| abstract
| - The Rukon District. Near a large waterfall where Maki also lives and trains. Kenji looked around the impressive sight with a sense of awe. The water spilled over the cliff face in a thundering torrent that roared loudly. "...How did you find this place?" Kenji asked carefully. To get here, they had to pass through a thick forest. The waterfall was in a descent sized clearing with a small, wooden house and several training apparatus set up. Dummies for Hakuda and Zanjutsu training and several targets with rings around them spotted the area. "I get what the dummies are for," Kenji began, "But what about those targets? The only long-range attack I know is Sandādoragon o Utsu and it leaves me knackered." Maki sighed and flicked his finger. The target he aimed at snapped in half immediately and fell backwards! "There's far more to a Shinigami's abilities than their zanpakuto. Remember that." Kenji was left speechless! He just flicked his finger...Haha! I've hit the mentor jackpot! Running after his new Sensei, Kenji asked excitedly, "Um, that whole flicking-finger thing? Are you gonna teach me that?" "Trust me Kenji, I'll be teaching you far more advanced abilities than simply hardening your spiritual energy into a projectile. Now, defend yourself!" Maki flashed forward, Chi no Gisei flashing as Kenji barely managed to block the attack! Maki smirked, turning quickly to avoid Kenji's hasty counter and met Kenji's drawn wakizashi. "Hmm, dual zanpakuto while sealed and whilst in Shikai? Interesting. Now, I'm going to tell you the easiest way to gain strength. You and I are going to fight like we mean it. And your going to stay alive as long as you possibly can." Kenji's training began quickly and with little remorse. Maki expected you to try your best and improve upon your best the next time, or at least to equal your previous attempt as long as you bettered it into the ground the third time around. Time Skip... And so, Kenji's training under Maki was swift and brutal. In the day, he done his studies at the Academy, and afterwards, he trained into the early hours of the morning with Maki and on occasion, Rikimaru Ichinose. Both were harsh taskmasters, but they were fair. After the first handful of sessions, when Kenji couldn't seem to keep up with their superior strength or abilities, he would concentrate on avoiding one more strike, inflicting one more injury on his teacher; to go another hour without dropping from exhaustion, and he'd land one more blow than he had the day previous to that. His body was in agony all the time; but his skills were growing quickly. His Academy Instructors were greatly surprised by his progress in all his classes, despite the fact he was wracked with pain. He discussed his training daily with Yoshiro and exchanged tips on how to avoid what and how to better counter that. Momoko was even giving them pointers. After four months, his Zanjutsu skills increased to the point that he could challenge Maki seriously without relying on his wakizashi; his Kidō developed until he was the second best in his class, only lagging behind Momoko Misaki. His Flash Steps improved also and he now had the reflexes to avoid Maki's hardened spiritual bullets, and could do the same with his own spiritual pressure. Those around him remarked that for one only in the Academy, his skills were equal to that of a seated officer. But the brutal levels of his training regime was about to get a lot worse... Time skip ended... All Kenji felt these days were pain topped with more pain. He refused healing because he'd only feel the pain anew a few hours after. But the way he seen it was that the more injuries he received and the more pain he endured, the stronger his body and will would become. Sometimes, the pain would be so intense, he felt he wouldn't be fit to go on. But one thing kept him going, one image, one event that burned in the back of his mind with all the intensity of a thousand suns; his friends being cut down and defeated by someone who was after him. When he pictured Yoshiro and Momoko, lying with The Trickster standing over them, Kenji somehow found the resolve to keep going; to deliver that one final blow, to avoid another strike and to increase his reserves of spiritual energy by a little more that he did the last time. Maki was even forgetting to hold back during their sparring sessions, but Kenji didn't mind that in the least. Those small, unintentional bursts that were calmed with an apology, gave Kenji an idea of what he had to be aiming for. To beat The Trickster, he had to become as strong as The Trickster and there was no magical way to become stronger overnight, except through hard work and patience. Rikimaru Ichinose was his Instructor today. A tall man who spoke little and trusted far less, Rikimaru was a man who's trust had to be earned. Trained by head-Captain Yamamoto, he was deceptively skilled with a blade, to the point the only person Kenji knew who was more skilled was the man overlooking his training. Maki had honed his skills to well beyond a masters level and could defeat most with a single blow if he wanted. Rikimaru's strength, however, didn't lie in his swordsmanship, or his fantastic skill in Flash Steps. It lay in the many ways his zanpakuto allowed him to amplify his spiritual pressure to the point it could be used as a physical weapon. He wore an all red outfit with a jacket and trousers and a black shirt underneath and goggles wrapped around his neck. His long black hair blew lazily in the wind. Kenji's Sensei smiled a cruel smile as his sword cut the air. Kenji avoided the shock-wave of spiritual energy that tore through the ground in the forest clearing with just a jump. His leg strength had grown a great deal over the last four months, and he now only used Shunpo when he needed to. The forest clearing had long been reduced to a crater with many smaller craters within; the only completely untouched area was the area where Maki kept his home. Most of those craters were from Kenji being slammed into the ground, but some had been caused when Kenji had been the one doin' the slamming. He was quite proud of that. He moved gracefully through the air, avoiding another quick shock-wave before he shunpo'd 'round to the right. Rikimaru-Sensei...you're attacks have a time limit. I've only seen it recently, but it's there. It takes you five seconds to build up the energy, compress it and then release it. Five seconds...Not much to work with, but I think I can show 'em my newest ability. With another shock-wave avoided, Kenji began his approach, cautious encase Rikimaru allowed him to see that time gap on purpose. He was good at that. Too good. He would often make something obvious, baiting you to go for it, and then show you that you were completely wrong. Kenji still remembered the time he thought his Kidō shots were limited to seven at a time. For badness, Rikimaru blasted him at point-blank with one more and told him not to be foolish. Kenji had no eyebrows for the better part of two weeks. Kenji released his sword mid-run, "Strike Aoi Inazuma," and grinned as the sword changed and the lightning flowed. Peeling off the blade at like a snake shedding skin with mere conscious thought, Rikimaru assumed a defensive posture, He means to come at me head-on, again? No...there's something different this time, Rikimaru observed calmly. Okay, Kenji, I'll play along this time. If anything, I'm curious to see what kind of tactic you've come up with. He slashed his zanpakuto to the right horizontally and then swiftly to the left, making sure he kept the time span between blasts five seconds. Lightning shot from Kenji's zanpakuto, splitting into four segments, two going to collide with Rikimaru's shock-waves and the other two surrounding his feet and ankles. That's it! The only one who's seen this ability is Yoshiro. The lightning propelled his next Shunpo at an incredible speed, fast enough in fact to appear to Rikimaru's left and deliver a wound upon his Sensei's shoulder while he could do nothing but stand and gape! Keeping his spiritual energy high and not allowing it to waver was difficult, but he'd need to be prepared to lessen the damage caused by Rikimaru's counter attack... ...which came when Rikimaru slammed his blade into the ground and sent everything around him flying with a shock-wave of immense power! Feeling a trickle of blood flow from his mouth as he slowed himself with Shunpo, Kenji whipped it away. Maki sat up from the stump he'd assumed as his seat and began clapping. "Very good, Kenji. You kept your energy strong and hardened it when needed to lessen the damage. Now, let's test your reflexes. Rikimaru, I think we'll both have a go. Kenji," Maki said with an expressionless face. "My bullets will come from the north and west. Rikimaru's to the south and east. Avoid as many as you can for as long as you can without actually taking to the air. That will be the signal to stop. Take a deep breathe, boy, because we begin at the count of ten." Kenji reached for the wakizashi now strapped horizontally on his back. At a time, he had tried to keep the blade hidden, but Maki and Rikimaru had convinced him to wear it and be proud, telling him that only those with a truly unique spiritual pattern had dual zanpakuto while sealed. The count reached six as Kenji prepared himself mentally. These spiritual bullets are small, fast and pack a punch. If I cut them, I'll only increase their numbers. Kenji channeled his spiritual energy and closed his eyes. There was no point using his eyes for this exercise. The bullets of spiritual energy would be coming in too quick for his eyes to follow them all. Feeling his two Sensei's energy helped, because those blasts were simply their spiritual energy flying towards him. "Ten!" The bullets commenced and Kenji began moving as though he was performing the steps to an intricate dance maneuver. The flat side of his swords were large enough to completely repulse the bullets and he avoided those he couldn't reach with the blades. Thirty seconds stretched to a minute, and a minute stretched to two, but Kenji still avoided them until he finally leapt skyward. The bullets stopped immediately and Maki nodded in approval. "Two minutes fourteen seconds. You improved your time by nineteen seconds." "I'll do better next time." Whipping sweat from his brow and allowing himself a chance to catch his breathe, Kenji drunk deeply from the bottle of water Rikimaru tossed him. "Maki, my father won't tell me the reason this Trickster fellow's so hung up on me. I mean, he want to kill me and all, but do any of you know why?" Maki turned his gaze towards his old friend and training partner, but Rikimaru only sighed and shrugged his shoulders in reply. That one action alone spoke a hundred words. Maki motioned for Kenji to have a seat. "...It really isn't my place to tell you what happened, Kenji, but I believe you have a right to know. You know that Koichi and Ryouta found you as a child, correct?" "Yeah, I've known for a while now that the Hiroshi's aren't my blood parents. But that doesn't stop 'em bein' my mother and father. They've both raised me, not knowing where I came from, and showed me every kindness they would've had I have been there own." Maki grinned at the response and continued, "It wasn't as simple as they made out. The Trickster was there that night as well, but Ryouta fought him and Koichi drove him off. The next time he made an appearance was when you were three years old. That time, he was driven off by Jiro Kazuki and Garian Shinjo. They almost killed him too, but he managed to get away." Kenji nodded and sighed. "So he's been after me since i was an infant, basically? Lovely. Thanks, Maki. Let's keep this our little secret, okay?" Kenji got to his feet and sighed. "I'm sorry to ask this, Maki, but could I have the rest of the day off? I was hoping to put in an evening with Yoshiro and Momoko." Maki nodded his allowance and motioned Rikimaru forward, "Rikimaru will accompany you as far as the Seireitei. I'll stay here and see if I can't tidy the place a little. Kenji, your training will be all the harder tomorrow to make up. Can't have you slacking on me." "I wouldn't dream of it." The youngster replied, a grin on his face as he directed his Sensei a look over his shoulder.
|
![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)