The First Of Many

Hakuyou office was done in the traditional sense with some modern accessories. The moderate sized room was decorated with plants and some painting that he no doubt bought to furnished the office. A large office desk was near the back which had a computer and other items, while a much smaller table with pillows for seats laid in front of it. Shiba Hakuyou sat at the smaller table, his hands resting on his knees.

He was currently wearing his captain's haori, with a smaller robe on his shoulders holding the emblem of the Shiba household. His amber eyes would turn to look at Hono as she entered, despite the neutral expression on his face the older gentlemen seemed... intimidating for lack of better words. Almost a millennium old, Hakuyou had seen much in his time. While he didn't exactly look his age, the man appeared to be in his late thirties or early forties. And he certainly had the Shiba mass and height, indicated as he gestured for her to have a seat.

"Kaen-san, please have a seat."

His voice was deep and rumbled. Formal and holding with it the natural authority of a noble.

"No, Kaen-san. I summoned you. There is a difference."

His words were particular for good reason. Her presence was not requested within his office today but demanded by the authority of her captain. Hakuyou Shiba preferred not to involve himself in the lives of those within his ranks, keeping a level of professional separation. He was formal like that, old school even. Hono Kaen was not a terrible Shinigami by any stretch, but there were reports of conduct which was unbecoming to those who would hold the fate of the division in their hands.

He moves finally breaking the stillness that surrounded him to grasp a teapot pouring himself a cup of tea, and herself one. Before he slowly moved the warm tea over to her, while he took his own. He leaned back sitting once again, bringing the cup to his lips taking a small sip of it. He lowered it to his lap slowly, as amber irises fell on her.

"Many good people have worn and died wearing the Shihakushō. To include my younger brother." He speaks slowly, a soft rumble to his voice that one might even mistake for paternal. Too connected to be completely formal, but distant enough to be a foreign figure.

"What we do is a responsibility, and burden. But it is also an honor to perform, with a lineage thousands of years. So I must ask you, and I pray you speak truthfully with reflection, have you honored that lineage through not only your actions but behaviors?"

He beings the cup to his lip and sips, awaiting her answer. The air is still.

Hakuyou listens to her speak with quietness, his eyes seemingly never faltering from her. If he was displeased or happy in any way it did now explicitly show, only that he held the steaming cup of tea lightly. Before finally he shifts going to place the tea on the table, an elbow coming to rest on his knee while placing his cheek in his hand. After she finished, he observed for a few quiet seconds, before taking in a deep breath sighing.

"If someone's combat power was the end all be all to our work, then I would have to agree with your assessment." He'd admit slowly, removing his cheek from his hand. He begins to sit up straighter, his looming forward casting a wide shadow if not literally then figuratively. "But it is not. Perhaps a hundred years ago. Much has changed." The older man speaks these words with a certain weight to him, more for himself then her. He lets a rumble leave his throat, a soft clearing of it.

"Not only are we the custodians of the soul cycle, but we are also the protectors of this realm. Diplomats and the bridge between those with power and without." His tempo of speaking is slow, and that might be annoying. Each word not rushed but spoken with genuine care. "I have read your performances, and they meet the physical standard. However, for every mark of approval I see many minor complaints of disrespect. Some have merit, while others I have dismissed."

He blinks moving his head from her towards the window, a brief image of the Seireitei can be seen from his office.

"What would you qualify as your weaknesses as a person, Kaen-san?"

Hakuyou's ambers eyes are ever unreadable, save for the minor twitch of his eyebrow. And the dreadful aura which accompanied older Shinigami, whom have witnessed many come and go. His hands move slowly as he sets aside the cup of tea, bringing his eyes from the tea to her now. Centuries of experience rested in his bones; several lifetimes of humans paled in comparison to what his amber irises had witnessed. And now they rested on Hono, placing an invisible weight upon her form.

"If you regard the due diligence of a captain as bullshit, then the root of the issue manifest." His voice is even, without emotion save for that of his duty. He reaches under the table placing down a scroll on it, that is sealed with his division's emblem. "I watch everyone in my division, to understand how they might best serve the Gotei. How they might live honorably, for out duties discharge without honor are meaningless. In the pursuit power, respect, and greatness we lose something greater than the whole." His throat rumbles silently, quiet disapproval growing as he pushes the scroll towards her.

"I do not ask you, Kaen-san, to be a perfect model of respect and courtesy. Defend your name. Defend your honor. Do what you must. I caution you in the future, to remember that not all fights are worth the cost." His gestures to the scroll.

"I have written a reprimand for the young man in fourth, and this requires your signature as the effected party."

Say what you will of Hakuyou Shiba, but none could deny that he did not have the best interests of his subordinates and the Gotei at large at heart. He lets out some noise from his throat, like a soft grumble of sort as his hands rest on his knees.

"Do not make me have to write a reprimand for you, in the future, Hono."

"Those who seek admiration in the pursuit of duty, shall find a hollow thing. Seek only to do a righteous, and just, life in the course of your duties and others will take not."

Hakuyou would impart that nugget of wisdom to the young woman, saying nothing further to what his vice-captain planned to do. He had the utmost faith in Makoto and her judgement, as he assumed she had in his own. When it came to the tutoring and mentoring of younger shinigami, those like Hono who possessed great potential but also required great refinement. He'd take back the scroll tucking it within his robes, adjusting to stand up slowly.

It was now clear the towering height of the Shiba clan's head. He cast a long looming shadow, with a face that seemed needlessly intimidating despite best efforts. Amber irises fell on Hono offering an appraising look once more, a low grumble leaving his throat as if the very act of breathing brought annoyance. He moves slowly and with grace towards his office door placing a hand upon it, opening it for the young lady.

"Know that all I have to offer, it is your Hono. Whatever wealth and knowledge I amass, I give it all to you all within my ranks. Go in peace."

It was a dismissal, polite and upbeat, but a dismissal none the less.