Their match continued with spell against spell and strategy against strategy. The two siblings battled each other, the younger sibling, Michi Kiyoshi determined to prove herself stronger, smarter than her older brother. Seconds seemed like hours during their practice match and near the end the two siblings are facing each other just a few meters apart. With one arm each raised and extended towards each other almost as if they read each other's thoughts, they begin the same spell which turns out to be Hadō #63 Raikōhō. Simultaneously they fire their spell at each other and the roaring thunder of their spells echo across the training ground. What happened next shouldn't be hard to figure out.
” 2 Month Later"
Day after day, Takashi continued to wander in Rukongai, more specifically District 32 Hokusei kawa (北西川 , lit. "Northwest river"). He caught thieves, solved various crimes and patrolled for hours, the usual duties of his division. While still in the vicinity of the Kiyoshi household, Takashi decided to drop by for a short visit. The last time he was 'home' was a long time ago but that is not the reason for today's visit. After only a short time of walking he stands at the entrance to the mansion and he takes a deep sigh before taking his first step over the threshold into the area. Once he enters the house, he is greeted by none other than Jibun Kiyoshi, the family's own teacher in the art of being a Shinigami.
” What are you doing here, boy?"
Not surprised to meet his old teacher here, it's his home just as much as all the other members of the family. Takashi goes down quickly on one knee with his right leg on the ground while the left is bent and his head leaning forward, feeling Jibun staring down at him and without wasting time he answers the question.
” I'm just here to visit."
After that is said, while Takashi is kneeling in front of his former sensei, he hears the older man tap his wooden cane twice on the ground. This gives the signal that he can now stand up from the floor and he does so quickly while Jibun continues on without another word being said. Takashi starts walking around the hallowed halls of the Kiyoshi Manor. Home to the purist of Shinigami, estate of seasoned warriors and powerful noblemen and women alike. The Kiyoshi were by no means a smaller "lesser" Clan, to the outsiders they seemed stagnant, unmoved by the winds of change that everlastingly hits the Soul Society and Seireitei with such blunt force, toppling all in its wake. Except for the pillars of Purity, the examples of duty. The information on the Kiyoshi were small to the outside world, only knowing that they are a clan to breed masterful and skilled shinigami who have all gone on to be high ranking members and important figureheads within the structure of the Seireitei. Even in recent years, the elders and their Clan Lord, Shusuke Kiyoshi, have made movements in not only securing favorable relations with the neighboring clans as well as the Four Great Noble Houses themselves, save for the Kuchiki's.
After a short visit and a lot of talking with various members of the family, Takashi notices that neither Shusuke nor his son Sōma can be seen, which makes Takashi wonder where they might be. Either Shusuke is at his division and Sōma is at the academy and their reunion will have to be another time. Takashi chooses to look at one last place in case they are there and he starts walking towards the training field.
He stands by the window and looks out to see Sōma practicing the art of casting spells with Jibun in the field. Quietly and staying out of the way, he just continues to look towards the young Kiyoshi who is being trained just like several in the family before him. Takashi already sees that Shusuke's son will have a bright future ahead of him. A relief that everything seems to be going exactly as it should 'at home' but immediately after he has once again let time fly by again. He needs to hurry back now to talk to his sister about a decision he made so he thanks for the welcome and leaves quickly to make it back before Michi notices his absence in the barracks.
” 7 Month Later"
In just a few months that have passed, a lot has happened in Takashi's life, everything from division to way of thinking and appearance. Takashi has now become part of the 13th division and has chosen that his future is there now, appearance has also improved to a more mature look. Once again, just like many times before, Takashi stands in his room at the 13th Division barracks. There is no furniture in his room other than the mattress he sleeps on and he has set it up against the window to stop anyone trying to look inside and blocking the sunlight from coming in. A perfect place for the man to train by himself without being seen by anyone and hopefully not be disturbed. Inside the room, Takashi is standing in a fighting stance with both legs slightly bent, the front foot facing straight forward and the back foot pointed out at 20 degrees and his right fist is held beside the chin and the elbow tucked against the rib cage while the left fist is held vertically about six inches in front of the face at eye level. In this stance, it looks like he's ready to fight but what is he really going to fight against with nothing inside the room apart from himself. Slowly Takashi begins to close both his eyes and he uses the power of imagination to imagine his opponent standing there in front of him. The room started to fill up with nothing but tension and without moving a muscle, Takashi began to sweat.
The thought to be the best has always been a goal of Takashi and it is something he has been taught to strive for from childhood. Slowly he opens both eyes to see a giant man in front of him standing 243 cm (7'11") tall and muscles which rivals even the biggest among all the Soul Society. It is a body that appears to have several years of brutal training behind it but when Takashi looks at the face of the man he sees only a piercing gaze and brown long wavy hair and the face does not resemble any shinigami known to him. In front of Takashi, the ultimate strength appeared before him but the appearance of this unknown beast of a man did not satisfy him. The giant man represents someone who will always be stronger and faster than Takashi himself on all physical levels. The imagination has to be stronger than Takashi himself and that is exactly what it is. All of a sudden, the giant man began his attack towards Takashi with an extremely powerful punch with the right fist. Takashi sees this and tries to dodge the attack by leaning his body to the left but there is no use. Because suddenly the attacker grabs hold of Takashi's left hand tightly with his right hand, then he grabs the face with his left hand.The imagination is so real that Takashi actually falls down on your back seeing the man above him staring into his eyes. Then Takashi notices that he has his right hand free and the imagination ends there.
” This is far from good enough.."
Takashi said to himself as he lay on the floor and a waterfall of sweat came from him. All at once he moves both legs up to the chest and places both hands flat on the ground next to his ears with all fingers pointed toward the tops of the shoulders. With fast movements Takashi rolls back so that all of his weight is on the shoulders and the spine is beneath the shoulders and the rear in the air. In this position he kicks with both legs directly into the air upwards and with the force from the kick his body lifts up and as soon he feels the momentum shifting upwards he does a powerful backwards push-up with his hands. Sending his whole body up in the air and the sensation of this weightlessness hits him and that is when he knows to pull his legs down quickly the momentum will cause the rest of the body to whirl upwards making him land on his feet. As Takashi is about to take his stance again, he can hear a loud whistle from outside and he stops completely to just listen.
”Oyama Hoshi, Takashi Kiyoshi, and Yurei Shiroi, front and center immediately!”
Takashi lets out a loud sigh and raises his left arm up against the mattress and with a fast movement he pulls it down onto the floor and on the bed is his shihakushō top. The sound of other members of the division can be heard on the other side of his door. He begins to put on the last part of his uniform. With an annoyed look, Takashi looks at the door and walks quickly towards it to scold the loud members of the division but when he gets there the people are now already gone. Takashi does not have time to think about them anymore and closes his door before he walks away. In silence, he walks through the barracks towards the place that the shout at him and several came from to see what it was about.
