[BSD-RP] Soul Society: Rukongai

[Shinigami]

Far from the threaded haven woven and held together by the might of Itobeni threads explored. These wryly tendrils so thin… so insignificant that at a glance they would be overlooked, so easily mistaken as mere insects for the meager energy that radiated from themas they hunted tirelessly through the ruined area and beyonds. The Spirit Detective was not taking any chances. The time for laughter had come and passed; now it was the hour of the hunt, and hunt the Captain would… anyone or thing that he may deem suspicious.
Even before Tenzen and his motley crew had reached the sanctuary that staved of destruction the Bloodhound had ‘sniffed’ them out. In truth, the threading appendages swimming endlessly around the area had caught wind of them; the information almost immediately relayed back to their ginger overlord. Though the Bloodhound was now on guard… something wasn’t right… something had been watching this site… something he could not sense… something perhaps deadlier than any beast he’d ever come across… and so his threads like Hellhounds themselves seamlessly crawled through the air and the earth. They branched and splintered into unseen hairs that followed the approaching caravan; could these interlopers be trusted…? Itsuki couldn’t afford to be so foolish as to assume they were but he couldn’t be so arrogant as to bare his fangs when he himself is unsure of their intention or the situation beyond the slice of calm that he & Lieutenant Arashi were nestled in.
“Captain, I’ve already removed my subordinates as far away as possible. There is no reason for us to remain here…”
Itsuki cocked his brow at the inaction of the Lieutenant. Itsuki wasn’t sure whether the boy wanted to flee in fear for his own safety or genuinely didn’t understand that this was an attempt to stabilize an otherwise wrecked plot of land. Though he couldn’t fault the Lieutenant for their thinking, it was fine to simply leave and reduce this hickish area to ruin, this was far beyond the Lieutenant’s authority and expertise… after all the Rukongai was the land scavenged, patrolled, and beloved mainly by the dutiful dogs of the Seventh.
“Look ‘ere…”
Itsuki prattled, only to suddenly pause. A fleck of darkness caught not only the ‘third’ eye of Itsuki but even the attention of Itobeni who squirmed hungrily just beneath a veil of earth. An almost eerie stillness befell the Captain as Arashi continued on.
“Is it safe to go yet?”
His voice was strange… the deep robotic gurgle that accented his every word was a clear sign to Itsuki that something was amiss with the Lieutenant. Itsuki couldn’t ignore the danger of both the approaching unit and the monster that was stirring before his eyes.
He had to think quickly; each second that he left to inaction would be a second tributed to his demise. It was maddening… many men would be driven to the fringes of their sanity by the pressure… and yet the stony features of Itsuki remained stoic. His eyes pensively looking forward. He was a man resolved to action; a soldier whose duty is to protect this land… and part of protecting it would be capturing the suspicious Shinigami saddled with the wretched energy of a Hollow. Itsuki couldn’t be sure what the nature of this creature was… could it be the vile Vizards of fabled times? A Hollow who donned the flesh of a Reaper to defile the sanctuary that is the Soul Society? Another mysterious creature yet to be documented? Itsuki could think of a million hypotheticals… a million scenarios… and each started with the same solution.
ABSOLUTE SUBJUGATION.
The precious land meant to be protected… the law meant to be upheld…Itsuki begun to talk to the beast clad in the flesh of his comrade as he felt his blood boiling while a list of possible crimes and infractions began to rattle through his mind.
“Now now, where’d ya wanna go?”
A motherly tenderness carried his every soft spoken word. He dared not speak much louder than a whisper, a technique often used by psychologists to gain the focus of a rowdy client. A single thread, so thin the untrained eye couldn’t catch it, shot from the ground just between the boy’s feet. It spiraled around the Lieutenant silently and swiftly, but making sure never to touch the Lieutenant. In the same moment the thread had reached the length of the Lieutenant’s neck, the sudden dynamic entry of the foreign unit would erupt onto the scene.
“Ten-chan…?”
Itsuki’s head crooned to the side, his expression blank and his words robotic and lifeless. Now between the hungry wolf and his lamb now stood a friend. Itsuki was taken back by this. They’d set up a cage of a light… but Itsuki couldn’t help but wonder whether it was a cage to keep the danger out or in? He recognized his comrade and the establishment of the barrier that seemed to remove the remnants of smoke that billowed across the land, but above that Itsuki instinctively waited— but for what? Even the Captain wasn’t sure… but he wanted to see what move his dearest friend would make before he made his own. While he was steeled in his ways and more than ready to combat the legion before him… the Captain felt a feeling of deep ease wash over his weary somber self as it seemed in the coming moments that he made the right decision by waiting.
"Rikujōkōrō"
Tenzen had captured the beast; his bountiful pillars of light restrained the suspect. For the moment, he could believe Tenzen was on his side. For the moment, he could relax his apathetic facade; the wolf has retreated and so returns the Cheshire grin famous to Itsuki.
“Now, now. Ten-chan, I gots to ask ‘dis lucky duck a few questions.”
Itsuki flickered his long doggish tongue as he spoke, a sign of perhaps his dysfunction but above that his lack of animosity.
“Ya see, when ya got a suspect ye gots ta’ interrogate ‘dem. I ain’t got no problem with ya tagging along tho’.”
Itsuki smiled with such a macabre gleam. Anyone with knowledge of the machinations and methods of Itsuki would know… those who often survive an interrogation by the Captain himself are slated to a long-term stay for mental rehabilitation at The Maggots Nest.
“Now tho’, I already surveyed da’ surroundin’ lands. Ain’t no signs of anything hostile ‘side from dis lil rascal.”
A pointed nod of the chin in the direction of Arashi would surmise that at the moment the only perceived threat to the Rukongai was Arashi. The dutiful and dogmatic Captain couldn’t be sure yet that the Lieutenant was not a threat; after all… he wasn’t quite sure what this creature was.
“I don’ gon’ missed a bit-o action while I was gone, we can catch up after dis is all cleared up.”
Itsuki hadn’t disarmed his Shikai. Itsuki hadn’t dismissed his threads that swept across the rubbled and ruined face of the Rukongai. Despite his appearance of being relaxed, the Captain being a man of deep conspiracy wasn’t yet sane enough to release his Zanpaktou. In the mind of Itsuki... his safe space the Rukongai had been violated. This was unforgivable but beyond that it was triggering. The Bloodhound, an investigator of such immense perception, could not perceive whether around him was friend or foe... and that is dangerous.

 

[Shinigami]

“I dunno why ya keep on fightin’ me for. Wouldn’t it be so much easier to forego the headache and just let me have at it?”
“You take over my body, you kill us both. No matter if you beat me, the moment you step out is when they have your head.”
The two of them bicker, and if it had not been for the fact that one was inherently evil and only visible to Yasu, they could easily be mistaken for siblings. As she sits on the ground, she brings her hands around to touch it, gathering herself as she manages to quell her inner hollow once more. It has no rebuttal, reminded of the vicious beating that the Captain-Commander dealt that day, along with Captain Oda and Arashi Suta. Managing to finally come up to her feet, the lieutenant steadies herself in both body and soul before she makes a decision from then on.
The clouds of dust and debris seceded from the blast zone, due to the work of Captain Oda who had arrived at the scene before him, along with his entourage of Priestesses and another in tow. The technique he uses is simple, and having observed it many times before, Yasu can only let out a sigh of relief as she overhears the account of survivors from those priestesses. While the captain does not respond to it as he continues his movements without breaking his concentration.
WOOOOOOOOOOSH!!
The area of the 77th District is cleared and visible. Observing from the ground, Yasu’s attention falls back down to where the encampment once lied. While the Captain had cleared the way, his subordinates had gone to work after locating those who’d survived, creating that enlarged kido that stabilized a portion above the valley; along with that was the bountiful amounts of thick, red threads where the party she left earlier resided. Even from where she stood, Yasu could sense the inner turmoil that Arashi was going through. As much as she wanted to provide a sense of aid, there was no telling as to what would happen with the three vizards in a single space. At most, Yasu could depend on Tenzen to keep things in order and execute them as any shinigami would. One of the closest to reaching true peace, Lieutenant Yūgure could rely on him if such a case came to fruition.
The glance back over his shoulder only confirms that he has the same thoughts, but she was doing better after clearing away the cloud that loomed over them at first. She gives him a simple nod to signal that everything was fine where she currently resided, but the happenings in their immediate area between the two captains as they convened, Arashi, now bound by Rikujōkōrō, thrown like lamb to the slaughter. Sitting sandwiched in between the two opposing forces, Arashi would have to fix himself quickly, or appeal to Captain Itsuki’s better nature -- if he had one. With his Division in unknown shambles, his area of work destroyed, and whatever he’d been investigating, decimated in an instant, Itsuki’s generous nature from when they’d first crossed paths was certainly down the drain by now.
Unfortunately, Yasu couldn’t stay with them any longer. Like them, she still had an objective to complete. Kazumi had hopefully arrived at their division and settled in with both Xiaolin and Kagewaki. Ochitsuki would be around to provide his aid if he wasn’t picking away at random bugs.The only person that she didn’t account for was her captain, but upon turning around behind her back towards the Seireitei, Yasu imagined that he would be racing towards the Rukongai after hearing her call. Taking hesitant steps, she then moves into confident strides as she moves from the the border of the 77th District and delved back into the upper Eastern Rukongai, starting with Sakahone (逆骨, Reverse Bone).

"All work and no play makes Yasu a dull girl.”
Her inner hollow continues to poke at her, but Yasu has regained a sense of balance. Coming to the realization that she is only swayed if her emotions are at such a risk, the lieutenant had come to the conclusiont hat hse needed to get that under wraps as quickly as she could. While she may have been strong physically, her mentality was crumbling. From the simple recollection in her conversatio with Kyomu, Yasu had slipped into a panic and dropped, unable to take a step further until her attention was diverted. She managed to reel in her emotions and become the bubbly person that she was known for. Even during the mission briefing, Yasu seemed fine, responding accordingly and with confidence in her choices. Yet as they begin their mission, things unfold, one right after the other. Mishap after mishap only breaks down the lieutenant's hold to keep, and it nearly slipped out of her hands.
It nearly happened again. Letting out a heavy sigh, Yasu had once again left her Inner Hollow be.
"You'll slip, and I'll be waiting.”

 

[Shinigami]

The valley in its entirety is consumed in smoke, heat and hellfire. The mining facility like the walls of the very valley and gorge it is built within, collapses on itself, the destruction wrought here can be felt throughout the entirety of the 77th District of the Rukongai. The lives of nearly everyone present in peril. Members of the Kido Corps, no doubt fatigued from exhausting themselves in their attempt to destroy what now to them, is perceived indestructible. Plans, foiled. Confidence, crumbled. It was a worst case scenario for the Shinigami.
Gauging the situation immediately, the towering Captain who’s sanity is perhaps kept into question, acts to preserve not only his life, but the life of those around him. Releasing his zanpakuto, he reacts accordingly — acting as a buffer between the destruction, and those who would be buried and destroyed. Like a tailor, the Captain weaves and threads the crimson tendrils of his zanpakuto through the earth and valley around them, moments prior to the Valley’s complete collapse. Though prepared for impact, having braced himself he is still taken aback as the molten stone, concussive winds and shockwaves from the blast pummel and batter the crimson threaded cocoon. As the destruction does not relent, so too does the mighty Captain refuse to cave, enduring until the end.
As the chaos begins to settle, Tenzen Oda and his entourage arrive. With only smoldering smoke and destruction as far as the eye could see, his group remains ignorant of the status of any who lay beneath the sea of rubble. Captain Oda wastes no time in remedying this issue, commanding one of his subordinates to make use of the Bakudo spell Kakushitsuijaku while he himself retrieves his zanpakuto, freeing it of its seal as his shikai is activated.
The Captain takes his stance
The soft mist that covers his blade soon flares up, engulfing it fiercely like a flame. The Golden Buddha relaxes his body, empties his mind - no - he empties his existence. The sound of his subordinates voice, of the world around him becomes lost to the Captain as he readies his blade, securing and maintaining his stance. When the Buddha does speak, it is again to issue out orders while he raises his blade in the air. The Kido Chief has assessed the situation, determined an issue, and thought of a remedy for this new issue to be answered with Kido. By his command the Priestesses move without hesitation, each adopting a strategic point around the rubble filled valley, or..rather the valley turned rubble.

The Buddha brings his arms down, swinging his blade, releasing a golden light that cleaves through the smoke and air without pause or effort. As it passes through, in its wake a vacuum is left.
WOOOOOOOOOOSH!!
As if desperate to be filled, the air creates a powerful suction. The veil of smoke is forcefully drawn away scattered across the neighboring districts within the Rukongai. Debris is pulled and drawn away, revealing a film of orange tinting the valley below behind its glow, the loose and unstable debris that surrounds those beneath frozen and upheld in stasis.The safety of all survivors secured firstly by Captain Asakura, and now by Captain Oda. The Kido Chief finally descends and further assesses the situation with his own eyes. Eyes move from the members of his squad, confirming their safety before moving to wedge himself between his Lieutenant and his fellow Captain.
”Rikujōkōrō”
The Oda secures his Lieutenant in beams of golden light, sealing both his reiryoku and his movements temporarily. He assures his colleague that the situation is under control and there is no need to further pursue this matter. Unfortunately his assurance is not enough for Captain Itsuki Asakura. The Captain of the Seventh Division suspects the Lieutenant of the Fifth, perceiving the man as a potential threat. His absence from the Seireitei leaves him ignorant of the fact that not only Arashi Suta, but Tenzen Oda and Yasu Yugure have all been afflicted with Hollowfication. The massive ginger stands defiantly in protest of his fellow Captain’s removal of what the Rukongai’s guardian perceives to be his only link, the only clue to the mystery of events recently endured.
Watching from a distance, Lieutenant Yugure perceives the rising tensions between the two Captains revolving around her fellow Lieutenant and Vizard — even if currently one sided. She does not approach, chooses not to meddle in such affairs as she realizes she has her own matters to attend to. Small steps begin to carry her retreat until-

Yasu finds her path abruptly obstructed, her body colliding softly into this unforeseen road block. A roadblock known as Kyomu Mukuro, Captain of the Second Division, her Captain. Kyomu’s arrival is sudden, so sudden that it is impossible to tell exactly when the man had actually arrived. He bypasses Kiku of the First Division, desperately working for the Buddha’s approval in hopes of finding himself beneath his care and tutelage. The Priestesses and Kido Corps on guard, diligent workers in their own rights are ignored and bypassed without disturbance. Arashi Suta who battles with himself and is pitted between a Captain who would condemn him and the Captain who would save him is in no place to be able to track and survey his surroundings, let alone keep up with the likes of the Phantom’s movements. Where Itsuki’s zanpakuto succeeds in forewarning him of Tenzen and his entourage’s arrival, the threads left untouched, completely unperturbed fail to alert their master of Captain Mukuro’s arrival and his movements. The Buddha, with his insight, his level of control and observation leave the man in want in regards to the Phantom’s actions.
Kyomu stands amongst them, while simultaneously ignoring all of them, all save for Yasu. Arms folded across his chest, his scars from the meeting, left unattended to remain visible to his Lieutenant’s eyes, yet Kyomu shows no care for such a trivial thing. His reiatsu seems nonexistent, his presence seemingly indivisible from the very air itself. Amber hues gaze down at his subordinate, giving her a once over he determines that she is currently unharmed, and yet her moment of inner conflict is not lost to him. His eyes finally break away from her temporarily to glance back over from Captain Itsuki, to Lieutenant Arashi and finally on Captain Oda before returning their focus back to Yasu.
”What is your report Lieutenant?”
His first words, his only words to his Second in Command. He knows that there is much that has taken place here, much that he perhaps does not know, just as he knows that he is losing time with every delay. Before, Kyomu was one of three remaining Captains, joined together by conflict and then bloodshed. Now, Kyomu stands as one of three Captains gathered in this particular valley within the Rukongai, united under a banner of ignorance. Captain Itsuki, ignorant to what created that Garganta he witnessed and where the blood was siphoned to. Captain Oda, ignorant of his division’s failure in destroying the river of the Soul King’s blood and the fact that it was instead taken away by some unknown entity or force, and Captain Mukuro, ignorant to the death of his Fifth seat, the disappearance of Sakiko and the whereabouts of the prisoner’s he sought.
He awaits an update from Yasu on the situation, his face a mask of apathy. With his Division’s failures already aired out in the meeting, he doesn’t bother to take Yasu elsewhere in hopes of keeping Captain Itsuki in the dark on their situation. He’d no doubt learn of it sooner or later anyways. Depending on where things stood, perhaps he’d need to call upon Captain Oda’s aid, sooner rather than later.

 

[Shinigami]

His mind plagued. His thoughts ravaged. He only saw darkness, rage, and blood. His inner turmoil is no longer internal, as the conflict bleeds into existence. Formed as a white liquid that begins to lick and caress the side that is continuously covered by a single hand. His lips moved to form words, words that will not escape. Profusely, endlessly, the word no is repeated over and over and over again… Slipping, his grapes on his humanity starts to fade away. Closer, his inner-hollow nears the outer walls of his mind. The orb of light that surrounds him, that once protected him from the harmful environment of the now decimated Rukongai. This wall fizzles before finally cracking and breaking into pieces. With what control he has right now, he recalls his Shikai, his Zanpakuto forming yet again. He had hoped that Hoshizora would come to his aid. Her soothing voice would be his grace, and relieve him from this pressure, this, headache…
Knock…
Knock…
Knock…
Arashi dares not… He refuses with great aggression. However, he hoped that it would be Hoshizora knocking… However, it is chance. It is doubt that keeps him from stepping closer. Frozen in place, and the longer he waits, the closer his inner-hollow comes. The more his presence continues to work in its escape. Soon. Soon…
“ Now now, where’d ya wanna go?”
The attempt to soothe what Captain Itsuki perceived to be a beast, his words held no merit. They did not amount to anything but just that, words. The bloodhound is ignored, forgotten, even as his thin string that stems from his Shikai moves in silence. Swift in its approach to his neck, but never touching the troubled Lieutenant. Posed to bind or rather strangle the Lieutenant. Ready to take yet another life… As any Shinigami should protect these lands from Hollows. In the midst of struggles, Arashi remains oblivious to the events that now transpire. The dissipation of the heat and smoldering dust. The arrival of his Captain and company. The whereabouts of his own comrades. Swiftly did his Captain arrive between him and the man that hoped to sink his fangs into the Lieutenant. Perhaps to protect him? Or rather to maintain a sense of security. The Buddha releases a Bakudo that restrains Arashi physically, but mentally it does nothing to restrain his counterpart…
Knock...
Knock…
Knock…
It. Continues…
Undeniably. Relentlessly. He urges Arashi to give in, to allow him freedom. Allow him blood.
” This is perfect Arashi. This is the opportunity we can use to assert OUR dominance. To show OUR strength. We can break through this stupid Bakudo and rip through the chest of that wanna-be monk. Then tear through the throat of that stray dog.”
“ It’ll be so easy… They won't even expect it!”
” Shut-up…”
” I WILL NOT BE SILENCED ARASHI! I WILL BE FREE! ”
The bloodhound speaks, in hopes that Captain Oda will step aside. In hopes that he will agree to the interrogation of his second in command. Perhaps the equally believed that he would allow for Arashi to be slaughtered so casually…
” One of them wants to take your life anyway. I can save you Arashi. The only thing your Captain has done is just restrain you. Do you think he can stop that dog from getting you? YOU ARE SURROUNDED! There is no way he can protect you and protect himself at the same time…”
” You are despicable. First, you aim to kill both of them, now you want to save me? Do you think of me as a child? Someone who was just born yesterday? I am sick of this!”
” You are in my world, my soul and spirit. You are but a nuisance that needs to be quelled.”
” Ahahahaha! Is that a threat?! I’ll tell you what... I’ll give you time. Time to right your wrongs. To settle any scores you have left in this world. I’ve already cracked enough doors in your feeble little mind. YOU have no fucking idea how close I am, do you? MY HANDS ARE LITERALLY UNDER YOUR THROAT!”
” The next time that you hear my voice will be the end of Arashi Suta. And that, Is a promise I will keep…”
Quickly did his darkness fade. Quickly did the hollow manifestation around the side of his face and eye subside into nothingness. Slowly, did his eye return to its natural color. His Inner-hollow had allowed him one more chance, but Arashi could tell that his final days were coming. He is in fact scared and such fear shows in his face. He needed a solution. He needed to be in control…

 

[Shinigami]

There he sat, atop of the construction he had created, above the chaos and turmoil of the recent happenings. His companions and fellow Shinigami somewhere beneath him idling, injured, and possibly still in danger. He couldn't help but think of how selfish his actions were in the moment, his adrenaline and raw instinct kicked in which initiated his fight or flight mindset. There had been so much more he could have done in the moment than he had acted upon, a chance to actually ensure the safety of his counterparts instead of leaving them all to chance. His visage showing his obvious crestfallen state that his own actions had brought about. He remained completely still in a state of shock as everything that had occurred seemingly hit him all at once. His state of stillness and fear only interrupted by from what from his perspective appeared to be a golden arc of light that bisected the cloud of smoke and debris as if it had been in a solid state, a vacuum being created as a result whilst the remaining debris was sucked into the arc, which seemed to fade into nothingness after accomplishing its purpose. The field had now been clear, the locations of his counterparts now in plain sight despite the relative distance he had achieved during his initial fleeing. And from there, was a sight that although brought him relief, it also instilled just as much fear into him that the garganta had. His captain had arrived, his eyes for some reason locked solely upon Eizoku in the moment, seemingly void of any apparent emotion, yet he could read the message loud and clear. The mocha skinned male cast his gaze down inadvertently to break away from his captain's, only to his surprise to see his splayed fingers braced against his zan and barrier, both hands shaking uncontrollably. His dreadlocks falling down out of their neat holding, gracefully falling forward covering his face for a moment until he had regained his composure. Allowing him to reserve a bit of his dignity.
After a few moments, Eizoku had raised his head up slightly to get a clear picture of exactly what had been going on now, only to see his Lieutenant restrained by a plethora of light pillars which restricted all action from the man. Immediately recognizing the Rikujokoro, the man couldn't help but wonder why in the midst of all this chaos would Lt. Suta need to be restrained. Instinctively his initial desire was to leap head forward into mass of newly arrived Shinigami, however before he could so much as even begin to move on his own, a familiar voice, not of his own mouth, but rather within the confines his own mind and spirit had let out a single phrase before fading into the recesses of the man's mind.
"Don't allow your discombobulated state to render your senses null, the area isn't safe to maneuver, the ginger headed man holds it all under his authority as of now."
With his senses coming back attuned from the reminder of his own zanpakto, he was able to clearly sense the threads that had suffused the area by means of Captain Itsuki. Movement on his part would be reckless, and being that his own captain was present and seemingly handling the situation, if Eizoku had joined he'd certainly only be a burden in the matter. A gust of wind struck his eye, causing a reflexive blinking, and to his surprise once his eyes had reopened, the presence of another had appeared. Another captain, based from his attire at a distance, it was the captain of the second division, Kyomu Mukuro. He hadn't even been able to clearly process or read the man's action in the slightest, it was as if he didn't hold a presence to himself at all. Unable to do anything in the moment but feel helpless, the male remained in place where he had initially resided. Completely aware of the pending punishment that his involvement in the situation would bring about after the resolvement of the situation at hand.