Training with the Sotaicho

Zafaron walked to the practice field cracking his neck back and forth. He took it upon himself every so often to fight with the other captains to make sure that everybody's skills weren't deteriorating from the seemingly endless tide of paperwork they always had to fill out. Since war seemed inevitable, it was necessary that all of the captains were prepared for battle. It also was a great excuse to escape from his own paperwork every so often. Today he had called on the thirteenth captain to train with him. As she was one of the most experienced captains, he expected that he didn't need to worry that much. But it was always good to double check that she hadn't gotten rusty.

And who knows, could be the opposite had occurred. Perhaps she had gotten more powerful then he expected.

Sparring with the Head-Captain, hmm? That's interesting. Erika nodded as she made her way to the 1st division headquarters - the training grounds there, to be more specific. Kyoufuu, ever present in the back of her mind, had apparently sensed her apprehension. As always though, he wasn't direct about it.

It is likely a test, to make sure I haven't gotten rusty. There was little other reason for a spar like this, other than a simple test of strength, perhaps for bragging rights. But since this was the Head Captain, that couldn't be the case. There was no further reply from Kyoufuu, both because there was no need, and because Erika had arrived at the designated meeting area.

"I've come as you requested, Sotaicho," Erika announced, dipping her head in a respectful greeting as she entered the training grounds. She made her way to the opposite end of the ring before turning to face Zafaron. She spoke no more, merely waiting for instruction, or for him to simply begin the fight.

"Good, good." Zafaron said as Erika approached. "No need to worry too much, just a simple spar to make sure that the captains are prepared in case we have to engage the arrancar soon. This just happens to be your turn." He grinned as he pulled out sword. "The match will end if someone surrenders takes a large enough amount of damage for me to call it finished, or is knocked out. But lets try to avoid the last one, need to be awake fight with the mountains of paperwork that keep appearing."

"Let Time Shatter, Havon." He stated releasing his sword and transforming it into a disk. "Any preferences on which form I start with? Sword, lance, axe, or mace?" He usually asked before any training battle. It was just a habit of his.

While Zafaron spoke, Erika drew her own zanpakuto in turn. Sealed, hers was the larger, though it meant nothing in terms of strength. Erika - and Kyoufuu for that matter - simply preferred the form of a nodachi. She held it low and to the side, casual, while the Head Captain explained the rules. They were pretty standard; essentially, it was the same set of rules Erika imposed on her own division when they chose to spar. A small smile crept onto her face - no doubt the wind would be picking up in her inner world about now, as her heart began to race in anticipation for the coming battle.

"I understand," Erika replied simply, and raised the nodachi's hilt up above her shoulder, with the blade angled down before her towards the floor. Her left hand rested on the flat of the blade, keeping it steady. "Toppuu, Kyoufuu." There was a brief swirling of wind, enough to cause one to blink as a natural reaction, and in that brief instance, Erika's zanpakuto had changed from a nodachi to a much longer, and more exotic guan dao, its crescent shaped blade nearest the floor.

"None. You decide," Erika replied. It mattered not which form Zafaron chose; Erika had experience fighting most forms of weaponry. That didn't mean it would be an easy fight though - every person had their own unique twist to the style. For this reason, she decided she would wait for him to make the choice, before deciding how to approach him.

"Alrighty then, lets go with something different. Spice things up for myself." Zafaron said as he morphed the disk into its axe form. It was his least used form due to not having the same advantages as the others, but it was good to practice with it every so often in case he needed to rely on it at any time.

He spun it around a few times, the large blade at its end swishing through the air. He was going to be a bit handicapped using it against the larger and longer weapon, but it would be fun anyways. If he got under her guard, the axe would be able to do some decent damage quickly.

"Well then, lets get this match started!" Zafaron cried as he dashed towards her, not relying on flash steps yet.

A battle axe... this was going to be an interesting match up. The guan dao was longer, and more agile a weapon, but the battle axe had weight behind it - the size of the axe head was something she would have to watch out for. Erika slid her right foot back, and spun the guan dao back into a stance that had her holding it with one hand behind her, just when Zafaron made his advance. There was still a good distance separating them, meaning Erika had a few seconds to plan her attack.

It came down to the fact that Erika would have to force Zaf on the defensive. With an axe like that, she couldn't afford to do otherwise. So, aggression was the order of the day. As Zafaron entered the range of her guan dao, Erika twisted her body, bringing her right leg forward in time with a two handed, overhead strike with the guan dao. She timed it so that the attack would reach the Head Captain the moment he entered her range, so that the full weight of the guan dao's blade was behind the attack.

Zafaron narrowed his eyes as he saw Erika prepare to strike with the Guan Dao. It seemed too simple a move to use, something a young shinigami would use. And that made him wary, there was probably something to the attack. However, he decided to respond in turn anyways.

As the Guan Dao started to descend towards him, he stepped backwards spinning slightly to bring the axe towards the end of the Guan Dao. He hoped to knock it to the side and allow him to get in close.

So you decided to redirect it, eh Sotaicho? Erika grinned, knowing her next move before Zafaron had completed the parry. Very well then. The Head Captain was right to be wary, as with every attack, Erika considered all possible counters to it, and thought up several counters to those. There was a limit of course - no one was perfect. However, she strove to be as close to it as possible, like any good shinigami.

Turning in the direction Zafaron had parried away the guan dao's blade, Erika aimed to spin completely around using her left foot as a pivot. She kept her senses trained on Zaf, watching him for movement so she could make subtle adjustments to her spin to keep him at the right distance in the brief time it took her to complete her spin. The intent was to bring the guan dao around in a strong horizontal attack, on the side opposite the direction the Head Captain had parried to.

There was a slight pause between parry and attack, of course - that was the time it took Erika to complete her spin. Fortunately, with Zafaron backing off ever so slightly, he had lost his forward momentum, hopefully buying Erika enough time to fully complete the turn, and land her attack.

With a quick step forward Zafaron brought up the axe to the other side of his body. Reinforcing the top part of the axe with one hand and the handle with the other, he moved it into the path of the guan dao, moving it as necessary to remain in its path. Despite the fact that he was the stronger physically of the two captains, the torque and energy from the spin put a lot of power into Erika's weapon. As the two weapons collided he slid a few inches to the side, the axe being pushed close to his chest.

Recovering from the impact he continued to step forward bringing one of his hands off the top of the axe. He brought his arm up trying to snake it around the shaft of the guan dao. If successful he could either go for an attack or attempt an unlikely disarm. Or he could do something unexpected. If he didn't manage it, at least the movement of the guan dao away from his arm would give him time to get closer.

It was a bold move, capturing her weapon. Unfortunately, the power and momentum behind her attack robbed Erika of the ability to pull it back as quickly, so she couldn't avoid the move. However, that didn't mean it was a bad thing. While Zafaron had trapped her weapon, that also limited his own options, since he could now only wield the battle axe with one hand, his right. Still, Erika was left without a weapon to block an attack from it, so even a slower attack could prove to be a problem.

There was still something she could do, however. The axe's size hadn't changed, meaning she could attack faster with her limbs than he could with that larger weapon. Sliding her hand forward on the guan dao's shaft, Erika launched herself at Zafaron. Her outside leg game up in a straight kick aimed for his neck. At the same time she pulled hard on the guan dao, both strengthening the power of her kick as well as its speed, and heightening the possibility that he would loose his grip on her weapon. There was a risk he could get a hit in with that axe, but it would be an awkward one and would also result in him taking the full force of her kick. A worthwhile trade-off in her book, especially since, with the tug of the guan dao's shaft, she might even be able to pull it far enough back that the crescent blade cut into the back of his arm and side.

Seeing Erika begin to move to attack and also feeling the guan dao starting to be pulled back towards the other captain, Zafaron quickly acted. Instead of worrying about attacking with his axe, he instead stepped forward planting his foot in the ground and bringing his upper body downwards. With a powerful forward charging motion he thrust the arm that was holding Erika's weapon forward. As she had been already pulling against the resistance his arm was exerting on the guan dao, the sudden increase in force adding to her own pulling force would hopefully mess up her balance and perhaps even knock her to the ground. Even if she did manage to keep on her feet, moving his head downwards and the extra force on her body would probably mess up her kick. From there he would be able to attack with his axe properly.

It was an interesting move. Erika was almost thrown off balance - the subtle manipulation of the air around her by Kyoufuu is what saved her from falling flat on her back. Instead, Erika twisted her body, kicking off the ground with her other leg to roll over the guan dao, landing nimbly on the opposite side of it. Though it likely did nothing to free the weapon from the sotaicho's grasp, it placed her in a position to use it to block attacks from Zafaron's axe since now she could position it between them. In her mind, a plan began to form. However, she had to time it just right...

Content with having gotten into close quarters and worried that continuing to try to keep control of the guan dao would be a greater liability in the end Zafaron finally unhooked his arm from the weapon pointing his hand towards the other captain. "Hado #33, Sokatsui!" He cried, releasing the kido in close quarters. As he hadn't used the incantation it wouldn't be as powerful, but it would probably mess up any plans she had. As he released the kido he stepped forward trying to hook his front leg around one of Erika's and perhaps bring her down to the ground where he would have an even greater advantage.

As it turned out, Zafaron had the same plan Erika had in mind - he had even used the same Kido. Unfortunately for Erika, he was also quicker on the delay. Erika gritted her teeth, bringing her head to the left to bring it out of the path of the attack. However, she also noticed his leg snaking around hers as the kido was fired off. Perfect. Erika left her legs go partially limp, using his sweep to drop herself onto her back. This would allow her to dodge the worst of the kido, instead taking a partial blow on her right shoulder that burned through her uniform and singed her flesh.

However, as she fell... "Hadou #32: Ōkasen!" A blast of yellow energy erupted from Erika's left palm as her back hit the ground, fired and aimed point blank at Zafaron's chest. From this position, he would likely have to either take the full force of the hit - even though it came with no incantation, a Captain could still pack a powerful punch with such kido - or dodge away, putting distance between the two of them. Regardless, after the kido was fired, Erika rolled away, hoping to get to her feet before another attack came.

Zafaron grimaced as he used a flash step to get away from the kido. His attempt to get Erika to the ground had actually backfired rather than proved beneficial. Even if he had taken the damage, it would have slowed him enough to allow her to get back in a defensive position. He looked back at her, deciding how to respond now. It had been fun using the axe for the first time in a bit, but he knew that in a real battle he wouldn't actually keep himself at such a disadvantage against an opponent with greater reach.

Focusing on his weapon he started to change it to the lance form. "A decent job so far. I guess I can't keep myself with the handicap of the lance. Might mess me up later."

Erika rolled back, rising to a crouch and then to her feet a moment later. Seeing that Zafaron had dodged away, she allowed a slight grin - and a raised eyebrow at his comment. "Only decent?" she asked, though it was largely rhetorical. Since the sotaicho had decided to change forms for his zanpakuto, Erika decided to hold back, taking a very brief moment to check her shoulder. The quick check confirmed that it would not impede her ability to fight. As such, she raised her guan dao slightly, taking a guard stance. She would let him complete his transformation. It would rob her of a potential chance to attack, but it also possibly saved her from a surprise in that same regard. She was taking the cautious - and somewhat courteous - approach, in letting him make the next move.

(BTW, the change between weapons is very fast. So you wouldn't need to wait anyways.)


"Guess you want me to start again. Alrighty then." He slowly walked towards Erika holding the staff in front of him with both hands. Despite advancing, he still maintained a defensive posture ready to react to any movements she made. With each footstep he was ready to charge or retreat at a moments notice. It wasn't a usual tactic for him to use, but he was more interested in Erika's offensive abilities rather than her defensive ones she had already shown previously. His eyes showed that he was ready for anything, goading her to prove him wrong.

Also, because I feel that it warrants a separate post, you are indeed

APPROVED

At this point you can do anything in the main RP. I have no issues with your abilities as a roleplayer. Become a valued member of the Captains!

(Well, Erika was going to wait regardless.)

Erika's face was passive - a perfect poker face, so to speak. She was experienced in combat, and as such knew that alerting an opponent to her moves before she made them could mean the difference between a win and a loss. Erika waited until Zafaron had advanced to a point just outside of her zanpakuto's effective range before she moved. She started by beginning to spin the guan dao slowly on her right side, in a clockwise fashion. As the crescent blade came around, Erika switched her stance and lunged forward, bringing the large, curved blade down and around for an upward slash - a move that caused the blade to gouge the floor in the process as well.

Despite the various moves he could use, Zafaron decided to simply block the attack. He held the lance horizontal moving it downwards to collide with the staff of the guan dao. Applying pressure to prevent its upward motion, he shifted his hands slightly. He expected the other captain would shift from a slash to a thrust and wanted to see if she would prove him wrong.

(Are you going to make that topic with Kuketsu?)

"Jietto Kiryuu." The words were spoken an instant before the two weapons collided - right around when Erika saw that Zafaron was moving to block. As the blade of her guan dao impacted the shaft of his lance, a forceful blast of wind hit the sotaicho, coming from the same direction as the attack itself had. The air hit him like a cannon, aimed upwards from the ground. It was potentially powerful enough to lift him off his feet - more than strong enough to knock him off his balance if he wasn't prepared for such a thing. How he dealt with the sudden effect would determine Erika's next move.

Zafaron's eyes widened as he felt himself nearly being lifted off the ground. He pushed backward a little by the force of the blow but still managed to keep his footing. However he was still slightly off balance and quickly planted the back end of his lance into the ground as a prop to catch himself. With the point still facing Erika, he would still be able to respond to her next attack. "Guess we are pulling the abilities out aren't we?" He said grinning. He wanted to see more of what her Zanpakuto offered.

While Zafaron would be able to deal with another attack of the same type, what Erika had done is forced him to leave an opening. With the back end of his lance planted against the ground, he would likely be unable to block attacks from a certain low angle, one opposite where he had planted the lance. That was her target. Erika pivoted on her left foot, spinning quickly to bring the guan dao around in a low sweeping attack on the same side from which her last attack had come from. Hopefully, with his lance planted to his other side to stabilize him, his legs would be open from this angle.