Getting to Know the Fourth [Fourth Division Meeting]

Did Kanae truly believe Rio would remain motionless as if she didn't want to rush the woman in hot pursuit? How amusing. Whether or not she did, the Shihoin woman remained relentless in her charge, nothing but the aggression of battle filling her spirit to the brim. Even if her palms strike missed its mark, Rio was prepared to respond in turn. In a sudden response to the impressive counter employed by Kanae, Rio manipulated the sphere that contained Moe prior to it's release, fashioning the obsidian orb into the shape of a shield, deflecting any potential damage against her form if Moe's hammer faltered. Of course, that didn't allow her to defend her pink-haired partner from having her head used as a foothold. Knowing Moe, such an act would only increase her ferocity tenfold, motivating her to strike at Kanae with even more fervor than before. Precisely because she knew that, Rio calmly dismissed Tento's comment, firmly reminding him of how unkind battle truly was.

"There is no honor in a battle to the death, Tento. She told us to fight her as if we wish to strike her down with everything we've got. Even if the act of using our fellow soldier's head as a springboard is disrespectful, I'm sure Moe is more than prepared to indulge in a little bit of revenge, no? And besides..." Rio would grin at Kanae with an expression that shifted between smug confidence and unwavering conviction in equal measure. As long as she remained upright, she would not let her men and women lose sight of their objective. Such was her duty as a newly-appointed vice-captain.

"Considering we've kept you on the defensive a bit so far, I'd say we're more than a match for you captain."

Stepping forward in front of the two, Rio manipulated the shape of all four of her obsidian blades. Molding them into the shape of four large hexagonal shields, each rotating around Tento and Moe to defend them and be held if they so desired, Rio assumed an offensive stance.

"From now on, I'll be the one anchoring the offense and attacking from the front. Working as a unit will merit far more success than acting of our own accord. If my strikes prove lesser, then you two strike wherever you feel an opportunity presents itself best. Now, let's get moving you two!"

A fierce movement of shunpo carried the Shihoin shield's body forward in an instant, the ebony woman appearing in front of Kanae in a thunderous flash, seeking to layer the woman in ceaseless assault of strikes. Fists working in tandem with feet to throw off her sense of direction, creating a series of afterimages in her wake. Every iota of her remarkable skill in Hakuda was being brought to bear right now, as if this was the last battle she would ever participate in. Simply speaking, Rio knew she could remain upright no matter what sword strike met her frame, and if she had to suffer the excruciating burn of acid? So be it. As long as it presented an opportunity for her partners, any amount of damage she suffered was negligible in her eyes. Such was the tenacity of a woman who considered herself an immovable shield in mind, body, and spirit.

A small smirk shifted the corner of Kanae's mouth upwards as she sensed Tento unable to get to her in time. After all, she had a significant head start on him given he had to recover from her kick first. After landing behind the duo of Rio and Moe, Kanae pivoted and spun to face them all once again. She listened to their complaints and taunts as her smirk disappeared, replaced by a raised eyebrow and a look of annoyance. She directed her first comments at Tento "'Disrespectful'? 'Rude'? Do Hollows care about the meaning of those words? How about Arrancar? You just experienced the answer to that question in the Living World, did you not?"

Next, Kanae turned to Rio and responded to her new Vice Captain, who seemed confident in their abilities and chances in this brawl "You're right about one thing: There is no honor here. Your enemies would choose to slit your throats as you sleep if they could. As for whether you're more than a match for me, maybe there is a nugget of truth there. After all, two of you have quite an advantage over me with your released Zanpakuto. That hardly seems fair...and if you care about respect, surely you care about fairness as well? That said..." As she finished speaking Kanae drew her Zanpakuto and held it horizontally in front of herself before speaking the words her enemies of the past had come to dread.


Like before, a pulse of spiritual energy and Reiatsu exploded from Kanae and her Zanpakuto, both of which were now lightly glowing neon green, though this time was far greater than before. Like Rio and Moe she had released her Shikai, and the malevolence of Tosatsusha spread like toxic gas across the training yard. Before the trio launched forward again, she put Tosatsusha back in its holder and prepared for their assault.

The Shihoin girl first. No surprises there. Choosing to not inflict horrific, irreparable wounds upon her subordinates, Kanae kept her blade in its holder and used its blunted form to deflect and parry Rio's rapid-fire attacks. If her Vice Captain would display her Hakuda prowess, Kanae had no problem responding in kind with her martial expertise. With Rio unable to outpace her Kanae was able to keep up and remain protected. But this was no one-on-one battle between Captain and Vice, and Moe would quickly make her presence known.

And here comes the child... Their gambit of attacking her directly and from above was not without merit. Had all three been on the same page from the jump, Kanae figured they might even have been able to flank her again and keep her still. Unfortunately for Rio and Moe, they had no way to do so. She took advantage of this fact by continuously backing up as she deflected Rio's blows to avoid being overwhelmed. When Moe brought her hammer down, Kanae used her Shikai-enhanced strength to swing her Zanpakuto at Moe's to slam it away again. At the same time, she tapped into Tosatsusha's power to strengthen a sideways kick with her left leg aimed at Rio's head meant to send her skidding should she choose to block, or suffer a concussion or worse if she doesn't.

Standing waiting at the ready, hearing Rio's reminder thrman let out a soft whistle before speaking. "Oh come oooon. Captain Kane is just being over dramatic. She wants us to go wt her to give her a challenge. But not kill her, she not suicidal or anything. ....right?", Tento said with an eye shift trrrrrying to make sure she wasn't on thr sad deep end. She was in jail for like....1000 years after all. "Honor is honor. But I'm not talking about that exactly. Being dishonorable and being a flipping rude lady is another", Tento said finding a smile flaring up at amusement at the sight in his mind. But he wouldn't let that show really, couldn't have Moe getting made at him in the middle of this group spar. "One im more eager to see how the fire in Moe will be flamed...".

Which was true. If one thing Tento liked was purely a fight. A greater joy was the active growth of himself or an ally. Or witnessing the after results. Such a thundering contest and heart made him feel even more motivated and determined. Regardless if he was weaker in spiritual pressure and didn't know his shikai unlike everyone else here. "My oh my Captain. Don't be so fiesty. I don't care about Hollows or Arrancars. I'm fighting a fellow Shinigami right now. Disrespectful. Rude. Those things they k ow fully well, they deliberately choose to do it often enough. Such can anyone else. I was simply making an observation", Tento said with a head tilt, smile present still but all the sqme. A little bit sharper.

What happened in the living world. Was not disrespectful or rude. It was pain. Pain and anxiety that melted and burned. Tore at his mind and made something come out that made him sick. Something he hated and didn't want to happen at all.

His smile was hungry and ready to cut...

"Ai ai Vice Captain", Tento said tilting his sword in front of his body ready to crank this battle up once again. Teamwork was not so well done so far, they were following up after reach other attempts. Well, Tento was. The other two were doing more traditional work. Either way, it needed to ve done better if they wanted to challenge Captain Kanae.

Because shit was she getting serious.

To Tento at least, the four large hexagonal shields rotating around himself and Moe boon. Bht a concern. With all four focusee on them after all there was nothing to help defend Rio. Only her natural fortitude and speed being her defense now.

THE SPAR WAS ON NOW!!!

Rushing in with a shunpo when Rio moved in. The ebony warriors arrived a bit behind the new Vuce Captain. Not as quick in the art as she but his movement speed when it came to strikes was nothing to snuff at! When he arrived Rio was already in the mix of her rapid fire of kicks and punches. Jumping in moving to Captain Kane's right, Tento would strike out at her with a continued flurry of slashes angled away from Rio's movement. Attempting to limit the Captains movement before circling around in a pincers effort, continuing his flow of attacks while Moe moved.

"Rio! Use some of the shields to limit her space", Tento quickly said before throwing out a sweeping low kick aiming to falter Kanae for the briefest of moments whole also throwing his sword up in a slash. Hoping to clash his blade with hers to give a pause to any strikes she was planning potentially.

From an observer's point of view, it felt as though the likelihood of their victory had been thrown into doubt after the activation of Kanae's shikai. A vile atmosphere blanketed the barracks, instilling the onlookers with a dreadful aura that was terrifying to behold. Even so, Rio remained relentless in her inexorable wave of blows, swinging fist and leg in various patterns to land a thunderous hit across the woman's frame.

Frustration had threatened to set in as a result of her techniques proving inferior in their momentous dance of blade and fist, but it failed to find any root in her once the Shihoin registered Tento's imploring command, vanishing as quickly as it had appeared. A viciously empowered kick roared through the air, prompting Rio's arms to rise at her defense, taking the brunt of the attack to avoid suffering any damage to her head.

Even with her defense, she hadn't emerged entirely unscathed, such proof being made evident in the red bruises across her forearms, to say nothing of the involuntary skidding motion that followed, her body momentarily faltering in the fierce flash of momentum. Of course, given her natural iron wrought composition, a simple slam of her feet across the ground had halted her movement before her body slid any further.

There were only a few meters separating them rather than many, and that distance was more than enough for Rio to engage the woman once more, precisely at the same moment when Tento circled around her to attack. What of moe, though? What if the clash sent her catapulting backward? Rio would answer that by following Tento's words, four obsidian shields transmuting into four obsidian structures, each akin to a wall that surrounded all of them.

With this, Moe could kick off of the flat surface and go roaring back in as she desired. Three of them collapsing at her from the same time would prove far more difficult to overcome than fighting separately, and so, Rio had no issue in roaring in for an attack the woman could not possibly ignore based on how she had chose to defend against them.

Fists drew back as though grasping at imaginary bowstrings, her hips rotated backward, recoiled forward like a bolt of lightning, guiding her fists toward the woman's midsection, executing a vaunted hakuda technique---Ikkotsu. Whether or not they landed, of course, would come down to several factors, none being easily afforded in the face of a mighty warrior of the blade like Kanae.

Even as Rio and Tento did their pincer move to strike her from front and back, Kanae kept track of Moe who was now seemingly down for the count. She had performed far better than Kanae expected, and even she had to admit the little bubblegum girl had some real strength in her. She made a mental note to follow Moe's progress going forward. Someone with her power and boldness could improve quickly, in the right situation. For Kanae this meant she was either a potential threat, or useful tool.

Turning her full attention to the remaining duo, Kanae prepared for the next onslaught with great aplomb. Her horribly virulent spiritual pressure threatened to suffocate them as more and more pumped out of the Captain. She wanted to show them the terror of war, a little peak back into her own time a thousand years prior.

Though Rio and Tento were finally attacking together again, Kanae knew how she could knock them off balance simultaneously. When Tento attempted his leg sweep Kanae jumped above his leg, placed her hand on his head, and both leaped over him and pushed him in the direction of his ally's fists at the same time. If successful it would result in Rio's Sōkotsu striking Tento square in his abdomen. Should this be avoided, it would at least allow their Captain to eliminate their pincer and force them to attack again from the same direction.

Kanae turned to face her challengers again and the corner of her mouth upturned in a smirk as she questioned their resolve "Is this truly the best you two can offer? Poor little Moe put everything on the line and now she has watch as you two flounder about. Oh well. You've all proven your abilities, though I am interested in how you handle a Dantōdai Koroshi. Shall we see?"

As she finished speaking Kanae gripped her Zanpakuto's handle at her hip. Over the next couple seconds a green liquid bubbled up around where sword met sheath which dripped onto the ground next to Kanae. When the liquid struck the ground it immediately began eating through dirt, pebbles, and anything else in its way, sending up tiny plumes of white vapor. Whomever among the trio had witnessed their Captain's challenge to Arkin would recognize the liquid as a powerful acid that could burn through even his carapace-like skin. They may even have an idea of what Dantōdai Koroshi is, or could at least guess at it, which would prove irrelevant as Kanae drew and slashed her weapon from left to right, unleashing a bullet-fast arc of acid sent careening in the direction of Tento and Rio that would cause severe burns on touch. Kanae had no doubt even if those shields were used again, they too would suffer against Tosatsusha's acid.

...shit

Moe was down and out of the fight. Leaving only Tento and Rio left in the attempt to show the new Captain the fire and value of the division she had inherited. A...tough task to be honest for Kanae was truly something.

Her bitter and hostile spiritual energy pressing down like a hammer and choking like there were little oxygen in the air. "Ek", it was tough. A true plaque of terror. As his leg sweep was avoided, placing her hand on his head before leaping over his body while pushing him towards Rio's oncoming punch. "Wooooooo", Tento yelled during the motion. Wuickly digging his sword down into the ground trying to use it as an anchor to hold himself back and halt his bodies momentum towards the strike. Hopefully he would get decked but if it did....BOW. A whirlwind of air would be knocked out of him and he would standing gripping his sword bended over.

Either after gathering himself after the blow or avoiding it. Tentos eyes would shift to Moe while Captain Kanae spoke. A sigh of disappointment in himself and a bit of aggravation at her words in the same breath. But, a still focus was there and his eyes turned back to her with a stern gaze. With gritted Tento focused, forceful even as her Dantōdai Koroshi was declared.



If reoslve was to be challenged he would just have to show her...

Weak and unrefined by all regards a spark of energy flowed from Tento. Perhaps even unstable. Focus focus. Channel my energy, embedded it in my form. My sword. My spirit! Think of it. Grasp it. Visualize...

In the darkness of his mind he felt it. Unclear truly but there, building. A SPARK. Flickering and pumping before burning as a small bright flame around his form. Swelling until it shifted around his Zanpakuto. Tento's knuckles gripped his blade u til they turned white as he stood in the middle of the 4 metal shields from Rio's Zanpakuto if she didn't move them. A slow breath hissed as heat flowed. Eyes growing a soft flame as he watched Kanae over the seconds ticked. "Yo Rio....don't hold back anymore due to my inability to keep up... let's show her what her subordinates can do...".

His next moves had to be careful . That match between her and Arkin was insane and showed plenty of the potency of her acid. And so he shifted, tosses two of the shields in front of his body and where Rio was with a double kick using both of his legs before crouching and grabbing another shield with his free hand placing it in front of his form. Taking a short hissing deep breath Tento would dash forward towards Kanae before attempting to unleash an arcing vertical slash embedded with a light trait of fire that screeched upward as it followed its upwards motion of his blade. Whether he missed out or not, he hoped that the shields would hold some pause to her acid, and allow him to get close enough to attempt this slash before slamming the borrowed shield in hand towards Kanae's face. Aining to take her eyes out of the equation and pressure to give Rio an opportunity!

"Of course. I have no intention of falling so easily."

Rio wasn't particularly satisfied with her last offensive. Her attack was evaded with relative ease. In addition, it nearly incapacitated her remaining partner on the battlefield. There was no time to voice it in the here and now, but she certainly had to applaud Tento for his resilience so far. Moe, even with her fall, had provided a commendable offense in her own right. Two remained against one, and Kanae grew no less relentless in her offensive, performing another ability --- Dantōdai Koroshi.

Much like before, this was an ability that could not be ignored by any means, In fact, it required a great expenditure in spiritual pressure to defend against. Regardless of her own movements, Rio would fortify the shields through her spiritual pressure. It wasn't a defense that would hold up well against her acid by any means, but with enough of her own reiryoku, she could keep maintain this process well enough to avoid being hindered entirely. Tento resolved to keep pressing forward, and she would too! Rio didn't waste any time in following and coordinating her movements with remaining partner on the battlefield.

Each of those slashes came roaring towards them, but Rio kept herself guarded as she charged forward. Since most of her shields where allocated to protecting Tento, Rio decided that the only thing that remained for her now was her own tenacious spirit. Placing her all in terms of spiritual pressure into her shields, Rio bolted in tandem with Tento.

The moment the acid came in contact with her body, Rio felt an immense pain that forced her to bite down onto her lip. Yet, she still remained standing. Wherever her shields failed, she resolved to face with her durability. Regardless of whether Tento's technique would land, Rio would shift in underneath him, flowing in from below to execute a double palm strike with her hands, aiming to land at least one attack against her frame. It wasn't a pincer attack this time, but a follow-up attack to match her partner's own.

It seems, Kanae thought, her subordinates were attempting to rise to the occasion. Foolish! she exclaimed to herself and her Zanpakuto companion, which agreed silently with the woman. Evidently, she would have to crush their spirits to take them out of the battle. Kanae's eyes narrowed as she watched Tento rush forward, the Vice Captain's shields doing their utmost to protect him from her highly corrosive acid. She knew she couldn't afford to use too much of Tosatsusha's acid in this bout, otherwise someone might complain to someone else about the smell of melting skin coming from the barracks.

As her challengers rushed toward her Kanae drew her Zanpakuto from its holder and held it loosely at her side, a stark departure from how she had fought with it up to this point. "Yes, come closer my precious subordinates...and allow me to show you my Hanya Jincho-ryu." The name of her fighting style, which she had not used in a thousand years, was said with ominous inflection as she stared down her coming foes.

Reusing a move from earlier, Kanae met Tento's sword hand mid-swing with a raised foot which slammed into it with her Shikai-enhanced strength. A bit of chutzpah and heat wouldn't be enough to land a blow on someone as experienced as the raven-haired Captain, and the same could be said for his followup attempted shield bash which she would seek to stop in its tracks with the very tip of her sword. At the same time as Rio's punches would land, Kanae shoved away Tento's sword and attempted to land a kick right into the man's chest to fling him backwards, all while repositioning her Zanpakuto so that its flat side is what the Shihoin's fists would strike. Kanae could feel painful reverberations sent through her sword arm and shoulder from the woman's powerful strike, but her only goal was to avoid a direct hit so her followup could go unabated.

During her clash with Rio, Kanae slammed the foot she had struck Tento with into the ground, sending minute cracks out in every direction. Then, she swiftly brought her right knee up to smash into Rio's abdomen, and followed up by seeking to land another kick onto the same location, now seeking to send the woman back and create space between the two.

Hopefully now with space between herself and the duo, Kanae could unleash the full might of her Hanya Jincho-ryu. She kicked off the ground and raced forward and began a rapid and wild swinging of her Zanpakuto, seeming to slash it in every direction with no care for whether she would land a hit or not; but, should either Rio or Tento be skilled enough to notice, they may realized Kanae was managing to attack without wasting any movements all while rapidly increasing her and her sword's momentum. On the surface she seemed like a wild and uncontrolled beast, but this couldn't be further from the truth. Kanae was striking at Tento and Rio with precise strikes that seemed to only speed up as she did. First one, then five, then ten, then twenty, even thirty swings of Tosatsusha later and the Captain showed no signs of slowing down as she stayed on the offensive against her subordinates.