A Declaration for Third! (Toshiro)

Toshiro had resided within the barracks of the 7th Division for the large majority of his day. He was the third seat and had duties to complete prior to resting. He held a pen in his right hand and wrote out summaries of the recent incidents for the Captain to review. He was a rather quiet and shy individual and even though he always remained composed there were times where the thought, ‘how did I get here’. He wasn’t lost but intrigued as to how he got the position as third seat after so many people within the Squad are stronger?

He spun in his chair while he thought to himself but then he heard his name being shouted from the courtyard. He thought something had happened as he only caught his name being mentioned, nothing more or less. He took hold of the Zanpakutō and began rushing outside. His shoes tapped across the wooden flooring and created a rather repetitive tone with every step. He began breathing faster as he rushed toward the courtyard; in one hand he held his Zanpakutō while in the other a pen.

His eyes glanced around as a lot of people gathered around the courtyard. He began pushing past and nudging a few to one side until he reached the stairs. His eyes looked over at some form of banner and everyone whispered, “She’s challenging the 3rd Seat” while some whispered “Cute”. Toshiro was worried and wasn’t sure if randomly challenging a seated member was allowed, he gulped as he took a few strides down the stairs that lay before him. His eyes looking at the girl as he slipped the pen into his pocket; his head turned to the right and noticed the Captain exiting his chambers. The man looked as relaxed as ever and within moments leapt over the wooden banisters prior to landing.

The man looked over at Toshiro and the girl prior to taking a seat on a chair made from countless diverse rocks. His eyes closely watched as he waved his hand as if to suggest ‘begin’. It seemed the Captain allowed this to take place, therefore Toshiro wasn’t about to lose. His head turned back to the girl as he deemed her his opponent now; his right hand began unsheathing the Zanpakutō while leaving the sheath within the left. As he unsheathed the blade his left foot began dragging across the muddy surface which formed some dust around his feet; his right foot moved back as he entered his stance. His eyes looked keen and his left hand gestured ‘come at me’….

Toshiros stomach growled as he entered his stance. It seemed that the milk he drank this morning was in fact out of date. His eyes remained focused on his comrade, she mocked him a little but he couldn’t quite concentrate because of the pain in his stomach. To some, he would have looked worried while to others he would have seemed scared. His attire gently blew in the breeze as he focused on the situation at hand, the girl thanked the captain for refereeing while Toshiro simply watched her movements. He had been filling out paper work all day so it was nice to have a bit of a change in routine; he didn’t want to lose his position and thus aimed to do all in his power to succeed.

The crowds gathered, a lot of them pushed against the wooden railings while the rather chubby ones attempted to peak around the rest. Toshiros breathing began to regulate, his state of mind began to change, his eyes began to focus while his blade moved inward toward his chest. As his blade moved, the sound of metal rattling echoed into the area. It was soon followed by complete silence at which point the challenger, Kanae began counting out loud with every toss of her Zanpakutō. Every time she threw the blade up she counted down, from three to one, prior to springing to action.

She was pretty rash, something that Toshiro noticed about this division, everyone was too damn rash. As the girl launched into action, she unsheathed her Zanpakutō and began charging toward Toshiro. He seemed calm and collective; his whole body seemed relaxed and ready. The pain in his stomach was suppressed by the sudden ascension of adrenaline levels within the blood stream; it helped keep him calm but in effect allowed him to take significant note of Kanaes movement. Her speed was on par with Toshiros but it didn’t worry him.

To begin with, the girls blade moved toward Toshiros arms but was met by the solid wooden sheath of his; then the blade began moving toward his legs where he jumped up and noticed the girls rather feminine movement. She was circling him and there wasn’t much he could do. Afar, the squad members began to mock the 3rd Seat as he could hardly fend for himself. His cheeks turned red in embarrassment as she moved and re-attempted her combination; each time he aimed to block or evade until he thought of something…

After the arrival of another attack, Toshiro dug the tip of his Zanpakutō into the ground around him, at first she swung for the legs and then moved for the arms. Meanwhile, as the girl attacked, Toshiro muttered to himself, “Those who would destroy me will find no purchase, and those who corrupt shall be denied!” black aura began coating Toshiros palm as he met the incoming blade. His hand slammed shut around the middle of the blade while blood began trickling down from his hand. In the same moment that his palm caught the Zanpakutō, a single finger extended from the hand that held the sheath to his blade; “Pierce their soul and tear their flesh.” were the only words that were to be heard in the courtyard.

Suddenly, from the top of his extended finger shot forth a 44 caliber bullet from of Reishi; its aim was to strike the shoulder joint of his opponent and make it hard for her to use her Zanpakutō. Toshiro wasn’t much of a ladies man, he didn’t know how to tend to one and didn’t know how to fight with one either; the piercing shot would most likely pass through the flesh upon contact and damage the joint to an extent. With his own attack out of the way, Toshiro released his grip on the opponents Zanpakutō and clenched his own prior to slipping it out of the ground and vanishing. Within seconds he created a gap between himself at the opponent, the instant he re-appeared three more shots of the condensed Reishi began flying toward his opponent. The first shot of the trio would most likely be the strongest of the trio, from there onward the strength of each one would begin to decrease…

Toshiro stood there, he felt bad as all that was on his mind was whether he hurt her or not. He stood there patiently, awaiting to see the results of his rash actions while indulging on the striking pain from the palm of his hand. It made it hard for him to hold his Zanpakutō as when pressure was applied, it bled and hurt. He swallowed the moisture that had built up over the past minute, it tasted rather sower but refreshing. His right foot began moving back as he returned to his stance and braced himself for a potential counter attack…

The girl was lucky to say the least. She spun around like a headless chicken and yet took hardly any damage. The three attacks simply grazed her and she was still on the offensive. Toshiro could feel his legs trembling as she began heading toward him, it wasn’t out of worry, more out of excess levels of adrenaline. He braced himself, his eyes following her swift movements while the rest of the squad remained on their toes. He didn’t really know why he was given the position of third seated, there were people within the squad who were far stronger than him and yet he was the one to assume the position. To him, it seemed that someone had trusted him and he wasn’t about to throw that trust away by losing to a fellow comrade. Toshiro had no effective passive abilities that could really aid him in combat, he was specialized in Kido and Zanjutsu, and he noticed that combining the two together really made him formidable.

His black hair began moving along with his body, the instant the girl swung her Zanpakutō down on him, he moved back; because of his stance, it was rather easy for him to take a steady step back. Meanwhile, as he stepped back his Zanpakutō ascended and clashed with the incoming blade, thus far he hadn’t listened to the girls remarks as he found it rather hard to concentrate as it was. As the blades collided, sparks began flying into the surroundings, Toshiros Zanpakutō dropped back to waist level within the instant that the opponent’s blade moved away. His eyes watched her unique fighting style, he attempted to discern her weaknesses.

As she moved her blade back and began attacking with the kick, Toshiro released grip of his Zanpakutō and sheath prior to crossing his arms over his chest and receiving the impact of the kick. Luckily, he didn’t feel any of the air escaping his lungs, though his arms felt rather sore. The kick knocked him back a few steps and created a rather big distance between him and the Zanpakutō. The blade of the Zanpakutō clapped against the ground as it collided with the dusty surface. The squad members look out in shock and some even began laughing. “You’re not too bad Kanae. But I apologize for this…”

As he spoke, blue outline began forming around his body. This was something that Toshiro classed as passive; it was the only technique that he managed to attain from the sealed state of the Zanpakutō. It boosted speed, reaction speed, thinking and acting speed. Toshiro thought of it as a gift and not ability; as the blue outline formed dust began swerving around his body until he edged forward. The moment his body edged forward he vanished, somewhat faster than before, his shunpo was amplified and then he appeared before his opponent. His right finger reaching out to her chest while blue energy resonated from it, “Hadō 4, Byakurai” at such close quarters, a miracle would have to save the girl.

His finger pointed beneath her collar bone, in the general vicinity of the lungs. The blue energy shot out in a condensed ray of electrifying blue reishi. It was a dangerous technique, one that stronger members of the Gotei used to impale their opponents and bright fights to an end. If it hit, it would be devastating for the girl as it would begin with the flesh and later pierce all the way through to the other end. If it was to piece through, it’d keep moving until it struck the far wall of the courtyard. The girl would have to remain perfectly still if it did hit, as it could cause similar damage to other areas of the body if she was to move; it was hard to contain one’s self when struck with this technique as the innate instincts of the body aim to respond to pain and suppress it.

It was all a matter of time…