BSD
Administrator
Kyomu the serpent, once deemed treacherous and nothing beyond a plightless killer—his stance is now somehow.. different. He acts with the same devotion, the same killing intent and drive obviously fuels him. Yet the more blood his blade spills, the more its metal resounds in the hall, the more Higen could garner how this byproduct of a cruel clan system was misunderstood. His coup’ was a clear betrayal of the Seireitei, but at what cost. An assassin does not act without orders, without a target. After all this time, perhaps it’d become clear that for the entirety of his life Kyomu had only been a tool. Had this monster—no—this warrior, been unleashed upon the enemy freely, and bound to some sort of honor.. his potential was limitless.
The very first Captain candidate Higen was ever forced to come to blows with after his transfer, and undoubtedly the most promising. Just a mere child in Higen’s eyes, he had the ability to wield his zanpakuto in such a way. He conjured insanity, an instance of reliving hell over and over again, unable to escape the abyss that was his Bankai. Perhaps one of the very few to see it, perhaps the only to survive it—Higen feared it. This was no secret, no shame, it deserved fear—from everyone. In Higen’s mind, even in Kyomu’s halved state, there was nothing in the field of combat he could see him relatively fail at, a true master of battle.
Tenzen seemed such a different person from his test a short time ago. His respect for Higen as a Captain stood but his ability to challenge him was unrelenting. The buddha wore many faces, and showed them all on a whim—each one carried its strength, along with its flaws. Here he stood, in this colosseum with products of infamous clans. Higen himself had only manifested from an unfortunate death, and the miracle of rebirth. His path long, treacherous, the proven image of Commander Murosaki’s reformation of the Gotei 13. He was the image of everything it stood for; its strength, its honor.
The sound of energy crashing against, all-while being encapsulated by the Giant’s throne attempts to cast a veil over the sounds of Higen’s rain of crystal.
Ting Ting Ting Ting
Tenzen’s ability to dispatch of the crystal, wherever he was, would be much more silent. It was clear Kyomu had used the best defense—offense—to combat Higen’s onslaught with a flurry of swords swipes. While Higen was more straightforward, it was no doubt that the two of them were perhaps the craftiest minds in all the Seiretei, he had to tread carefully. Holding his position behind the throne momentarily his ears flicker at the lobes, listening intently, his ears his only tool in a room where their reiatsu is cloaked and vision is extremely limited.
“Light bullets, eight bodies, nine items, book of heaven..”
Tenzen’s voice echoes as the previous noises subside, its central location still relatively the same, yet he escapes sight evermore. The words of an incantation hit hard, second only to the room-shaking blast that escapes from near the door, he must be targeting Kyomu. The blast was loud enough, prominent enough, to dismantle the most impenetrable defenses. Tenzen’s focused seemed to be more along the lines of dispatching Kyomu at least temporarily so his own focus could remain on Higen. If that was the case—and he was sure it was—the next attack would come for him. A deep mist consumes the entire room, looming eerily at all levels of the space. It shields all from view, the throne fairly close to Higen even begins to fade away. His eyes widen in surprise, shock, concern. He has seen this sight before, felt this feeling. It is second only to the abyss of his coma, the darkness and trickling water he was exiled to by the cruel monster in his head. Tenzen would not understand, he’d have no idea, but from now on, they were in Kyomu’s domain.
Higen does not have a moment to gather his thoughts about dealing with, or rather surviving Kyomu, as his consistent obstacle makes itself present once more. There is an eruption of power, its force so calamitous that it rips the fabric of air before them, Tenzen’s form being revealed at the casting-end of it. Higen’s wild mane flutters, the light from the energy cast upon his head of hair vibrantly enhancing the mucky green.
Despite all his evasion today, however swift, his display of reflex now surpasses all. He turns clockwise to face the expanse of reiatsu, pivoting back foot before leaping away from the attack’s manifestation. Only able to safely retreat a short distance, a rough estimate of ten yards towards the opposite edge of the hall, a sillhouete—perhaps one of Kyomu’s doubles haunting him in his peripheral as he passes.
In the short dash his entire frame bleeds from view in a single millisecond the enhancement of the senren radiating from his body in an emerald hue. Whatever remained of his tattered Haori and Shikashuhou is folded over, his raw torso revealed cut intensely and chiseled as if crafted by a god. Every extremity, defined and perfect—his body’s durability capable of putting iron to shame, and withstanding the most fearsome of attacks.
“Hadō #88. Hiryū Gekizoku Shinten Raihō!!!
Such a spell, here, now.. the power was insurmountable, and Higen seemed to stare death in the face. His mind escapes momentarily, time at an impasse around him, a stern voice mocking him in the back of his mind.
“They’re younger than you.
“I Know.”
“They’re faster, more crafty too.”
“I Know.”
“You could die here. You need my power, don’t you? You want to break everything you see into pieces with all your heart, don’t you..”
“I will not, I do not!”
It appeared not unlike some of his peers, even Hitsumishi was subject to doubt. Even he, doubted the warrior’s resolve. This could not stand, perhaps it was an opportunity—an opportunity to prove to him, to them all, that his heart was true. His purpose, his intention, pure.
The heaven-shaking cannon roared, lightning and fire coiling against and throughout each other to create an ancient and powerful weapon. Higen stands firm, both his fists clad in shiny cobalt as he takes his stance. His elbows tuck at the waist, gently folding behind his rib cage. His biceps rip and tear, stretching as the muscle bulges and veins run down the entirety of his arms. His teeth grind against each other, the weight of his reiatsu increasing exponentially in a fraction of a moment. Like a well-oiled machine, every part of his body begins to work at once. Every ounce of his strength flows and conjugates with that of his gauntlets. He rears back both fists, the spikes at the knuckles glowing immensely, before unleashing a combination of punches directly in the face of Tenzen’s attack. The action of the punches is immediately mimicked by a conjuring of pre-shaped crystal. They come from each fist, and continue to multiply—one after another, after another, after one more. It is endless. The fists do not stop, do not seek to shelter Higen, but to face the kido spell head on.
“HeeeeeeeYAAaaaaaaah!!
Higen roars in response, his combination never-ending. Jabs, hooks, the speed and power of the punches creates a blur, and one can only see the vibrating frame of the shining knight. The crystal fists meet with the attack, punching against it, halting its progression, and every time Higen feels he does not have enough, he conjures more, and more. Some of them attempt to absorb a good portion of the attacks reiatsu, but its power—too—feels boundless. It halts, sparks of electricity and flame scattering about the room due to the collision, the amount of heat surrounding Higen’s body is atmospheric, like a meteorite striking the earth. Vibrant flames dance along blue lightning, yet no matter how bright, the thickness of the fog remains. Higen’s onslaught continues, until the blast finally seems to begin being pushed in the opposite direction, the tempo of the fists only increasing with Higen’s excitement. A maniacal laugh escapes, Higen’s eyes radiating with potent reiryoku.
“AAHHAHAAHAA! More!! More!!”
Higen’s arms do not tire, his focus unaverred; he was truly drowning in joy. His taunts continue, if this was to be a battle, he would get the very most out of it. With each word, Higen continues to over power the spell. Each fist that had not yet been dismantled hums with the cataclysmic energy Tenzen has fed it, and soon his own spell would be upon him.
“Weak! WEAK!! Weak Captain Oda!! Is this what the power the hollow has leant you, is this way you’ve forsaken your race!?”
Few have seen Captain Kagayaki become this monster, this battle-hungry fiend. His voice is loud enough to be even heard from the Captain hall’s exterior courtyard. It was terrifying, a beast had clawed its way out from the depths within, itching for more, itching to show its strength. If only there were more to share in the glory, more to taste his might. He began to regret the fleeing of his other fellow captains, as they too—perhaps more than Tenzen and Kyomu—needed to taste such power.
