Time and time again...

Who knew how long it had been. Nikitio had been standing around here for what seemed like days. He stopped counting after two hours though. He was supposed to take the second part of his captain exam here. He had to fight one of the captains. His choices were the Sotaicho, or Tenkai. It wasn't his choice as far as he was concerned, and at this point he didn't care. He just wanted to go. He wanted to leave. He almost did at one point. Karasu whispered to him though. He told him to calm his nerves. He had to remain as solid as a stone. If he didn't he would crumble like granite. He had to be solid. Very well then, that is how it would be. Nikitio sat down. He closed his eyes and crossed his legs. He focused on all that was around him. He expanded his consciousness. He opened his eyes and blocked out visuals. He didn't want to see. He wanted to hear. He wanted to listen. This is what he did until his time would come. He meditated.

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A thick reaitsu fell over Sokyoku hill. This reaitsu was immense, so much so that it would crush any animal in an instant that had no spiritual awareness at all. It was the intention of the origin to test the full capacity of the one meditating, on how good their endurance was. For most this pressure would stop them dead in their tracks and even cause hyperventilation. This test was not required but seemed to fit for the type of position the one meditating wanted. It was more of a personal test the origin of this pressure wanted to give. For this, time would surly be the one to tell how well the person was able to combat this.

That reiatsu was strong. Nikitio certainly felt it. You'd have to be a fool to not feel it. Though if you didn't then that was probably because you had already died. Nikitio knew about reiatsu. As much as it could hurt you, it could help you too. So what did he do? He didn't bow down. No. He may be a Shinigami and serve under the Sotaicho, but he wasn't her bitch. He was not her toy to play with. Fail him if she must, he wouldn't be played with like that. If his resolve was challenge, he wouldn't back down. Hell no, he wouldn't back down. Nikitio had backed down all his life. He never did what his heart said. He always played it by the book. He was done. He doubted the Sotaicho would be using all of her reiatsu, but it was enough to hurt him. His body ached a bit under the pressure, but it wasn't terribly bad. Nikitio's body had taken many beatings before. Pain wasn't something he was unfamiliar with. The Rukongai is a terrible place to grow up, but for as bad as it is, it can be beneficial.

Nikitio was subject to many tortures of the Rukongai. From beatings, to whippings, to near drownings. He had had it all or seen it all. His body was a shelter for Pain. It was a home that welcomed it. He didn't run from Pain. He didn't fear Pain. It was part of life. Should he fear Death? Should he fear Unknown? No. He welcomed them all. He welcomed Life, as much as he hated him. This pain was nothing that he didn't welcome either. He remained still. His body was solid. He didn't fight against the pain. He drove himself into it. He opened his eyes. Those blue irises were void of feelings. He stood up. His body was relaxed. He took a deep breath. He walked forward.

He went to greet the Sotaicho. As he did this he flared his own reiatsu bit by bit until he was standing only five feet from the Captain Commander. His reiatsu was very impressive for a third seat. He was standing close enough that he took the pain head on. He smiled at the Sotaicho. His eyes remained vaguely amused by this pain he felt. Even as his body screamed he relished it in his mind. Pain separated the beasts from the humans. Beasts don't feel pain. Humans feel pain. Humans run away from pain or accept it. Beasts don't care. They don't feel. Nikitio's body welcomed it. It accepted pain. As the younger shinigami stood before the famed Captain Commander, his reiatsu pulsed outwards to battle against the incoming reiatsu. It wasn't anything big like the captain commander's. It was enough to take the edge off of the pain though.

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Kenya smiled lightly as she passed her gaze over Nikitio. The anguish in his eyes invisible to her as she bore deep in to his subconscious. Her mind shifting from The matters at hand and to Titus. She finally settled on the matters at hand and lowered her reaitsu. Being a manageable power to Nikitio. Kenya spoke as she leaned in.

"Well, this is going to be a new setup. we will test your fighting skills and your will."

As she spoke her right hand went out to the side, palm facing the horizon. Her gold ring shined and became a glow of white. It soon formed and morphed off f her finger and a few inches from her palm. After a second the glow not only formed but also conformed to the shape ad texture of the sword. The blade was white as snow, the Tsuka(handle) was as black as night, and for the Tsuba was a Ying Yang sign made of dragons. One dragon was Silver both in color and metal while the other was a copper color made from an unknown allow or metal. It was as if tie stood still. The blade seemed to cease time its self when it was present even in its unsealed form. Kenya grabbed a hold of the blade and twisted it around in her hand. It started to look similar to a fan as it twirled so fast it was hardly visible as a sword. Kenya then release the blade, grabbing it mid air and holding it up high as she spoke.

"Stop the marching of life and pull back the reins of the Pegasus as Mars gears up for battle. Now look dead in to the eyes of the grandfather and cease his pendulum, Bokokugo kikan."

As she spoke her last few words Her Nodachi was thrust in to the ground. A black aurora seeped from the crack and the sword as it slowly moved like smoke. Making its way to the side of Kenya it started to take shape. Slowly the smoke churned and twisted forming slowly the look of a woman. After several seconds the woman was fully registered, her long black cloak covering her body, and her hood covering all but her eye color. Her eye were a deep violet shifting from blue to purple. Finally stopping at a pure and unadulterated Purple. Kenya lightly lifted the sword out of it's place and in the same spectacular smoke that shifted the woman now shifted the Nodachi in to a tall scythe. She planted the end of the scythe in to the ground and stared deep in to nikitio's eyes. After a short time she turned to Boko and began to speak.

"Don't be sad, Lets batte like we once did along side of Titus. Do you remember how proud and happy that made us boko?"

She asked getting no response. After a little longer Boko's eyes changed back to their regular deep ocean blue color. Boko nodded and disappeared in a sudden array of a shunpo like ability. Kenya also disappeared in an array for visual architecture befitting of a Captain commander. When she reappeared on the left side of Nikitio she simply swung in a wide arc to make her attack ore visible.

Nikitio rolled his neck as the female reduced her reiatsu. As she did, he did. He wasn't going to push his reiatsu upon her. It would be rude. He didn't interrupt her speaking either. When she stated what she would be testing he nodded. That is all he did. He nodded. What more was there to do? He could do nothing else. Maybe he could cheer and shout, but for what? Being tested? Big deal. Everyone was to get tested for such a thing. To make a fool of himself would help nobody. It would also probably worsen his odds of getting to be a Captain.

Nikitio felt a wave of power roll over him as her Shikai was released. Good. He didn't expect her to release so quickly, but such a thing was perfectly fine. He wanted to see her Shikai. He wanted to learn. That is what he would do. He would learn how she moved. He would learn how she acted. Such things would be for the best. People can lie. There are things that people can do to bend the truth. Nothing could be done about that. Fighting was different though. You couldn't truly lie during a fight. You fought how you would always fight. You can mask things though. You can feign ignorance. You can move slower. You can hit softer. Most things in a fight, however, remained the same. Nikki took this fight as if Kenya was a lie. He took this fight as if her style was a lie. He would be prepared to shift as needed.

Even as all the smoke took shape he was still. He showed no emotion. When she finished and spoke he assumed it was to the zanpakuto. He looked at the scythe as it was taken out of the ground. He smiled at it. Good. Believe it or not, he was happy. He was very happy. He was no fool. He had spoken to Claudia about this previously. His mind split into two, but his eyes remained stoic. His face was smooth. He was a statue. He remembered her words. He remembered her warning. Get in close. That was all she said. After that she showed him why. He returned to the present. He looked at her as she finished talking to the weapon.

What made it even better was that she made the first move. Good. Nikitio stood there. His blades were hidden. He had an entire body. There was always room to hide weapons. He didn't need a concealment like Kenya did. Not that such a thing wouldn't help. Nikitio didn't want to use a concealment though. He was terribly good at hiding things. If he didn't want you to find something, nine times out of ten you won't. He didn't show his daggers just yet though.

When she vanished he remained calm. He had to listen. She showed herself. Something resonated within Nikitio. It seemed odd, but it was no matter. It was just a feeling. He thought he heard something, but he paid it no mind. He had to react. The second she showed herself, he flicked his right wrist. The dagger slid out nicely and he gripped it. He held it out and it met the scythe. He was pushed back in his defense, but he saved himself quite a bit of damage. When he stopped moving he jumped back and did a few areal flips before stopping. He stood about fifty feet away from Kenya. He held only one of his two daggers. He stood there with a dagger at his side. He looked at Kenya. He didn't move though. He just stood there and looked at her. The elegant dagger reflected some sunlight. He didn't look cocky in the least bit. He just looked relaxed.

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Kenya simply wadded and watched. As Nikitio was sent flying he didn't retaliate. He didn't even move after. Kenya found this to be quite interesting. It was as if he was saying 'I STAND TALL AND WILL NOT GIVE IN WHEN MY WILL IS TESTED.' Kenya started to smirk a little and Nikitio stated to remind Kenya of her fallen love. Kenya stood there and all she could see was the face of Her love and nothing more. Nikitio was about to become the brunt of a force Only one other was able to endure. Kenya's eyes went a shade of gray as she left this realm of reality and drifted in to her past and the days when her love left her. Her Zanpaktou slowly drifted from it's Scythe look and wavered between that and the Nodachi. soon the black smoke like substance drifted about releasing the sword to it's sealed state. A feint figure of her Zanpaktou spirit formed for less than a millisecond and the feature which mattered stood out most. Her eyes, her eyes were a dark and deep purple. As she faded away Kenya disappeared but this time it was more sloppy than before. However it did the job. Her image was gone and she was no where to be found. Then she reappeared in front of Nikitio, letting her sword drag on to the ground as she aimed a palm strike for his chest. After she would jump back only a little ways and stare at her opponent.

Nikitio stood there. His body was still stone. It was a sign of many things. It all depended on how you saw it. Behund his mask though he was thinking. He was analyzing this woman. He was making a note of the tense spots of her muscles. He was noticing the way her muscles moved. He made a note of her eyes too. They gave away things about her. What they said now was that she wasn't totally focused on this fight. Nikitio didn't mind. He was just going to let that slide. He still wouldn't attack though. But it did make things a bit easier for now. Such peace isn't made to last though.

As Nikitio thought so negatively, the scythe reverted back to it's sealed state. Odd that she would do that. Nonetheless, he would remain focused on the task at hand. He readied himself for the worst. Her eyes seems so distant. She was looking, but she wasn't seeing. At least not things that are here. He didn't lower his guard for a moment though. He wouldn't do it. How could he? He was raised to never let his guard down. Even in the academy they told him to never let his guard down. He wouldn't do it. He was suddenly grateful he didn't.

The Captain Commander vanished. She was sloppy about it, but she was still very fast. Nikitio was glad she was a bit sloppier with this flash step. He was able to see her blurred body as she came to a stop. His eyes quickly located the threat. It was strange though. The blade wasn't coming up. His eyes shifted quickly to the palm coming at him. He swore inwardly as his body threw itself into action, while his mind lagged behind. The palm touched him. Nikitio went with the blow though, reducing some of the damage, but it still stung. He looked at the woman before him. He used his own shunpo to appear thirty feet away from her. His mind worked quickly to build paths for this fight. Each one ended in a victory for Kenya. Only a handful ended with him alive. Fewer still ended with him as a Captain. He would have to play his cards right. So far her shunpo seemed fairly awkward. Especially on that last one. What was going on with her?

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Kenya's eyes faltered fro the gray look as she started to come back to reality. She fell to he knees and suddenly nearly passed out. Her eyes returned to their normal purple like eyes. She then got up, brushing herself off and sealing her sword in to a ring again. She bowed and spoke in a weak voice.

"Congratulations Nikitio-san. You have made captain."

After she spoke she simply disappeared and headed for a place to rest her body as it seemed her thoughts were trying to tell her something.

{{EXIT}}

Nikitio looked at Kenya. His superior stood and she came to. Her eyes returned to the situation at hand. Nikitio could tell she was done. Her muscles were relaxed. Her pose was not threatening. No. It could be a trick. Nikitio remained on guard. He looked at her and waited. Her lips moved. Words came out of her mouth, and Nikitio smiled as she vanished. He made captain, and he didn't even need Bankai. He knew Karasu was pleased even if he didn't speak. Nikitio turned and vanished. He was going to tell his old teachers the good news and then move into his new room.

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