The Spy versus the Scientist

Sorva quickly flew over the sands of Hueco Mundo, his eyes scouring the ground for any trace of life. It seemed that someone had managed to infiltrate Hueco Mundo when the Espada's attention had been directed elsewhere. Already in Ressurection form in case of a sneak attack, Sorva had been sent out to scout for any disturbances or signs of where the intruder currently was. He wasn't exactly happy about it though. While he didn't mind obeying orders, he was more than a little worried if he actually came in contact with someone. Hopefully his new powers would be enough to at least keep himself alive.

Quietly he continued his flight, never suspecting that the enemy was closer then he realized.

Already disguised, Kurokotsu smiled slightly. His cloak had changed his appearance to fit that of a Hollow, a small rabbit with a cracked mask ready to fall off. His reishi would only be revealed as that of a Shinigami if someone were to inspect closely, which is how he had avoided detection thus far. However, all of that was about to change as Kurokotsu pressed the control panel and felt his Zanpakuto drop into his hands. As Sorva flew overhead, Kurokotsu quickly flung the dagger-like Zanpakuto at his right wing, aiming for a quick incapacitation.

Hearing the slight whoosh of air as the zanpakuto flew through the air Sorva turned confused before his eyes nearly bulged out of his head. He quickly flew upward to see if the dagger would stop flying at him but it still had too much energy behind it. With a quick movement Sorva fired a volley of feathers at the sword finally stopping its momentum. Obviously the enemy was closer than he expected. However he still couldn't see a shinigami as only a few small hollows were around.

"Perhaps this shinigami can possess hollows or is good at shapeshifting." Sorva muttered to himself. "In that case..." he fired another volley of feathers at each of the nearby creatures. If he was wrong and the shinigami had complete illusions then there wasn't much he could do about that. Sure he would have killed a couple small hollows but no one would care. And if he was right, then he could actually face the adversary. Or just know who to flee from if necessary.

Reacting the second he saw the feathers flying at him, Kurokotsu turned off the cloak and used Shunpo to appear behind his Zanpakuto. With that manuever, he had also evaded the feathers, part of his plan. Then, he spun around quickly, his leg propelling the Zanpakuto into Sorva's direction. "Hado number thirty-three, Sokatsui!" He called out, the kido shooting out of his hand. As his spinning continued, the flames quickly formed an orb around him, which he then forced outward.

Sorva's eyes widened as the shinigami suddenly appeared a little below him but quickly tried to dodge as the zanpakuto once again went flying towards him. Dodging to the side the zanpakuto stuck painfully into his shoulder. If he hadn't dodged quick enough it would have punctured an organ.

As he saw the shinigami start to spin around he began to move backwards expecting another attack. However, he was caught by surprise as the shinigami manipulated one of his kidos, creating an orb of fire. His increased distance meant he only got pushed backward a little with some singed skin.

Grumbling in pain he yanked the zanpakuto out of his shoulder, blood oozing out of the wound. He looked at the zanpakuto for a moment before he realized that he was holding the shinigami's main weapon. "I think this is why you are supposed to keep your sword in your hand" he said smiling as he fired several balas at the shinigami from his other hand.

"Oh, trust me, I can fight well enough without my Zanpakuto," Kurokotsu said with a chuckle as he held out his hands in front of him. "Bakudo number thirty-nine, Enkosen," he called out, a disc of reishi formed, blocking the Bala, only shattering once the last one was gone. "Bakudo number nine, Horin..." He said with a smirk, using Shunpo once more and appearing behind Sorva. As he spun around, aiming to kick the airborne Arrancar straight into the ground, Kurokotsu flicked the wrist that Horin was tied to. If his plan worked, he'd kick Sorva a ways down, then the rope-like Kido would wrap around the other man and immobilize him.

As the shinigami appeared behind him Sorva felt the kick make impact with his back. He had expected an attack like that, but hadn't been fast enough to avoid it. As he spiraled to the ground he quickly used his wings to pull out of his dive and fly quickly a few feet above the ground, avoiding the kido barely.

Returning to a stop he looked up at his opponent. Obviously this Shinigami was a fan of using flash steps. [i] I guess it makes sense. If you have a move that allows you to move super fast I guess there is no real reason not to use it all the time. [i] He quickly threw the zanpakuto he was holding far in the opposite direction of the shinigami, firing a few feathers at it to increase the distance it would fly. He didn't trust Kurokotsu not to have some bizarre way to release it from afar. He had already shown enough tricks as it was.

Kurokotsu chuckled at Sorva's tactic, flicking his wrist toward the far-off Zanpakuto. It'd take a bit, but the Horin would wrap around his weapon and drag it back. Holding out his other hand, Kurokotsu began chanting. "Sprinkled on the bones of the beast. Sharp tower, red crystal, steel ring. Move and become the wind, stop and become the calm. The sound of warring spears fills the empty castle. Hado number sixty-three, Raikoho!" He called out, aiming the giant burst of reishi at his airborne foe.

Focusing his energy, Sorva fired launched a huge volley of feathers at the kido intercepting it and detonating it in midair. The few feathers that survived the explosion continued to make their way to towards the captain. However, he doubted they would do much. More likely the captain would just dodge them or destroy them as well.

Instead he started to focus his energy infront of him creating a small sphere of feathers. He doubted he would have time to make it too large, but at the very least he could make it medium sized before he was forced to use it. If he combined this with his other feathers, he might be able to get a good hit on his foe.

As the Horin wrapped around his Zanpakuto, Kurokotsu held his hand out toward Sorva. He began chanting, his unoccupied hand drawing symbols in the air. "Bakudo number nine, Geki!" He called out, a crimson light beginning to form around the other man. While he hoped Sorva's attention was on that, Kurokotsu directed the Horin and Zanpakuto to fly toward the airborne man, striking him in the back.

As the crimson light began to form around him Sorva released the feather ball and another smaller batch of feathers. While doing so he was stopped from releasing more due to his body becoming completely paralyzed. Luckily for him, he didn't need to use his body to control the ball or the feathers.

He quickly had them fly up to the captain, intending to keep them trailing him until they managed to do some damage. He then started to try to break out of the kido. When he was nearly out of it, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his back as the zanpakuto he hadn't noticed imbedded itself in his back. "This doesn't seem to be going well," he muttered to himself. Probably be best to just get the hell out of here when I get a chance. I can't take this captain on my own.

Kurokotsu held his hand out. "Bakudo number thirty-seven, Tsuriboshi," he called out, hoping to hold off the feathers for a bit. Using Shunpo, he appeared behind Sorva and gripped onto the handle of his Zanpakuto. Bracing himself for the feathers, he began chanting. "Unfurl your wings, heavenly being. Twist their ambitions, demonic host. Hekikaisou!" He called out, hoping to eviscerate the bird-man.

Sorva screamed as the sword suddenly elongated inside of him tearing through his insides. In more disbelief and insanity brought on by the pain he released every single feather in his wings at once at the shinigami. It was an irrational move but the force along with his attempt at Sonido managed to push him forward pulling the sword out of him. He didn't even care if he managed to injure the shinigami, every single instinct in his head was focused on fleeing. He had already taken that sword twice in his body, the second time doing harsh damage. He didn't want to suffer it a third time.

He quickly began to fly back to Las Noches. His job had been to find the intruder, but there was no way even as an arrancar that he would be able to defeat the Captain. Mistress Lasconni would understand that he was good at gathering information, not being turned into a pincushion. As he used repeated Sonidos and his flying abilities to try to stay away from the captain he concentrated a large amount of his his energy into his wings, expecting to need one of his final moves at any second.

It was a little shorter than normal, but not really that surprising considering the difference in experience and power. Which is why I will still give it the 10 points I usually give to longer fights.

Cheerio.