+1 to the Party [Igen, Sawachika family]

Igen's eyes widened just a little. Of course he presumed that Lady Ai would have Shikai, if not the next level thereafter. She WAS after all a very capable fighter and had been a member of the Eleventh division. And so, there was a sudden welling of excitement within him at the notion of getting to experience the shikai firsthand! "Of course!" He exclaimed, the excitement clear in his voice as he promptly followed the woman into the courtyard. Already he was getting himself amped up. After all, he didn't see the same explosive shift in power that others experienced. HE might be at a disadvantage, after all, he'd been so preoccupied with expanding his energy reserves and refining his skills with Kido and Hakuda that he hadn't quite progressed as much with his own natural abilities. But he hardly minded that. This was going to be rad either way!

However, as she asked for a moment, he nodded, feeling nothing amiss. He himself took a moment to turn his attention to Ko, a big happy grin on his face. Truth be told, he really enjoyed using his Shikai. It was .... interesting. More or less wearing his Zanpaku'to, He didn't know if it was simply the type of Shikai she was, but when he wore her stripes it was..... unique. An experience that felt as if they were both fighting together. And he was excited to show Lady Ai what he could do.

Turning his attention back to his opponent, he .....was caught off guard when he spotted her clothing on the ground. And then she rose to her feet and Igen was.... briefly stunned with what was infront of him. This was.... a LOT more of Lady Ai than he was used to seeing! The woman's considerable chest seemed like it was ready to rip it's way through her sarashi! For just a moment he was ... perplexed and conflicted. As several emotions rose up at once. Some familiar. Others very ...unfamiliar.

"Uh..." He trailed off, blissfully unaware of the slight twitch crossing Ko's features as she ALSO took in the sight. A slight twitch of envy on the tigress's face. "Going to be alright, Bucko?" She prodded Igen's hip. But his attention was thoroughly captured when Lady Ai recited the incantation to release her Zanpaku'to. And that sudden explosive wash of spiritual pressure rushed over the pair of them. In an instant the hairs stood up on the back of his neck, and thankfully, he was jarred from whatever the heckl had been in his head a moment before. No, he was now VERY focused on the weapon that was brought to bear. The pressure was strong, he had of course experienced a lot of powerful enemies. Hollows especially often had such a massive pressure to them when they were at a certain strength. He remembered the beast that he'd fought in Africa.

And then, she informed him that he would be allowed the first move. "I uh... right." He managed to blurt out, still a bit off his usual rhythmn. But he didn't stay that way, as suddenly a dead serious expression crossed his face. If this had been any other situation he uh... might have been .... stunlocked. But this was a fight. A fight with someone he DEEPLY respected. He owed her quite a bit. He pushed down those other feelings and promptly put on a fierce grin. And in that moment, Ko's frame faded, darkening into a shadow which wrapped arond his body, veiling him in darkness before slowly congealing into dark lines along his frame. Black stripes which wrapped around his body, as that Kanji settled over the back of his Neck.

There was no explosion of spiritual energy. Not even so much as a blip. In fact, it might even come to question if Igen had even activated his Shikai. But all the same, he took a steady breath and promptly brought his palms together. "Thank you Lady Ai."

In the very next moment, his body shifted into a dark blur. closing the distance between the two of them as his hand cocked back into a fist, before executing a sudden and brutal forward punch. Nothing she couldn't dodge. But rather he was hoping that the woman would block. His Hakuda flaring through his body in the final moments before impact, suddenly pumping energy into his muscles to cause a sudden explosive burst of speed and strength. No holding back. No pulling his punches. What once had been caution, not wanting to harm Kyo's mother. That caution was gone, replaced with nothing but a desire to return the favor. To incite the joy in this woman that he had once felt. He wanted her to enjoy this. More than usual. But he didn't think too much about that. Instead he focused on putting a burst of strength through his arm to rip through a building.

He had two very good motivators standing before him, all wrapped into one individual.
The threat of Death.
And a reason to Live.

There it was. That smile that had lit a fire inside of him. So many people sparred with him, but so few had such a look in their eyes when they did so. The kind of smile that made him feel as though he were in peril. It pumped energy through his veins and he felt a sudden backwash of excitement course through him as his reikaku caught the sudden flicker of motion and even before he turned, he could sense the woman suddenly appearing at his side as that blade flashed toward his side. But Igen twisted, but not to Block.

As that blade lanced toward his side. That bare back would give Lady Ai the chance to see what happened as the blade simply slammed into Igen's frame, but refused to cut through. A stripe having shifted along his body, blocking the strike completely as it emergedfrom his skin to wind around the blade, aiming to bind it in place as Igen's body shifted and he SPIKED his elbow down, aiming to connect with the woman's wrist in an effort to knock at least one of her hands from the length of the spear. Following through by pushing in past the spear itself. Intent on getting up close and personal with the woman to try and rob her of the advantage the weapon gave her. In a sudden burst of motion, his body was suddenly amped up by a rush of spirit energy as he executed two strikes in unison. A sharp, powerful chop aimed toward the woman's shoulder, and an opposite sweep toward the woman's legs. A Strike aimed to shove the upper part of her body to his left, while sweeping her legs to the right to try and break her stance. All the while, some of those stripes crawled along his frame, shifting as he moved. Two in particular ran along the length of that chopping hand, another to that sweeping leg. Forming black blades to add cutting edges to the strikes themselves. At least now that Lady ai didn't have expensive clothes to worry about shredding.

Igen's eyes affixed to the woman as she blocked that sweeping kick amidst the strike of his hand chopping into her shoulder, watching as the woman took the strike in stride whilst blocking. Any notion that Ai was anything but a worthy opponent had been destroyed back when he'd first fought the woman. But seeing her darting away brought a smile to his face. Particularly as he made note of her wiping blood off on the blade, only to see that heat start to intensify! So THATS what her zanpaku'to did! It fed off blood and grew hotter? Interesting~

"I think you'll find I'm a little more crafty than that." He flashed her a little smirk before his body vanished, a sudden darting blur as he sought to close the distance between them. A sudden surge of Kido energy coursing along his body. Those stripes twisting along his frame, briefly turning his body completely black as the stripes spiraled in and then converged on the very center of his left shoulder, slicking along his arm and then extending in a long black blade. Rather than being spread out throughout is body, those stripes instead congealed along his arms, leaving barely the thinnest wisps of pale skin between them while leaving the rest of his body open. All whilst cold air twisted along his back, his shuhakusho slowly cracking as it froze along his spine. Frost creeping across his body as his dark robes became tinged white.

"Bakudo Number Fifty Seven. Collapsing Glacier!" He recited before planting his free hand into the ground. Frost exploding outward along the ground in a shockwave of cool air, flash-freezing the ground and causing sudden geysers of freezing air around himself! Though rather than stabs of ice that would slam into a target, these waves of cold froze mid-surge, aiming to trap the woman in that freezing gush from the ground rather than strike her with it, to trap her in true Bakudo fashion.

A hold that if successful, would be followed by a swift, ripping uppercut, bringing that stripe blade upward and across the woman's frame, attempting to cut her clean from hip to opposite shoulder! The Bakudo spell in place to freeze any blood before it could exit her body! An attempted counter to her Zanpaku'to's ability.

That sudden burning streak tore through the attack, flames ripping through the slabs of ice in order to wash toward him. His eyes lighting up as that gout of flame headed his way! He slashed upward, that black blade aiming to block the incoming rush of fire, But it was in that very moment that Lady Ai suddenly appeared beside him. And that balde rammed down, his other arm raising up before that blade CRASHEd into his hand! The ground crackling as he promptly blocked the hit. But the heat coming off of the flames spread, and he hissed as those thin strips of uncovered flesh began to hiss a little. Burns crawling along his arm, slowly thanks to the ice built up along his frame. A soft huff escaping his lips!

The intensity certainly was something to marvel at!

He coulnd't help but grin, those black stripes slithering out to try and wrap around that blade, locking it in place as the blade retracted into his other arm and his hand reached, aiming to stamp over the woman's chest as reiryoku circled his palm, the remnants of those slabs of ice suddenly lighting up.

"Bakudo Number Fifty Eight, Great Collapsing Glacial Chasm!"
As that pulse of Reiyoku flowed outward, the slabs of ice, at least what was left of them, promptly exploded, shattering into thick, blunted lances of ice which swarmed inward, aiming to ram into the woman's frame to lock her in place! Probably not for very long, but long enough for him to channel hakuda through his body, a sudden burst of strength aimed to lift her frame up and inot the air, a bright glow around his eyes.

Falling Hammer

A hakuda move executed to try and drop her in a full-bodied swing, aiming to drive her forcefully into the ground with enough force to shake the nearby structure and caused a massive vertical plume of dust and debris! Fully intent on driving her several meters into the ground with every bit of strength he could muster!

When the dust finally settled Igen was panting a but, and… startled? He had almost expected a sudden counter attack, but instead, when the chunks of ice and broken courtyard had cleared of dust and cool mist, he instead found himself looking down at Lady Ai in her ruffled state. Certainly between the ice and his attacks it was clear that she’d made the right choice in attire change. But that didn’t make it any less Awkward as Igen reached down to offer his hand and help the woman off the ground, incredibly mindful as he made sure she was upright before giving a warm smile.

“If this is you with rusted skills then I would have been terrified to fight you in your prime.” He chuckled softly, those black stripes receding into the crest between his shoulderblades. A sigh of relief escaping him as he realized he wasn’t wiped out! Tired certainly but there was no shortage of pride in his expression as he recognized how much his stamina had improved. But…. There was still a visible gulf before him. No not that one. His eyes snapped back up and he cleared his throat.

”Still I’m not quite where I’d like to be. I’ve been trying to learn Shunko for a while now. But… without a teacher. Its been… difficult to know what it is I’m doing wrong.” He murmured, brushing himself off before giving the woman a renewed smile.

”But I promise. As soon as I do get the hang of it, you’ll be the first person I show it to! We should have plenty of time to de-rust until then!” he insisted, making it abundantly clear that he would be more than happy to spar with her on a more regular basis.