Just Keep Running [Tento | Hana ]

The first light of dawn broke over the horizon, casting a pale, ethereal glow on the decimated outskirts of the destroyed distrct. The silence of the early morning was broken only by the distant calls of birds and the soft rustling of leaves in the gentle breeze. The destruction left in the wake of the hollow's invasion was starkly visible in the dawn's light, revealing the shattered remains of homes and the charred remnants of what once were thriving streets.

Amidst this desolation, a lone swordsman made his rounds, Tento, his silhouette a dark shadow against the soft hues of morning. He moved with a quiet grace, his keen eyes surveying the ruins for any signs of lingering threats. The scent of smoke and ash still lingered in the air despite the week passage, mingling with the fresh morning dew. As he walked, his hand remained ever close to the hilt of his sword, ready to defend what little was left of this ravaged land.

His mind was a whirlwind of thoughts, but his resolve was unwavering. Each step he took was a promise—a vow to the souls who had perished and to those who survived. As the first rays of sunlight touched the ground, they revealed the true depth of the village's loss, but also hinted at the resilience that would see it rebuilt. The swordsman pressed on, driven by a fierce determination to protect and to restore. "So much...lost".

In another time Tento perhaps would have tried cracking a joke at the correction. This was a far too gruesome state for his goofy nature to try and cut through tension. A weeks time was far too short for any real start of healing. And to be quite frank, Tento was still in the middle of his shifted seriousness. The 4th division. The balance. And the current state of the Gotei foot soldiers and seated officers in all. Soul King curse him for a small piece of normality shown there.

Nevertheless there was no normal anymore. It was a chaotic state of destruction and sensitivity to danger. It was pushing each Shinigami to their limits. Changing the shell that even the most delicate of considered Shinigami into developing a warrior’s mindset. As he felt her hand reach up to tap his shoulder Tento kept his gaze at the shifting rubble, his hand still on the hilt of his blade. Tento had been in this area a few times now in his patrolling. The number of hollows remaining decreasing greatly through the 4th’s effort but still, the possibility of harm was ever present. Knowing that, Tento chose this area for the sake of Hana’s training. The best teacher was life experience, and this was double the case after the invasion they all went through. He watched with an attentive eye as Hana went on the move, ready to shift to give her aid if she needed it. But Hana was most certainly different. There was no hesitation in her body, her blade struck true, and the shy nature of her personality was anything but present. The sight of her turning into a better warrior made him want to smile… as well as frown.

Such was the toll of Gods of Death.

At her words Tento nodded his head, his gaze sweeping the area. Despite the chaos, there was a semblance of calm in this pocket of destruction. Everything was still going in some form and fashion with the lingering hollows that did not succeed in their retreat out of the Soul Society. The fires were distant, the cries of the wounded and desperate a dull murmur that was slowly ending. For a brief moment, it felt like they could catch their breath. "This is as good a place as any, Hana", he said, his voice steady despite the weight of their surroundings. "But remember, Hana, training here today isn't just about improving your flash step. Its about your awareness as well. It's about understanding the stakes, feeling the urgency, and channeling that into every move you make." That felt unwarranted to say given what happened to her but…that reality was important to heed in their spirit. Both of them.

“Before we begin. Hana, could you tell me more about the issues you are wanting to address with your hoho?”. She had asked him to train her today, specifically in regard to her flash steps. But she did catch him in the middle of getting ready to go out on a patrol so he hoped to get a bit more detail.

As Tento listened to Hana's words he nodded his head a few times as he took them in. She wanted to be more efficient, which was something he thought he could do. But it may be more work for her then she may have thought. “Alright. I should be able to do that. However it is going to rely on you for this too”, Tento began shifting his body to face her more in the aftermath if her slaying that small hollow. He sensed no other spirits around at the time. At least any with a hollow signature. His facial expression may have softened into that relaxed glaze she have been used to seeing by now, but his hand never shifted too far from his blade as it dropped to his waist.

It was a general improvement. Mindset within battle, endurance. All of which came down to more time using it and being alive. Plain and simple. But, there was some way at least give her something. “Before we work on anything physical I want you to know this mentally. Dodging is as much of a part of combat and your shunpo then attacking. It is up to your split second decision making you do one of the other. From what you say. Your mind is playing a big role in this”.

He waited for her to give some form of affirmation before he continued. “Shunpo is a movement technique. Like anything it comes with time, usage, and exposure to other people using it. When you move, focus on where you want to go and how. Your path must be clear or else you will waste time in the technique and thus your shunpo”, he then raised a hand up to his chin as if he was in thought. “Your base speed tends to help how fast it comes out too. So you need strong legs, agile mobility, endurance-”, suddenly. In the middle of his sentence Tento was gone. Flashing in front of Hana in a shunpo step before giving a soft tap to her forehead with his index finger.

He was testing whether or not she would respond in time to react and what she would do. Freezing in place, blocking, or evading did not matter but it would help in his evaluation. Depending on how she responded he would have to go about stuff in different ways. He did hope he didn't make her mad doing this though. He put a little bit of killing intent out when he did this. "- and the ability to stay in control of your emotions. Awareness".