Erika Masamune [APPROVED, 2-1++]

» Name: The etymology of her name begins with the first name Erika, it is the name of the Erica flower which represents solitude in the language of flowers. Her last name was taken from the legendary swordsmith Gorō Nyūdō Masamune, she adopted this name following her previous mentor's death.

» Alias':

Touma | 刀 万 | Ten Thousand Swords

» Gender: Female.

» Age: Erika is eight-hundred and one. She was born on December 5. 1616.

» Species: She is a Shingami. Reborn after her death into the Soul Society, she does have the potential to become a Vizard or Ziamichi though in the future but right now it is pure shinigami in her being.

» Affiliation & Association: Erika is a former member of the Gotei Thirteen, training within the Shino Academy before hand she no longer holds any ties to the organisation and seeks to better herself. The only purpose she would have would be towards the betterment of her sword skills, she has once more taken the title of Ronin and is a wanderer.


The frame of Erika is one that is reasonably small, she is about 5 feet and 2 inches which doesn't give her a very high stance or allow her to stand over people. She has a well-developed body when it comes to her fitness though. She has a slender body with excellent capacity but not losing any of her beauty or attractiveness. She has calloused hands and feet from her many years of training and a firm body. Erika's hair is a rich shade of blonde with a pink hue causing her hair to occasionally appear to have light pink hair in the right lighting. Her hair is kept neat and falls around her head around her shoulder blades but her hairstyle often keeps it tied back in some manner that makes it appear shorterbut in a neat fashion, her hair is kept maintained and she takes great pride in her hair and cares quite a lot about it. She has golden eyes, a very soft hue which matches how she appears most of the time but there is an unyielding fighting spirit in them.

Erika has deep scars that have faded in recent times from the first time she used her zanpakuto since the handle cut deep into her hands. She has a group of scars littered along her torso from her past years of combat, most she kept there instead of removing as reminders and a determination to get stronger. She wears an interesting attire which is designed for optimum fighting capacity, it is open and leaves her arms and legs free for combat.

Images:

» Level Headed: A person who is very down to earth, Erika is a very mature young individual who is sensible. She displays a much greater level of maturity than most other individuals and can give advice based on cold hard facts. While no genius or mastermind she is quite skilled at keeping her cool and not breaking down in stressful situations and this is what makes a lot of people turn to her for advice about subjects she might be aware of and able to give them a non-biased response about it.

» Workaholic: A very hard worker in everything she does Erika goes above and beyond to achieve her goals and in what she has to do. She is the person who stays indoors to get work done over hanging out with people for entertainment. To her she feels a sense of pride in knowing that she would give up her own enjoyment and relaxation to make sure everything is maintained and right, however her attitude to being a perfectionist and the amount of effort she puts in is quite a lot and it is not uncommon to find her burnt out after a while, everyone has their limits and Erika is no different.

» Gentle, But Strong: Kind and Firm at the same time, she is always nice to people. Often using honourifics if they deserve such a title. She is usually nice and gentle with people, especially children. Her she often lacks any form of anger or rage, being quite soft-spoken and soothing with her voice although those that thing that just because she is so nice and gentle that is is not firm or strict then you all have another thing coming because she can be firm and strict when the time calls for it. Ready to whip you back into line if you step out of it.

» Respectful: Being very respectful is something that Erika knows how to do, being a warrior in her previous life that trait has not left her and she shows a great deal of respect to people, short of enemies or those who oppose what she believes in, however if she were in the presence of well known and powerful people she'd show them some respect but in reality everyone, even some enemies, are entitled to some respect, however it's their actions which decide how it goes; those that abuse that respect quickly lose it or don't reciprocate however her respect can reach great levels for people that aren't dicks and use what she gives them.

» Disciplined: Trained from a young age in the art of the sword she has always required a great deal of self-discipline. Being the fact that she had to constantly do it by her own accord to get better and get higher in it, she has always jumped on chances and this is one of those things which has stayed with her for all the generations. She is very obedient to her superiors and those with either more experience or a higher rank than her although that doesn't mean that if someone has a higher rank than her and they know nothing about what they are doing then she'd attempt to fix their problem.

» Lonely: Ever since certain events within her past Erika has found it hard to connect properly with people, she has a subconscious mental block which makes it hard for her to form relationships with people that goes beyond mere acquaintances or just outside arm's reach. The result makes it hard for her to really stay in touch with people and she has a constant fear of people that get close to her might die and send her over the edge again like it did to her in the past and so it is quite difficult for anyone to really get close to her at all unless they have determination, dedication and a strong desire to befriend her.

» Focused: When she sets her mind to something don't try to stop her. Her dedication to tasks knows no bounds and she always seeks to finish what she starts. Erika actually has a dedication that makes her dangerous and sometimes self-destructive, an example being when she trains she can occasionally push herself a little too far at a stretch. She actually expresses borderline obsessive traits with her goals, finding it hard to actually give up on them if she physically can't or is stopped from doing so.

» Humble: Erika doesn't want to be recognised for her achievements, she doesn't need people to acknowledge her feats and the like. She is content with her own satisfaction at doing something. This makes her quite modest and often she prefers to sweep anything that might give her reputable fame under the carpet when meeting people, she doesn't want people to like her for her achievements rather they like her for who she actually is.

» Bushido: One of the most powerful traits within her personality is her belief of the way of the warrior. Bushido is a code that she upholds to her very best and tries not to stray from its conducts as a result she is a loyal person that will do her best to uphold her word and be able to keep it. She does her best to not let those around her down and is a courageous person, doing her very best in a fight.

» Genuine: Erika is a person that doesn't lie, and when she tries she tends to fail incredibly, she is very transparent and see through in the way that it is hard for her to keep something hidden or deceive someone. It is possibly on of her most defining qualities that makes her who she is since she finds it hard, if not impossible to pretend to be someone else.

Probably the most important person left in Erika's life, since just about everyone she has loved in the past has died Tsubine is the only one that held such a close bond with her and is still alive. She possesses a motherly view of Tsubine, while still seeing her as a teacher and so she will hold the utmost respect towards her. Their relationship currently is a little touchy though, having moved onto the Zero Division and leaving Erika all alone caused her to feel abandoned. It didn't help that their correspondence ceased and Tsubine vanished causing a great deal of resentment towards her and spite that makes her hostile and emotional when she is brought up. Deep down however she cannot bare to hurt her mother figure even for leaving her like she did and her hostility is something that can be easily overcame in an initial encounter.

For Erika this woman is apparently the pinnacle of the swordsmanship, the Kenpachi. If she wanted to prove herself then she'd need to defeat this woman in combat and claim her title. While she has never met Ibiki she is well aware of her and seeks to defeat her one day. There is a lot of potential for Ibiki to become a teacher if they were to meet and they kicked off well, however even with this bond the young woman would seek to defeat the Sword Master - not even simply being given the title is enough, she wants to earn it.

Her relationship with her zanpakuto spirit is quite different to most conventional relationships. The sword is very abusive and has caused Erika to always seek to use its power as little as possible due to being uncontrollable. She is ashamed of her blade and treats it just as cruelly as it treats her which often makes her happy to smash the sealed sword into a stone whenever it tried to play with her mind.

PLACING HERE FOR FUTURE DEVELOPMENT.








1615 - The Battle of Osaka.
Erika's father, Katou, dies shortly after leaving her mother pregnant with twins: Erika and Naomi, in the year 1616 Misaya gives birth to the twins. Her father supports the Tokugawa regime, he is regarded as being an excellent warrior on the battlefield.

1616 - Twins are Born
Erika's Mother, being widowed must stay with her family. Erika's grandfather is in the Samurai Class of Society and so is very well set-up. Erika and Naomi are raised in wealthy household.

1616 - 1628 [Childhood]
Erika decides she wants to be a samurai like her grandfather and father, despite society saying otherwise. Her mother is disgusted by this idea and tells her no. Erika goes to her grandfather and asks him to teach her instead being told that if she wanted to learn then she'd have the make the sword that she'd learn with.

Erika crafts said sword out of wood, her grandfather cuts it and tells her a real sword. She goes through events to get said steel sword and comes back to train which her grandfather agrees to teach her. He teaches her the fundamentals of the sword and Kendo. She begins learning at age six and is already learnt quite a lot by age seven.

Tokugawa Iemitsu becomes shogun in 1623...

• Age 17 - 1633: Tokugawa Iemitsu forbids travelling abroad and reading foreign books. Causing Erika to be even more interested in Europeans and Westerners.
  
  
• Age 21 - 1637: Shimabara Rebellion (1637–38) mounted by overtaxed peasants. Erika's brother is killed in the conflict, Christianity is formally prohibited.
  
  
• Age 23 - 1639: Edicts establishing National Seclusion (Sakoku Rei) are completed. All Westerners except the Dutch are prohibited from entering Japan.
  
  
• Age 25 - 1641: Tokugawa Iemitsu bans all foreigners, except Chinese and Dutch, from Japan.
  
  
• Age 41 - 1657: The Great Fire of Meireki destroys most of the city of Edo. Erika and her family die in this fire, she passes onto the spiritual world.

Finding herself arriving in a strange new place after the konso was performed on her and she was standing in a new place, all her memories gone from the experience of the cleansing. Erika was a new person and she sought to achieve a lot in this new place and world. Being a young teenager she was old enough to understand the world and try to avoid the mistakes of other people.

She quickly sought to make a name for herself, in her bold youthful way she worked very hard. She cleaned houses and worked like no one ever worked before and with her charismatic nature she was able to save up her pennies, using only what she had to in order to save as much as she could. She lived in a decent part of the Rukongai, not being on the very outskirts but instead being just outside the thirteenth district of the Western Rukongai. After a few months Erika finally had enough money to purchase a sword, it was the first thing she bought.

Despite being a plus Erika wanted to become a shinigami, to be a great swordmaster like a Kenpachi or something prestigious. She would spend hours training within the woods, going there to train for hours on end and sometimes days if she remembered to pack everything she'd need for going. After a few months she had heard about a famous swordsman coming to her district, Ivan Crow, known as the Golden Crow he was an early swordsman which was said to have even held the title of second kenpachi officially earning it after Yachiru Unohana disappeared from the world.

In an attempt to get him to teach her Erika participated in a tournament he was apparently going to attend and she did try hard, especially when Ivan was there, she took down and dispatched her opponents easily. Most, if not all, lacking the same thing that she had: resolve. When the tournament was finally over and Erika was named the champion she was very disappointed when she found he had disappeared. Going back home in a disappointed state she went to sleep but only for ten minutes at most since she woke up to the sound of movement in her room, jumping up and slashing at the intruder with her blade and causing the sparks to fly only to catch the face of Ivan Crow in the moonlight that was seeping into the room.

A little shocked Ivan offered her the opportunity to train under him but he had a few tests for her. Happily and more than willing she agreed only to watch him take her most valuable possession, the katana she worked so hard for, and broke it over his leg. Telling her to meet him in the forest the next morning she was left very shocked and a little upset but the opportunity to train with him made her very excited. She barely slept at all that night.

The following morning she was there before Ivan arrived, he had a sword on his back and held it out to her. Expecting her to take it which she did. He told her that she would from now on, only use one sword for a week before it was to be destroyed. A little confused by this she received the new sword that would be using, noticeably off-balanced much to her annoyance but she was too timid of annoying her new teacher to the point of him rescinding his offer of training.

His first trial was for her to cut a tree in half with a sword, a little confused and still ignorant to many way of the shinigami she voiced her irritation at him playing with her like this which he quickly silenced by appearing not to move at all, looking bemused at her while she was complaining to him. Then she heard it, the tree exploding into small fragments and leaving nothing but shards of tree.

Flabbergasted Erika was confused and scared, but below that was awe and wonder! This man, was incredible to her, her revealed that he was going to make her more powerful than him and that if she wanted to be the best then she must accept his conditions. Naturally she accepted this, she trained harder than ever and stayed awake for three days just to cut through that tree with her sword by the end of it her blade was dull and the edge chipped. Surprised she was willing to go through with such a test Ivan gave her a wooden sword, telling her that she could proceed once she could cut through a tree with the wooden training sword.

Unheard of to the girl, how was she going to break a tree with a stick! It was impossible surely!? Erika's test spanned over multiple days, unable to stay awake for a lot of it but she wasn't going to stop. Somehow the stick survived the ordeal but Erika couldn't break the tree. Apologising to Ivan, she finally conceded before he stated that the test was designed for her to fail. She had to learn that she wasn't able to do everything although upon taking the stick he cut the tree into two pieces, reminding her that he wasn't her and so he could do it.

From that day forward the real training began, reiryoku and reiatsu, beginning the art of Jinzen. Erika was quick to learn this skill, the assistance of the wooden path teachings allowed her to focus and concentrate on this inner-energy. This continued for a few weeks before she finally had much of the workings of her energies available to her control. She was finally allowed to move onto the third path of her training which was focused on her body.

A swordswoman couldn't just rely on having a sword, Ivan was going to teach her how to make herself as powerful as a sword and and become the weapon of her art. It began by focusing on her body and focusing her reiatsu onto her body to make herself stronger and more powerful than her normal bodies limits. Already she had began the path of the shinigami whether she knew it or not with the teachings of Ivan she was passively becoming one.

When she could finally empower her body with the assistance of reiatsu her test began with her cutting her hand, and thankfully the blade could not pierce the skin due to her reiatsu making her harder like a sword. Pleased by this result her mentor aimed to make her able to learn his ability that he had mastered and made him so famous as a Kenpachi.

She began her teachings of Katanakaji, while she had already been training for it for many years and must've gone through hundreds if not thousands of swords by now but she had finally began for real, she could work with her inner energies and begin to try and form a weapon that would serve as her physical zanpakuto's form. This empty vessel of her energy would make her own energy become her zanpakuto's form and they would develop a very strong bond.

This length of training was by far the hardest, she had to be able to finely control her energy as she projected the sword. This took an incredibly long time and even when she was able to form a sword her mentor would do something to distract her like tap her head or as she developed it further even send her flying a few metres away and see if the blade would stay formed.

Eventually she had it quite competently down, she could form a sword and keep it maintained, even sparring with it against Ivan's own swords formed by his own power. This training and honing continued until she was adept in the ability and was able to even manipulate the properties of her projections. The need for a sword became obsolete and she was able to conjure one whenever she required.

Everything would be short-lived though, the name of Ivan being the Second Kenpachi gave him quite the reputation. He would quickly find bold swordsman targetting him for the title that he possessed from Yachiru Unohana. Although most fell to his blade he was no invincible. Erika would find her master late for a training session, going to investigate she found him dying from a wound that had been inflicted on him by an opponent. Giving her his final words he gave her a final gift, impaling her with his zanpakuto he gave her his shinigami powers, the reiryoku that he had and the boost of his own Katanakaji prowess.

Her belief in the Bushido code made her strive to avenge Ivan, hunting around for the man that called himself the Third Kenpachi wasn't difficult and openly facing him she was swiftly defeated and left a mortally wounded state, publicly humiliated and broken her most hated enemy leaned down and gave her information, some information that tore through her beliefs. He told her that believing in honour and the bushido code makes her weak, she should give up those stupid beliefs and get stronger.

Leaving her alive to die slowly her broken body was picked up by an old lady, a healer in the Rukongai. She never told Erika her name but she was a shinigami and was skilled with Kaido, able to heal even her gruesome wounds she finished healing Erika and left without saying goodbye, a note being the only thing the woman left for her that suggested she head to the Shino Academy and train to become a Shinigami. Erika did not want to though, she continued throughout the Rukongai.

A Ronin within the districts she became a mercenary and hired her sword to do work, not willing to swear her allegiance to anyone she wanted to be alone and away from everyone. This lifestyle continued for quite some time. Many hundreds of years of solitude, not that she was alone but she held no one close to her; no friends, no family and no lord. This continued until Erika felt the loneliness begin to bite her, the desire to avenge her master had finally died due to the Third Kenpachi being killed and the title being passed on.

Without a purpose Erika finally sought out the Shino Academy, joining up in the academy to begin training as a shinigami and find purpose in the Gotei Thirteen. She sought to make herself feel like she had something fruitful, not just wealth and empty feelings of loneliness in her mind.



Following her entry into the Academy, Erika passed the entry test. Relying quite a lot on her zanjutsu to get her through the tests, despite being trained by the Second Kenpachi she didn't make it known. Even after she passed and was accepted she didn't speak a word about her former teacher, feeling that if she did then it would bring her unnecessary attention and people would view her for her reputation than who she actually was. She would begin two years at the academy, paired with the junior year and shared a room with three other girls all intent on becoming shinigami.

She got to know them quite well; the one that had taken a leader-like role within the group was called Miyabi. She was bold and out-spoken, despite having no where near the skill of Erika she was always willing to try and did her best which Erika found admirable and liked her work ethic even though the girl disregarded honourifics and all the cultural norms that she was used too. Miyabi became something of a role model to her with everyone happy to be around her and enjoying her company.

Her second friend was a little girl, appearing very young and shy, she lacked a lot of confidence and Erika quickly saw her as a little sister. She'd always try and take time out to help the little girl called Risa. The third and final roommate was very similar to her, although easily frustrated and irritated when things didn't work properly, she was very beautiful and men always sought after her, however her true skills was her intelligence and knowledge of kido, her final "sister" had the name of Misaki. Over her time in the academy these girls became very close to her with the time they shared yet Erika was always reserved. While the others talked about their past she wouldn't speak about her own.

She was a dedicated student, unable to hide her talent at zanjutsu she quickly received infamy for the skill she possessed. She used her Katanakaji to keep her projection constantly active she had long since returned her asauchi anonymously since she didn't want nor require it. She trained extensively in kido and hoho to try and bring them up to a standard similar to her zanjutsu but that was almost impossible, she had already invested to much into zanjutsu and no amount of training could keep the fields equal.

She did as little as she could in Hakuda, unlike other shinigami she viewed it as pointless. She could form a blade whenever she required it unlike everyone else. Training with Misaki she became quite adept in her kido and hoho, getting it to a level quite advanced in the academy she excelled in the three arts. She made it three years this way, during her third year she began to have dreams.

Erika would find herself constantly wandering through a dream world, it was chaos. Swords and bodies were everywhere. There was no fighting, everyone was dead. It was confronting for her to see, as the wandered through this world more and more she began to see faces. Faces of her past, her mentor Ivan and even people that were still alive with her friends being scattered about the battlefield. For weeks she barely slept, becoming more and more traumatised by the sights she saw and the atrocities kept changing, occasionally she'd see those she love be dead after torture, executed. It was too much for her to handle causing her to have night terrors.

She was hospitalised for a week, given medication to help her sleep and also kaido to assist in her night terrors. Returning she continued her studies and her goal, pained by the calamity of her mind. They stopped eventually, and the occasional nightmare she learnt to deal with. Erika once more returned to her status as a highly-skilled student within the academy, already multiple seated officers from other divisions sought after her for their ranks. Erika however sought to stay with her friends who were like family to her and continue the shinigami curriculum until the end even though she realistically didn't need it. Erika was one of the most skilled Zanjutsu practitioners and so the temptation for the Eleventh and Sixth Division of the Gotei Thirteen was quite high. Her lack of skill in Hakuda however made the Second Division pass her off.

When she finally reached her final year there was an exam, at the time it was an experimental idea to test students. The students were sent to the realm of Hueco Mundo - a part of it where the academy had set up a barred off area with kido and left the students to get some practice in against hollows while watched over by the teachers. Erika and her friends stayed together, deciding it was safer and more effective to be a group but there was more to this event than what met the eye. Outside some early Arrancar had gathered, infiltrating the barrier by tricking the sentries since at the time a natural arrancar was rare to see and the group entered in for a bloodbath.

Everything was in control to begin with, only a single teacher had died in the initial fight and only two groups of students were slaughtered but that would all change, and not through a fight but because Erika listened to the voice in her head. Telling her to use her shikai or everyone would die. Erika didn't know her sword's name, but the sword gave it up so easily, just tossed it to her without any work. Juuchi Yosamu was released and the death toll started rising. It didn't begin with her enemies though. Her release targeted her allies first, her friends and her teachers and everyone that she wanted to protect. She was killing them and no matter what she did it wouldn't stop.

When shinigami finally arrived to see what happened the woman was taken in and hospitalised for wounds she sustained in the fight. Being the sole-survivor of her class the event would come to be known as a massacre and tragic event. She ultimately decided to move on, leaving behind this place with nothing left for her.



Upon graduating she moved onto the Eleventh Division, a division filled with criminals and the underbelly scum of the Soul Society that could be used as expendable units against the hollow threat, she used this time to hone her skills with the sword even further. Still under the illusion of this release being her shikai she sought to defeat and claim a power stronger than any others around her, being in this division reminded her of her life in the Edo Period. These men being arrogant, thinking less of her since she was smaller and woman, it frustrated her and Erika became known by the Moniker of "Koakuma" ["Small Devil"]. She became known as a little fighter that could dominate quite a lot of the Division, being only beaten by the Captain and Kenpachi of the time.

Erika's new home brought upon an age of development for her skills, this hostile environment prompted the progress of her skills to new heights which she couldn't have found in another group. She had to develop her instincts and honing her mindset to perfection so that she could be able to stay ahead in a division that swallowed the weak. Of course she refused to take part in her release form, her shikai was something that she ran from and she'd often avoid the very topic of it. She became highly proficient by not relying on a release form to be strong which gave her an edge when she fought people that had their shikai since she could fight them at the same standard in her unsealed state.

The Eleventh Division wasn't good for her though, it lacked the ethical code that she followed and the overall feel of the group she was with made her wary and constantly paranoid towards if someone was going to attack her. She applied to move to the Fifth Division under Captain Sousuke Aizen a place where she could try and improve herself while honing an area that she couldn't in the Eleventh Division, she was able to get more Kido Experience in this new division.

Up until the Aizen incident Erika was a hard-working member of the Fifth Division under Captain Aizen and Vice-Captain Momo Hinamori, she quickly made her way up to the role of Seventeenth Seat in the first few months of her service. She was a strong fighter and the environment was peaceful which gave her plenty of space to train but also maintain her morales, during the Ryoka Invasion she was a support person who organised the division's resources which she maintained up until the revelation of Aizen's betrayal which completely changed the entire situation of the Gotei Thirteen.



Aizen's betrayal developed the event that would shake the Gotei Thirteen and draw them into conflict. Erika was often dispatched as a support kido user, however she became more than that. Her reputation began to grow within the division although she spent a lot of time handling the affairs of the division such as making sure all the equipment was organised, all the members got the right stuff and the like. She would take over maintaining the roster and attendance due to the Vice-Captain being incapacitated.

Erika's life was shaken up when a new captain arrived on the scene, this new captain had charisma and tried to push past all this negative feelings that Aizen left behind. Erika however was not taken by this woman, her experience with Aizen made her distrusting of this new face that appeared to be everything that needed which is exactly what Aizen was. Her position as the fourth Seat which was earned through the Winter War made her quite the stern figure and she was always hard working and expecting things done - her ways did not inspire recovery or morale, it was having a bad influence which stemmed from her stress towards Tsubine and her unhealthy paranoia towards her.



A woman who only wanted to help the Fifth Division she sought to fix this issue that Erika had, she approached the young shinigami and despite the initial barrier that separated them Tsubine kept at it. Slowly wearing down little Erika's resistance towards accepting her, after a few weeks of rocking the boat the captain finally got what she sought and Erika's problems came out into the light.

Not one to be idle about this Tsubine sought to try and help her through training her and doing her best to push her out of this negative mindset. Secluded training began between the two and through the clash of swords and words she became quite attached to Tsubine. She became a friend which frightened Erika, as everyone around her eventually died. The friendship grew and Erika began to view the captain as a teacher, she was the student and respect followed.

This woman became someone that she could confide in, someone that she could ease all her troubles with and not fall into the depths of her negativity. Slowly the two began to get to know each other very closely, their training gave her someone to spar with and Tsubine was an excellent swordswoman which made it very fun to train with her. She came to the conclusion that she was much stronger than her former mentor.

During this training there was a trust that formed towards her mother figure, caring about her and treating her like family. She sought to become strong but would never betray her teacher to get there. Erika came to completely trust her and saw past all these original feelings of distrust and paranoia. When Momo Hinamori was incapacitated due to the trauma she received from Aizen Erika was promoted to the rank of Vice-Captain temporarily and made sure that everything worked to perfection so that Tsubine didn't have to worry about menial things.



During the invasion of Ender, Erika fought in the initial conflict, having moved to the First Division with Tsubine she sought to hold the fort against the demon but when it became apparent they weren't going to be able to win there was a retreat called. In this retreat she found herself often being overlooked for combat missions, the captain-commander was purposefully overlooking her and not allowing her to go. She simply couldn't sit back and watch everyone die while she hid behind her captain's skirts like a child, she would sneak out and do strikes on Ender's forces - alone, who earned her the moniker of "Suicidal Devil" over the war. It wouldn't be long though that Tsubine found out what she was doing and had her arrested under the pretence of "treason" although really just wanted her to stop doing her little raids.

So she found herself in a kido barrier created by shinigami and kept under guard. Erika was not going to have this though. She hated going against the woman but she wasn't going to idly sit around and do nothing! She was not going to release her "shikai" as that would cause a massacre and meant that Erika would have to somehow increase her power without a traditional release phase hence her solution came to bare the form of Sayatai. This form gave Erika the strength to break the barrier and escape, despite the pain she sought out the conflict and found her new form was powerful but taxing and so would stick with the use of her shikai when she could slaughter a lot of the enemy. Finally the war came to a close and the two reunited, it was an emotional event to say the least but the young pupil was quickly absolved of her actions and welcomed back.



With the occurrence of World War Three there was an explosive conflict with multiple factions, the world was burning and Erika found that it would never be the same. She returned to her roots and would use her shikai in dangerous situations which she put herself in alone although for a lot of the war she was able to fight and gain victory she was not immortal and a close-call with a group of Demons left her crippled for quite a lot of the war and she was unable to continue fighting which would've left her teacher quite pleased in a way since it made sure she was safe.

[Mention events, certain battles and the like.]



In the period from the end of the war towards the present Erika became quite proficient as a shinigami in her position of the First Division, she would maintain correspondence with her teacher who was a royal guard which made their meetings much more infrequent and less in number. A few months before her dear teacher's disappearance for a reason that Erika has no idea about she was told that her shikai was not actually a shikai, in fact her zanpakuto was not even a zanpakuto in the traditional sense.

Under the presumption that Tsubine was going to help her get through this challenge she would experience an event that shook her resolve and will quite hard when her mentor disappeared completely, without a trace. Erika became much more gloomy after that, hostile towards people that brought it up and overall her irrationality would become a problem for the previously workaholic attitude she had. She couldn't stand the Gotei Thirteen, everything reminded her of the mother figure she had grown accustomed to for all those years just gone. She left the organisation in 2412, a few weeks after Tsubine and sought her out. When it became apparent that she was not going to find her she became a ronin once more.

She was able to see past her negative feelings towards her "mother", but whenever she heard the name or if someone would bring up family she would quickly drop into anger and sadness. She focused purely on her swordsmanship, finding it easier to forget the woman and pretend she was dead since it made her feel better thinking she was dead than believing that she had actually been abandoned. Erika's status as a Ronin became a profession, although she hated the life she would do what she needed to do to survive and make a living in this world.

» Impressive Speed and Reflexes: Unnaturally fast and quick is the best form of fighting potential that Erika has, she is a high-speed combatant that does not aim to get super strong and be able to rip apart mountains with her bare hands. Her fighting style is usually fast, nimble and done at a much faster rate than most normal people. She has trained her reflexes for years and her speed as well, it is easy for her to move fluidly and without much thought. Her body can move without her consciously thinking about it either, allowing near instantaneous reactions with her movements.

» Tetsuhada: The Shinigami are known for having a durable composition, their body's being enhanced with the use of reiatsu and reiryoku. Erika's reiryoku manifests in the form of sub-dermal armour. Her energy seems into her muscles, bones and primarily under her skin, this makes her resistant to physical damage although not the pain. It can assist in making her able to transform slashes into blunt force damage which allow for her to avoid cuts and open wounds in a lot of instances.

» Reikaku: All Shinigami have the inherit ability to sense energy, whether they are aware or not a shinigami uses both their eyes and reikaku to see, a skilled user like Erika can use reikaku consciously however and to a high level, primarily due to being blinded after a combat mission which forced her to develop her sensory skills. Erika's reikaku can almost be described as a sixth sense, working in harmony with her other senses and instincts in situations to bolster the analytical skills of her's.

Erika is skilled with her reikaku, being able to see in a three-hundred and sixty degree scope around her with her inner-eye, she is skilled enough with her reikaku to pick up on faint changes in a person's reiatsu and deduce just what that change was, being able to understand a person as well. Giving Erika a strangely perceptive skill when it comes to analysis of a person's potential capabilities in a short amount of time. Her range is quite far and her attention to detail with this skill is not to be mocked. A potential use of this technique is being able to accurately make a guess as to what kind of potential powers a zanpakuto could possess or the volume of energy a being has left. Erika's use of sensory abilities is very advanced and should she be unable to use her eyes that is no issue for her. She is more than capable of fighting without the use of her eyes.

• » Reiraku: Reiraku or Spirit Ribbons are formed through a powerful sensory ability in which one solidifies small ribbons of remnant energy and allow the practitioner to track targets over a long distance. These ribbons have a variety of colours for different races, ultimately meaning that it is an accurate way to obtain knowledge of one's racial standing. Erika, as a person who is skilled with tracking can actually use this ability in more than one ways. Using a reiraku she is able to use it to hone in on her targets, making them easier to hit with kido spells or use it as a medium to attain a form of honing on a target.

» Heightened Focus: She possesses a very keen focus, having spent quite some time of her life merely learning this fine art of focus Erika is quite fit in this area, she is able to keep track of things that occur around her and not be distracted by others, it is hard to break her train of thought or concentration. She can be around loud noise and explosions, in a war-zone without any negative effects due to having already been in said circumstances in her life. She has clarity in battle, no holding back or showing fear in a fight since she instead will try and use that fear and adrenaline to her advantage.

» Victory Will: Erika possess an innate will to win, to get better and to overthrow. She wants to be better and her will to win is incredible power, she is willing to use suicidal tactics in a double or nothing gamble to win if she were to require such a victory. Following her first mentor's death Erika's will to destroy and overcome challenges can actually manifest its in her reiryoku and reiatsu to make her resolve capable of being able to be felt in the air, her desire to win can draw out the maximum amount of energy that she has. Meaning that were most people stop being able to draw on energy she can draw out it all but the maximum amount includes her life energy and if she used all of that up then she can potentially die.

Kōfun Jōtai ["Adrenaline Rush"]: The ability to completely draw out her entire energy potential, Erika can draw out the potential energy out of her soul, the absolute maximum. This means that she can vastly augment her body by tapping into energies that shouldn't be able to be accessed by most shinigami or spiritual beings, energy such as life-force and heat and even the chemical energy of her body. This ability can become a massive flux towards her fighting skills in a similar fashion to having an adrenaline rush.

» Immense Reiryoku: While she naturally had quite large reserves of reiryoku her teachers dying gift to her was the additional supply of his own reserves and power allowing her further depths of latent energy and overall power, with her vast quantity of energy her lifespan is considerably long with very little change occurring four-hundred years.

» Master Chef: She is well versed in the art of cooking and cuisine, made to learn it after Tsubine made her take up the role of being in charge of cookin after she called painting and calligraphy an area she was not interested in studying, and said she'd rather be a housewife than do that. So Tsubine made her take up that role and she became quite the proficient little chef, being able to cook innately and not from a cooking book.

» Weapon Prodigy: This is a skill that has been honed a great deal within Erika's life, she is able to pick up any sword or traditional weapon and be able to utilise it effectively shortly after picking it up, she can understand the balance and use it to a great level of proficiency, this aptitude is limited purely to traditional weapons such as swords, polearms and anything similar to that. She is also competent with objects that could be used as weapons, objects such as a chair or a pencil, also her intuition is limited to melee weapons, sure she could use a javelin to high-skill but if she was asked to throw it then she'd have a bit of trouble when it came to throwing it accurately and with incredible skill. The traditional component of a weapon means that she isn't the greatest with technology and so the use of firearms and explosives are quite difficult for her to understand or use to the same level as she could a sword.

» Legacy of the Second Kenpachi »

The Four Paths

• Steel Path
  The first and most basic path taught to Erika by the Second Kenpachi Ivan Crow, is the most basic path. The user is given a steel sword and must begin by using it. Often given the test of using a sword to cut through a tree, which is quite hard due to the dulling of the blade as the steel clashes with the wood. The path teaches the use of an actual sword, allowing for the person to develop the feel for the blade and understand it. There is no more to this path other than understanding how to learn how to fight with a blade and develop a fighting style with it there is no reiatsu or spiritual traits involved in this path and is solely swordplay.
  
  
• Wooden Path
  The wooden path is the second lesson taught by Ivan Crow. The Wooden Path begins by the steel sword being removed from the equation and instead the student is given a wooden sword. The purpose of this sword is that it is a blunt weapon, it can't do damage and it lacks the durability to be effective. In order to fulfil the teachings of this way the student must be able to harness reiatsu to project it onto the sword and make it able to rival the steel sword when the student can finally focus their reiatsu into a blade then they can proceed to continue onto the Earth Path.
  
  
• Earth Path
  The third and possibly one of the more difficult teachings of the second Kenpachi is the ability to "become the blade" by this time the student should be adept with a blade and able to use reiatsu to empower objects. This trial is to make the student able to focus their reiatsu onto themselves, essentially becoming stronger and able to enhance their physical conditions as well as then focus it further and actually give sharpness around their body and allow them to fight opponents without the need of a sword.
  
  
• Wind Path
  The final of all the teaches is the ability to manifest the soul, effectively allowing the shinigami to achieve higher states of power through a zanpakuto. This is the hardest of all the teachings when it comes to this style of teaching. It is not limited to the release states though, if one learns correctly and without gaining attachment to a physical weapon which their soul becomes bound to then the power of Katanakaji can be achieved which allows the user to focus their energy and soul outside the body in any form they can imagine being the pinnacle of ancient swordplay.

Sword Arts:

• Kiritsudō ["Way of Disciple"]: The standard fighting style distinguished by its versatility and balance. In short it is a solid, comprehensive set of basic and intermediate moves that constitute the common basis shared between the more defined styles. Even though it lacks any significant advantages there are also no drawbacks present to readily exploit. In addition, it involves frequent usage of other fields of combat, such as Hakuda or Kidō, in order to supplement the user's swordsmanship. As the basic and most well-rounded style of combat it is taught to all students who attend the Shin'ō Academy as the basic sword-style.
  
  
• Genchidō ["Way of Commitment"]: This passive form of combat is the preferred style of warm-hearted combatants who are unwilling to eliminate their foes. Focused on persistence and care of movement, it emphasises defensive techniques performed with the employment of tight blade work and subtle dodges. The nigh-constant and efficient swings of the sword are intended to cover a wide area and offer substantial protection with little effort on the fighter's part. Composure and focus are essential. As a result, the practitioners of this form aim to outlast their usually more aggressive opponents with impressive resilience and efficient delivery.
  
  
• Tekiidō ["Way of Hostility"]: This savage and dynamic form of combat is the style of relentless offence. Notable features include a wide variety of circuitous swings and sudden stabs performed with considerable speed. In addition, a great many of acrobatic manoeuvres such as leaps, somersaults, back-flips and spinning are used extensively to deliver unpredictable attacks and evade the enemy in equal measure. The form is not suitable for defence as its main focus lies on constant offence. As a consequence of its intensity it is also not really fit for protracted combat.
  
  
• Suijakudō ["Way of Debilitation"]: This style revolves around methodical infliction of various types of pinprick yet exhausting wounds. Essentially, the form consists of numerous techniques that gradually impale, cut and shred the extremities of the opponent in order to methodically wear them down with the least effort possible. Seasoned opponents are aware which spots are prime targets for precision strikes, although even they might be surprised by such a consistently circuitous approach. The attacks are substantially less predictable on purpose, and consequently much more difficult to block. Furthermore, this method is highly useful against enemies of superior physical strength. Generally, this form might be employed to weaken a formidable foe in order to render them vulnerable to the more simple styles.
  
  
• Seidodō ["Way of Accuracy"]: This form focuses on pinpoint accuracy. Most moves consist of swift thrusts. The intent of this form is to overwhelm the enemy defences with highly accurate attacks of minuscule footprint that repeatedly target vital spots. The blade work is fluent and extremely efficient. This is the most elegant approach of the various forms, and the one most likely to eliminate the adversary quickly. In spite of the form's relatively straightforward and predictable nature a seasoned master often will be able to accomplish one's goal thanks to superior skill.
  
  
• Sagidō ["Way of Deceit"]: The most sophisticated form of combat that relies heavily upon elements of prediction and psychological warfare. Combat moves as well as feints and deceit constitute the form in equal measure. Misdirection, sudden shifts of stance and winding slashes are par for the course, and no strike hits where it is expected to do. An integral part of this form is the ability to anticipate the reactions of the current opponent. Of course, the more experienced the adversary the less effective the feints are. Regardless, in the thick of battle there is rarely enough time to properly consider the best course of action and reflexes often guide the reactions. Practitioners of this form are well-aware of those reflexes and aim to exploit the most logical responses. First, they trigger a specific reaction with one move and then immediately transition to another one that is intended to take advantage of that deliberately stimulated response. Out of the six forms sagidō represents the pinnacle of swordsmanship. The style is the most difficult to master but also the most rewarding in turn.
  
  
  • Satsujin Jiken ["Murder Stroke"]: Taking advantage of tricking an opponent into creating an opening Erika is able to slash into the body and apply an acidic effect to her blade that allows it to burn into the target and cause enough harm for her to finish them off while they are in pain. This ability takes advantage of using pain to make a target give an opening for a finishing blow.
  
  
  
• Nijūhadō ["Way of Dual Blades"]: While Zanpakutō that exist as two separate blades in the sealed state are a rare occurrence, the formation of twin blades within Shikai and Bankai is common enough to warrant an appropriate sub-form of sword-fighting. Dual-blade combat emphasises offence and speed. Whilst it is possible to use one weapon for attack and the other for defence, it is more frequent to perform the assault with the use of both. Such blade work is rather demanding and requires increased concentration, although it is proportionally more oppressive to the opponent. With her skill in Katanakaji Erika is able to manifest separate weapons to dual-wield.
  
  
  • Hasami ["Scissors"]: The practitioner employs two blades to strike from two angles and come together to allow for cutting from both sides in the same manner as a pair of scissors would.
  
  
  
• Suitchihadō ["Way of the Switched Blade"]: Some practitioners tend to wield their weapons in a so-called reverse grip (Icepick grip). Often perceived as the mark of an amateur, some instructors discourage their adepts from employing this way of wielding a weapon due to the inherent vulnerability to disarmament. However, expert practitioners are more than capable of utilising this style in a highly flexible and dangerous fashion. This distinct mode offers a range of unique techniques and renders the traditional ones far less predictable.
  
  
• Yūreihadō ["Way of the Ghost Blade"]: One of the more peculiar styles of swordsmanship that relies on specific kinds of Zanpakutō powers that allow the wielder to swiftly disperse and/or restore the blade of their sword. Needless to say this is an uncommon style, and somewhat dangerous if employed without proper concentration or timing. However, in the hands of a skilled practitioner its unique properties render the style highly effective. Examples of swords like this are those with Katanakaji or for a canon example: Byakya Kuchiki's Senbonzakura.
  
  
• Fūhadō ["Way of the Wind Blade"]: This advanced style of sword-fighting heavily relies upon creative use of Hōhō. With the application of high-speed movement techniques to swordsmanship moves one is capable of achieving feats of impressive swiftness and speed. Skilled practitioners can perform multiple nigh-simultaneous strikes, attack so abruptly that only the most perceptive of enemies may notice the motion, or even appear to hit from a widely different direction than one might have expected. Notably, Fūhadō is a popular supplementary style among master swordsmen, especially those who devote some time to hone their skill in Hōhō.
  
  
• Miryokuhadō ["Way of the Charmed Blade"]: The other advanced style of swordsmanship, which involves the usage of Kidō to achieve remarkable feats. Practitioners who boast considerable skill in both fields may infuse their blades with Kidō, use them to channel certain spells or even utilise magic to alter or control the Zanpakutō in a number of creative ways. Whilst dangerous to practise, the effects of such a combination might be truly devastating. There is the small issue that a well-tuned sensor can sense the subtle amounts of energy that the blade radiates and deduce that something is being applied.
  
  
  • Kōsoku Hitouchi ["Binding Blow"]: Enchanting a sword with Kido, Erika is able to focus a binding spell onto the blade, which one is determined by her as it can be something as simple as Sai to something as advanced as Kin, once her sword makes contact this spell is activated and affects the opponent meaning that if she used Sai their arms would quickly attempt to lock behind their back and provide an opening for a follow-up technique. Erika uses Binding Blow as a distraction primarily since most do not expect it and it allows her to have a surprise strike.
    
    
  • Gyakuryū ["Reverse Flow"]: Using the spell Seki as the enchantment the zanpakuto is able to repel energy and increase its power by rejecting anything coming towards it. From a physics standpoint this means that Erika's zanpakuto can apply an opposing force more than she could naturally exert which can assist in countering stronger opponents and attacks or alternatively allow her to follow through with her strikes easier however Newton's second law still applies which means that she cannot gain an absolute strength from her spell, it only provides her with more potential power.

Kenjutsu: Being quite adept with her sword skills Erika is a very capable practitioner with Kenjutsu, the art of using a sword. Her prowess with a blade is quite advanced, having been taught by the second Kenpachi before his demise Erika was taught how to treat a blade as an extension of her body, moving her blade with such skill is child's play to her. Her precision and skill is very fine although in the grand scheme of things her level of skill is not as great as other zanjutsu masters due to her not yet attaining a zanpakuto release.

• Iaido: The art of drawing the sword and re-sheathing it all in a single movement. Erika is fond of this technique style, often using it since it is so effective for blows that are designed to finish things and show a resolve to win. She primarily will start or finish a fight with her Iaido prowess although often being called a useless art since it provides so many openings as the sword will return to the sheathe following the strike. Regardless Erika has practised this skill to make herself one of the master's of the art.
  
  
  • Hitotsume: Nadegiri ["The First: Killing Stroke"]: A very deadly technique which has very high potential for fatality on certain beings, by concentrating Erika must be able to focus clearly on where she want to strike. Once having awareness of where she wants to cut she executes a powerful slash, powerful enough to completely bisect a weak opponent. The piercing power of the slash is enough to potentially even pierce an arrancar's hierro on the same level as her strength. The downside of this technique is that while incredibly fast in the execution she is left vulnerable in its preparation, also since she has focused on this one point if the target was to move to the side then it can throw off the effectiveness.
    
    
  • Futatsume: Tsukugiri ["The Second: Spearing Stroke"]: Instead of the typical slash used by the previous technique Erika begins by quickly drawing her sword and impaling her target before re-sheathing it. The blade projects a very powerful and focused blast towards the target in a linear direction which means that the blade can pierce up until one-hundred metres, this strike cannot move other than in the straight line until it stops but if well executed it can easily rip apart an enemy's ranks.
    
    
  • Mittsume: Kujikugiri ["The Third: Crushing Stroke"]: Striking with so much force that it all forces itself out and around the blade to instead cover a small distance, the blade comes through with astounding force which can shatter steel and reinforced defences but often lose most, if not all power after it strikes that first object and so a strike where one intends to continue through with is not very likely to succeed.
    
    
  • Yottsume: Mosugiri ["The Fourth: Searing Stroke"]: This laido technique is one Erika uses in rare cases due to the technique by first coating her zanpakuto in her reiatsu she executes a very fast slash, the reiatsu on the blade causing it to heat up due to the energy and enhance both cutting power and speed, since the energy excites and moves the air particles, the result is a devastating slash that is cauterised due to the heat which quickly leaves the opponent with a deep slash wound that has been cauterised. The added effect of the heat causes more pain with the burn left from the cut and also the pain of moving for the opponent while also allowing for Erika to take advantage of this fact.
    
    
  • Itsutsume: Hakaigiri ["The Fifth: Razing Stroke"]: Considered Erika's most dangerous use of Iaido. The technique begins with her preparing a great deal of energy before releasing it. Instead of doing a slash motion she creates an arc that
    that fires the energy forward in a barrage of energy cuts that can rip apart the environment. It's dangerous for being able to completely eviscerate group of targets. Even structures like buildings can be razed t the ground by this use of Iaido.

» Hoho: Erika is proficient with the use of Hoho, she uses the speed movement ability to great means all towards enforcing her swordsmanship and making it more lethal. Erika is not a true master of the art though, it has never been a focus for anything other than a catalyst for her to use in combat. She actively makes use of the speed movement technique to speed up certain functions of herself, such as analysis, physical fitness and regeneration through speeding up her metabolism and mitosis cycle.

» Kido: Coming in as a tie with her hoho as her second most proficient skill she is capable of using to a high level. She sees this in the same light as her hoho, it is merely a skill to use for enhancing herself and combining with her swordplay, such use of kido has earned her the title of "The Arcane Swordsman" in her time associated with the Gotei Thirteen. She can use the spells effectively in combat, often making use of seals to save a spell for the moment she needs it and so that it doesn't require any energy.

» Hakuda: This is definitely the weakest art of Erika's, she knows not even a single martial art. She cannot enhance her fighting style with any form of Hakuda techniques and without her swords or a weapon in combat she might as well be any other person that is only if she has been cut off from Kido as well. It is also primarily due to the fact that with her skill of Katanakaji she has the power to never have to be without a sword or weapon and so she never sought to hone the art.

» Katanakaji: An ancient form of zanjutsu, now lost to the modern world. It is unique as a power since the very principles contradict themselves and to try and apply it is almost impossible. Only two people in recent history have been able to awaken Katanakaji. Erika learnt this ability from her mentor Ivan Crow, having sought him out she trained for many years to attain this ability.

Instead of using an ausachi or physical catalyst to manifest the spirit of oneself into, this power requires the seemingly impossible task of manifesting the spirit from the inner-world into reality and without any form of physical form. As stated by Ivan, binding one's zanpakuto spirit to a physical form will ultimately make it only be able to exist in that form in the world, limiting the ability to manifest it at will in any form one might desire. In order for Katanakaji to even awaken the user must hold no attachment or favour in a physical weapon or object, in order to assist in this Ivan made Erika change weapon every week, breaking her previous weapon in front of her and making her use a new weapon.

This prevented any attachment to a sword, after five years of intense training Erika finally was able to manifest her zanpakuto into reality in the form of a simple katana. That was only the first stage however since the power is very hard for even master's of zanjutsu to use Erika's weapon was flimsy and brittle, quickly smashing. It should be noted that this power's manifestations traits are also malleable to the user's desires and that required further training to master.

• Manifestation: Converting her energy into a mass Erika is able to give this mass shape and form weapons out of it which is her zanpakuto's physical form for the time. There is no limit to the amount of projections she can overlay into reality, theoretically she can litter an entire battlefield with swords and weapons of any description so long as she can keep up with the output however once a weapon is broken she can absorb 30% of the energy that she used to produce said weapon and to put towards making more weapons or for whatever energy purposes she might need. Ultimately her ability is quite strong but she cannot recycle her weapons indefinitely meaning she needs to be strategic with the ability to manifest these swords.
  
  
• Property Control: One key thing to remember is that these weapons are not actually "real" in terms of reality. They are constructs of Erika's energy and her zanpakuto which means that they are not bound to normal laws of existence, an example of this is that she could manifest a wooden sword for her zanpakuto's form. This is not a wooden sword, this is the projection of a wooden sword and so she could easily infuse more energy into her construct to give it a variety of properties such as sharpness, durability and such. Infusing properties into her weapons, especially the potential for magic abilities then will take much more energy to do.
  
  
• Role Call: An ability that allows Erika to instantly breakdown and re-assimilate her manifestation into her reiryoku reserves, this allows her to be able to call back any and all weapons that she forms with Katanakaji. With this in mind she can also move it telekinetically and fight through ranged swordplay or make it teleport back to her grasp, albeit she cannot teleport it anywhere other than recall it to her hand. This allows for her to perform quick strikes to catch her opponent off-guard.

» Summary: This release is a rather strange one, it was discovered by Erika who struggles to uncover her true zanpakuto spirit. This lead her tackle this issue from a new perspective, the principles of shikai is that by flowing one's own reiryoku into the zanpakuto's and calling of the name to release a higher state of power. Instead with Erika she takes energy from the zanpakuto and inverts the process "becoming the sword" in a sense. This bypasses the need to understand a zanpakutoi's name although this form cannot go further into a Bankai replacement since the principles of Bankai is the two spirits reaching a symbiotic relationship. Sayatai merely rips the power from the sword to enhance the user's condition which results in a transformation from the boost of reiryoku.

» Appearance: Entering into this state, Erika's body becomes much more mature. Her curves are more pronounced and her body much more womanly than before. Her body is stronger, with more muscle mass and strength behind it. She is taller and appears more like an adult than an adolescent now. She has a tanned skin tone, one that appears weather beaten and worn through years of exposure to hardship. She has a pale scar that runs along her thigh as though she has been wounded in the past.

Erika's hair is shorter, also becoming more metallic in the process. It is messier and her hair is given the appearance of shiny metal that catches the sun almost like ornamentation to her appearance. Her attire changes, but is still reminiscent of her previous one with a a belt around her waist and armour padding on her shoulders and one leg. She has a guard around her wrist with her sword being broken from the energy being pulled out of it. The sword has runes on it, the fragments are held together by a green energy that Erika produces.


» Powers:

» Sword Body: Erika's body changes in this form, her body becomes like a sword, in this way her appearance could be described as a sheathe hence why she named the form Sayatai. The main features of this form is that is gives her an increased muscle mass and makes her very dense, increasing both her strength and durability and overall physical condition but making her exponentially more heavy as a result. This doesn't affect her balance but when she lands she has a much higher impact force, when she needs to be graceful or be light she simply doesn't have that same level of ability as she does in her base form.

Her entire composition becomes interwoven with her zanpakuto's material, the form strips the zanpakuto of quite a lot of its power hence why the body can become so enhanced. This causes her body to have zanpakuto steel up to a ratio of 1/8 of her total body mass which is primarily an enhancement to her durability but it isn't indestructible since a strong enough force can still take advantage of her body being only partly enhanced. Her entire cardiovascular system becomes hot, liquid metal is what would better describe her blood than just liquid which her body can handle. The blood can be a weapon if used right since it is incredibly hot but cools rapidly when exposed to air granting her the potential to clot and block injuries as they form on her.

She can only maintain this form for a short period, being around seven posts before she finally cannot maintain it for any longer and she will exit it while feeling very fatigued and tired afterwards due to the energy that she released in doing so. Her zanpakuto is also forced under a lot of stress for the transformation which can leave damage after extended periods of use past the seven post limit while also being detrimental to Erika's health.

» Fragmented Sword: Erika can use this large sword in a manner of a whip sword, being able to swing it with an extended arc and then draw it all back towards the blade to reform like a magnet.

General Skills

• Durability:Adept
  
• General Speed: Adept
  
• Strength: Beginner
  
• Weapon Skill: Advanced
  

Will Skills

• Willpower/Determination: Advanced
  
• Mental Deduction: Adept
  
• Pain Endurance: Advanced
  
• Focus: Master
  

Racial Skills

• Hoho: Adept
  
• Kidō: Adept
  
• Zanjutsu: Advanced
  
• Hakuda: Beginner
  

» Name: Juuchi Yosamu [10,000 Cold Nights]

» Appearance: Erika's inner manifestation of her own calamity and negativity takes the form of a tall and attractive woman, she bares a faint resemblance to Erika where one might assume the woman to be her mother or an elder sibling. She has a scar running along her face, marring her beauty. It creates a T-mark across her face, her hair is blonde and short. Hanging around her shoulders when let out she often keeps it kept up.

Juuchi Yosamu's body is tall and slender, covered by a black kimono which is kept closed by an obi, the fabric is patterned with golden maple leaves that appear to be falling. The kimono is open to expose her legs and allow for movement easier. She wears black boots to compliment the attire and does not appear to have her sealed form on her.



Malicious: A being of pure spite and hatred, she seeks to hurt people and possesses a desire to hurt those around her and make them suffer. It is a bi-product of being formed within the confines of Erika's mind, her birth being the result of much hatred and conflict that her creator felt at the time. She does not seek to change, enjoying making her master suffer and she does all she can to hurt those that come near her. Hence why her powers target allies as a priority, why the sword leaves cuts on Erika's hands after she exists the release stage and why the woman does all she can to make life hard for Erika. Seeking to force her into a pit of dark thoughts that would destroy her.

Lustful: Juuchi Yosamu is prone to be very sexual, often making lewd comments or using innuendo in her dialogue. She will casually make remarks to Erika about people she knows, taking advantage of her care towards Tsubine Koezuka by using her in there quite a lot. When they are together she often jovially will sexually abuse Erika, using something like a spank to distract her and then take advantage of the girl's lapse in focus to beat her.

Resentful: She is a hateful woman, she resents Erika a great deal. She was the product of all Erika's despair and sadness, her rage and anger. She is an embodiment of negativity and she resents her creator for it. The woman blames Erika for her negative personality and powers, seeing herself as the lake that is just there for the girl to dump her negative thoughts and emotions in that pollutes her mind even more.

Apathetic: There is a distinct lack of emotion within the spirit. She will happily hurt someone and not feel remorse. She lacks the ability to empathise and sympathise with people, one might label her as a psychopath for this trait because she is absolved of love, friendship and any form of meaningful relationship. To Juuchi Yosamu all humans are merely the same and there is not connection which is linked to her ability to harm indiscriminately.

Dishonourable: Something that sets her apart from her master, being almost a trait that is the anti-thesis of Erika's code of honour, Juuchi Yosamu is a liar, she is a cheater and she is a dishonourable person in every way. She doesn't care about anything or anyone other than herself and Erika but that is purely due to the fact that they are bound and she cannot survive without Erika. Her power allows her to be dishonourable, by cheating in combat through its destruction which overall makes her hard to reason with or trust which contributes to why Erika and hre cannot seem to get along.

Trouble-Maker: She is quite relaxed, she knows no form of respect and so she doesn't care about how she might appear to people. She doesn't try to follow formalities or bend to the will of society which makes her seem to exist outside of the world. She doesn't refer to Erika as anything that seems respectful or anyone, she often dresses in clothes that are not what people want her to wear or do things that she wants to do instead of what she is told to do.

Rude: Quite a rude spirit, she is abusive towards people and her master in specific. It is quite deeply associated into her core to hate and be out-right rude towards her master and those around her. She would frequently insult people close to Erika and make her feel bad, remind her of her mistakes and all the bad things she has done. She doesn't treat Erika with respect, in fact she treats people Erika hates with more respect than her master.



» Sealed Appearance: Is summoned via Katanakaji


» Sealed Power: Destruction. Still present in the sword in the sealed state, when Erika uses the blade and creates a wound the blade emits a small amount of foreign energy that causes resistance in the healing process, spiritual healing takes 1/5 more energy to heal the wound and the natural regeneration process takes twice as long so a wound would take much longer to naturally heal than if it was cut by another sword.



» Release Phrase: "Harm without Remorse, Juuchi Yosamu."

» Nisekai Appearance: Upon entering her Nisekai Erika's weapon - in whatever form it might be in from Katanakaji - will dissolve completely dissipating before a series of deadly effects occur. The wind rips around her, aiming to completely eviserate anything that might be around her for a ten metre radius. A sink hole appears around her leaving her on a circle of five metres in diametre while she is surrounded by a larger circle of around twenty metres which caves in and everything in it will be crushed.

Erika's sword will then reform, taking on a long and straight blade. It is silver, but the handle is wrapped in wet black cloth. The guard is non-existent, the blade is constantly releasing the feeling of anger outwards, like a feeling in the air. The sword has the unnatural features of being hollow in the blade itself, making it light and flexible but still strong. The blade has innumerable amount of microscopic barbs along its length which makes every slash rip at flesh and more painful than simply being cut. It is a sadistic sword that seeks to harm.

[The wind cuts like simple blades and there is not enhancement towards this earthen burial aspect]

» Nisekai Power: The theme and power of Juuchi Yosamu is simply the power to destroy, the power to harm indiscriminately and hurt those around it. Even Erika's own hands will be cut after the blade is sealed again. The blade emits an energy, a negative aura that allows for it to induce destructive and degenerative effects hence why it is so powerful in combat but the sword is one that has a price, it will harm without remorse or care towards what it hurts. This means that when the sword is released Erika's attacks to not avoid allies and target enemies, in fact they will see allies as a priority and enemies as something that can wait. For this reason Juuchi Yosamu should not be released around allies.

The power to apply negative effects by its blade is one that has many possibilities. For example taking the concept of severing - to separate - is how Juuchi Yosamu's edge is so sharp. Since it's negative energy degenerates things that would get in the way, weakening the bonds and anything in general is how the sword cuts so effectively. It severs these things through the energy that wants to get through the obstacle. This allows for the blade to be more effective against Hierro, Barriers and obstacles. This blade will cut anything indiscriminately - even being able to sever spiritual attacks by severing the energy bonds when it hits the blade.

Destruction is the blade's desire and it is reflected in the power, severing in only cutting something into more pieces. Juuchi Yosamu is able to influence the world around it with chaotic effects, take the earth for example if the sword pierced the earth and then the target was an enemy then the earth could potentially become like sand and trap them in there before tightening around them or completely burying them. This can be said for the other elements as well, water could become raging waves and earthquakes could occur. The sword could potentially even create a small tornado from the wind being influenced. Ultimately Nature Disasters are a possibility but incredibly volatile where even Erika can be caught up in the disaster.

The sword can be called the antithesis of health and life, this ultimately has a side effect that can be crippling for the user since so long as Juuchi Yosamu is active the wielder cannot heal or regenerate from damage - a truly sadistic blade that's energy prevents healing and while this can be applied to its opponents - where the energy can make healing require more energy, make it less effective and take longer - the user will suffer the most. In fact being exposed to this energy for more than seven posts is enough to cause damage on Erika and leave her below her standard level of power.