Cross Fire[Rio, Igen]

RIO SHIHOIN| A HUMBLE SHIELD

The big grin and wink had only served to increase Rio's excitement as he chimed in to her reply. Igen was unexpectedly amusing. His expressions were unlike anything she normally expected against someone in a spar, at least based on the people she had faced up until this point.

None of them took to it with such tangible joy as this one. And that made it all the more exhilarating. There was no pretense of an image she had to keep up around him. She could let loose for a change. She could hardly believe the fierce smile that formed across her face. It felt so unlike her... but it felt so... fun.

His reaction time was so unorthodox but it was impressive all the same. He staggered and stumbled toward her, appearing as if he was about to fall face flat onto the ground, only to catch himself onto the a stump and keep himself upright, launching a hook kick towards Rio's shoulder.

The hook kick would land successfully against its target, pushing her backward ever so slightly. Tapping at her shoulder with a smile, Rio could only rise up and gaze at the young man as he sprung up, ready to engage again.

"You noticed, huh? I wanted this spar to be fun. Striking with full force would only get in the way of that. That said, even with the level of force I chose, you took it right to the chest. Always something to be admired about an opponent who meets a challenge head on. Care to show me more of that, Igen?"

It wasn't a request, but she certainly wanted to test the limits. Her expectations were high now, and though she knew he couldn't offer her an entirely equal match, he could make it entertaining. And sometimes, that was all thrilling in it's own right.

Rio decided to test him on his durability by soaring in again. This time, she executed a roundhouse kick towards his midsection, aiming to pressure him backward. If he evaded or chose to move backward, Rio would quickly balance herself again and aim to go for an uppercut from below, striking at his chin. As before, each strike was applied enough to, at most, leave a few bruises and no more. Still, out of curiosity she added a little more umph behind it this time, just to test how sturdy of a man he was.

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Igen felt pure energy coursing through him, adrenaline no doubt. All the same, he was grinning wide as he landed that sudden kick, snapping back to his feet to watch the woman complimenting his strike. And THAT only served to fire him up all the more. His own heart pounding as spiritual energy crawled along his skin, a thin veil of reiryoku washing over his frame, specifically his forearms as he put up his stance, somewhat defensive with one forearm up and the other down. She was WAY too fast for him to try and react to, especially if she started cranking it up. But he WANTED to get her to be surprised. He positioned himself specifically. His frrt forward, his weight back, leaning his upper body forward with his forearms up. He wouldn't be able to react to a snap or something like that. But he leaned himself back. If she wanted to strike, she'd have to do it with her whole body. That at least would give him a bit more wiggle room to react.

When she suddenly thundered in his direction, he expected a punch and SNAPPED his forearms together! She seemed like a straight shooter, and thus anticipated something like a straight shot to his chest. Instead, that sudden burst of speed and strength instead came in the form of a kick! His eyes WIDENED as instead of a fist, a foot SLAMMED into his forearms! His eyes widening! IN a normal circumstance, blocking a kick of that boosted strength would at least get a wince out of him, ESPECIALLY since he braced himself to take the FULL force into his body instead of allowing himself to be slid back to distribute the hit.

However, he'd intended to trap her, and had used his own special technique. Jinjashō. A preemptive Kaido that pumped healing energy into a part of himself that he anticipated an injury in. Of course, they were just sparring, there wouldn't be any serious injuries. But all the same, a blow that NORMALLY would have rattled him and bruised him badly, instead was healed the instant the injury was made. There was a loud THUMP as her foot connected with his forearms as they snapped shut. But there wouldn't even be a scratch to show for it.

It ALSO meant that he had caught her foot! By accident? Absolutely, and even HE was surprised that he'd managed to do it. But not so surprised that he didn't immediately SWING his shoulder into the woman's leg! Wrapping one arm around her ankle and twisting his entire body to YANK it back, twisting as he did! If the move went off, he'd have a full grip on her leg, tug her off her balance, and then SLAM himself down onto the ground with her body squarely beneath his back, driving his full weight (admittedly not that much) into her chest on her way down! That along with the hard impact of spine and shoulder blades into her chest might be something she ACTUALLY felt a little!

Sadly, that ALSO meant that he initiated a grapple with a woman who was MORE Than strong enough to turn the tables on him. But hey, he was just going off sheer instinct at this point, she was too fast for him to have the luxury of thinking ahead!

RIO SHIHOIN| A HUMBLE SHIELD

In all honesty, Rio hadn't expected to be met with an opponent who just took things head on. She was holding back, true, but that did little to faze Igendai. The young Shinigami didn't shift backward in the slightest when she soared in with a roundhouse. He received the full force of her kick in stride.

For the second time during their bout, she was surprised, perhaps even more so than the first time. It was almost as if his body hadn't seemed rattled in the slightest. Even more than that, he hadn't just taken the strike head on, he had caught her foot, wrapped his arm around her ankle, and pulled her along into what could effectively be considered a slam to the ground.

"Kuh...!?"

With the way he had turned his body, he took her off balance and slammed his back straight into her body. When she hit the ground, the sheer impact of his sturdy frame had momentarily taken the air out of her for a bit. Still, it was far from enough to keep her grounded for long. Did it rattle her? Yeah. Was it fun? Oh yeah, she was enjoying herself! The wide grin on her face was evidence enough to make that known entirely.

She used the momentum to quickly attempt a grab at his hips, making an attempt to roll him over enough so that she could immediately set herself on top and swing at him from above, adopting a ground and pound strategy. Keep him under the full force of her weight as she swung at him from above.

It wasn't particularly the most fluid technique. It wasn't hakuda, either. It was just her aiming to derive the most joy she could out of an old-fashioned spar, to throw out a move or two she would never envision otherwise. This had been one such opportunity.

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FUCK! Yep, the moment he felt her fingers latch onto his waist and sink into the flesh of his hips was the moment he kinda figure3d she was a lot stronger than he was. The grip he had on her leg did....well....very little. It was solid for yanking her off her base, but ACTUALY doing anything once they were on the ground? Not very useful. With that sudden SWING, Igen was suddenly faceplanted into the dirt as she rolled ontop of him. and suddenly started swinging into his back! Even with his belly to the ground, he gritted his teeth as those pounding knuckles pummeled into his back again and again! Her Leg BARELY still in his grasp. If he were stronger than he he could definitely just roll her right back over, but he didn't have the leverage for that. So instead, he leg go of that ankle, planted his hands into the ground and PUSHED!

Rocketing himself up and ramming his head back and into her ....face? Chin? Her tiddies? Actually he couldn't very well aim, and he wasn't familiar enough with her height to tell what was actually directly above his backwards headbutt. All he did was HOPE it was enough to stun her so he could spin around so they could be face to face, grab her head, and then ram his forehead into her own crown. IN hindsight? probably not the best idea. Even assuming he did something to her, meeting the MUCH stronger woman's skull, he instantly stunned himself. "GHUH. Alright." He gasped out. Yep. She was ...DEFINITELY sturdier than he was. But at the very least, he could hope for a mutual daze. That or he'd just be on his back and wide open for more of those punches.

Any illusion of an upright and dignified fight was kinda gone at this point. He had the Shield of the Shihoin sitting on him, and they were brawling like a couple of drunks.

It was fuckin awesome.

RIO SHIHOIN| A HUMBLE SHIELD

Rio marveled at the level of aggression she was showing, even with half of the force she would generally use. She was very aware of who she was, but this felt so unlike her. Rio Shihoin. The Shihoin Shield. The altruistic protector. A noble who carried herself with composure. But this? This was different.

It was fun. For every move she threw his way, he possessed enough resilience to at least try to affect the result of the battle. Rio admired that. He was so unorthodox, but she welcomed that. It was a extraordinary change of pace from the normal disciplines she was raised on.

She could respect any warrior who didn't care about how the odds might be stacked against them. Even as she pummeled away at his back with reckless abandon, he wasn't waving the white flag. If anything, he rocketed himself up off the ground and rammed his head into her face. It was enough to cause her to relent if only a little, awed by his tenacity.

It was enough to make her nose bleed. It wasn't gushing out, but there was definitely a little noticeable leak. Yet, there was no pain. No, it was as if her adrenaline had elevated several times over. There was fight in him yet! As soon she found herself focusing again, she felt the impact of a headbutt as Igen slammed his head against her skull.

Even if it didn't send her into a dazed state of seeing stars, it did dizzy her just a little. Yet, Rio could only let out a chuckle. It did hurt, but... she just couldn't contain her laughter at how comical this looked right now. They were fighting as if they had already consumed alcohol. There was no technique, there was no form or stance. It was just a brawl. A very entertaining, clumsy brawl.

She could've chose to pile on the punches, as defenseless as he looked right now in a daze, but even in the midst of her current adrenaline high, Rio possessed enough clarity to understand that anymore might well injure him. Her first loosened up as she leaned forward and continue to laugh. She rolled off of him, landing on the ground beside Igen as she stared into the evening sky.

"Your tenacity is remarkable, Igen. Maybe even a little insane. Not only did you bash your head against mine once, but twice. It was reckless... but then again, who am I to judge? I sort of lost track of technique for the first time in a while. You didn't even try to wave a hand in defeat... if anything ever since we started, you just challenged me head-on... I must say, that takes a lot of determination."

Rio turned towards him and ruffled his hair.

"So, do we continue or is this where we make haste towards the bar? I certainly can go another round, but I don't want to mess up my drinking partner too much. I need a familiar face for that part of the evening." Could Rio recall a time where she consumed drinks in a bar? Probably not one featuring alcohol as the main service, she was certain of that.

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Truth be told, he was a little surprised and impressed himself!

As she may have derived, this for sure hadn't been the first straight up noble she'd gotten into a little scuffle with. But Rio was perhaps one of the most stationed individuals to just....KEEP GOING! Usually they insisted on a peel off to reset the fight. Inisisting on keeping things didnifgied, or some straight up either backing out or pulling some Kido shit to maintain their image of ....grace or some shit? Igen supposed he knew why, but that didn't mean he respected it. Bur Rio seemed top flat out just get into it! And she was havin FUN at that! Even as his head spun from his own double headbutt, he couldn't help but chuckle as well as she barked out in her own laughter and rolled off of him.

Yeaaaaaa, he had overextended just a little, enough that he hardly minded her ending the fight, breaking into a grunt and a chuckle himself as he slumped onto his back, letting out a WHEW as he reached up and winced, channeling some Kaido reiryoku and applying it to his head. He didn't bother trying to sense and heal more.....attentively. There was no fuckin way he was gonna risk doing any IN DEPTH shit to his own head while he was dizzy like this. No, just a dump of pure healing e nergy to the spot to let his body do it's own healing. There was no way he'd get a concussion or some shit just from that, so he was comfortable just letting his own skills mend his face for now. It was mostly just broken skin, his dizziness was already fading.

He paused, snapping his fingers infront of himself and moving his hand around, and then politely asking Rio if his pupils seemed a little funky. Just a precautionary check for ...well...OBVIOUS signs of like, head trauma. Like mismatched pupil size. But once THAT checked out, he'd slump onto his back and sigh, relishing the ride of euphoria that came with a good fight. He'd lost, that was just a given and what was to be expected going against who he had. But he was smiling all the same as Rio peeled off of him and slumped beside his exhausted frame.

"HAH, If you think I was gonna NOT surrender after almost concussing myself. ........yea I probably woulda still tried to keep fighting for a while." He grinned shamelessly, only to blink when he felt her hand reaching in and tousling his hair. Damn she had nice strong hands. Nope, Igen, keep that to yourself. Nobles don't like hearing that shit. Let alone lady nobles.

"Uhhhhhhhh." He looked around, blinking a few times. "We should probably get our drinks in now and tie this off for the time being. If we keep going I probably am gonna headbutt you again, and ACTUALLY injuring my head means I wouldn't be able to drink." He grinned and groaned as he ...slowly peeled himself off the ground and held his hand out to her to help her up. Before promptly he put on a little grin.

"And A Bar? HEhehehehHEH . Miss Rio Shihoin, you are the FIRST Noble to ACTUALLY keep up a fight with me in the dirt. YOU madame, aren't gonna be settling for some shit in a bar. He grinned and promptly turned around and waved for her to follow, and flickered, shunpoing off. It wasn't PARTICULARLY far, but before long, they made their way to a spot near one of the commercial districts near the Shino academy. A grove of bamboo. At first it looked like some sort of training courtyard, a nice open clearing. The kinda spot you'd train in. But upon closer inspection, Rio would see that the ground wasn't completely prepped. It seemed a little...small for that. IN actuality, it was just a nice little rest spot with a big clearing. A spot that usually had something set up during a festival or celebration, so the area had been cleared a little. But without something like that, it was just a nice little clearing with a shack. Igen and some of the other students had used it to train now and then, and just relax for the evening. Or in Igen's case SPECIFICALLY.

He crouched next to a bush before promptly peeling out a gourd of his own favorite stuff. Umeshu straight from the rukongai district he'd grown up in. Sitting down on the bench, eh sighed, grinning from ear to ear and taking out a plastic bag from the spot as well. One filled with a couple shot glasses. Not really in line with Noble etiquette for drinking. "Sorry I don't have any fancy dishes. But that was some fun shit, so I wanted to give you the good stuff." He reasoned with a wink and a nod to the bench beside him as he sat down. Promptly pouring each of them a glass then taking a nice big sip before he took a moment to look at his reflection in his glass, using it to wipe the blood off his face with a small cloth.

RIO SHIHOIN| A HUMBLE SHIELD

Rio marveled at Igen's determination. She had quickly became aware of that from the moment they engaged. She didn't doubt him when he said he would've kept going, even with a series of headbutts against a very durable Shinigami. Even the way he approached her had been unlike anything she had experienced before. He hadn't approached her as a noble, but a potential friend with whom to spar and enjoy a good drink.

There was no pretense, no attempt to act respectful around her as most would default to with a noble. And that was perhaps, the best thing that could've happened to her today. To break this causeless flow of aimlessness, liven up her life, and seek out something that could set her ablaze. Who would think a random stranger could fix? It was so absurd as to be laughable, and she couldn't stop chuckling to herself as she listened to him speak.

She grabbed his hand, pulling herself off of the ground. After dusting herself off a bit, Rio raised an eyebrow in intrigue. No bar? Well, that suited Rio just fine. If anything, she felt honored that she was a noble that had rolled in the dirt with him like some sort of unruly drunk. That was an unexpected thrill, even to herself. To act out for once like that... she wouldn't forget this evening any time soon.

Rio would utilize shunpo to keep pace with him until they arrived within a open clearing. It resembled a place that appeared as if it was usually reserved for festivals. As he crouched down by a bush, pulling out a gourd. As he poured their drinks, Rio reached out to grab her own glass of umenshu once he was finished.

Perhaps, because she was still coming off of her adrenaline high, she took a generous sip of the alcohol before directing her gaze towards Igen.

"Don't worry about it. These glasses are just fine. Honestly? I had fun too. More than I actually expected. It was so spontaneous to do something like that. Fighting without caring about form and... enjoying a drink like this now. You really are something, Igen. I can't recall a time anyone has ever approached me like that. I know why, but still. I'm having a lot of fun so far."

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Igen smirked, chuckling just a little as he made note of that hefty swig of hers! He COULD have warned her that it was strong stuff, it was actually mixed with a little bit of vodka. But well, she was a noble right? They had allk kinds of fancy wine parties or whatever. He wasn't gonna insult her by acting like she couldn't hold her liquor. And he promptly took another swig down the hatch himself to keep her pace, topping the both of them off. After all, if he drank too much, she'd be sober enough to make sure he didn't make an ass of himself.

"Heh, ya liked that huh? Kinda figured Nobles kinda did whatever they want. But hey, if you had a blast, I sure wouldnt say no to more bouts in the future. Maybe a little less headbutting though." He paused, rubbing his chin a little as he thought about their little match. He'd kinda instinctively avoided ....you know...punching the chest. Kinda wound up targeting her head and shoulders. He wasn't like...a chivalrous man or anything. HE didn't give a shit about clocking a woman in the face if they were having a proper tussle. But well, a fist to the tit kinda did just ...end fights sometimes. And that was no fun. As he pondered he continued to keep pace with her.

"I gotta admit, it was pretty awesome too. Most of my friends are around the same zone as me. Physically speaking. Was awesome to get to go against someone so much stronger than me! No less someone who knows how to enjoy themselves." He snickered, shaking his head. "You woulnd't believe the ego on some guys in the Shino Academy. They get a leg up on people and they just try to end fights in an instant. Guess they feel real cool saying shit like 'You weren't even worth my time' or whatever. Good riddance honestly. What's the point of being strong if you can't control your strength? Output management is very important during operations, otherwise we cause all kinds of collateral damage." He murmured with a shake of his head. CHILDISH is what it was.

And that was when he flashed her the playful grin. "Gotta say though. I knew you'd be a good fight when I saw ya. You're the Shield of the Shihoin Right? I saw you and I said to myself: IGEN! That there's a PERFECT opponent. A protector HAS to know how to control her strength. And I was RIGHT!" He cackled, clearly very pleased with how much his little gambit had paid off. "Who teaches you noble folk anyway? You got like special insturctors or something?" He ventured with a tilt of his head. Very much in his element. Fresh off a fight. Enjoying a drink. And talking with someone who he had a lot to say to and ask about!

Compared to the stiff she was used to talking to it might seem like quite a lot!

RIO SHIHOIN| A HUMBLE SHIELD

When that first swig hit her system, Rio found herself noting how potent this stuff was. She wasn't an avid drinker, if much of a drinker at all. Perhaps she had always viewed it as something counterproductive to her training when she was younger, but things were different now. There was no longer that fierce drive to outdo her sister, to prove that she ought to have been the rightful head of the family.

She had left so much behind in pursuit of those goals, why not enjoy herself? Let loose like one of the boys and enjoy her days rather than carrying on with this undecisive approach. The firm essence of these thoughts excited her.

Was it the adrenaline? No, of course not. She wanted to do something out of the box for a change. Nobles didn't have as much power or control in the soul society as they once did. She could fulfill her role to her family and enjoy herself, too.

She wanted a change of pace, and Igen certainly presented it in waves. She was decidedly impressed at how much impact a single evening could have. This was fun. It was new. It was a blast. Rio was elated that they'd cross paths. And certainly had no intent of letting this opportunity to have a energetic spirit like this pass her by. She tapped at her belly and chuckled heartily in reply to his comment about the type of opponent she'd be.

"Ah? You say I was the perfect opponent! I just... I didn't expect that at all. Who waltzes up to a noble and goes; "Hey there, want a fight and then a drink!?" I... that was so unexpected. If anything you a riot yourself. You just rushed in headlong. The headbutts are what really did me in the most."

Rio would take another swig, enjoying this feeling of loosening up for a change. He inquired about how nobles trained, but Rio gave a casual shrug, stroking at her chin. It was entirely likely she could've offered a more composed answer but the umenshu certainly robbed her of any of that grace and propriety she commonly held in a normal circumstance.

"Ha? Hm... to be honest, it's not entirely different from you guys, at least it wasn't in my case. I went through the same channels. Enter the academy, meet a few people, make some friends, and then I just stopped. I graduated and I was pretty much assured a spot in the Gotei but I was focused more on my family and trying to keep some stability among siblings and all that jazz. Stubborn ass of a sister could never stay in one place and always made things difficult by going awol, so I had to pick up her slack. The nerve of some people, right!?

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Igen smiled calmly enough at that, chuckling softly. "That sounds kinda wack. I mean....I always kinda felt shitty about that stuff. I was in the inner rukongai districts so you know. The guys from the outter districts treated me like I was some noble. But of course, without ACTUALLY all the benefits of being a Noble. Always wondered what it was like over there though. Those big mansions and stuff. Hell I've never seen them even working in the Gotei. Still, at least I get to meet some cool ones." He murmured with a light shrug of his shoulders and a smirk in her direction.

All the same, he did....pause ever so slightly. Huh, that sounded a lot more complicated than he thought it'd be. "Guess I never had that problem. OR well, if I do I don't really remember them. Been dead for so long I don't even remember my life when I was alive. Might have been a kid or something, who knows." He chuckled lightly, then reached out to gently pat the woman on the back. "That's rough though. But at least you're looking out for her Family and all that stuff. You close with the rest of your family?" He ventured, taking another steady sip, staring up at the sky. Yep, he was getting drunk, but it was a nice...mellow kinda drunk.

Not often he drank like....outside. He needed to do that more often. He smiled to himself and sighed, staring up at the stars. Wondering if they were different from the ones out on earth. Thanks to his job he didn't really....GO there very often. e could volunteer to go along with certain operations, hmmm. Maybe he could even spend some time off down there. Something to think about he supposed.