Reignition [May Anyburst 2019]

Wild Storm: As Henrex releases his Shikai, one of the main attributes that come with the release would be the enhancement of former abilities. Branching off from the base form of Storm Kata's "Grounded Thunder" style, the escalating nature of his Zanpakuto has created a new style, Wild Storm. At its core, this is meant to embody and focus solely on that form of the base style. In order to do so, this style forces the aspects of Grounded Thunder into overdrive. Again, it completely forgoes defense in order to devote everything to a powerful offense.

When it comes to the base footwork of the style, it very lightly mimics Grounded Thunder. This is also true for the base stance of Wild Storm, mimicking fencing. However, what differentiates the two would be the wild flurry of movements that the main kata of this style pertains to. Each and every strike flares with lightning and is wholly unpredictable, as there isn't any real rhyme or rhythm to the way that his sword is swung with this style.

As for general movement and footwork, it too shares the wild and chaotic nature of the style, as Henrex's footwork is hardly ever the same for a long period of time, as it is constantly shifting and moving. Again, taken from the original sub-style, this can include a variety of different actions in order to keep himself unpredictable and keep moving. Whether it be jumping and flipping, or simply moving around an enemy, this is meant to keep his enemy on their toes, as well as forcing them to expend physical energy in order defend themselves, lest they risk a lethal attack.

Strike, Shiro Rakurai: Upon the release of Henrex's Bankai, there are a number of things that are enhanced and changed as a result, the first of which is the general increase of power and the passive effects behind that. Firstly, this allows him to reach even higher levels of destructive potency with his abilities, empowering all previous abilities to almost double their original power. Furthermore, something else that changed would be the general nature of Henrex's powers as a whole. While his Sealed state and Shikai were focused on the concept of storms and gradual increase in the destructive scale of his powers, his Bankai goes a step further.

Upon release, Henrex gains access to a number of new abilities, the most notable being Natural Disaster Manipulation, taking these elements and their destructive potency and making emphasis on the almost worldly influence that his power is capable of reaching. As the name suggests, this allows him to casually create varying disasters such as (but not limited to), earthquakes/fissures, sinkholes, blizzards, tornadoes, and even hurricanes, granting him a very wide variety of different forms of attack, as well as having a very large area of destruction naturally.

Another thing to note upon release is that, like most general release forms, there is a natural increase in the overall physical condition of the "caster". Base durability, stamina, strength, and speed are drastically increased, letting Henrex hit harder and move faster, while also being able to last longer in a fight. Furthermore, it should be noted that the appearance of Henrex's Bankai is not just a wardrobe change on its own. As his prime form of combat relies on using energy in some form, the garbs that cover his body in this form are also made of highly condensed spiritual energy, acting and functioning as armor to protect himself with.

While this does not scale in any form and is rather weak in the grand scheme of things, it is still able to protect him from basic physical attacks and small-scale energy-based attacks. Something else that should be noted while in this form would be the changes made to the lightning that he is able to summon and create, in that the color has changed to a pure white. Augmented to such extreme levels, entering his Bankai allows Henrex to access an entirely new form of lightning, named after the color: White Lightning.

At its core, these bolts of lightning are much more in-line with the traditional properties of lightning, no longer solely focusing on destruction and paralysis. Firstly, it should be noted that the movement of these bolts now is able to reach Mach 1 speeds, capable of reaching and surpassing the speed of sound with ease, should he put more energy into these attacks in order to make them stronger. Secondly, as stated before, these are now capable of much more than just destruction and paralysis with the addition of another aspect of lightning: heat.

While normal lightning doesn't generate heat on its own, Henrex's lightning not only heats up the air around the area the bolt passes through, causing it to heat up and evaporate moisture in that immediate vicinity, as well as igniting the air and creating an explosion of fire wherever the bolt lands. Thus, it should be noted that even his base powers have a new selection of variety when it comes to his second release.

Godspeed: As his two main elements revolve around speed, and a good majority of his physical stats, this passive ability upon releasing his Bankai boosts all forms of his speed to even greater levels. At its core, this allows him to constantly have energy stored and ready throughout his body in order to use for bursts of speed from any part of him. For example, should he need to move, he can tap into this energy in order to create a tremendous boost in movement speed, allowing him to reach Mach speeds almost instantly, covering ground in almost no time at all.

Furthermore, this allows Henrex an immense boost in "mental speed". What this means is that, passively, Henrex is able to process and send thoughts to the brain much faster, causing his reactions and With the smallest of thoughts of what he needs to do, Henrex can use this pent-up energy in order to respond to those thoughts and desires on a whim, and even respond to threats and danger faster than normal, almost as if his body is moving on its own in order to protect himself.

Additionally, another form of speed boosted from this would be none other than his attack speed. Similarly to the augmentation to his movement, Henrex is able to use the energy stored in his body in order to create massive bursts of movement, allowing him to unleash a flurry of attacks in little time at all, even giving the potential of creating movements faster than his opponent's perception, depending on their level of Focus.

However, it should be noted that, while both passively and actively able to create immense bursts of speed in all forms, using this at its maximum potential repeatedly can lead Henrex becoming physically exhausted, as well as exhausted in terms of energy. Thus, it's common for him to use these bursts in small amounts and infrequently, as it allows him to manage his energy as well as prevent it from exhausting himself right off the bat. Finally, these bursts can only be utilized around once or twice a post, with a one to two post cooldown.

Raijinto (雷王拳, Thunder God Sword): A grandiose name for a grandiose form, this is another passive ability that Henrex gains when he enters Bankai. As, when he is in need of a sword, all he has to do is summon an arbitrary amount of energy to create a lightning bolt that turns into and acts as his sword while in this state. Similarly to previous abilities in his base form and Shikai, this weapon naturally has an immense amount of cutting power, capable of cutting thought average-level physical and spiritual material with little to no issue or resistance, as well as still possessing the ability to augment this passive effect and make it even stronger.

However, being that his sword is now formed from an actual lightning bolt, his "sword" can now take on the various properties of lightning, mimicking the abilities of the base ability in this form, White Lightning. As a result of this, it grants the blade of these swords to have a powerful heat emitting from them, alongside the lightning made up of it. As stated in the previous section, this is due to the movement of the lightning to create the weapon itself, the movement in order to cause the almost microscopic levels of rotation in order for the weapon to have as immense cutting power as it does, and all of this combined causes the air to heat up with something as simple as a sword swing.

As a result of this, it allows Henrex to create brief bursts of fire from his sword, as the heat from the heavily concentrated lightning immediately heats up and evaporates the water/moisture and air in the immediate vicinity of his sword's movements. However, it is important to note that Henrex has little to no control over what these flames do, as they are a byproduct of his abilities, rather than a direct cause. Finally, there is the active augmentation that Henrex can activate at any time. As with Tenkoku's base form, this is something that drastically increases the cutting power of his lightning, and by extension, swords.

With this, Henrex is able to create sword slashes that can cleave through most physical material and defenses without any trouble at all. However, when it comes to spiritual material and defenses, he is still able to cut through it, albeit just not as quickly or as easily, leading him to have to make many, many cuts in order to fully break through these defenses in this augmented form. As a final note, this boost is only able to be used twice every three to four posts.

'An ocarina? And a sword inside the statue? Has someone been here before and tried to destroy it? No, that can't be it...'

As Takeo looked over the statue, he carefully wrapped his hands around the handle of the sword and tugged at it, only for him to realize it was stuck. So, he tugged again; still stuck, leading Takeo to groan.

'Crap...it's really wedged in there. How did someone manage to get it this stuck?'

Again and again, he pulled against the sword. Eventually, after many tries, he finally managed to pull the blade free. A triumphant smile spread across the man's face as he took the weapon with both of his hands, holding it in front of him and making a few mock swings as if attacking an invisible opponent. Taking a closer look, he noticed the almost impeccable nature of the blade. A weapon that likely hadn't been cleaned in years, decades, possibly even centuries, and yet, it seemed as if it had just been finished forging that very day.

As his arms returned to his side, a chill began to creep up his spine. The moment he had taken the sword out, something had felt...off. It felt malicious as if it were coiling around his throat like a vice. There was something else, too. A noise echoed through the temple as Takeo turned around, staring into the darkness of the hallways that lead to the clearing.

It sounded like a growl.

Silence encompassed the temple as Takeo waited, swallowing the lump in his throat and holding the sword steady, just in the off-chance that something, or someone was coming...but nothing ever came. Letting out a sigh of relief, he lowered his guard. It was nothing, just a sound, and nothing more. So, sliding the sword into the sheath that he found at the base of the statue, Takeo slid the sword over his shoulder and onto his back.

Sighing again, the man kneeled, carefully picking up the ocarina and looking it over, he noticed that it too was almost flawless in design, as if it had been made just the other day.

'If it looks this flawless and perfect, then I wonder how it will sound...?'

Bringing the mouthpiece to his lips, he took in a breath to begin playing, when a deep voice suddenly filled his ears, and he immediately stopped moving, his arms and lips trembling as fear once again came over him, stronger than ever. There was no mistaking it this time, it was a voice. Deep and distorted, yet calm. Condescending, yet retaining a collected demeanor.

'A human is the one to release me?'

It spoke.

The thing spoke.

It was alive.

Only then did Takeo fully realize the gravity of what he had done, and what he had accidentally unleashed. He tried to run, but he couldn't. It was as if the mere presence of this creature caused his legs to turn to jelly and his heart to race.

'Weak and powerless. You'll make a fine host...'

He couldn't breathe. The world spun and shook around him as Takeo stumbled away from the shrine, the sword that he had removed from what once was the statue of the demon clattering to the ground as the man reached for his own throat, falling to his knees. He was dying. But, despite this, he fought. He couldn't let it end here. Not after everything he had done, and how far he had come to get there. No! He wouldn't let it end! Not yet!

"I may be human...but I am not weak. I'm not just some prey for you to devour, monster! I WON'T LET IT END HERE!"

The man rose to his feet, letting out a defiant scream to the sky as he used every bit of willpower he possessed to force the creature in the recesses of his mind.

"I won't let you swallow me up...and I'll make sure you don't hurt anyone else!"

Tide Jewels: The tide jewels were a set of magical gems that the sea god, Ryujin, used to control the seas. However, this ability takes the form of ten magatama-shaped orbs of water around both of Henrex's wrists, giving him twenty of them in total. By willing them forward, Henrex can fire these off at high velocity, capable of almost reaching Mach speed in no time at all. This, combined with the natural destructive nature of his energy, scalding water, and high pressure of the water itself can cause each one to have the potential to destroy a building.

Upon landing, this creates a gigantic waterspout that covers around a quarter of a mile in width. However, with some small adjustments, it is possible to lower the size -- and, by extension, their destructive power -- in order to make them even faster and giving them even greater piercing power. By doing this, it gives these orbs a maximum speed of Mach 2. This also allows them to pierce almost any physical material, due to the immense amount of condensed, high-pressure water that is contained in the smaller forms of these orbs.

Furthermore, this can serve as a powerful conductor and conduit for his electrical powers, water being one of, if not the most infamous conductor of electricity in history. By combining the two elements together, it can cause even greater damage than normal. However, while these are powerful in their own right, Henrex is only able to fire so many in a single instance, limited at around five in a post, with a three to four post cooldown after expending all of these orbs.