Nikki's Room

Nikitio failed. He walked out of the First Division barracks without his captain haori. His face showed peace though. If it could be called peace. There was no emotion there. It showed no sadness. It showed no happiness. It was just a face. He didn’t really care. He was not crushed. He was not thrilled. He was not mortified. He was not ecstatic. Few people would be thrilled about failing. It wasn’t truly a failure in his mind. It was not a step in the right direction either. It was just a thing. It had no answer. It showed no reality. It was nothing to him. To some it was something. He got looks from some people. Everyone knew he didn’t have Bankai. Who would try to take the captain’s test without Bankai? Nikki. Nikki would try. Why? Because he didn’t care that much for it. He came close. That was all he had to do. Come close. Why? Because he wanted to prove something. That you didn’t need a fancy stage of power to be a captain.

He let out a yawn. He would gain Bankai though. He had been trying to gain it, but Karasu made it hard. It was difficult. Karasu wasn’t fighting Nikitio. He asked him a question. This question haunted Nikitio. Karasu waited for Nikitio’s answer. Nikitio couldn’t think of an answer. He thought of something though. One person could help him. He sighed. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to ask for her. It was just that he would rather have this be simple. Of course it couldn’t be. It was never so simple. When was anything simple? Nikitio sighed. He looked up into the sky. His mind drifted away. He closed his eyes and breathed. He thought back to when he first graduated from the academy.

Nikitio sat in the room for exams. He looked at the students around him. He read faces. It amused him to see. Everyone was like an actor on stage. But rather than acting they were honest. Some people were panicking. They were chewing on their pencil. They were tapping the pencil on their forehead. They were freaked. Some were even sweating. It was true suffering for them. Nikitio pictured the inside of their head. He pictured turmoil. He saw a land riddled with war. It gave him pleasure. It gave him joy. Not because they suffered though. It was because he wasn’t nervous.

Some people were emotionless. They were impossible to read. To him they were worse than the obvious panickers. Why? Because they were disconnected. They were confused. They didn’t know how to feel. It was something that also gave him pleasure. Why? Even he didn’t know. He just liked it. He just enjoyed seeing them. He loved their emotionless face. It made him feel better. It gave him some sense of relief. It gave him some sense of security. He didn’t mind that they were lost. How was he doing? He was doing fine. He only had a few more questions left. Then he had to do an essay. After that he would be finished.

He finally noticed the last few people. Only a handful were flying by. Their pencils never left the paper. They knew every answer. They knew every response. They could do this sleeping. They could do this drugged. Strip them naked, put them in a blizzard, and they could ace this. Bundle them up, put them in an inferno, and they could still ace this. It seemed that nothing could distract these guys. Nikitio smiled at them. Cocky bastards, all of them. He didn’t hope they failed, but he didn’t hope they passed either. Whatever comes of them comes. He just wanted to get out of there. He would do him. They would do them.

Nikitio turned his attention on his own paper. He finished the last few questions with ease. They were just some easy questions. Things about Hollow, Shinigami, and Quincy. A few questions were there about the Quincy and Shinigami war. It was all easy. And the essay was just about your plans. Simple. When Nikitio was done he handed in his test. He went to leave. He stopped at the door and looked at the others. Some looked at him. Some just stared. Some glared. Some focused on the test. Others looked from him to the test. Others just were zoning out. He shook his head and left the room. He waited with a handful of other students in the waiting room. Some began to get called away. Some came back and cried. Others never came back. Nikitio didn’t care either way.

Eventually he was called. A man stood in the door. He was large in terms of width. He was short. He had a full head of black hair though. His eyes were small black little things. He called for Nikitio again. Nikitio looked at him for a moment. He sighed and stood up. The man signaled for him to follow. Nikitio obeyed and went with him into the hall. The man looked at Nikitio and down at his test. They stood at the door that lead out of the Academy. ”You have passed.” That was all he said. Nikitio shrugged and left. He didn’t like that guy. He was his history teacher. He disliked him immensely. He made history boring. Nikitio wasn’t thrilled about history. That man made it even worse.

Nikitio left the doors. He went outside into the sunshine. He hated the sun. It made him upset. That was part of the reason he loved his zanpakuto’s inner world. It was always night there. The light of sun never touched the land. It never showed. He was happy with that. As depressing and morbid it sounded, it made him happy. He looked around. It felt strange. He was out of the confines of that school. That was his life though. That was all he had known. What could be done now? Where would he go? He looked at a Shinigami. The woman came at a jog to him. She stopped and bowed respectfully before handing him a letter and vanishing.

Nikitio looked at the letter. It was blank. There was no indication it was for him. The only thing he had to go on was that it was given to him. Besides that nothing was to indicate it was for him. He opened it. Nothing was on the black paper. Nothing was there. Nothing except for a symbol. A tulip. Under the tulip were two words. “Seek Nothing” The second division had accepted him. He smiled and folded the letter back up. He stuffed it into his bag and walked out the gates to the school. He didn’t except a little going away party to be waiting for him.

Outside the gate, and with a smile, stood his teachers. Claudia was the only one not smiling though. She never smiled. Not unless she was killing. Well, that’s what he was told anyway. Derrick stood next to Yuki. They were both smiling. Their fingers were wrapped around each other. On the other side of Claudia stood Sakura. A large grin graced her face. For some reason, the grin made Nikki uncomfortable. It was almost as bad as the spirit’s eyes. He bowed at them all out of respect. Claudia didn’t bow back. The rest of them bowed back to Nikki. He didn’t expect Claudia to. He knew better than to expect such a behavior from her.

”Good job man! I knew you’d pass. Yuki thought that. . .” One looked from her stopped him in his tracks. He didn’t dare to continue. As quick as he could cast Kido he wasn’t faster than her. She could have him begging for his life before he even got out the type of Kido. Yuki smiled at Nikitio. ”What he means is this. HE thought you might not do so well. But I convinced him other wise. I don’t know why he has such little faith.” Derrick nodded in agreement. He then shrugged at the last part. Yuki shrugged with him. She smiled at Nikitio, and Nikitio giggled. Derrick just glared at him. Nikitio arched an eyebrow.

His eyes looked at Claudia. He didn’t expect her to say anything. She did speak though. That surprised him. What came out of her mouth didn’t though. ”Yes yes. Good job. Congratulations. Listen here, Kid. You better be something. I may be old, but I can still gut you. Don’t get cocky. Fuck up, and I’ll hang you on the spot.” The air was silent. It was still. Nobody spoke. Nobody moved. Why? Because she wasn’t joking. She would kill him. That is Claudia for you. She never joked about her bloodshed. It was like a gift from the gods to her. She loved it terribly so. Nikitio didn’t know what to do. So he said one word. Okay. That was all he said. What else could he say?

Sakura giggled first. It was a low giggle. It was soft and teasing. She winked at Nikitio. ”Yay! You passed! You made it out! Isn’t that exciting?! I’m like super happy for you! It was just amazing! GO NIKKI!” She jumped up and cheering. Nikitio just looked at her. He smiled and nodded at her. He didn’t know what to say to her either. She was almost as bad as Claudia. Sakura’s giggle was the one that was a killing giggle. Not one that would kill you. The person would kill you. She would kill you and laugh at it. She would laugh at your death. She would take joy from your passing. That was what seemed to scare him more. He didn’t like it.

Nikki looked at them all and smiled. ”Thank you all for your support. It means a lot. I guess I’ll see you all later.” They parted. Claudia and Sakura were on one side. Derrick and Yuki were on another side. Nikitio walked down the middle. It seemed like a big deal to them. Nikki was just happy to be out of there. He continued walking for a few more feet. After he was about thirty feet away he felt a hand. The hand gripped his shoulder. He turned and smiled at Derrick. Derrick smiled back and slipped him a note. The note was given in what seemed to be a handshake. Derrick smiled again. He then used shunpo to vanish. After he vanished, Nikitio continued walking.

He arrived at the barracks to the Second Division. ”Seek nothing. . .” He mumbled under his breath. He sighed and began to walk inside. He looked around. It was empty here. There were people here though. He could feel them. He could hear some of them. Ghosts. That’s what they were. Using shunpo and avoiding him. He smiled to himself. Idiots. He turned and began to look for an empty room. He didn’t have to look for long because a room was addressed to him. It had a black paper with his name in elegant white writing. He walked in and tossed his stuff to the floor. He collapsed on his bed and looked up at the ceiling. He smiled to himself again. In his throat a chuckle produced. His lips never opened to expose it to the air though.

Nikitio let out a sigh. It was a good memory. He had other things to do now. He was the Third Seat of the Second Division. He was in charge of the Maggot’s Nest. He wasn’t going there right now though. Nor was he going to the barracks. No. He was seeing the one person who could help him the most. Karasu used to be that person. Back then though others challenged him. This time it was Karasu. So of course Karasu couldn’t help him. And even if he could, he might just make things a bit worse. At least in terms of difficulty for Nikitio.

On that note, Nikitio thought once more. His mind wandered. He went back to the time when he first obtained Shikai. When he first learned Karasu’s name. It was a good day. It was also the day that he was no longer the grunt of the Division.

Nikitio sat alone and sore in his room. He had been doing drills all day. They were no where near as bad as Claudia though. They were also not as deadly as Sakura. They still hurt though. The Captain’s seat was open in this Division. That is what he was gunning for. He would be captain. Even now he plotted. He wrote down ideas in a journal. He studied everyone here. A lot of people had problems with Shunpo. They would slide a bit before they actually stopped. That was bad. That is how he defeated a lot of his opponents. Because they couldn’t control their shunpo. A few other people were lacking just a bit in the Hakuda department. Some were either too fast to react. That left them open for a new course of action. Other people were too slow. That was just bad on many levels.

Nikitio sighed as he jotted down names and problems. He also made note of those that picked on him. Nikitio had yet to achieve shikai. Some people already had in the Division. Hell, all of them did. He was the only one who didn’t have Shikai. He had proved he could do just fine without it though. Progression was a dangerous thing, however. It didn’t like to be ignored. Nikitio couldn’t put it off any longer. He would never move up unless he obtained his Shikai form at least. He closed his eyes for a moment. He called out to his spirit. He clung to the image of the world. When he opened his eyes he was there. He was on his back. He saw the starts that littered the sky. He turned his head and saw the large moon. It was so beautiful here. He wished to find a place like this in the Human World. He doubted such a place existed though. One away from the crowd of land formations and human waste. He sat up finally and looked at Karasu.

Karasu sat there drinking tea. Where the hell did that come from? Who knows. Karasu is a strange being indeed. ”Hm. . .I cannot say this is unexpected. Though what is to be expected? If we knew that then I suppose we could expect the unexpected, no? Until that time, however, I do wish to sate your desires. I don’t think I will though.” He took a sip of his tea. He spoke so simply. So matter-of-fact. It drove Nikitio crazy. Nikitio sat down. He knew this was going to be a while. He just looked at Karasu. His sea blue eyes trying to read his face. Karasu’s face was like stone, however. It was impossible to read. You read it when he wanted you to. Nikitio was the same way. He let out a deep sigh.

”I suppose this is the part where I ask why. I am supposed to ask why you won’t tell me. And you will say. . .” He rotated his wrist to show that it was Karasu’s turn. Karasu set down the cup and smiled. ”You know that.” Nikitio frowned. Karasu shrugged and took another sip. He was impossible to deal with. It was like talking to a child. What did he want from Nikitio? He sighed and shook his head. This was a dance they would always do. They were cursed to go from one to another. They would never get this solved. Forever they would dance like this. And that was not okay. Nikitio needed answers. Nikitio wanted answers. He wanted them now. He wants them yesterday. Not later. Not tomorrow. Not next week. Yesterday.

”Tell me what I want to know. I want the answers now. I do not have the time or patients for these trivial games. Tell me now, you damned spirit!” Nikitio’s brows came together. His eyes blazed with hate. Karasu smiled at this. He took amusement from this. Whatever he wanted, Nikitio just gave him. Damnit. Nikitio walked right into that. It was a test and Nikitio failed. ”I can see the realization play out on your face. Yes. It was a test. But not a real test. It was the answer. The answer to the real test. Which you will need later on. I promise you this, but for now I have something. You want something. I have it. What do we do? What do I get from you? Nothing. So why should I give you my name?”

It was a good question. But Nikitio had an answer. ”You’re so fake. You are nothing but an actor on stage. You wish for me to grow, but you hold me back. You are conflicted but you know the right thing to do. And so you shall speak your name. You will speak it with high hopes. Hopes that I don’t let you down. For you know without your name, I cannot hope to not let you down. We both hate to be disappointed. So tell me your name.” For a moment. For a split second it showed. The spirit’s calm composure broke. It showed shock, truth, lies, admiration, fear, and despise. It was gone. ”Karasu. . .” With a wave of his hand Nikitio was shoved out of the world. He opened his eyes again and was back in his room. He suddenly knew the words for his Shikai. He knew the name as well. It was a strange feeling. He would have to take some time getting used to this.

Nikitio went to his back for his Zanoakutos. A pair of beautiful looking daggers. They were not there. He forgot that. He had gotten wrist sheaths for them. The design was fairly simple. One strap could hold in or release the daggers. All he had to do was pull a string and it was out. He’d catch the hilts and he was good to go. He continued to walk to his destination. The Zanjutsu academy. Oh how he didn’t miss it here. Outside the gate was the person who could help him. Yuki. She was wearing a simple white tee-shirt. She also had on a pair of black sunglasses. Something he had never seen her wear before. She smiled and him and pushed off the wall. Using shunpo she got to him faster. They began to walk through the streets together. ”So what’s up?” Nikitio began to explain.

”Karasu is the name of my Zanpakuto. I know how you are SUPPOSED to obtain bankai, but Karasu is different. He doesn’t want to do it that way. He said it is degrading to both user and spirit. That they are a team, partners, and as such one should never be stronger than the other. Otherwise it becomes a domination, and it can corrupt the winner. So he gave me a challenge. I have about…one hour to figure out what Hakuda means. It is not hand-to-hand combat. I already said that.” Yuki flicked Nikki in the head. He grumbled at her. ”We went over this on the first day of class. Wow. Are all men thick headed? Or just you and Derrick? Heh. Well nonetheless. Look at the Rukongai. It is Hakuda. Tell me. What was it like living there?” Nikitio furrowed his brow. He didn’t understand her. She was almost as bad as Karasu.

”The Rukongai was…hard. It was a battle everyday. It was always a fight. People stole. People killed. People cried. It was a living nightmare. You learn real fast one simple lesson. Trust no one. Not your brother. Not your sister. Not your mother or father. You could depend on no one but yourself. Sure you ran with people. You did things with people. But so many times I saw betrayal. Heh…it’s funny. The Rukongai and the Onmitsukido are so connected. Oh well. So…what now?” Yuki shrugged. She stopped and looked at him. Nikitio looked at her and was perplexed. ”Why am I here?” Nikitio sighed. ”I just told you.”

Yuki sighed and took her shades off. Her green eyes pierced Nikitio. ”You know the answer you seek. You just have to stop looking.” She used shunpo and vanished. Nikitio sighed. He walked to the barracks and went to his room. He sat down on the bed and looked at his daggers. He focused on them. He focused on Karasu. He closed his eyes. When he opened them he was in Karasu’s world. Karasu looked at him. He grinned. Nikitio shook his head. Karasu sighed. He stood up and pointed a dagger at Nikki. Nikki pointed one back at him. They were of the same looks. Karasu charged. Nikitio rolled to the side. Karasu slashed down and missed.

Nikitio quickly pushed forward, and Karasu slashed to the side. He missed again. Nikitio turned on his heels and took a stab at Karasu. He held the blade out at the incoming tip. Nikitio hit the flat side of the blade. He looked up at Karasu, and the spirit looked down. ”This…” Nikitio whispered as he had a thought. Karasu looked at Nikki. Karasu lightened up and jumped back. Nikki jumped back as well. ”What?” Nikitio sheathed his dagger. ”This is your answer. We are fighting. I understand what Yuki was talking about. Hakuda is this. It is a battle. It is struggle. It is a fight for understanding. I went through it for Shikai. I went through it to graduate. I went through it to get here. Hakuda is struggling.” Karasu sighed.

”Not what I wanted…but I suppose it is good enough. Nonetheless, you are correct. It is a battle. It is a struggle. You act, they react. You move, they move too. Hakuda is not a physical battle. It is a mental battle. Zanjutsu is physical. Your Zanpakuto isn’t likely to break in a fight. It could, but it’s not likely. Hakuda increases your chances to break your weapon, yourself. You must not be one step, or even three steps, ahead of your enemy. You must be ten steps ahead. Your body is your weapon. You must protect your weapon. In Zanjutsu, your blade is your weapon. Your weapon can protect itself. Bah. It is so impersonal. To let you in on a secret, I despise the Shikai form of mine. It is so bulky and close to Zanjutsu. It does allow for easy Hakuda formations though. Oh well. Nonetheless. You have done as I have asked. You not only did as I asked, but you did it in a way without pride. I congratulate you. Never forget this: pride is the ultimate and immortal memory.” After that Nikitio was forced out of the world. He arrived in his bed. He looked around. He felt differently. It was strange. He knew somehow that he had obtained what he needed. He shrugged and slid off the bed. He had an exam to take.

------
653