Kazuhiro Hisashi | 9th Division VC

Hisashi was born in late 15th century Japan near the final years of the Ashikaga shogunate's reign. His father was an accomplished samurai and a major vassal of the current shogun, Ashikaga Yoshihisa. A family of great deeds and impeccable lineage, the sort that any child would have wished to been born in. Hisashi was the third child, and second son of the family. His older brother was the heir and expected to eventually inherit their father's legacy. As the second son of a powerful clan, Hisashi was relatively free to do what he wanted as long as it did not bring shame to the family. It soon became clear that may have been just too much to ask of the man he would eventually grow up to be.

He displayed selfish tendencies from a young age and also an unnerving lack of morality but also some skill with a blade. Hisashi eventually turned his aggression and martial abilities towards others. He began to kill indiscriminately and that was only the beginning. A host of other vices accompanied his bloodlust; alcohol, drugs, and gambling. It was a recipe for disaster and Hisashi was heading down a path which would drag his family name into the mud. His older brother found the ideal solution. He turned his younger brother's skills to the benefit of the family and the shogunate, essentially molding Hisashi into an assassin.

Funneling Hisashi's desire to kill seemed to be perfect move. His older brother was of course reaping the rewards of his young brother's efforts. Hisashi did not really care for politics or prestige, he led a simpler life; this type of thinking is what eventually led to his downfall. Years of silencing their political opponents and enemies of the shogunate had made his family incredibly powerful. It became widely rumored that their family had a master assassin in their employ and heavily speculated that Hisashi was the culprit. His house had become shrouded with mystery and looked upon with fear. For a time his brother had found use garnering such a reputation but eventually it began to stifle any further progress.

Just like any other tool, Hisashi had outlived his usefulness but simply tossing him away would not be enough. People would assume that he was still in his family's employ as long as he lived. Therefore his brother set a trap, such a simple one that it made Hisashi's death all the more pathetic. Hisashi was given a target yet unbeknownst to him, his target was forewarned of the assassin's arrival. Upon sneaking into the target's house he found not the man he was supposed to kill but over twenty archers. They wasted no time in riddling his body with arrows and with that, Hisashi had been quietly disposed of. Even though he was only 24 at his death, he had taken more than enough lives for no one to mourn his passing.

It is a simple matter of chance where one may end up when they arrive in Rukongai and it seemed Lady Luck was shining down upon Hisashi, who had no memory of his previous life. He found himself in the 5th District of Eastern Rukongai which consequently meant he was nearer to the center of Soul Society. The 5th may not have possessed the greater noble houses that were situated in the 1st District but it was much nicer than the outer circles. An area of prosperity and opportunity. It would have been wasted on Hisashi in his previous life but he was now a different person. Of course before the new arrival would get a chance to prove himself, he would need to find himself a family; Hisashi did not have to wait long.

Hisashi's father, Kazuhiro Noubu, possessed a title to minor nobility; he was a far cry from any of the Great Houses. He was a man of both great pride and ambition though his goals lay well short of any blatant avarice. Possessing an heir is the foundation of stability for any basic noble house no matter how deep their lineage, something that Noubu had long lacked. He recognized that he could not further his own status simply by himself. The noble would need someone that would work towards the interests of his family, someone with the innate desire to acquire more. It was from this need that Noubu would eventually happen upon the child who he would taken into his house.

He had been wandering around the 5th District for a few months, only a child, but one with his wits about him. Hisashi's sudden adoption was a matter of sheer happenstance and one of the few things he is actually grateful for. He was literally picked up off the streets on a whim by Noubu who happened to pass by him. The man who would become Hisashi's father saw something in the child's eyes that day that intrigued him, a dormant fire. His father cited some ridiculous reason at the time, something about one of the other nobles picking an heir up off the street and so he wanted to do the same. Hisashi was wary at first but suddenly he had a home and that was not something a child would readily give up.

There was little complaint from Hisahi's side but his father had great expectations for him. Even though the two were not related by blood it soon became apparent that their meeting may have been more than just chance. Of course this was not to say that the two possessed a warmhearted father/son relationship but rather one of mutual understanding. Noubu have given Hisashi a home and all that came with it; Hisashi acted as an heir to further the family name. Thus even in his youth, he had functioned within the parameters of give-and-take. Many would have found such a life to be undesirable but it was perfect for the young upstart.

Kazuhiro Noubu was not a shortsighted man and saw the benefits in investment, which is exactly how he approached the situation with his new son. He provided Hisashi with some of the best education available as well as a host of other things. The boy was schooled in everything from music to combat. His father brought him along to numerous social gatherings and groomed him to be the ideal successor. The Greater Houses may have been secure in their power but it was a toss up when it came to the lesser nobles who constantly vied for even the tiniest elevation of status. Hisashi immersed himself in a game of intrigue, deception, and avidity; a game he happened to play quite well. He had a way of getting others to divulge their secrets to him while revealing little about himself.

It also became apparent that Hisashi was more than just a simple heir to a middling noble. He possessed a keen intellect and an aptitude for gathering information. Hisashi's father seemed to have harbored suspicions that his son bore a significant spiritual presence. It was not long before his suspicions were confirmed and the path for his son became clear. Shinigami commanded respect, especially those were ranked highly among the Gotei. If his son were to become even a seated officer in a division, it would do much for his family name. Oddly enough, Hisashi was on the exact same page as his father.Therefore Hisashi's decision to apply to the Shinigami Academy was a decision easily made.

Hisahi's acceptance into the Academy was based on his merit alone rather than any political maneuvering. His father did not nearly have enough influence and the prospective Shinigami would not have let him him exercise it even if he did. Hisashi was all for utilizing one's power but if he could not make it into the Academy on his own then it would have all seemed very pointless. He was his father's son after all and possessed no small amount of pride. His Reiryoku did in fact prove to be higher than the average applicant and combined with his education and experience, the entrance exam proved to be of little difficult to Hisashi. Of course he knew that the real challenge now awaited him as a student.

He was placed into the second highest class upon officially passing the entrance exam, somewhat to his chagrin. The prospective Shinigami had not joined expecting to be the best but the revelation was still jarring. It meant that there were others more talented than himself and that meant inevitable competition for the young noble. The initial shock had quickly worn off as Hisashi was the type of person who would have been disappointed if he had simply been the number one entree. His father always said that healthy competition was needed if one was going to push themselves to a greater level. There was no doubt in Hisashi's mind that the tasks within the Academy and without would require personal progression.

The curriculum of the Academy elicited mixed emotions from the new student. In his pre-academy training he had found that he had little taste for hand-to-hand combat and was essentially average with a sword. He had known that most Shinigami tend to excel in one or two areas but the curriculum was such that one needed a solid grasp of all four major areas of study. Hisashi did not possess the ideal build for close combat and struggled to make sure he trained his skills up to an acceptable level. Even after rigorous training, his level in Hakuda was rather abysmal for someone of whom much was expected. Luckily his ability to wield a sword progressed at a much better pace once he managed to thoroughly grasp the fundamentals.

Of course there were areas in which Hisashi had little trouble and instead set himself above his peers. Hisashi proved to be exceptionally agile and showed significant potential when it came to Hoho. He specifically had a talent for suppressing his own presence which allowed him to move about unnoticed. Of course this was a skill he would not perfect until much later in his life. His reiatsu control and quickness made for a potent combination and helped to compensate for his lack of physical strength. The student's kido was at a slightly above-average level but it was neither terrible nor impressive. Therefore Hisashi constantly focused on the most optimal ways to combine his exceptional speed with his other more average skills. Eventually his instructors began to notice that the potential Shinigami was slowly but surely distinguishing himself from the rest of his peers.

Two years after his acceptance into the Academy and Hisashi now found himself in the first class among his year; he had shown that he was a cut above a majority of his peers. The young noble had done more than just studying and training during his time at the Academy. He did not really make any friends per se but instead made many 'acquaintances'. Many of the students were children of nobles families while some were just extremely talented or had a specific skill set that Hisashi found intriguing. He was far from the friendliest person in the Academy but people did not seem to push him away. The cleverer ones noted Hisashi's potential and understood that such relationships could potentially prove beneficial in the long run. Suffice to say, he took the foundation-building ideal of the curriculum to a different level.

Hisashi's final years at the Academy were rather similar to his previous ones. He continued to train and attempt to set himself above the rest. He had heard stories about prodigies who graduated within three years but seemed he was no prodigy. Yet he had managed to capture the eyes of a few divisions and well all was said and done, he ended up graduating six months early. Hisashi's aptitude in Hoho and innate intelligence drew the eyes of a number of divisions including the 2nd, 6th, and 9th. His decision was based on which division he believed fit his skills the best. He was a bit disappointed to learn that no division was focused on things other than combat, aside from the 4th of which he had no interest in. Eventually he decided on the 9th Division. Information gathering and subterfuge were both things that were needed to protect Seireitei.

Upon being officially accepted into the 9th, Hisashi was given the rank of 19th seated officer. Many had expected him to be ranked higher but one had to earn their way in the 9th. Hisashi's initial assignments had all been of a rather mundane nature. He was sent to various parts of Rukongai, usually the outer circles, to gather information. It didn't take long for him to gather that these assignments were meant to see if he was truly dedicated to the goals of the division. Even for a man of Hisashi's level of patience, the tasks proved to be extremely tedious. It was well known that the most vital information came from the inner districts. All that was usually found in the outer areas was the occasional minor crime or rare Hollow attack.

Hisashi made sure to complete his duty and went a step further. His months in the outer districts made him a familiar face and he was quick to take advantage of that fact. Just like in the Academy, he went about making various connections from orphans to store owners. Hisashi's network of informants grew exponentially during his early years in the 9th Division. It would have seemed a waste of time to many others but not to him. Of course at first he only heard whispers of minor things which was to be expected. His superiors noted that he had done his duty diligently but Hisashi had not done anything overly impressive at this point.

His time eventually came a few years after he had joined the 9th and he had ascended to the rank of 15th seat. Up until this point, his progress had been quite slow and whatever expectations he had initially garnered had now disappeared, that was until he caught wind of an assassination plot. Hisashi had been put in charge of a number of middle districts after his initial promotion. He was no longer working in the outer circles but neither was he working within the heart of Soul Society. One day he got word from his information network that a certain noble house was planning to assassinate a member of a Greater House. Hisashi himself had heard rumors of this possibility but his superiors had refused to listen at the time. His information originated from a servant who worked for the instigating house and had traveled all the way to him.

Unfortunately it seemed that his reports were to be ignored. Hisashi decided to do the only thing he could do with time running out. He managed to convince a few lower seated officers to help him try to prevent the assassination from happening. Hisashi and his small squad managed to arrive barely in time but things weren't so simple once they got there. Their opponents were in an entirely different league and Hisashi was far from the best combatant. Luckily he had the foresight to send a message to another Division before he left. They would have probably ignored his warning too but by fighting off the assassins, Hisashi's group had managed to create a ruckus. The battle was something the 5th division could not simply ignore. Fortunately they managed to arrive just in time though not before Hisashi was heavily injured. Thanks to the 4th there had been no causalities on his side but it had been a close thing.

The foiled assassination attempt had caused the higher-ups to pay closer attention to Hisashi. They soon recognized the quality of the intelligence he had been gathering. Ten years of tedium had finally paid off. He was promoted to 10th seat and given a whole host of new duties. The publicity of the failed assassination had also granted Hisashi a bit of fame as well. He had not made a prodigious rise but it was still something. His talents were not something easily noticed, they were the exact opposite in fact. He knew that would slow his progress up the ranks but it could not be helped. Hisashi had a plan and a long-term goal in mind, he would continue at his current pace unless circumstances forced him to do otherwise. Patience was a virtue that he possessed in abundance.

Hisashi spent a solid 150 years making his way from 10th seat to 5th seat. It may have seemed like a long time to others yet this was not true for Hisashi. As far as he was concerned things were progressing smoothly. He may have been quietly working in the shadows or at a desk but his efforts were no longer going unnoticed. There were certain changes in the 9th that could be directly or indirectly attributed to Hisashi. He was not well-known outside of his division but the other members were beginning to give him a certain measure of respect while still keeping him at arm's length. The Shinigami had been quite busy during this period with a number of duties which occupied his attention.

Initially on his promotion to 10th seat, he had been kept out in the field in a capacity similar to his previous duties. He found himself operating mostly within the 9th headquarters as he started to move up the ranks. His ability to manage a huge network of informants as well as lower seated Shinigami proved to be invaluable. He was soon overseeing a number of different districts and collating whatever data came through said districts. Hisashi was slowly becoming privy to increasingly important information. His administrative abilities were now a pivotal instrument in the 9th's operation. Of course it was not only him but others that he had spotted among the recruits and lower officers. Hisashi had a good eye for talent made sure to put that to good use.

During this period, his information led to a number of arrests, assassinations, and discoveries. None of them were of a major importance to the Gotei but the small successes did add up. It was also during this time that Hisashi learned the name of his Zanpakuto and achieved Shikai. Up until this point he had not placed a great emphasis on his Zanpakuto. He had merely gotten by with his other talents. Hisashi was rarely ever in any direct combat and whatever Kido and Zanjutsu he knew had usually been enough to suffice. Still his newly discovered Shikai alongside his next accomplishment would lead to his promotion to the third highest position within the division.

An extremely virulent disease had spread throughout many of the outer districts and showed no signs of ceasing. Afraid that the it would spread towards the center of Rukongai, the Gotei decided to dispatch a large contingent of the 4th to deal with the deadly disease. The 9th had already been assigned to create a quarantine zone and prevent any potential riots. It would be the first time in many years that this much of the Gotei had been mobilized. The incident would prove that Hollows were not the only enemies that the Shinigami faced. While it was an odd scenario, there were no indications that there would be anything other than the disease to deal with.

The 5th seat was sent alongside the 4th Division in an advisory capacity and as a liaison between the outer districts and Central. It had been the first time in many years that Hisashi had gone out on an actual assignment, not to mention working with another division. He was not surprised to find that many of his fellow Shinigami were unhappy with his presence. Hisashi did have his share of acquaintances within the 4th though, so things smoothed out eventually. Everything seemed to be working out just fine until he was approached by one of the residents of the district. The old woman had recognized Hisashi from his years working in the area and had decided to come to him with what she knew.

What Hisashi learned from the woman was far from pleasant. Apparently a large group of rogue Shinigami were planning on attacking the 4th as they attempted to heal those afflicted with the disease. He knew that anti-Gotei sentiment was high in the outer districts, especially with how slowly they had reacted to the disease. Yet he had not expected something so drastic and quite so irrational. Hisashi had got word only moments later that the 9th was dealing with a number of riots which was slowly pulling them away from the perimeter. The woman's information could have simply been a hoax which would make him look like an idiot yet something told him that things were not so simple. He quickly relayed whatever information he had to the officer heading up the healing contingent and advised that they pull back to where the 5th could support them. Luckily his advice was heeded and a potential disaster averted, but that was not the end of Hisashi's participation in this matter.

Hisashi saw a rare opportunity within this potential disaster to both do his duty and elevate his own position. Instead of heading back with the rest of the 4th Division, he remained in what had essentially become enemy territory. The first thing he did was track the woman who had initially warned him and questioned her. He then used those answers to find another person and so forth until he discovered what he needed to know, who had planned this attack. It was clear this had been planned by someone who had knowledge of how the Gotei operated which pointed to rogue Shinigami. The Gotei took a pretty hard policy when it came to those who had deserted and abandoned their duties, especially those who plotted to endanger the Gotei themselves.

Eventually he had discovered the man who was responsible and now had a decision to make. Hisashi could personally try to subdue the man and bring him back for interrogation, or he could leave it up to another division. In a decision that surprised himself, he decided to go with the former. He could not take the risk that the rogue Shinigami would be in the same place if he let him be. Close observation told the Shinigami that his opponent was near enough the same level as his himself. The fact remained that Hisashi was wasted in any prolonged battle and needed to defeat his opponent in an instant. The 5th seat had two things currently going for him. One was that his opponent was definitely not expecting to be attacked in such a place and the other was Hisashi's ability to move about unnoticed. It only took a moment and no small amount of courage but he managed to catch his opponent off-guard with a sudden binding spell.

Everything became much simpler after he had managed to subdue the rogue Shinigami. Instead of a fast dash to a safer area, Hisashi simply decided to lay low until the riots had died down. His patience paid off and he made it back to the 9th Division with his captive. He had been considered missing and more than a few thought him dead. Instead he had once again proven his worth in an undeniable fashion. The sum of his accomplishments up to this point made it an easy decision to promote him to 3rd seat. It was a welcome reward for the patience Hisashi had shown for many years. He would now be afforded an even greater level of trust and responsibilities of a more significant nature.

The new 3rd seat was in for quite a surprise when he was promoted. He had expected new duties but none quite like what he had been assigned to do. Hisashi was told that he was going to serve as an instructor at the Shinigami Academy. In truth the Shingami was somewhat shocked at the idea. It seemed odd that someone like him would be chosen to teach at the Academy. Yet both his Captain and Vice-Captain seemed adamant about the idea. He was still a bit nonplussed about the whole thing but he had little choice in the matter. It was noted of course that he would still have a significant number of duties outside of teaching. He was now the highest ranking numbered seat in the 9th, there was much for him to do.

Hisashi's initial weeks of instructing were rather awkward though he muddled through somehow. He was amicable but he wasn't used to being at the center of attention. Not to mention he was asked a number of questions about his duties which he could simply not answer. Hisashi was a quick learner and the idea of teaching became normal to him. The first few months of teaching were incredibly standard. He was of course not expected instruct in the areas where his skills were lacking and instead focused mostly on teaching things closer to his expertise. Hisashi found the experience oddly rewarding but he soon learned that his purpose there was not exactly benign.

It was not until much later in his tenure that he was told to watch potential students very carefully. At first he suspected that the 9th was looking for recruits and wanted to be ahead of the curve compared to the other divisions. That was indeed a part of it but that was not the only thing. Hisashi was essentially the 9th Division's spy within the Academy. Rogue Shinigami were becoming more and more of an issue and the Gotei was looking for a solution to their problems. The head of the 9th believed that potentially traitorous behavior could be noted as early as the Academy days, especially among struggling students. He was not expected to keep an eye on just the students but also the other instructors.

He had his doubts about his current assignment but did it without complaint. Hisashi had seen firsthand just how dangerous rogue Shinigami could be. If their tendencies could indeed be discovered this early then who was he to argue? Still, Hisashi had found a certain pleasure in teaching that he had not expected and this assignment left a bad taste in his mouth. He made sure to make his standard reports along with whatever conclusions he could derive. Hisashi had noted a possible pattern during his tenure but nothing overly conclusive. Luckily he was spared any further need to continue this duty with the death of his Vice-Captain. It was unfortunate that he would no longer be teaching but he was saved from any scruples with his conscience.

After the death of the previous lieutenant, Hisashi was the obvious choice as a replacement. He had proved his worth time and time again. His efforts had greatly expanded the information network of the 9th which in turn led to an increased effectiveness among the other divisions who relied on the 9th's intelligence. He was far from the best fighter but if utilized properly, Hisashi can be a great asset on the field as well. The rest of the division will always view him with some level of suspicious but he supposed that they were well within their rights to do so. Fortunately most of them still accept him as their Vice-Captain and a man whom they can respect, just not trust entirely. After becoming the lieutenant of the 9th division, Hisashi has gradually begun to make a name for himself and is now known more widely among the other divisions. Of course he has learned that his reputation within the other divisions is not very flattering.