65 years ago
"Hado thirty-one. Shakkaho!" A target exploded as it was hit by a ball of red energy. The students who were seated applauded at the display.
"Excellent work," Satoshi said. "Akira. You're next."
Akira stood and held his hands out in front of him. He recited the incantation silently and a ball of energy formed in front of his palms. "Hado thirty-one," he said. "Shakkaho!" The energy thrust forward and struck a target in the center of the training field. For good show, Akira fired two more blasts which then each struck a target. The students applauded and congratulated at the show of skill.
"Good work, Akira," Satoshi said. "As always. You will make a fine Shinigami. Next up. Tamotsu."
Tamotsu stood, eager to put his all into this final test. He had worked hard over the past seven years in an effort to keep up with the other students. He wasn't as skilled as the other students, but he did his best.
"Look," one student said. "It's Tamotsu."
"This should be good," another student said.
Tamotsu readied himself in a strong stance and took a deep breath. "Ye lord!" he said, a small ball of red energy forming in front of his outstretched hands. "Mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man. Inferno and pandemonium, the sea barrier surges, march to the south! Hado number thirty one! Shakkaho!"
The ball of energy, not having grown in size at all, sputtered an launched itself only to land twelve inched away. The energy landed on the ground with a soft hiss, not even singing the grass. The other students cracked up laughing.
"Good going, Tamotsu!" a student shouted. "Maybe in a hundred years you'll reach the target!"
Tamotsu turned and ran toward the student who commented. Another student stuck his leg out, tripping Tamotsu in the process. He landed head first on the ground and the students began laughing harder.
"That's enough!" Satoshi shouted. "All of you, report to your barracks immediately. Tamotsu! Stay behind." The students began to file out of the training area as Tamotsu lifted himself from the ground. Satoshi approached, arms folded in front of him.
"What is it, Sensei?" Tamotsu asked.
"I have been in conference with other chief instructors of the Shino Academy. It seems that you did not pass. I am sorry, but they have insisted that you leave the Academy."
"What? But I've worked so hard!"
"That may be, but your skills have been decreed insufficient to take part in the Gotei Thirteen. I am sorry. You are to bring your zanpakuto before the Masters in the morning and return it. You are dismissed."
Tamotsu cried out in frustration and stormed out of the arena. Why should he be kicked out of the Academy? He knew all the incantations of the spells taught. He knew the history and all the written works. True he wasn't that great at any of the physical aspects, but regardless he gave it all he had.
Being so distraught, Tamotsu nearly missed his own housing unit. Opening the sliding door, he stepped inside and slammed the wall behind him. He then tossed the zanpakuto on the floor and collapsed onto his sleeping pad. Clenching his fist, he pounded the floor. Three times he did this, each time becoming weaker as his emotions overcame him. Soon, he abandoned this in favor of holding his pillow tight. Curling into a fetal position, he began to cry bitter tears of anger and disappointment. Before long, he fell asleep.
Black. Everything was black. Looking around, Tamotsu could not tell where he was. Was it a dream? Was it real? He didn't know.
You feel alone, a woman's voice said softly. But you are not alone.
Tamotsu looked around. There was nothing he could see. Only the void of blackness surrounding him. "Who are you?" he asked. "What do you want with me?"
You have been denied companionship and for that I am sad.
"Denied companionship? What do you mean?"
I feel sympathy for you, Tamotsu Toshiyuki.
Tamotsu turned around to find a fire burning. The fire spread until it surrounded him, the flames showing that within the void was only Tamotsu and the entity speaking with him. The flames were so close, but Tamotsu was not burned. He could feel warmth, but it was within his heart and not on his skin.
Looking further into the flames was the rough outline of a figure. Someone was standing in the midst of the fire. The woman?
Take my hand, Tamotsu, the woman said as she extended from within the flames. Tamotsu stepped forward and reached out, mesmerized by the figure before him. Take my hand and I will protect you.
Tamotsu stepped forward again and touched the fingers of the figure who was hidden behind the wall of fire. There was a bright increase of light where the touch made contact, then Tamotsu found himself in darkness once again. This was not the darkness of the void, but his own bed chamber at night.
"A dream," he said. "Just a dream..."
Rolling over to his side, he looked at the zanpakuto he was given at the beginning of his training seven years ago. He would have to return it in the morning. Turning over away from the sword, Tamotsu was surprised to see another zanpakuto lying on the opposite side of his bed. Confuse, he sat up and looked at it.
The handle and sheath were red, a black diamond pattern along the length. The guard was black, two circles that intersected. Tamotsu picked up the sword and pulled it from its sheath. He could feel a power emanating from this zanpakuto, something he had never felt from the one issued to him. What he saw... Was it a dream? Or was it real?
"Step forward," the chief instructor said.
Tamotsu obliged and approached. There were five instructors seated on podiums before him, all looking down at him. He felt small before the overpowering presences before him but stood firm.
"Tamotsu Toshiyuki," the instructor continued. "With your lack of progress and skill, we have determined that you are unworthy of becoming a Shinigami. I am sorry, but perhaps in the future once your skills develop you may try once again."
"I understand, Chief Instructor," Tamotsu said.
"Please. Present your zanpakuto to us. As you have not bonded with it, you will have no use for it."
Tamotsu stepped forward and placed his zanpakuto before the council. He stared down at it, the plain circular hilt, the plain purple sheath, then stepped back.
"Chief Instructor. If I may ask, what would you like me to do with this one?" Revealing his red and black zanpakuto, the council gave surprised sounds and turned to one another.
"Where did you obtain that zanpakuto?"
"I... I don't know. I had a dream last night. There was a woman's voice coming from a mass of fire. She said she would protect me. When I woke up, it was lying next to my bed."
"Sensei Satoshi. Was anyone in the vicinity of the training barracks last night?"
"I sensed no one," Satoshi said. "I frequented the area of Tamotsu's unit several times. No one entered. Of this I am positive."
"I see... Excuse us a moment."
The five instructors stood and stepped back into the shadows, Tamotsu left alone in the circle of light. For several moments all he could hear were muffled whispers, one occasionally rising above the others yet no discernable words came forth. Finally, the instructors returned. As before, it was the chief instructor who spoke.
"In light of this new development, it has been discussed by us and decreed that since this zanpakuto has chosen you as its master you shall remain in the Academy and repeat the courses."
Tamotsu could have jumped for joy but he constrained himself once again. "I thank you, Sensei," he said as he bowed low.
"You shall keep the zanpakuto which has chosen you. This is an unusual circumstance as it did not form from the one issued, but you are to treat it with respect and honor. Though you did not bond in the traditional manner, it is still a part of your soul. You are in it, and it in you."
"I understand."
"You shall remain in Class Three. Dismissed!"
Present Day
Blinking light illuminated the darkness of the isolation chamber's room in Captain Mayuri Kurotsuchi's lab. Tamotsu stood behind the glass and walls. While within those walls he could expel his reiatsu with no fear of harming those around him.
"Will he be okay?" asked Hinohebi, who had materialized soon after Tamotsu had entered Seireitei. Rangiku had carried him and now stood next to Hinohebi, nervously biting her finger.
"Tamotsu's case is unusual, as I am sure you are well aware," Mayuri said.
"We shall do everything in our power to help your master, Hinohebi," Captain Retsu Unohana said. Although Unohana and Mayuri did not often see eye to eye, both were required to be present whenever something had to be done with Tamotsu. The master healer and the master researcher had often clashed in views on varying topics but each knew that with Tamotsu they had to put aside their differences.
"Are you ready yet?" Tamotsu asked, his voice quaking. From behind the glass his voice was heard through a machine that connected to a speaker on the outside. Such was necessary for communication while in the isolation chamber.
"We are ready to begin," Mayuri said. "Remove your bracers."
Tamotsu nodded and reluctantly reached for the bracers on his forearms. He knew exactly what would happen and being in a cell completely cut off from everyone before him did little to calm his nerves. Taking a deep breath, he tore both bracers from his arms at once. Immediately, the room was filled with an intense blue light as energy erupted from Tamotsu's body.
Several screens with readings on reiatsu level and heart rate, as well as at least a dozen other items that only made sense to Mayuri, spiked and maxed out at the sudden increase of pressure from within the cell. Pressing buttons and pulling levers, Mayuri adjusted the readings to a level that would be readable.
The light from inside the chamber continued to increase steadily. Tamotsu began to cry out as he began pushing the energy out of his body. Sensors continued to spike as Mayuri tried to obtain a readable level. The pressure inside the chamber built up stronger still, enough so that cracks began to appear in the walls and on the glass.
"You fool!" Mayuri cried out. "Ease off the pressure! My chamber was never intended to take this much!"
The glass wall appeared to bulge as Tamotsu screamed, sparks bursting from several consoles. The cracks spread, then all energy coming from Tamotsu ceased. The room went dark as he fell to his hands and knees.
"Kiyoshi!" Rangiku cried. She reached for the chamber door but was halted by Mayuri.
"Stop right there," he said. "We don't know what kind of levels he's giving off right now. He's sweating reishi again. We must wait for the cell to absorb the majority of the energy before we can enter."
"He is my brother. Our reiatsu resonates. I can handle it."
Before Mayuri could object again, Rangiku stepped into the airlock separating the chamber from the lab. Once inside, she saw Tamotsu breathing heavily on his hands and knees. Glowing drops of liquid reishi poured from his brow.
"Kiyoshi... Are you all right?" Rangiku reached out with her hand only to have it slapped away by Tamotsu.
"Unhand me, woman!" he cried out.
Gasps of surprise came from everyone in the lab. Rangiku remained on her knees as Tamotsu stood. She was shocked to see him like this, and when he looked down at her there was no recognition in his eyes. Wiping his forehead with his hand, he threw the droplets of reishi to the side without a second thought. They hit the glass, which began to smoke as if struck by acid.
"Kiyoshi... Don't you recognize me?"
"What is the nature of this place? Have you kidnapped me? Am I to be your prisoner?! Answer me, woman!"
Rangiku stood slowly and approached Tamotsu, tears forming in her eyes. Stepping forward, she slapped Tamotsu across the face hard enough for all to hear. "How dare you... Have you lost so much that you don't remember your own sister? After all we've been through... Am I nothing to you?"
"Sister... Rangiku-" Tamotsu touched his face where he had been slapped, suddenly stepped backward as if off balance. He caught himself on the wall and looked away. "Rangiku... I- I'm sorry... I don't know-" Crying out as another burst of energy came from him, Tamotsu grabbed his head and fell to the ground once again. Blue energy arced over his body like electrical bursts. A moment later he stood, this time sweating droplets of water and perspiration.
Stumbling, Tamotsu was caught by Rangiku. He felt so weak, but managed to find the strength to be helped out of the chamber.
"Interesting..." Mayuri said, looking at the melted portion of glass where the liquid reishi touched. "With all that outburst you still have a great amount of reiatsu remaining in your body. And it would seem that the concentrated reishi you perspire is more potent than I originally thought as well."
"What... What do you mean?" Tamotsu asked, his body shaking.
"Now... the best way to put this... Are you familiar with the Quincy device Ginto? It is a small tube in which they store condensed versions of their own reiatsu. A single drop can be used with their Sprenger technique, in which they release energy equivalent to either a high level eighty or low level ninety Kido spell. It would seem that Tamotsu's energy is several times that amount."
"But what's causing him to perspire like this in the first place?" Rangiku asked.
"I thought it was self explanitory. Due to Tamotsu's continued suppression of his reiatsu, it is condensing into a far more concentrated form. Without allowing it to escape normally, it finds other means of releasing itself."
"But..." Tamotsu said. "But I can't allow my reiatsu to flow freely. Its... too dangerous..."
"More dangerous than pooling all your energy into a confined area? Need I remind you what happened last time? I do not know the full potential of your reiatsu, Tamotsu, but I do know this. If you continue to suppress it like you are currently doing it will not only be harmful to you but to everyone around you as well with the exception of Rangiku Matsumoto. But I doubt that even she would be able to withstand your full power. That and..."
Mayuri paused as he scanned the computer screens. Tamotsu struggled to walk to look at the images and numbers. Striking a few keys, Mayuri split the image into different colored graphs.
"What is it?" Tamotsu asked.
"Now this is most interesting. In addition to your normal reiatsu level, unless my sensors are mistaken, you have other reiatsu signatures which are beginning to surface."
"He contains several reiatsu signatures?" Unohona asked.
"Indeed. This may be a unique case for Tamotsu, and this could explain your lapses in knowing who you are at some points in time."
"So what does this mean?" Tamotsu asked.
"It would appear that your suppressed reiatsus are awakening, bringing with them your memories of that lifetime. You currently have one dominant reiatsu signature, but the others are trying to surface as well. I can see three possible outcomes of this. Firstly, you could learn to control them and obtain a power unlike anything the Soul Society has ever seen. Second, it overwhelms you and you end up dying again like last time and leave a much larger crater."
Mayuri paused for a moment as if in deep thought.
"What about the third outcome?"
"Oh, my, my. The third outcome... That would be that the power completely overwhelms you and tears your very existence apart." A large grin spread over Mayuri's thought as he reviewed the possibilities in his mind. "This should be most interesting to see, wouldn't it?"