again?' 'You know how this works. Give me your reasons first, only then will I give you my advice.' 'Yeah, ok. I don't want to show everything you can do yet, seeing as I still don't know who I can and can't trust around here. Especially since I don't trust Aizen, it would be stupid to show all the cards in my hand to all of his subordinates like this. On the other hand, if I hold back too much, there is a really good chance of me waking up in the 4th again tomorrow.' 'Exactly right. Let's take it slow. No matter what, we won't use anything other than the abilities put on display for the captains, but other than that, play it by ear. Make a good showing, but remember, we don't have to win this fight to accomplish our goals. You might want to get ready, though. It looks like we're taking too long.'
Having heard this, Kakumau shook his head to see a clearly frustrated vice-captain charging at him. Fortunately he reacted just in time to block her strike, but now she had him on the defensive and wasn't letting up. "You can't afford to space out right before a battle!" she said in between a series of quick jabs and thrusts, forcing Kakumau to continue blocking and, for the time being at least, abandon any thoughts of an attack.
In order to break her attacks, he knew he would have to do something very risky. Kakumau blocked another thrust, intentionally putting himself off balance to try and bait Hinamori into overextending her next strike. Fortunately, she did just that. Unfortunately, she was quicker than he expected, and rather than escaping unharmed, he moved just quickly enough to create a space between them, but at the cost of a long, shallow cut across the width of his chest. The damage to himself was minimal, but he knew it was the beginning of the end for his beloved white jacket. "Well, I guess it's a good thing I was gonna have to replace this thing with my new uniform," he said with the faintest hint of sadness mixed with his smile. "Mind if I take the initiative on round 2?"
Hinamori simply smirked and nodded her consent before her eyes widened involuntarily. She barely got her zanpakuto up in time to block his attack, but he was continuing to push, as if to drive her through the ground. What really shocked her was the change in his eyes. Gone was naïve and innocent look she had seen all the other times. In its place was a cold, piercing, metallic look. Was this really even the same person?
Ok, end of chapter 6. Next chapter we'll really get to the heart of the spar, probably do a little time-skip and see where things go.