Taichi's Skills and Shikai

Skills

High Spiritual Power| While once considered to be an average Shinigami by all reasonable standards, he has now excelled due to the amount of determination that he has mustered throughout his career. As he has reached heights few will ever seen, his spiritual power can no longer be denied. 

Master Swordsman| During his studies, Taichi poured all he had into his sword, as he got to know it intimately without reprieve. It was his friend in a while and as such, he is strongest his abilities to fight with the sword. 

Expert Agility| The primary reason for his knowledge in agility, hinges on its use while he is Zanpakuto. He has become quite knowledgeable in shunpo but on top of that he is quick and nimble. He is able to keep up with his enemies with speed, if not out speed them. 

Spiritual Control Practitioner| While Taichi has practiced controlling his spiritual pressure, he has not been so concerned with kidou, or the like. In regards to kidou, he might as well be a novice.

Expert Perception| He has watched, studied and maintains a healthy understanding of his enemy during battle. If nothing else, he is a student of human behaviour and looks for oddities in their patterns, to anticipate the next strike. 

Novice Hand-to-Hand| A skill that he has every intention of building up, but as of now he only knows the basics. He could probably hold his own against a heavily intoxicated man but he'd have a hard time winning any formal fight. 

Inner Spirit

When she told him her name, she was wreathed in fire, full of hatred in her eyes and her face burned with some glorious passion he did not understand at the time. Tomiraka, that is her name and her presence commands the air that she exists in as her eyes capture the gaze of all those who look at her. When Taichi first stepped into her domain, she sat upon a throne where she smiled down upon him, looking almost lustful. They were green, her eyes. The jade colour seemed to breath, as she stood up they turned to red and her locks of black hair burst into flames. With each step she took, her clothes became like the fire she seemed to burn with until her very breath smoldered and her skin seeped with ash. With her hand she touched the sword he had come to think he understood. It came alive in her hand as she pulled it from his grasp. The time it took for her to find him worthy of her name seemed interminable.

Now, a symbol twists upon his hands as a symbol of their bond, the twin dragon ‘tattoo’; is her symbol, which she has bestowed upon him in order that they can cooperate. Her state has never changed, she simply exists as a tyrant queen upon her mountain. Although she may have given the reins over to him for the moment, she would not hesitate to take it back. Where as he is callous, and strong; she is both beautiful and intelligent, a figure of vibrant existence. She is a mighty dragon, a fearsome beast with skin like leather and a maw that only looks for strength, despite what her petite appearance might suggest to the contrary. 

Taichi has a strange and ever changing inner world, that has taken on many facets of his personality throughout the past, however, Tomiraka does not seem to be affected too much by the changes. It was once a lush, fertile forest filled with the seas and valleys that existed as points in his life while he was happy. Then his world changed, the trees were caught fire, the earth was scorched and the sky blackened with agony. The sorrow he felt then wrought his inner world in flame, a match to the spirit of his zanpakuto, thus he has created a home for her which is even more to her liking. She hates to see it rain, but it does not do that often anymore, there is only the fire which burns within his skin. It is not the burn of pain, but of a deep sense of justice that he has burdened himself to seek, a broken sense of pride that he must stand to and a despair he can not fix within his heart. 

The emotionless of his face is not reflected in his spirit, it is a place of strong passion, of hate and of love that has no bonds. Thus he keeps it as such, hidden within as it smolders and burns away all within, only to leave the outside dead and lifeless. This is the nature of his inner world, a true escape from the pains of reality. 

Zanpakuto 

When in its sealed state, his Zanpakuto looks very similar to most katana, however, it does vary a little in size and style. The first difference, is that the hilt is a little smaller than most and would feel uncomfortable in other hands but he still fights with both hands quite effectively. A large difference between Tomiraka and a lot of other blades is its hand rest does not truly exist, instead the hilt is narrowed towards its middle and flares out on both ends. this creates a groove where his hands rest, the blade itself allowing a little form of a stop in order to keep Taichi from cutting himself. I other hands it would not be a forgiving blade should someone lose their grip on it, and as such he is quite deft with his control on it. The blade is slightly curved, perhaps not so much as some others, however it does extend to a point unlike some other katana. The hilt is made from bamboo, which makes it strong enough to stand up against most anything, and allows for a certain shine he is accustomed to.

Shikai

The appearance of his Shikai is not too different from its sealed state, however, it does gain a certain amount of ferocious strength when it does awaken. First of all, it becomes a little bit longer changing the reach of the sword a little, a small attempt to confuse the enemy. However, this is in no way its ‘power’. Nor is the flashy show it gives off as the twin dragon tattoos upon his arms flare to life, wreathing his blade in flames and releasing a screech whilst destroying the gloves Tai normally wears. This is more of another attempt to drive fear into his enemies, as Tomiraka does not take her appearances lightly in any form or state. She adds her presence to Tai, they live and feed off each other as she awakens. 

Ability One: Doragon no shīru 

(Seal of the dragon)

[Passive]

Both the dragon tattoos slide up onto the hilt of his blade, and it creates a protective barrier upon Taichi that makes him immune to fire. It absorbs of surrounding heat into the strength of the sword. As the sword is subject to more fire, it becomes stronger and lends its strength to Taichi. Therefore, a battle wherein he uses his shikai only lends to his strength as his inferno grows, making him stronger over time. While his other releases seem to have more brute strength, this is what he considers to be his most resourceful ability, being able to out sustain his enemies if they are not able to strike him down in the beginning of his duel. This was his first mastered form of his shikai, as it blended well with his natural resilience and strength. 

Ability Two: Hanawa watashi no teki,-Tomiraka

(Wreath my enemies, Tomiraka 

[Active]

After his initial release, when the dragons have encased themselves upon the hilt of his sword, they are able to release a fire along the length of the blade. The first burst shoots along and projects as a fireball. While it looks like this is the primary form of the release, it is part of the rouse for the actual ability. The blade continues to burn and catches what it touches on fire. Taichi is not able to control the fire that his dragons spit out, but he is able to control the ember and ash that the fire makes. He can then use this after his enemy is off guard to blind them, choke them or create a complete inferno of the battlefield as he spreads the embers.

Ability Three: Kono guraundo o hoji 

(Hold this Ground)

[Active] 

Upon this release, the smoke and embers begin he creates from his first release begin to twist into a vortex, of fire and ash. The ground dries up as it begins to crack in its center, and the air around it it is stripped of its moisture. Those caught on the inside are incinerated unless they have a high enough spiritual pressure to defend themselves. Only sparing Shuichi himself due to Tomiraka's protection. This is probably the strongest of his shikai releases but one of last resort because it has no discrimination between friend or foe. 

Ability Four: Locked.