Chapter 7: The Plot Thickens
"The Thoughts Within One's Mind."
Zanpakutou releases
A/N: Heya y'all. Sorry for the delay in getting this chapter out. Life has been hectic lately. I hope you enjoy it. Combat has been expanded a bit since Sensara is now finding opponents that won't crumple in a single strike. Check at the end for a few tidbits that you'll read about later.
Closing his eyes, he'd observe the slackjawed captain standing before him. With a small bow, he'd step forward, saying, "I proved my worth through a feat of strength." Hiding his injured hand behind his back, he'd reform the gauntlet around it, hiding it away to let it heal. Those words seemed to bring the man back to reality as he suddenly drew his blade. "Oh come now. We both know who's stronger. But if you don't say anything about me, then I won't kick you through twelve walls." Receiving a wide grin in response, he'd match his facial expression before saying, "Guess not." Reaching up to his head, he'd tap the spot just below his ears, where the bone was. Tapping it twice, he'd suddenly lunge forward, dashing towards the obstacle before him. Making sure to move slowly enough, he'd see the man mouth words at him before his blade shot forth, slamming into his coat and pushing him back ten feet. He'd let loose a vicious grin as the sound of metal on metal was all he could hear. Digging his feet in, he'd prevent the blade from pushing himself back any further, the effects causing the captain to suddenly fly back as his blade continued to extend, putting him into the wall behind him.
Stepping forward, Sensara began to push at the blade, his hand reaching up to grip the edge as he forced the man to retract the blade lest he be crushed against the wall. Once he felt the blade begin to retract, he'd tighten his grip, not letting go as he pulled them towards him. Seeing shock cross his face, he'd hold tight until they were in his face. Bringing his foot up, he'd spartan kick Ichimaru, the thought occurring that he didn't need to pretend not to know people if he wasn't planning on talking. Knocking him back, he'd suddenly pull his arm back, yanking Ichimaru's arm out of his socket and forcing him to let go. Tossing the zanpakutou away, he'd watch the captain fly through twelve walls and into a crowd of shinigami on their way to inform him about the garganta detected. Shaking his head, he'd make to travel, only to jerk suddenly. Wrapped around his fingers were black strings attached to the ground and wall. Attempting to travel again, he'd jerk forward again, stumbling. Smacking his head lightly, he'd scold himself for attempting to shift a planar dimension like he would Earth. Cratering the ground, he'd run off, needing to make note of such things so he wouldn't make that mistake again.
The next day
Sensara had made sure to avoid patrols as he ran, leaving as little evidence as he could. Staying near the eleventh division, he would spend the last day hunting the seated officers of the eleventh, knowing that the sooner he didn't have to hide his strength, the better, and the way to do that was to antagonize the Kenpachi. Ensuring he was gone every time the captain arrived, he'd instill a sense of annoyance in the man, taking a little humor in watching him run about in circles.
Currently, he was on his way to the fifth and third seats, and he'd find them only to stop. Looking up, he'd see the cannonball hit the barrier. Grinning as he watched his prey turn their heads skyward, he'd take that time to strike, his knee colliding with the back of Yumichika's head, forcing him to become intimate with the tile floor and whatever lay beneath. Standing back up, he'd reach up to tap the bone beneath his ears as he turned towards the bald third seat. "What'd you do that for?!" He immediately yelled into his face, making him regret unmuting the world. "I was eliminating anyone that might interfere with my hunt." "Hunt? That's just a fancy way of saying you want to fight, isn't it?" Rolling his neck, Sensara would say, "You get me," before stepping forward and delivering a brutal gut punch to Ikkaku, sending him into the wall. Taking a step back, he'd dodge the swipe of Ikkaku's blade by a mere centimeter. "Why don't you draw that blade there and we can get started?" Shaking his head, he'd say, "I want you to be able to send a message once we're done, and you can't do that if I kill you. Don't worry though, these will be plenty for you." Making a loose W with his body between his arms, he'd flex his hands, two-inch thick blades shooting out from beneath his palms, revealing two wrist blades. The one on his left hand was nearly a foot long with a serrated edge. The blade on his right was a foot and a half and seemed to be pointed, clearly meant for stabbing.
Stepping forward, Sensara swung down with his right arm, bringing the piercing blade down upon Ikkaku's shoulder only to be met by his blade. Pushing forth with his left arm, the serrated blade would grind against the flat side of his blade. "Interesting form you have there." He'd say to the bald shinigami as he kicked out at their midsection, only to be blocked by their own leg. Hopping back, Sensara would retract the right wrist blade as he made a lowercase d with his hand. "Fel," he'd say, looking at Ikkaku through the hole in his fingers. Dodging to the side, Ikkaku would very closely avoid a heavy wind slash that impacted the wall, a small slash appearing across his robes. "Quick reflexes too." Dashing forward, too, Sensara stomped at the ground one pace before Ikkaku, pushing himself off of the ground into a low double axe kick. Even though Ikkaku blocked with his blade, the force of that kick would still drive him to his knees. Leaning back and balancing himself on one hand, Sensara would kick off that blade, both destabilizing his opponent and bringing himself around to perform a sweeping kick at him. Ikkaku would lean back, falling in order to avoid that kick as Sensara followed through with the momentum into a backflip, gaining a bit of distance.
"What kind of form is that?" Ikkaku would ask between heavy breaths. "It's my own personal martial art." Bending backward, Sensara would show an unnatural level of flexibility as he curled his body under his legs, the armored straps across his chest bending, showing a level of malleability in them as he continued. "Relying on one's flexibility to perform extreme contortions, this form employs one's strong legs to deliver powerful blows while using the arms to maintain balance." Getting back up, Ikkaku would ready his blades as he said, "Why bother telling me that? Are you so confident that I won't find your weakness?" Pushing up with his right arm, Sensara would lift his legs up and bring them around so as to place himself in a low stance, his hands upon the ground as if he was ready to pounce. "I never said you wouldn't find the weakness. But who says you'll be strong enough to take advantage of that moment?" Jumping forward, Sensara would land on his hand, spinning himself about and pushing himself, feet forward toward Ikkaku. Landing on the wall when he dodged, Sensara spun to face him and brought down his left arm, the serrated blade moving to bisect Ikkaku, interrupting him from bringing his blade down on Sensara's neck as he was just a little bit faster. Pushing off the wall once their blades had locked, he'd push himself away just in time to avoid a ball of sand impacting the spot that Ikkaku now occupied alone.
Climbing back to his feet as the sand settled, Sensara would retract the serrated blade, instead extending the piercing stake. Waving that one to wave off the dust, he'd look into the pit to see that Ikkaku had been Yamcha'd. Sighing, he'd pick up the fat man that had fallen on Ikkaku like a Fat Man.* "Look what I've caught here, a nice round Shiba." Holding his arm out, he'd feel the weight of a certain cat landing on him. Nudging an unconscious Ikkaku with his foot, he'd say, "Not the best course of fate, but we can work with this." Setting Ganju down, he'd say, "Look, kid, I need you to do something for me that'll confuse, confound, and frankly, it'll tick off any shinigami that notices. How about it? Up for some chaos?" Just as Ganju was about to open his mouth to contest being called a kid, Sensara would continue. "Good, glad you're willing to ruin the mood of so many shinigami. I need you to go looking for T-intersections and turn them into +-intersections by taking out a wall or two. I want you to completely reshape the roads of this place so everyone gets lost. Good? Good." Patting his shoulders, Sensara would turn on his heels and walk off.
"Would you just respond?!" Yoruichi practically yelled those words in his ears. For the past twenty minutes, Sensara had walked in silence, ignoring her attempts at conversation every time she tried to ask what he'd been doing. Finally stopping, Sensara would reach back and pick the cat up. Setting her down, he'd straighten up and close his eyes. Taking a long, slow breath in, his hand would lash out, impacting the wall. Throughout the entire Seireitei, everyone would hear a loud "FUCK!" In that area, the wall Sensara had punched was no longer there. Neither was the wall behind that one or the one behind that. A total of ten walls had collapsed under the pressure of his frustrations. When the smoke cleared, Sensara was sitting with his back against the part of the wall that was still intact, his knees up and his head beneath his hands. Yoruichi just looked on in shock, not only at the force of his cussing but also the effects of his temper tantrum. Slowly walking up to him, she'd say, "What was that about?" Lifting his head and banging it against the wall lightly, he'd crack the wall. Letting out a long and audible sigh, he'd say, "The plan was to find and fight the eleventh captain. Through a show of strength, I'd ensure that he mutinies when we rescue Rukia. Unfortunately, he has proven elusive and untrackable. It's almost as if he is purposefully getting lost so I cannot find him. I've resorted to hunting his officers to try and lure him out. Unfortunately, that incident just knocked out the last one, the only one, mind you, that didn't crumple after the first strike." Taking a breath, he let out another sigh.
Sitting there for a minute, she'd say, "Well, if you had trouble getting his attention before, this fit of yours will certainly get his attention now." Slowly climbing to his feet, he'd say, "Yeah, that's the plan." Standing, he'd point behind him through the hole he'd made, the citadel directly in the distance. "Now they know what direction I'm heading. Unfortunately, now they know what direction I'm heading." Leaning down, he'd scooped up Yoruichi with his hand. Stuffing her into his jacket pocket, he'd say, "Hang on tight. From now on, this will be a brawl and you are my wildcard."
An Hour Later, 0.1 km From The Staircase
Letting go of their robes, Sensara would drop the no-name shinigami that stood in his path. This was the fifth group he had encountered and all of them he'd incapacitated with a single punch. It'd only taken a single punch for one of those groups to knock them all out. Sitting down against the wall, he'd lean back and say, "Forty five seconds before the taicho arrives." Standing up again, Sensara would jump over the wall and started walking, narrowly avoiding being spotted by two captains' arrivals. Making his way around, he'd suddenly pull out Yoruichi and say, "Sorry about this, but you're compromised." Throwing her over the next wall, he'd throw himself to the side to avoid a blade sinking into the wall. Leaning against another wall, he'd slow his breathing, "Ohhh. Give me a quick minute before we do this, assassin." Tilting his head, he'd avoid her blade again. "Or not." Bringing his head forward, he'd headbutt the assassin lady before rushing her. One hand gripping her haori, he'd spin his body over her, pulling her with him before slamming her into the ground. Letting go, he'd run, making his way over a wall as he moved. Step after step, he'd employ his magic several times to create eight fake paths, all leading to different hiding spots and one leading to the sewers. Jumping over the wall, he'd come out to the stairs. "Fuck." He'd mutter under his breath. "Did not want to run into her right now. Not yet." Taking a squat to try and recover his breath, Sensara would eventually stand back up to see the staircase. "Alright. Time to get started." Looking up the stairs, he'd say, "You can come out now Pineapple. You aren't as hidden as you think you are!"
Stepping out from behind the stairs, Renji Abarai would move to stand in front of the stairs, blocking his way. "The name's Renji Abarai, ryoka." "Excuse you, but I earned the right to come in fair and square. It's not my fault your gates and light and flimsy." Putting on a facade of arrogance, his attitude began to show results as Renji grew visibly agitated. "Why are you here?! It's all your fault, you know. It's your fault she's going to be executed. All because she gave her powers to a hummm" Sensara did not let him finish his sentence. His hand grabbed the lieutenant's face and shoved him into the stairs. "I am NOT a human! And she did not give me her powers. She tried, but there was no point." He'd growl these words down to the pinned shinigami. Throwing him to the side, Sensara would send him flying into the wall as he stood back up. "I do believe you are in need of a lesson about not talking with your foot in your mouth. Reaching back with his left arm, the sheath he had hidden would appear, bleeding into reality as ashes flowing from his wrist filled the sheath. Grabbing at this air, a blade hilt would suddenly form in his grip. Pulling the blade out slowly, a six-pointed star guard would form in a lustrous black gold. Swinging out the blade, he'd show off a slight curve. Revealing a large ōdachi, the hilt, and blade a lightless black before peeling away from the guard to reveal sleek black metal that shone in the light. The hilt seemed to continue this metal, though wrapped up in dark leather strips with a black jewel running through the entire hilt like a crack in the metal.
Pointing the blade at Renji, he'd say, "Let me show you the difference between us." As Renji pulled himself from the rubble, he'd say, "Couldn't have said it any better myself." Moving to draw his blade, he'd lunge forward, meeting Sensara's blade in a loud crash of metal upon metal. Locking blades, he'd yell out in Sensara's face, "Howl Zabimaru!" Jumping back, he'd swing his segmented blade at Sensara, who stepped aside, letting the blade carve up the staircase. Chuckling, Sensara would dodge the redhead's blade twice more, watching him retract his blade. "Pitiful. Is three your limit? How long have you had your Shikai? A week?" "Like you can say anything yourself! I bet you don't even know your Zanpakuto's name!" Renji had become agitated, just as Sensara had wished for. Now, to begin the lesson. "How shameful. It seems both your bite and bark are lacking. I don't know the name to my blade? Hah! Let us show this baboon the difference between a warrior who doesn't trust his blade and a warrior who is one with his craft."
Holding his blade out to the side, the stencils upon his attire would begin to glow and shift, seeming more alive by the second as his eyes opened. It had started ever since he had stepped into the garganta. His contacts were deteriorating, and as the black bled to the surface, the lens would begin to disintegrate, the ashes flowing up and into the air as he spoke solemnly. "Show true equality, Karma. Form 1, Fundamentalism." Rushing forward, Renji moved to swipe his shikai out, only to stumble as his blade was forcibly sealed. Slashing him with the tip of the ōdachi, Sensara would spin about and knee Renji in the side just as he brought up his blade to strike. Sending the lieutenant skidding away, Sensara swung his blade, letting the few drops of blood on his blade splatter against the ground. "What'd you do?!" Renji would yell at him. "My Zanpakuto, Karma, creates a zone around itself where undeniable laws can be placed on those within. Even I am not immune to these rules. Fundamentalism, the first firm of my shikai, removes the capacity to activate abilities within the field of influence. Any abilities that are active will be forcefully deactivated within the zone, and ranged abilities lose momentum within its range. Oh, and before you ask, my shikai has seven forms." Stepping forward, Sensara would twist the blade over his head as he struck, attempting to pierce his blade through Renji's shoulder. Renji would hastily deflect the blade, his shihakusho getting cut up instead. Bringing down several precise strikes upon Renji, his voice would sing out, "You seem distracted~" as cuts to his clothes soon began carving up his flesh. Stepping back after several minutes, Sensara would take stock of his opponent, who was currently kneeling in a pool of his own blood. Sensara had cut the tendons in his arms and one of his ankles. Renji would not be able to fight anymore. Sheathing his blade, he'd move to kneel in front of Renji. Grabbing his hair, he'd pull his head back. "Rukia broke no laws. It is your fault for following orders that you know make no sense. It is your fault that you stood aside and let her be taken. But it is not my fault you failed her as a friend. "That is for you to reconcile with her, and there's only one way for you to do that." He let go of his head and let the redhead fall before making his way to the stairs. Sensara did not care to wait another day to fight the Kenpachi. "He'd better be up there or else."
Walking up the steps, he'd reach the top as he heard the sounds of people gathering at the bottom. Walking forward, Sensara would stop and look up at a spot that was currently unoccupied. Sighing in annoyance, he'd let out a quiet "fuck." As Kenpachi wasn't there waiting for him. Walking on, he'd start to let his mana bleed just a little bit, the ground beneath his feet lifting up ashes as the ground he stepped on was disintegrating. Making his way along, the ground would cease to collapse on a molecular level as he felt it. Smiling, he'd look over his shoulder to see the captain of the eleventh division. "You're late." Turning to face him, he'd walk up to the lumbering man as he continued. "Gods, I was so worried you wouldn't show up. After all, I wasn't able to give my message to any of your they blacked out. You really need to step up their training." Seeing Kenpachi's grin as he started talking up the man, Sensara would hear him say," So you've been looking for me then?" "Oh, you don't know the half of it."
Letting Zaraki send off Yachiru, Sensara would unsheath his blade and give it a few light swings, the air singing his praises with every swipe. "There, now it's just the two of us. Since I've made you wait, I'll give you one free shot on me to make up for it." Chuckling, Sensara would ask him, "Are you sure? I'm pretty strong." "Yeah, go right on ahead." "Alright, no takebacksies." Circling Kenpachi, Sensara would stop once Kenpachi's back was to a building instead of the stairs in the distance. Spreading his legs, Sensara would place his blade over his shoulder as he placed his hand against the Kenpachi's abdomen, his fingers pointed up. "What're you doin'?" Zaraki would ask, though his response would come late as Sensara's entire musculature tightened up in a flowing motion, going from his toes. Moving along his feet and up his legs, the energy of moving his muscles began to develop a level of kinetic force in his body that rose higher. Traveling up his abdomen and first to his sword arm, his grip would relax, allowing the energy to gather in his arm. Almost like the cocking of a gun, his grip would tighten on his blade, and as he turned the hand on his opponent's stomach sideways, all the energy would release in that direction, flowing from his arm through his heart where that power would suddenly develop mass. Leaving his palm, Sensara would vaporize one of Kenpachi's kidneys as well as a whole lot of muscle as he sent the man backward into the building. "Personally, I wouldn't have given me that free shot. I did lift the gate into the Seireitei with one arm after all."
Hearing Kenpachi's laugh from the rubble, he'd say, "Now then, I'd say we probably have twenty minutes before you'll need dire medical attention for that wound, so what say we enjoy ourselves a bit until then?" With the rubble exploding outwards as the man got up, he'd suddenly lunged at Sensara, yelling, "Let's get this party started!" Taking a step forward to enter Kenpachi's zone, Sensara deflected his blade with the end of his hilt and slammed his fist into Kenpachi's abdomen, punching the injury he had created. Making his opponent stagger, Sensara would spin about, bringing his blade in from the side. Kenpachi would block this strike without budging. Seeing the glint in the captain's eye, Sensara sought to dash his hopes as he raised the blade over his head. Bringing his blade down, he'd clench the muscles in his abdomen, increasing the strength of his downward strike. Even blocking the strike, Sensara would bring Kenpachi to his knees. Seeing Zaraki keep his arm up brought a feral grin to Sensara's facade. "I'll give you a tip to help you out since you blocked that. There are two kinds of swings I will use on you. One uses momentum to drastically increase cutting power while reducing impact strength, and the other uses my abdomen to drastically increase strength of impacts while reducing clean cutting efficiency." Pulling his blade out of that lock, he'd step back, allowing Kenpachi to get back up. "It sounds like you and I are the same kind of people." "That's right. We're warriors." Rushing him again, Sensara would start targeting the Kenpachi's head, though his cuts were never deep. After several minutes of the man getting cockblocked by his foe, he'd finally get around him, bringing up his blade to cut the eyepatch loose. Jumping back with the explosion of power, Sensara would say, "Finally." His tone sounded like someone who had just climaxed as he said that. "Finally I can let loose." Shattering the ground as well as the walls on either side of him, Kenpachi would turn and bring his blade up just in time to see Sensara spinning horizontally in the air, his blade cleaving through the air with a red fade following it.
Kenpachi would jump back, narrowly avoiding that blade from bisecting him down the middle. Landing in a low stance, Sensara would have one hand on the ground as he held his blade even lower. Letting out an almost sensual purr, he'd say, "That's more like it." Marking a tonal shift in the fight, Sensara would stop going for cutting power. Pouncing on Kenpachi, he'd bring his blade down on him with brutal aggression. Now, every one of his strikes were shattering the ground beneath their feet, that red fade following his movements as though light itself was struggling to keep up with him. What would stop him was Kenpachi's first blood, a line of blood on Sensara's cheek from when the man had attempted to headbut the Kenpachi. Stopping, he'd draw his head back, basking in the thrill of the hunt. Kenpachi looked haggard, though not covered in many cuts, his body was heavily bruised.
Sensara's arms would go limp at his sides, his blade falling from his grip. Just as his weapon hit the ground, it would disperse into ashes and recollect along his arms. Where his gauntlets were blunt and geared towards wielding weapons, black nails would form, spikes on every finger and along his forearms. His legs would get the same treatment as his plated mouth guard, which seemed to extend up the sides of his face. Shivering as he smelt his own blood, Sensara would let out a low growl that permeated the minds of anyone in the vicinity. Straightening up, he'd stare at Kenpachi, his eyes an abyssal black with purple, staring across the battlefield. Gone were the sharp purple. All that remained was a haze drunk on blood and violence. That mouthguard would open as Sensara let out a bestial roar. Lunging at the Kenpachi, Sensara would bring his hands together, bringing them both down on Kenpachi's guard and shattering the blade. Dropping down, Sensara would grab the man's clothes and pull him over his back, lightly flinging him only to let go and dropkick the man's face, launching him at much greater velocities into and through the building. Following him through the hole he'd made, Sansara would hunt Kenpachi.
Ten Minutes Later In Front of the Shrine of Penitence
Byakuya Kuchiki and Jūshirō Ukitake would stand in front of the gate leading into the prison that contained Rukia Kuchiki. Waiting there, they'd flinch as explosion after explosion of dust made its way through the citadel towards them until it finally ended with a body being flung their way. Impacting the ground by their feet, Kenpachi would lay broken, covered in bruises and cuts, the hilt of his Zanpakuto still clutched tightly in his hands. "Still kicking Kenpachi or do you need to bow out?" Sensara would walk out of the dust, his gaze piercing the crumpled form of the eleventh captain as all he'd hear in response being the man's groan of pain. "Yeah, I thought so." Moving to lean over the man, he'd say, "By the way, that was for holding back. Don't ever insult me like that again."
*World War Too soon? Badum chsss
A/N: So, yeah. For anyone thinking it, Sensara does not have a super-powered evil side. He's just a battle junkie that actually gets off on combat. It's partially why he went rabid when Kenpachi first injured him, even if it was only superficial. Now, to answer any potential questions before I list some of the powers and abilities that were shown.
Yes, he did purr. No, it wasn't a catlike purr, but the creature he is emulating can be very catlike.
Yes, he will take it personally for calling him a human. He associates the term with a darkness from his past. You may learn about it in future chapters.
Abilities:
Mana Enforcement: That free strike against Kenpachi showcased an ability known as Mana Enforcement. Think of it as the mana equivalent to Blut. Mana Reinforcement is the defensive form of Mana Enforcement.
This is the fun part:
Karma: The soul of Sensara made manifest. Its sole purpose is to balance everything out. Of the seven forms of its shikai, all of them balance out the battlefield in some way.
Form 1, Fundamentalism: Requires anyone within its range to only have access to abilities that are considered to be the most basic skills of a warrior. This is stamina, strength, endurance, and skill. All other things are suppressed. Under this form's effects, a human samurai could kill a hollow, you know, those creatures that can only be actually injured with soul steel. This form would negate that defensive buff.
I invite anyone still reading this to guess the other six. Please feel free to send a review with your guess, and I'll be sure to confirm or deny them based on your correctness.
Oh, and so far, I haven't said anything about it, but since I'm feeling happy to have finished this chapter, I'll give you all a hint.
Everything is written with intention. As you know, everything is written with Sensara at the center. You will not see it here if he isn't aware of a conversation. As such, I invite you all to look over the chapters and find the inconsistencies in HIS narrative.
I'll give you one just to set you all on the right path.
When speaking to another person, they will hear him say taicho or fukutaicho, but he says captain and lieutenant in his inner monologue. He thinks in English and speaks in Japanese.