{Minatumi Arc Event} Train Ride

The flashing sounds, shapes, and sights of yet unknown world; the mechanical beast of engineering that signifies man's first true conquest over nature; even the souls of allies forged from mother necessity. For a day, nay a week full of such utter importance, one would think that any person would be in a heightened state of awareness. However, for one lone man standing stoically apart from the company that had been established since fate first determined to unite them; the past week had been nothing more than this blur of sensory input with very little importance to set it apart from the rest of the information gathered by his sensory memory. It was not as if this man had gone through the necessary preparations for such a grandiose undertaking completely on subconscious processing, but his life had thrown him such a pivotal event that had been ingrained into his character. While any one being could be weighed down by an event of enough traumatic significance to them; to understand the true significance of this specific event and its consequences, we must first better our understanding of this man. Yet, as with any true personal story, the identity of the individual was a key point to begin with for the telling of said tale; this one particular being Ravana Ichiro.

Having been a former Captain of the Gotei 13, member of the Karakura Defenders, and having been the Colonel for the Vizard Corps' Special Operations for quite a few years now: there was already enough about Ravana Ichiro to set him apart from most others. Add his past to the fact that he currently appeared to be the opposite of his general personality, stoic, solemn, and reserved; and Ravana currently stood out like a sore thumb to any who might pretend to know the man. To build upon the emotional signs his body language had been displaying: physical signs such as his hair having a slightly matte quality to its color, his skin holding a lessened flush than natural, and eyes that held a glassy quality really solidified the image that he was deep in thoughts. For those who had known Ravana's personality before this week, such as Yuri and Iori, it would have been overt that there was something going on within the man's mind; and even those new to him chanced the ability to tell that something was off. And yet, it was within the group of people who actually knew him in which the object of his contemplations resided; Iori Sugiura. Yes, the woman whom most had assumed as dead and gone after her last battle with Kin was who occupied his thoughts; their "reunion" being their cause.

As he too had assumed Iori dead, Ravana had been caught quite off guard when confronted with the woman he had formed a "friend/enemy" relationship with after 400 years. It was at that moment that a sort of realization had begun within Ravana; sparked by the woman who had been both a great obstacle as well as a source of motivation. While their meeting after hundreds of years quickly escalated into a continuation of the battle they had been engaged in since before Ravana himself was even a Captain, the odd sensation of internal self awareness lingered within him despite how furious the battle got; and boy did it get intense. To be honest, the exact "winner" or "loser" of their battle had been blurred by the passing events that seemed to meld together in his conscious memory; having left behind only the vague remembrance of a hard fought battle between the determination of two warriors. And yet, it was not the battle itself that had been ingrained into his mind, rather the realization he came to through it and the effects of expressing it. Having taken 400 years plus the loss of her presence to solidify, after their battle, Ravana was finally able to pin a name to the feeling he had for Iori in three simple words; "I love you."

As expected, the initial reaction of the Goddess of Victory had been to take the words as some sort of jest; believing that Ravana was trying to trick her into something. Despite this, he had pushed further; insisting that the words he had spoken embodied his true feelings. While his seriousness and determination did manage to "change Iori's tone", Ravana himself had no idea how she truly responded to it. As expected, the gravity of his words had left a tension in the air; culminating in a long pause of silence between the two. And then, before he even had the chance to ask Iori of her feelings, the woman had fled; as far and fast away from him as she could, or at least that he knew. Having been left there alone, the weight of his confession a burden fully upon his shoulders, Ravana felt frozen in that moment in time. Yes, while rejection may not seem like much to some, for this man, whose innermost feelings had taken hundreds of years to cultivate, the damage was crushing.

Returning to the train car he currently occupied, it is now clearly evident as to why Ravana is such an opposite of his usual self. Having coped with his feelings on his own, Ravana had managed to return to a workable state of mind. The memory of Iori's complete retreat from his emotions still burned into his memory, he was unable to will himself towards those emotions or a facade of normalcy. And yet, despite the lack of an emotional drive, he was not completely devoid of purpose. The dream that had led him to where he currently stood, although first interpreted at delusions, had given him a reason to pick back up his sword. While he may have stood separate from the rest, he had accepted the challenge to change the fate that he had been shown; for in such an act, maybe too the reversal of his own fate could be found. Yes, even with his emotional self in a wreck and unsure if his goals were even possible; Ravana was nothing if not determined.

400 years. Those words echoed through the mind of the goddess of victory, or rather “Rinko” like the notes of a finely tuned violin. No, Rinko wasn’t her true name, only one she was using to keep her identity a secret. In reality, she was one of Karakura’s former defenders, the second daughter of the Queen Misaiko from the land of the Sugiura, and a once prolific fighter who nearly took down the leader of one of the most heavily sought after organizations, K-world – or the Kokuryuteshi. Her life, filled with as much sorrow as there was happiness, eventually found its end long ago. Only by the blessings of one woman’s earnest curiosity and the fresh memory of a girl who heroically attempted to defeat one of the world’s biggest threats, was she able to be reborn here in this time. Once she grew and acquired new forms of power, her only intention now was to make the best of this newfound life. Where would her path go now? Would she finally be able to make amends for all the wrongs of old? Such mysterious questions were up for fate alone to decide. There isn’t any need to elaborate on “what-ifs”.

Currently, she is boarding the train to Minatumi harbor. Now, while this group as a whole consisted of full grown adults, Rinko was but a mere child compared to all of them. Her frame was waifish, lithe, and small. The reason for this alias was most likely because Iori had no intention of revealing her identity quite yet. She was not entirely ready to return to everyone yet. She still felt that she possessed too many imperfections to come face to face with her friends and family. One week before this even occurred; Iori reunited with one of her greatest friends, a woman with whom she formed a sisterly bond with. Natalia Ashmourne. She was a kindred spirit, a sister disciple who trained with her under the tutelage of the prominent Li shuwen, a man who was so well versed in the ways of martial arts, that all he needed to defeat his opponents - was a single strike. Both of them mastered the arts of Baji Quan and went their separate ways, but the memory and the bonds formed between the two were everlasting. How they reunited was quite humorous, actually. Iori simply found herself entering a city unharmed by hollows and low level demons. It made her curious and she simply traveled to the city to cure that curiosity. When the two finally met, they hardly recognized each other. Iori had grown well into the age of a young adult, so when she died and came back to life, her body reflected the one she possessed during her life as a Sugiura.

Only by tasting Natalia’s signature stew, was Iori able to place all of the pieces together and confirm her identity as the student whose skills enthralled her above the rest of the group they studied with during those days in china. Iori was ecstatic, to say the least. Once the two caught up on each other’s lives, they decided to spar and after a long, hard fought battle, Iori requested something of her idol. The request was; allow her to take on a child’s form and parade around as Natalia’s niece, Rinko Asagi. That is what allowed our little girl to board this train without knowing the slightest idea of where her path would go once she entered this new place. As she stood calmly within a set of small dress pants and a red shirt emblazoned with symbols of dinosaurs and cars, she scoped the area for seats. The moving train did little to hinder her balance. However, seeing one man out of all of these individuals present caused her to fall back in conspicuous surprise. Ravana Ichiro. While there was much history between these two, the most recent reunion between them ended on an abrupt and sour note. It was not Iori’s intention to reunite with Ravana, he was simply strolling through the Sugiura Lands and accidentally happened to stumble across Iori. She didn’t mind, of course, and was actually quite jubilated to see how much he had improved over the years. The only regret…the only regret was when he confessed and spoke the three words that no one should ever speak lightly. “I love you Iori Sugiura. “ The words hit her like an avalanche when she noticed that he was truly serious about these feelings. She didn’t believe they had cultivated enough time with one another for him to fall for her, she never would have guessed it. She didn’t say anything, and ran, ran as far away and as fast as she could.

Thus, upon noticing him, guilt fills her heart like a tumultuous thunderbolt striking the ground. She wanted to apologize, but now was not the right time. There was one thing she was willing to learn, however. Why did he feel the way he did for her? What did he see in such a loud and overbearing woman like herself? Where did these feelings come from? She was eager to ask these questions, but not as Iori. Rinko was going to sit by Ravana and find the answer to the questions that had stuck firmly in her mind since their last encounter. With a deep regulated breath to gather up courage, she walked over to the second seat adjacent to Ravana’s and sat down beside him. With a feigned expression of happiness, she greeted the much taller man in sophisticated clothing. “Hello! I’m Rinko Asogi. I was afraid to speak to all of these other people besides my aunt, but when I saw you, you seemed most welcoming. Do ya’ Mind talkin’ with little ole me?” Her tone was reminiscent of a classic southerner. She normally never spoke like this, but when the situation called for it, Iori could play many roles. Today and for a very long time with these people, she would play the role of a child. Fate would change this, of course, but for now she was content hiding the truth.

There was a air of importance, Which accentuated the air of the train car. This is where and when Nue entered, having came there for probably different and similar reasons as the others. He himself , was not terribly strong it just was something that is a fact. Though this being said, he was not one to leave someone hanging who needed help. Not to mention, of the many things which went on in the world. There where seldom anyone who gained Nue's respect , the only one for ten years was hanako.


When he entered though, Nue was nothing flashy. Infact he probably was one of the ones, trying to draw as little attention to himself as possible. Due to the fact it might not go well for a Ni, and A Nature shaman of the Iramasha clan to be found here. Then again it also was something that could be the exact opposite as well. Since, flow city was not , well in fact related to iramasha law or protection as far as Nue knew.



Entering the car, Nue would have had a strange presence being not one which was intimidating. But he was graceful in his own way, having when he entered made little if no sound at all his form had entered the car through one of the abridging car connectors. His complexion being more of something that would be drawn up then naturally conceived. His skin was pure white having the softness of satin, While his pure white snowy hair was not of age but was naturally that way; Eyes which where gray, though they never seemed to have a gleam from them. His Composure usually hiding the demeanor within, As this was his mask of sorrow so to speak. As he had looked out He had a slight feel for the energy of the others, but it was nothing special. As he was not really able to see aswell, as he was in his seishi when in normal form. A fact which was annoying but , was easily dealt with.


By now, His form had crossed the car to the far corner; the one least crowded and farthest away from the other people. Since even now in this form he was afraid he'd somehow hurt them as he did to guards and anyone else near him in Blackwing. Now though Simply settling in he waited for the briefing before having then slid his eyes around, For the purpose of taking in the peers in their squad.
He knew though this was not a weak group even though they looked human, they most without a doubt where far from it.