A Bright Spark.

A day off, what a great thing to get. How Alastor was ready to just take the day off and be on his merry way. Maybe he could convince his captain to let him go on an excursion to a place in the Human World or maybe a cool little joint in the Seireitei. At least these were his plans to get out and have some fun since that was what he was told was planned until he got one of the real shinigami, like the dead people that wasn't a substitute shinigami like him and got the great job of going to some kendo dojo for some reason.

Errand Boy was more like what his job was, had him wondering why he took on this job anyway. It's not like he owed anything to these people, sure a shinigami saved his life when a hollow tried to kill his family by turning him into this state and that must've counted for something. If there was anything Old Man de Maris had told him it was that you take what work is given to you and do it properly. So even though it seemed pretty sucky he took it in stride and just did it.

It's why when he arrived and stood outside to make sure he had gotten this right before he actually went in. He didn't want to look like an idiot after all even though he was dressed in his shinigami robes, something he was conscientious about since he had heard rumours of shinigami disappearing in the Rukongai every now and again with no explanation. Creepy. Either way it's not like he didn't have stuff underneath that was more neutral he could slide into after this was all done so he would reduce the risk. Brash he was but not stupid.

"Yep. Lookin' like the right spot."

There were many buildings in the Rukongai. Especially this far out, where so many buildings would blend together and seemingly create an endless wall of dilapidated buildings. And yet..as Alastor got closer and closer to his location, buildings started to seem nicer. Not by massive degrees. But the amount of dilapidated wooden shacks started to decrease, and buildings looked more like proper homes. And then, he would find it. The Dueling Dragon Dojo. It was no nicer than many of the other buildings around, but it was one of the few two story buildings. And..well. There was a sign. That made it quite obvious that he was in the right place.

Upon entering the Dojo however, it became quite obvious as to why a fellow squad member got to take time off to go here. The students were dressed in full armor, kneeling around the center of the first floor, with two older people kneeling behind the person standing in the very center. A fairly tall woman with pink hair and silver eyes. That would match the description of the woman he was sent after. Croisima Kattalin. Supposedly the single oldest being in the seventh division. The atmosphere also changed completely. While outside the Dojo was the normal air of day to day life that filled the Rukongai and most of the Seireitei..inside of the Dojo there was this air of silent respect and admiration. It seemed that he had entered in the middle of a speech, as she seemed to be addressing the crowd gathered around her.

"I know that in spite of what all I have said, a lot of you probably still don't know why you should listen to me. I haven't taught here for nearly a hundred years, after all, so I obviously must not care anymore, right? Not exactly. I come here every so often because I still care about the place, and want to make sure that the two people I have trusted are teaching people to the best of their abilities, especially since I have an obligation to use the skills I have gained to help people."

She said as her eyes scanned over the crowd..and then she met Alastor's eyes. She had heard of the Substitute that was brought into their squad. Then she had this strange look in her eyes, and smiled as she spoke up a little louder. "I'm guessing that they sent you to come pick me up for some reason or another, huh?" She asked as she stared straight into Alastor's eyes. And just like that, the dozens and dozens of armored Kendo students turned in place, twisting around to try and get a look at who she was talking to..only for a few of their faces to go pale as they saw his Shinigami robes.

And yet, those were the very thing that Croisima was not wearing. She obviously still carried her Zanpakuto, as there was a sword strapped to her waist..but her general outfit was quite masculine. She was currently dressed in an unbuttoned leather coat that went just past her knees. Underneath that, there was a deep purple colored shirt, and she was also wearing black jeans and what appeared to be normal shoes, rather than the ridiculous sandals that were the uniform standard.

"Unfortunately, I can't leave yet. I came here promising these young students a practical demonstration. If you'd be so kind as to be my sparring partner, then we can get this over with, and we can be on our merry way to do whatever it is that we need to do." Of course, as she said this, the faces of pretty much everyone around him lit up, and Croisima nodded at one of the teachers behind her, tilting her head in a different direction. After a few moments, the teacher walked back into view, stepping into the center, carrying what looked to be two metal training swords that approximated the length of the two swords that they each were carrying.

Oh, so this was how it's gonna be. Well..at least it was an interesting kind of ultimatum, right?

Well wasn't this a dandy thing, awkward too as he walked inside while wearing his uniform. His substitute badge clear as day on his uniform too even though most would probably think it was just some cool accessory or trinket as other shinigami occasionally did. Like how Captain Kyoraku got around in a floral pink woman's haori over his attire, what a strange guy he was. Did that even help? Regardless he wasn't able to think too much in his idle thoughts before she met his gaze and she was talking to him which had him look like she had disturbed him from his thoughts before nodding. Given her addressing the crowd he didn't expect to be singled out like that.

While that nod was all he gave to confirm her suspicions Alastor's mind was busy thinking, about a few things. She was pretty hot, what she was doing in a place like this, what was up with those kids giving him such odd looks. Had they never seen a shinigami before or somethin'? Oh well. What came next was a little surprising, a request to give a practical demonstration for kendo. Wasn't this a little awkward, he knew his swordsmanship wasn't really his best quality. If it was beating up someone that'd be better but he didn't want to beat this cutie up or anything.

"Uh... Sure. I'll give you a practice match. If you're willing to get drinks or somethin' afterwards well after whatever you're wanted for I guess."

Smooth, just kidding. He wondered if it came off desperate but that didn't matter. He didn't really care what these kids thought of him, even if he looked old enough to probably fit in given his youthful look but hey, this chick was pretty tall. Like just a little smaller than him which was pretty cool and if he was probably going to get beat up and embarrassed in front of all these students he might as well not stop there.

Regardless of her answer though Alastor took the metal training sword offered to him and tossed his ausauchi on the ground. Probably didn't make his zanpakuto spirit happy but a little tough love never hurt anyone. Instead he held the sword curiously and tested the weight to try and get used to it from what he was used to with his own weapon.

"Uh... Sure. I'll give you a practice match. If you're willing to get drinks or somethin' afterwards well after whatever you're wanted for I guess."

Well, it wasn't the first time that Croisima had been hit on. But it was the first time it had been done so ineptly. That actually got a chuckle out of her as she took the sword that one of her other teachers had handed her. Looking at it compared to the zanpakuto that was on her waist, this one seemed to be specially designed to be around the same size as her own sword.

Of course, the sword Alastor had been given wouldn't feel much different than his own either. They had practice swords in varying sizes, after all. There was one notable difference though. The blade he had been given almost felt..lighter?

Still, Croisma twirled the sword she had been given in her hand by its handle a few times as she watched her fellow shinigami test the weight of his own weapon. Still, she lowered her sword to her side, the blade held in a way that left the point facing the ground, with the ''edge'' pointed at an angle towards her leg. With that in mind, she cleared her throat, speaking up so as to make sure that every student in the building could hear her.

"As I promised you all, today is a simple demonstration of what can be achieved with swordsmanship once you've mastered the basics. To that end, my opponent and I will only be using our physical attributes, rather than anything special granted to us, such as any spiritual power like Kido or movement techniques such as Shunpo. I will not use my zanpakuto, just as my opponent has clearly agreed not to do."

She said, her tone having switched back from the casual nature it had been when she spoke up to Alastor the first time to that of a veteran teacher. A tone that all but commanded respect amongst those who couldn't stand up and challenge her actively.

Of course, she wasn't one to give her opponent the first strike, even if this was mere training. So without missing a beat, she took off, covering the ground between herself and Alastor in mere seconds as her sword came up seemingly out of nowhere in an attempt to slash at him from below, aiming to strike from his right hip up to his left shoulder, followed by a sudden second strike from the opposing direction. It was fast, but not untraceable, nor unstoppable.

Her footwork was deft, and her form solid. But it was clear that her emphasis was not on power. It was speed. That being said, she was obviously assuming that this person was at least on the same level as her, and was not holding back. Well..at least she had a healthy respect for her fellow shinigami, right? Possibly. If Alastor had been paying attention, he would likely have figured it out by now. This Dojo wasn't just some random Dojo. This was both her business and her home, both of which had been left under the care of others. She was here to inspire people, most likely.

Man, she's doing all the tricks and stuff. Is she super skilled or somethin'? I'm screwed.

It was at this point you'd probably see a bead of sweat rolling down his forehead if he wasn't trying to make his nerves show. Her speech didn't help, she really was going to beat his ass and she didn't even accept his request. What a shame, why'd the substitute always gets given the crappy tasks. Clearly those others must've known she'd challenge them to spar, somehow, and in knowing this they set a scapegoat like his superiors somehow had some five dimensional chess going on that he was missing because he was still alive.

"Crud."

Seeing her close the distance he brought his sword up to meet her's, clang the steel went as it passed along each other and so Alastor had to hold himself back from going for a punch which he'd normally do and try to shift away from his swordplay but this was an official match so instead he would swiftly step on his side, missing her follow-up strike unintentionally and trying to slip his blade up the side of her torso while her arms were preoccupied.

C'mon, easy date let's go. Then I can give those asses the finger heh

If she was being honest, Croisima would have expected at least one of those two attacks to hit. She always caught the tail end of people talking about her speed when they thought she wasn't around. But with that in mind, she was glad that her opponent was at least quick enough on his feet to block and dodge. It would have been a very poor demonstration if her opponent was someone who had no real foundational skills in using the sword he was holding. Of course, she could tell that while he had a decent stance and form, he was still getting used to using a sword. Interesting.

Of course, to that end, she was very much able to read what his next attack was going to be. He was trying to swing his sword in such a way that it would slide against her side before she could recover from her swing. Clever. But unfortunately, due to her emphasis on speed in combat, she did not leave as much of an opening as most did, and with a quick flick of her wrists, a clanging sound would echo out throughout the dojo again as she levered his blade up and away from her. She had gotten lucky this time.

His attempt to slide the blade against her side was something that was far too easy to recover from. If he had gone for her head or anything higher, she would have been forced to dodge in some way. Still, she spoke up again. "As you all can see, both my opponent and I have at least a fundamental understanding of the basics. Had my blade been in any other position, he would have been able to gain an easy hit on me."

She said as she took a few steps back, deciding to go on the defensive for now. She had tipped her hand a bit when it came to revealing her level of skill..now it was time to see how her sparring partner would react to being forced to take the lead. Given what he had said as she closed the distance, she felt confident in thinking that he probably considered her to be more skilled than he was. But that wasn't always the end all be all in combat. Sometimes, creativity could win the day.