Chapter 2

The Senkaimon leading into Soul Society from the world of the living closed as the last member of Tetsuzaemon Iba's unit passed through. The Lieutenant of Squad 7 walked up to one of his men and put his nose within a millimeter of his subordinate.

"Of all the lame-brained, half-assed, boneheaded things I have ever witnessed, WHO IN THE HELL TOLD YOU IT WOULD BE A GOOD IDEA TO PUNCH THE DAMNED THING IN THE MASK!?"

Enjeru Masamune held up his right hand, its fingers swollen and out of joint. "Well, sir, it had worked in the past. I had no reason to think it would be any different this time."

Tetsuzaemon glared at his subordinate and his nostrils flared. "It may have worked on regular hollows before, but that was a damned Gillian, Enjeru!" The lieutenant of Squad 7 stepped back and straightened his uniform. "I'm more concerned over your other injuries. You need to report to Squad 4 for immediate treatment."

Enjeru looked down at his arms and winced. His sleeves were in tatters and his forearms were cut to ribbons. The blonde Soul Reaper had to cut his white inner jacket into makeshift bandages and wrap his injuries to keep from bleeding out in the field. The simple wraps were already a deep red as Enjeru examined his hasty workmanship.

"I'll heal in a couple days, sir. No need to report to Squad 4 over a few scrapes."

Tetsuzaemon pulled his trademark sunglasses down his nose so that his eyes could be seen by Enjeru. "Masamune, you have two choices. Option one, you go to Squad 4 under your own power and get your wounds treated. Option two, I beat your sorry ass senseless and drag your carcass there myself. You choose."

Enjeru didn't was a second thought as he flash-stepped forward and drove his left palm heel between Iba's lenses, smashing the sunglasses and letting his hand ride high and grabbed a handful of the man's hair before slamming the Lieutenant's head into his rising knee. Bones cracked, teeth flew and blood poured from Tetsuzaemon's face. Smirking to himself, Enjeru turned around and walked away from the scene.

A split second after that thought raced through his head, Enjeru snapped back into reality. Bringing his left hand down to rest on the scabbard of his Zanpakuto, Enjeru wrapped his fingers around the black polished wood and squeezed until the wood creaked.

"I'll take option one, sir. I'd rather not see you fight again today. I'll report to Squad 4 immediately."

Lieutenant Iba pushed his sunglasses back up to their customary place on his nose and smiled at the junior Soul Reaper. "Good. And after you finish at the hospital, you're joining me for a drink. It's time for your six month performance evaluation."

Enjeru nodded in agreement and started walked towards the Squad 4 compound.

….

Enjeru was thankful that it was a slow day at the Squad 4 infirmary. He breezed through triage and was escorted to an exam room with almost no hassle. Sitting in the small room Enjeru pulled his Zanpakuto from his belt and placed it on the table next to the bed he was sitting on.

"What the hell was that about?! Are you trying to get us killed?"

The kodachi on the table offered only silence in return to the blonde Soul Reaper's questions. Enjeru let out a deep sigh and picked up his weapon and slid it back to it's place on his left hip. "Figures."

As Enjeru finished his rant, he heard the door of the examination room enter and a female voice followed.

"Am I interrupting something?"

Enjeru turned his attention to the door and was struck silent at the sight before him. She, and Enjeru knew without a doubt it was a she by her slight but most assuredly feminine curves. Standing five foot four easily with dark black hair that fell in waves towards her shoulders, she would have caught any man's attention from any time period assuming of course they had a pulse. But what made Enjeru stare open mouthed and looking rather ridiculous were her eyes. Twin chips of jade stared back into Enjeru's eyes and the blonde Soul Reaper suddenly felt as if he would never find his way back from her gaze.

And then he was in front of her, his arms wrapped around her body and pressing his lips to hers, trying to convey in this one moment his every thought and intention of her. She offered no resistance as the two made their way to the exam bed and she fell on top of him.

"Hello…Seireitei to Soul Reaper…are you there?"

Enjeru shook the vision from his mind and found himself nearly eye to eye with his raven haired Beauty.

"Huh?"

The female Soul Reaper smiled and back up a couple of steps. "That's better. For a moment I thought you went into a coma on me." She opened the file she was carrying. "Enjeru Masamune of Squad 7, right? I'm Kisutera Yishona, fourteenth seat of Squad 4."

Enjeru finally regained full control of his thoughts and bodily functions and stood and offered his hand to Kisutera. "Enjeru Masamune, Squad 7."

Kisutera's smiled widened as she took the taller man's hand and giggled. "I'm glad we are agreed on who you are. Now, what brings you here today?"

"I have to have you."

Enjeru blinked a time or two before releasing his grip on Kisutera and holding up his bandaged forearms. "Just a couple scratches I picked up in the world of the living."

Motioning the injured man to sit down, Kisutera slowly began to unwrap her patient's arms. After two layers she found the cloth had been soaked in blood and dried, hardening and sticking to Enjeru's arms. As she removed the last layer of cloth, she realized that in doing so she had re-opened the long gashes in his arms and blood began to ooze out.

"What in the name of the gods happened to you!?"

Enjeru winced as Kisutera pulled the last of his makeshift bandages from his arms. "My team was ambushed on our way back to the Senkaimon after a routine sweep for hollows. We were surrounded before we knew it and were on full defensive." Enjeru's eyes looked into the distance as the details flowed like water. "The Lieutenant was incredible. I've never seen such ferocity in him. But his men were in danger and he was determined to keep us all alive. I had thrown my Zanpakuto into a hollow about to rip into Taijan from behind. I had just finished off a hollow out with a Kido spell when I saw the shadow over me. Out of instinct I threw my arms up in an X block. I didn't see the claws until they were tearing my sleeves and slicing into the meat of my arms. The pain…..I've experienced discomfort in training and been hit hard by hollows, but the sound of my own flesh being sliced and torn was something I'll never forget. I don't remember everything that followed too well until I heard the Gillian howl in the distance. The hollows that were left tried to run, but we took them out before regrouping to engage the Menos. I tried to be the hero and drop it by breaking it's mask. I knew it was a long shot but we couldn't afford a drawn out battle" Enjeru held up his mangled hand. "I'll not be doing that again for a while."

Kisutera had grabbed a bowl at some point in the story and had filled it with water and had cleaned and scrubbed out Enjeru's wounds. By the time he finished and looked down the medic was already using a healing Kido to seal his wounds.

"Wow. I never felt a thing. How did you do that?"

Kisutera smiled as she continued to work on Enjeru. "It's a little trick I learned in the field. Get the patient talking about something and give just a little nudge with some Kido and poof…best anesthetic in the world. I take it since we weren't called to the Senkaimon for casualties that everyone else made it back safely?"

Enjeru nodded and stared as the healer continued her work. "There were a few scrapes, but nothing we couldn't take care of ourselves." When Kisutera finished, Enjeru held up his arms and turned them over, inspecting her work. "Wow, this is amazing. I've never seen anyone heal injuries like these so fast. Are you sure you're just a fourteenth seat?"

Kisutera washed her hands in the sink and started to dry them off. "I prefer it that way. I usually work in the field but I have to log so many hours a month in the Squad Infirmary. I try not to draw too much attention to myself so that I stay low on the Squad rankings. If I were to advance in rank I would have to spend more time in the Seireitei and less in the field."

Enjeru's brow creased in thought. "You enjoy field work?"

"I know it sounds weird, but I feel I learn so much more out there dealing with injuries and battle wounds than I ever will if I stay cooped up in here dealing with the day to day stuff."

As Enjeru stood up and flexed his hands one last time, he saw Kisutera on her way out the door.

"I want you."

Enjeru cleared his throat just a little louder than he normally would. "Can I buy you a drink later? Maybe when you get off duty?"

Kisutera opened the door and turned to Enjeru and smiled. "I don't date patients. Better luck next time." And with a wink, she was gone.

….

"You should have went after her. She was playing hard to get, you dolt!"

Enjeru was downing his third cup of sake while Taijan was laying into him. Enjeru has told his friend and the Lieutenant about running into the raven haired beauty and they were giving him grief over it.

Lieutenant Iba was on his second bottle and just warming up. "You should have chased her, sure. But what would you have said when you caught her? She told you in as many words she expects to see you again. So you have from now until then to work on your pick up lines."

Enjeru laughed with his friends and poured another drink. In his six months on Lieutenant Iba's team he had gotten to know his teammates rather well, but Taijan Ryodan was the one he was closest too. A 12th seat in Squad 7, Taijan had earned the nickname "The Steel Cyclone" due to his flashy fighting style. He was a little boastful and sometimes more arrogant than Enjeru liked, but Taijan had proven to be a true friend.

The Lieutenant, on the other hand, was about as down to earth as they came. He took an immediate interest in Enjeru and worked with him on catching up to the rest of the team in terms of protocol and some of the usual tasks of a Soul Reaper of the Gotei 13. It took Enjeru a month to learn to perform and proper Konso: the purification ritual in which a soul is sent to Soul Society. Over the six months on the Lieutenant's team, Enjeru had gone drinking with Tetsuzaemon a couple of times and had learned not to try and match the man after the first night caused him to wake up with the worst headache he could recall. That morning Tetsuzaemon was at his door bright and early with what passed for aspirin and gave him the day off from practice.

Six months later and I feel more at home than I ever felt with the Detention Unit.

Lieutenant Iba finished off his bottle and became serious as he eyed Enjeru. "You've been on my team for six months now, Masamune, and I've got to say you've learned a lot. Your skills have improved and you have shown real dedication to the edicts of Squad 7. You saved Taijan's life today at the risk of your own. You fight fiercely, but with a sense of honor that is rare in these times. Before I give you the results of your evaluation I have a couple of questions."

Enjeru set his cup down and focused on the Lieutenant. "Ask anything you want, Lieutenant. I'll answer as best and as honestly as I can."

Tetsuzaemon pushed his sake bottle away so that he could focus on Enjeru. "In the time you've been on the team, I've never seen you release your Zanpakuto. You've mentioned before that you know it's name, so you have access to Shikai. What I would like to know is why you don't use it."

Enjeru turned his gaze down at the kodachi resting on his hip, and with a sigh pulled it from his obi and laid it on the table with the handle pointing to his left as a sign of non hostility.

"His name is Kaminari no Ikari, Lightning's Fury. I learned it during my time in the Detention Unit. Back then I used every minute I could muster to practice and meditate with my Zanpakuto in an effort to unravel it's mysteries. Most members of the Detention Unit thought I was wasting time since we were never allowed weapons on our shifts. But I knew I wasn't going to be stuck there forever."

Lieutenant Iba poured another drink for himself and Enjeru. "Why was that, if I may ask?"

Enjeru took the drink his Lieutenant offered him and downed it in one gulp and let the liquor burn down his throat before answering. "I was assigned to the Stealth Force by Lady Yoruichi after being interviewed for a spot in Squad 2. She said she saw great potential in me but wanted to give me some time to hone my skills before being assigned to Squad 2. Unfortunately this was right before she went missing and Sui-feng took over. I don't know why but she took an immediate dislike to me and threw me into the Detention Unit. But I was bound and determined to show the Captain I belonged in the Gotei 13."

Lieutenant Iba nodded his head. "And so you devoted yourself to learning every school of Zankensoki, not just what was required for your station. I know what that feels like."

Enjeru continued his explanation. "But you also know there's more to it than just learning the name of your Zanpakuto: You have to bond with it, make it part of your whole being. Most Soul Reapers do this by carrying theirs at all times as well as sparring and slaying hollows with it. Over time the Soul Reaper and Zanpakuto become one. I never had that chance to bond with Kaminari no Ikari that well, so when I joined Squad 7 and tried to use my Shikai for the first time in combat it resisted me and fought back by lashing out at anything that was near us, Soul Reaper and hollow alike. We can't even communicate with each other. When it wants to be heard, it puts thoughts in my head or shows me what it thinks we should do. It confuses me in combat and makes me hesitate, which slows my reaction time. I have to spend so much energy keeping it in check so that it doesn't hurt anyone that it makes me a liability on the battlefield."

Taijan had been sitting at the table during the whole process silently drinking his sake and listening to Enjeru. Reaching across the table he slapped Enjeru across the face.

"You jackass! Did you ever think that you could have come to your teammates and asked for help? If we knew you had a problem we would have jumped to help you. Six months! Six freaking months we have fought by you and have been willing to die for you and you still don't trust us enough to come to us for help!?"

Felt his face turn red with rage, then embarrassment. "I didn't want to bother anyone else with my problems. I know in time my partner and I will come to terms with each other and all will be well."

Tetsuzaemon polished off the last of his bottle of sake and slammed his fist down on the table. "You're going to have more than enough time to get in touch with your partner. I am hereby assigning you a new training regimen. You will spar with me every day in the old training grounds away from prying eyes and to reduce the risk that someone other than myself will be hurt if your Zanpakuto decides to lash out. We will work on your control and reflexes until I am satisfied. Understood, 12th seat Masamune?"

Enjeru's expression went from ashamed to excited to confused as hell all within the time it took Tetsuzaemon to finish his statement. "Excuse me, sir, but did you just call me 12th Seat Masamune?"

Taijan hopped from his seat and threw an arm around Enjeru. "That's right, pal. After what you did saving my life today and with all the progress you've shown, I had to recommend you take the open spot."

Lieutenant Iba left his own seat and offered Enjeru his hand. "And I agreed and took it to Captain Komamura myself. Congratulations, Enjeru. Your life just became much harder."

Taijan turned to Lieutenant Iba and gave a slight bow. "Sir, I would like to join you in helping train Enjeru to use his Shikai. I think I owe him that much."

Lieutenant Iba shook his head at Taijan. "Not right now, Taijan. Perhaps in time you will be able to help, but not now."

Enjeru smiled and bowed to both Taijan and Lieutenant Iba, his ponytail falling over his left shoulder.

"Thank you both. I won't disappoint you."

Tetsuzaemon returned Enjeru's bow and smiled at the blonde man. "I trust you won't, my friend. I trust you won't."