"All things in the universe turn to ashes! Ryujin Jakka!" Yammamoto said, releasing his shikai in a blast of flame that forced Torin to jump backwards or be incinerated instantly.
"Prepare yourself! Torin Inzanki! This is your final test!" Yammamoto said as he raised his blade over his head, then swung it down and sent a massive wave of flame at Torin
"tch..." Torin said as he used shunpo to dodge sideways, the flames obliterated most of a cliff that Torin had been standing in front of. "If I get hit by that..." Torin thought
"Grow, Kessho Satsujinsha!" he commanded as he drew his sword, he wasn't going to fight Yammamoto sealed, not for an instant. Torin began to shunpo around Yammamoto leaving afterimages of himself, he noticed that now that he had achieved bankai all of his abilities had grown far stronger, even when he wasn't in bankai, perhaps the time spent achieving it were to blame, maybe it was an automatic bonus to his power, he didn't know, but he was happy to have it in this fight.
Yammamoto sent another wave of flame at Torin, narrowly missing "Now!" Torin thought as his sword flared with light "Kurisutarubimu!" he roared as he released his signature attack at Yammamoto.
"Hmph" Yammamoto said as a wall of flame intercepted the attack and evaporated it like it were a drop of water in a forest fire "you've not been a captain level shinigami long enough to hope to fight me in shikai boy, release your bankai and give me a real challenge!"
Torin frowned, he didn't want to use bankai so soon in the fight, he had always thought a bankai should be used as a last resort.
Yammamoto swung his sword and a particularly large wall of flame moved towards Torin, turning everything in it's path to ash. Torin stabbed the ground and formed a crystal wall to stop it, the flames collided with his wall and it exploded from the force, knocking Torin away and burning him several times.
"ngh..." Torin said as he got up "such power, so this is Rujin Jakka... the most powerful zanpakto in the Soul Society in the past 1000 years. It's destructive force is truly awesome, I guess this would be a last resort situation..."
Torin grabbed his zanpakto and held it out in front of him with one arm, the other arm he used to steady the first as his reiatsu surged around him. The room burst into static as Torin's reiatsu skyrocketed to unbelievable levels. "Ban..." Torin began
The ground around him exploded as the pressure of his aura increased to an all new high
"KAI!" Torin finished, and his zanpakto exploded in a burst of energy so massive Yammamoto had to use his flames to shield himself.
Torin was surrounded in a cloud of white dust, like his crystallization power had affected even particles as small as dust particles in the explosion. Electricity sparked within the clouds of dust like miniature lightning bolts. Then the dust cleared, revealing Torin in a full suit of plate armor made of crystal, the helmet on his head concealed his face, as his head was bowed, but when he raised his head it could be seen that his eyes were full of reiatsu. "Kessho Satsujinsha... Yoroi" he said
Yammamoto's eyebrows raised "another zanpakto with an oddly sized bankai, you surprise me Torin Inzanki, I had not expected you to take after Ichigo Kurosaki."
"Good, I like surprising the people I fight" Torin said from behind Yammamoto, causing him to grunt in surprise as he turned and swung his sword, sending a wave of flame at Torin, but Torin was gone already. Torin appeared next to Yammamoto, a katana made of crystal in his hand, he slashed upward at Yammamoto, but then gasped as his blade was caught in Yammamoto's bare hand, he turned and looked at Torin with one eye open. "Do no presume to think that a mere child such as yourself can surprise me so easily, I am the most powerful shinigami born in the Soul Society in 1000 years, you are powerful this is true, but you are still an inexperienced child.
With these words flames erupted around Torin, causing him to drop his crystal sword and jump into the air to avoid being torched. Waves of flame shot at him like a hundred tentacles of death. Torin used dodged repeatedly, easily dodging each attack, but he soon found himself surrounded by flames as they circled around to strike again.
Torin curled into a ball as the flames converged on him in a huge explosion of fire, it seemed that he had been incinerated for a moment as he was engulfed in the ball of flame, but it soon blew away from him, and a Kurisutarubimu shot towards Yammamoto, far faster than the shikai version, and much more compressed. Yammamoto jumped away, casuing the attack to hit the ground where he had once stood.
The effects were devastation and destruction, a chasm opened in the ground where the beam struck, then the beam exploded from inside of it, causing a massive portion of the ground to erupt in a manner akin to a volcanic eruption of crystal energy. Every inch of ground for 500 feet was turned to crystal instantly.
Yammamoto looked at the explosion with the same expression he always wore, but something about him indicated he was impressed by Torin's power
"You're right head captain, I am inexperienced, and I don't believe I can defeat you as I am now, but that doesn't mean I'm not going to try!" Torin said "even if you stop me 1000 times, I'll come at you again and again until I get through!"
With this Torin vanished, then reappeared in front of Yammamoto, crouched low for an uppercut. Yammamoto used shunpo himself, easily dodging the punch. Yammamoto swung his sword again, sending a solid blast of flame at Torin that very nearly hit, but Torin managed to dodge at the last instant.
"I gotta do something about those flames…" Torin thought as he dodged several more waves of flame by a narrow margin "I can't keep this up forever"
Torin moved to ground level and threw a punch, launching a Kurisutarubimu at Yammamoto, however unlike the attack's usual form, which was a crescent arc in the shape of a sword swing, this one was a direct spear of energy shooting straight at Yammamoto
Yammamoto swung his blade upwards and stopped the beam with a wall of fire, but he had to step aside as some of the energy broke through. Yammamoto frowned, this was the first person in 1000 years to posses enough raw power to overpower his defenses like that.
Yammamoto swung his sword up, then slashed downward, sending a wavr of flame the size of a large house at Torin.
Torin stomped on the ground, and a dome of crystal erupted from the ground and surrounded Yammamoto, trapping him inside with his burst of flames. The light of the flames could be seen through the crystal, and eventually it exploded, but when the dust settled Yammamoto had clearly been injured, his long white beard was singed, and his body was burned in several locations.
"I see, so your zanpakto's defensive powers are enough to stop my shikai" Yammamoto said "very well, I shall battle you without it!"
With this Yammamoto sheathed his sword and out it on the ground, then assumed a horse stance, his muscles bulging.
Torin eyed the head captain warily, what was the meaning of this? Did Yammamoto seriously think he could defeat his bankai with only his bare hands? Was he insane?
Torin's confusion turned to anger "Don't mock me!" he roared as he vanished once more. Torin charged directly at Yammamoto and punched. Yammamoto stepped back and let the punch pass by his face, but spikes shot out from the side of Torin's arm as it passed, forcing Yammamoto to shunpo away or have a crystal spike pierce through his brain.
Torin pressed the assault, appearing before Yammamoto and throwing countless punches at a speed only achievable through a bankai, Yammamoto used both arms and repeadetly knocked Torin's punches aside, then caught one as soon as there was an opening to do so
"Ippaku!" Yammamoto said as he punched Torin in the left shoulder. Torin flew away as if shot from a cannon on steroids.
Torin got back up, clutching his shoulder, he tried to move his arm, but it wouldn't respond, the only result he got was pain "ngh… definitely broken" he said, he could feel the shards of bone in the arm, his shoulder had been shattered by the impact, if he hadn't been in bankai and the crystal armor hadn't been there he might not have had a shoulder anymore. This realization sobered him up a bit, and he proceeded to try and find a way to attack Yammamoto without getting his other arm broken. Torin made the armor on his left arm grow into a splint, so as to stop it from moving too much. Then held his right arm in front of him. Crystal shards fired from his arm like a blizzard of death, Yammamoto used shunpo to escape, and the shards pulverized another cliff with their force.
Torin moved behind Yammamoto, again too fast to see, and threw a punch with his good arm. Yammamoto spun and deflected the blow, then threw a punch at Torin's other shoulder. Torin's breath caught, and he pulled out his ace in the hole, he used shunpo to dodge.
Yammamoto's eyes raised in surprise at Torin's sudden increase in speed, he had been under the impression that Torin had been using shunpo already.
Torin took this moment of surprise and used shunpo again, barreling into Yammamoto with a punch to the gut that sent him crashing to the ground.
Torin used shunpo again, then launched a flurry of shunpo enhanced punches to repeatedly drive Yammamoto into the ground. When the dust settled Torin was panting with exhaustion, he looked down and his heart practically stopped, Yammamoto was bruised and beaten up, but was looking up at Torin as if he expected something else. "Is that all you've got?" Yammamoto asked
Torin got up and began to shunpo away, but Yammamoto grabbed his leg. "Crap!" Torin said, then he got pulled into a punch to the gut, Torin coughed up blood, then crumpled.
Yammamoto stood "You have done well Torin Inzanki, and you hereby pass your Captain's exam, tell me, which squad would you like to be placed in charge of?"
Torin continued coughing as he regained his breath "Squad… 3…" he gasped "The protection squad, couldn't be a better place for me if it had been made in my honor" he finished
Yammamoto nodded, he had predicted that Torin would chose the protection squad, Ukitake's description of his personality had been very accurate indeed.
Unohana, Ukitake, and Shunsui appeared behind Torin, Unohana healed Torin and helped him to his feet. "Congratulations Torin" she said with a smile.
"Thank you Captain Unohana, I couldn't have done it without your help" Torin replied as he resealed his zanpakto and placed it in its sheath over his back
Shunsui smiled and shook Torin's hand "glad to have ya aboard, we should go drinking sometime to celebrate once you've settled into your new division"
Torin smiled and nodded "it's be an honor Captain Shunsui" he said
Ukitake was next "As your former captain, it is my duty to bestow upon you your captain's haori, wear it with pride and honor, and do your best to fulfill your duties, Captain Inzanki" he said as he draped a captain's haori over Torin's shoulders
Torin looked at his captain's haori with a mixture of joy, disbelief, and awe. He was a captain! He couldn't believe it!
Torin bowed "thank you Captain Ukitake, we may be of the same rank now, but you shall forever be my captain" he said
Ukitake smiled and bowed in return, he said nothing, but it was easy to tell how proud he was of Torin.
"Well well well, looks like I'm interrupting a touching moment, what perfect timing on my part" a cold voice chuckled, it sent chills down Torin's spine, and Yammamoto looked up and his eyes opened wide.
"That voice!" Yammamoto said
"Hello Yammamoto, long time no see" A man said as he appeared, he had a piece of hollow mask under his eyes and on the bridge of his nose, and he had fiery red eyes that looked as if they were actually made of fire. He had long white hair stretching down to his shoulders, and wore spiky black armor so dark it seemed to radiate darkness. The man radiated an aura that seemed to make the light of the room dim and fade away.
"How did you get here unnoticed?" Yammamoto asked, drawing his sword
"I walked in the door, same way you did" the man said, pointing over his shoulder and shrugging, he seemed entirely unperturbed by Yammamoto's gestures of violence "so this is the your newest captain hm? Doesn't look like much to me, tell me kid, what's your name?"
Torin instinctively grabbed his sword's hilt "I am Captain Inzanki, of the 3rd division, and who are you?" he said.
"Oh did you skip letting your captain know who the leader of the enemy army was Yammamoto?" the man chuckled "well kid, the name's Crisis, learn it well, cause one day we're gonna fight, and I'm gonna kill you, it'd be a shame if you forgot my name."
Torin sneered and drew his sword, immediately slashing downward and striking Crisis in the shoulder, the large blade stopped without even scratching the armor. "Was that an attack? Your standard for captains has grown really low these past 2000 years hasn't it?" Crisis laughed brushing Torin's blade aside
"Grow! Kessho Satsujinsha!" Torin commanded, releasing his shikai and slashing again. Crisis eyed the shikai, then decided to move. Torin didn't even notice that Crisis had moved, but suddenly Crisis was behind Torin. With a casual backhand Torin got sent sprawling.
"Relax kid, I'm not here to fight right now, I just wanted to stop by and say hi to the old man here, it's been so long since we saw each other, I wanted to see if he recognized the arrancar that he fought and lost against oh so long ago." Crisis said
"You don't invade the Soul Society and then come and 'say hi'" Torin said "Bankai!"
Torin released his bankai in an explosion of energy, then used shunpo to exit the could of dust, grab Crisis and throw him into a wall of rock with enough force to make it crumble.
Crisis got back up and promptly received a knee to the face, knocking him skyward. Still stunned from the first few blows, Crisis only watched as Torin appeared above him, fist blazing with reiatsu. "Kurisutarubimu!" Torin roared as he punched Crisis in the gut and released the attack. The ensuing explosion of energy disintegrated Crisis's body.
Torin landed on the ground, panting, "that'll show him" he said. No sooner had he said this when Crisis's bone-chilling laugh echoed throughout the room "Well the brat has some fight in him after all, congratulations, most of my Daichiken couldn't even dream of defeating my simulacrum, even going all out like you just did. However when we meet for real you may as well fall on your sword, because if you think that pathetic copy of me was powerful… then you should know that the real thing is 100 times as strong! Farewell, I look forward to killing you in person real soon.
With that Crisis laughed again, the laughter faded away, leaving Torin and the other captains alone.
"He's stronger than before Yama-ji" Shunsui said, an edge of fear to his voice that Torin had never heard from the laid-back captain before "much stronger"
Ukitake was tense "I knew he would be more powerful, but this…" Ukitake trailed off, his concern robbing him of his ability to continue speaking
Unohana said nothing, but she seemed uneasy as well.
The senior captains fear was infectious, and Torin began to feel fear's cold claw reach up and drag his heart to his stomach, these were the strongest shinigami in the Gotei 13, and all three of them were scared of this Crisis person.
Torin looked to Yammamoto, who had sheathed his sword "there is nothing we can do about that for now, I will think about what must be done about Crisis, for now, return to your squads and act as if this never happened, mention this to nobody except on a need-to-know basis, you are dismissed!" he said.
The captains dispersed, leaving Torin alone, he shuddered, but pushed down his fear, he'd have to go meet his new squad now, and their first sight of their new captain should be better than him quaking in his sandals. "Well, better get to it, the Head Captain will think of something… I'm sure of it" he said, then resealed his zanpakto, sheathed it, and left with a shunpo.