A Wing And A Prayer

It was one of Kuketsu's free days to relax. All of the paperwork had been filed and no criminal activity present. Since he had nothing else to do, Kuketsu decided that he should do some training. However, he had grown weary of his usual training routine. He let out a sigh. I do the same training exercises every time I train. Maybe I could get a sparring partner. Kuketsu stood and thought for a moment. I know. I'll go ask Captain Erika to train with me. She is more experienced than me, so maybe she could give me some pointers. With having come to a decision, Kuketsu strolled over to the 13th Division barracks.

He confronted Erika in her office and gave her his usual, gentle smile. "Greetings Captain Erika. Since I have a day off, I was wondering if we could have a sparring match, if you aren't too busy. I could use some good practice. So what do you say?" He looked at her, still smiling, awaiting for her answer.

Erika's day was relatively lax, as it turned out. For 13th division, unless there was an attack on Soul Society, an influx of raw recruits, or an event in the Human World, there generally wasn't a whole lot to do, for the Captain especially. All her duties - paperwork, patrol, and otherwise - had already completed, and as such Erika was left with a good deal of free time. At the moment, she was sitting in her office, a book from her extensive collection open on her desk. However, she folded it shut upon sensing the other Captain's arrival, and looked up from her desk just as Kuketsu stepped into her office, suspended over the side of the lake.

"Ah, Kuketsu, good to see you," Erika replied, returning his smile. She listened to his request and her smile only grew wider. It was a little known fact (one known only by her officers, and a few Captains) that Erika quite enjoyed a good spar. "That sounds like an excellent idea. It has been far too long since the last time I fought against an equal." Standing from her desk, she turned and lifted her zanpakuto from its rack on the wall behind her desk. She kept it there at all times, unless she was training her division members, sparring with someone, or on Alert. "Do you have a location in mind? If not, might I suggest the lake, and surrounding landscape?"

Kuketsu walked out of Erika's office and surveyed the lake and its surroundings. "This a fine area for our training." Kuketsu smiled as he continued to scan the fighting ground. He liked the lake. It gave the area a nice serene feel. What a wonderful training area. I hope our battle doesn't damage it in any way. With that, Kuketsu unsheathed his zanpakuto and leaped off the edge of Erika's office and landed on the far edge of the lake. He casually held his zanpakuto with his right hand, and called out to Erika at the top of his lungs. "I'm ready whenever you are, Captain Erika." He waited for her to come down so they can start their training session.

Erika nodded, and moved around her desk to the entrance of her office, about when Kuketsu shoved off, landing on the opposite side of the lake. It wasn't a large lake, as such it was quite easy for a Captain to leap across it at its widest point. Erika soon followed Kuketsu, leaping across in a slow, single flip to land about twenty feet apart from him on the far shots. "Please, just call me Erika," she replied, grinning. Her nodachi was unsheathed, and in her right hand at her side. "Then we shall begin. However, I might suggest we restrict the use of kido, so that we do not cause any collateral damage. At any rate, you may lead, Kuketsu." Erika performed a bit of a salute with her nidachi, then slid her left foot back and raised her nodachi up to her right shoulder, angling the tip towards her opponent.

Kuketsu, smiled at Erika and nodded. "Very well. I will try not to use any kido spells." He chuckled a little. "However, that is going to be a little troublesome for me since I fight using many different kido spells, but don't worry, I will restrain myself from using them. In fact, this will help me work on my swordsmanship. And I don't want to ruin such a nice area anyway." Kuketsu raised his zanpakuto and held it across his body. "Oh and one last piece of information, Erika. I get quiet and serious when the fight becomes tense for me. You'll know when my smile vanishes and I give you a serious glare. Anyways, I guess I'll start this battle."

Kuketsu ran towards Erika with great speed and swung his zanpakuto diagonally downward, aiming for Erika's left shoulder. He was still smiling. This is going to the hardest and most enjoyable training session I ever had.

"High-level Hado is all I wish you to restrict, as it causes more damage than most. I will, of course, follow this as well." Erika returned his smile, and narrowed her eyes as she gauged his every movement. She listened to him, but only really paid attention to his announcement of starting the battle. If things got serious, that was fine - perhaps it would allow for them to get some actual exercise, rather than just a light spar with sealed swords.

Watching his approach, Erika timed her movements so that her counter would be hard to dodge. As soon as he was within range, Erika pivoted on her leading foot, the left, turning counter clockwise to bring the nodachi around and redirect his blade just enough to slip harmlessly by her side. At the same time, her right elbow shot out, aiming to strike him around the collarbone and neck area.

"I see. So only the high-level hado spells should be restricted from use. Very well. But still, I will try to avoid using any kido spell. I need to work on my swordsmanship anyways." Kuketsu turned his head to the left and saw Erika's elbow coming at him. He quickly ducked to avoid the blow. With a quick spin towards the left, Kuketsu brought his zanpakuto around and swung it to slash the middle of Erika's back. Simultaneously during the spin, Kuketsu extended his left leg out in order to sweep Erika's legs and make her fall backwards.

Dealing with the slash was easy enough, considering Erika had kept her nodachi free for just this situation. She flipped the weapon quickly into a reverse grip, and raised it vertically along her back, catching Kuketsu's attack on the blade. The sweep, however, she could not prevent - but she could turn it back on him. Erika twisted her body clockwise just as her feet were swept out from under her. With no support, she began to fall, bu thanks to her turn she did so sideways, spinning on her side away from him. The reason for this was twofold - first, when she touched he ground, she could roll away, and second... she was able to whip up her nodachi for a sudden upward slash.

The very instant Erika touched the ground with her hand, she shoved herself into a roll away from Kuketsu, which she would end by rising into a low crouch in order to be prepared for an immediate assault.

As Erika swung her nodachi, Kuketsu quickly turned clockwise and brought his zanpakuto back and swung it counterclockwise, pushing Erika's zanpakuto away from him. He maintained his crouching position as he watched Erika roll. While she was rolling, Kuketsu lunged forward, still staying close to the ground. Once she had finished rolling, he swung his zanpakuto vertically downward at the crouching Erika, aiming for her left shoulder. After that strike, Kuketsu jumped backward and stood while holding his zanpakuto diagonally upward across his body, waiting to take defensive actions against Erika's next attack.

Unfortunately for Kuketsu, Erika was in the exact perfect position to block his attack. With one knee braced on the ground, and the nodachi braced with one hand on the hilt and the other further down the lat of the blade, she stopped it dead. She felt the twang from the impact vibrate through her core, focused downward through her entire body, whereas Kuketsu would feel the entire force of his blocked attack on his hands, which would likely be painful.

Rather than attack immediately after Kuketsu's retreat, Erika stood calmly, and regarded him with an almost passive stance. "That was good for a warm up," Erika said, smiling. "However, I don't think it is much of a workout - something I think you can agree on. What say you to stepping this up a notch?" While speaking, Erika raised her nodachi up above her right shoulder, with the tip angled down and the edge raised. Her left hand, this time, rested on the flat of the blade, next to the hilt.