A New Face [Inv]

That man really thought he would get a response for that. Wow, that was pretentious. Pretty much everyone in the room was doing some kind of training at the moment, the most being engaged against each other, busy trying to get some hits in. And Shizuka was amidst them, ready to do her own part in this training the moment one of them got hurt. That was good for all parties, really. She got to do some service to her comrades, they could go all out and hurt each other with impunity, and everyone had an incentive to win, rather than get injured, because that would lead to healing.


Even though being healed was kind of the point, at least from her perspective.

Yet, someone else had arrived, a member of a different division, judging by the insignia. Given that she hardly consciously interacted with such people, Shizu did not really give it much attention beyond ‘not from our division’, but she focused on the man instead. He looked injured, that was quite interesting.

And he was looking for a fight, which had turned some heads, but had otherwise been ignored. They all had their fights already, so why get involved with some wounded weakling?

Still, some hospitality was in order, even if it was just a token effort. Thus, she walked over towards him and sighed. Then she smiled at him broadly.

“Good day to you, too. You look like someone did beat you into a bloody pulp, did you come for revenge, or are you seeking my services? Well, I would say both, but I don’t think combining these things would balance any ledgers.”

“My name is Shizuka; and I am this division’s third seat.”

She answered this question first, and did not really stop at all, as she walked towards him. Personal space was overrated in a dojo, and she did not even remotely care about him putting a hand on his weapon. So what? Maybe he wanted a fight or anything, stuff happens. As long as she did not officially take that invitation, he couldn’t do anything anyway. If he didn’t back off, she would not stop until she was only a step away from him. And even if he did, she would still simply move in on him, because that was just the way she rolled.

“And my services are ass-kicking, torture, rehabilitation and first aid, in nor particular order. You seem like you could use some of the former three, from the looks of this.”

Saying that, she’d reach out for his bandaged arm and, if not stopped, grab it only to squeeze a little. Best way to find out if there was actually an injury beneath the bandages, after all. She did not know who this man was, and he had his powers under control enough to not blow everyone in the room away, so it was easy to just assume him to be some random shinigami.


And honestly, a rank did not really mean much, now did it? She might have been a sanseki, but in her current state, she sure did not consider herself the third strongest. Her tacho wanted to change that, yes, but until that was done, she simply considered herself lucky at best.

Ah, so that really was to patch up a wound. His reaction left no doubt there. Of course, he did not wince in pain or anything, but instead he tried to mask it by moving ahead himself. That was just how males were, after all. Not being able to say that something hurt them, they just dug themselves in much deeper.

Then again, she had not expected this kind of audacity.

Sadly, she had to wince just a little, simply by being unprepared, but not enough to make a fool of herself in front of her division. But then again, she couldn’t let anyone get away with touching her like this. He was pretty close by now, and bigger, so she had to look up to him. Yet, that worked in her favor. After all, everyone knew how this kind of scene ended, even for people who were still training hakudo, such as herself. Tensing up, she readied her leg, as she continued, her other hand put slightly onto his chest.

“Well, well, that is an interesting claim to make, dear. Is that a challenge, or a clumsy way to invite me on a date?”

Saying that, she retracted the hand from his chest again, and pretended to want to kick him in the groin, supporting her attack by squeezing his arm more tightly. Yet, that was a double smokescreen. What she was actually going for was jolting her now free arm upwards, in order to hit his chin harshly with the palm of her hand.

“And that’s why we should hate Hakuda.”

Shizuka replied like that, pretty much ignoring the uncomfortable position she had ended up in. Fortunately, her squadmates were way too busy training to really pay too much attention to this, although she did notice some chuckles. Those, however, were silenced by a quick, stern glance. Everyone knew she was just learning this type of fighting, and there were never any regrets in something not working, always only the next step to look forward to. Nevertheless, she turned back towards this man, who apparently was not just an initiate to hand-to-hand combat.

“Anyway, you did not answer my question? I appreciate some training in the weaponless arts, but I guess that is not why you have come here.”

With that said, she simply squeezed some harder, having no intention to just let him go like that. After all, she did not like losing too much indeed. Thus, she stared right back at him, although with less enthusiasm, as this position was still not comfortable. Still, not comfortable was pretty much unimportant in this division, and she just endured it for now. After all, he must have been in much more pain like this, and she did not really plan on letting go anytime soon.

Ah, wonderful, that forced him off of her. Obviously, Shizuka would not do anything to stop him from doing that, it had been her objective in the first place. She let him go, and allowed him to get up, just so she could do as well, with a somewhat smug expression on her face. That one would turn into surprise, though, when he actually invited her to some training. At least she thought so. He had quite the peculiar way to do so.


In reply, she simply drew her sword, after taking a few steps back, but not in a way that would challenge him. By now she’d had squeezed the arm enough to get a better grasp on his injury.

“I don’t exactly need your pity, but I could use someone to spar with. Although I really don’t get off of fighting cripples, even if they are strong. So, allow me to help you getting over your little injury there? I promise it will hurt, but its always better to have all that pain out of the way, instead of being reminded of it every day, don’t you think?”

The smile she gave him while saying that was obviously genuine. This was an offer to help him, and at the same time, an opportunity to pay him back. She could just hear one of the boys back there wince, the one she had ‘helped’ earlier.

Shizuka laughed out loud in a jovial, pure manner. That was just too good an answer. Actually, she hadn’t really tried it on a wound that was as old as this one appeared to be, but at the same time, gosh, did that fit her portfolio. Eventually, she had her share of laughing, and actually explained the joke, lifting her zanpakutou and holding it horizontal in front of her body, for everyone to see.

“

This is Seika. She is a peculiar little thing, especially for someone in my position. It burns away the ill flesh and bone, forcing it to grow anew. I have spent enough time correcting broken bones by doing that to know that I can force it, even though I have never heard of a story like yours before. It might be worth a try, you know? I sure would love to show those guys of the fourth by helping with something they can’t.”

Shizuka said that – and then she sheathed her sword again. It was obvious that he did not really want her to try, likely knowing her reputation, so this had just been a little show to make him regret that. But she had sworn to never just force this on people who weren’t in immediate danger, so she left it at that, and tried to recall what else he had said, before she had laughed at him. Something about being a taichou, eh? He really wanted to impress her, didn’t he?

“But then again, given the extent of the operation this would likely cause you more pain than you can even fathom, taichou-chan. So I will just leave it at that, but I gladly take you up on your offer to learn a bit from you, or beat you, in case you can’t teach me anything. That’s a win for me either way, isn’t it?”

Uhh, bad call, bad call. Yes, Shizuka did get off of doing what she did best just a little, but to her, that was just a necessity, a mechanism to cope with causing something like that while healing. She certainly did not like someone to call her a sadist just like that. Hence, she turned from him halfway, and instead shifted her gaze at the other members of her division. She did not really want to look at him while she was a little angry, she might just fall for his provocation like that. Not that she needed a reason not to; she just did not want to fight at these terms.

“How about not? If you challenge me, I will fight you. If you ask me to try my blade on you like that, I will do so. But I won’t accept one to be the price of the other, that is not how it works. So think again, taichou-chan, and then tell me what you want.”

She did not turn back towards him, keeping her arms crossed in front of her chest. This was going down the way she wanted, or not at all. He might outrank her, might even be able to order her around, but that did not mean she had to agree with him. This had nothing to do with hierarchy, more with idiosyncrasy.