Storm's a'brewin'

Ryouta sat along the wall of his division's quarters, watching the members practice with a disinterested eye. He just couldn't find it within himself to feel excited about the admitted lack of skill present in his division. Though some of the fault rested squarely upon the captain's shoulders -- truly, he had not been strict at all with their training, and even now was rather lax -- he had honestly believed they would've taken the initiative and set up their own regime. Different people required different methods of improvement, and so grouping everybody together and forcing them to partake of the same method was counter-intuitive... or so Ryouta thought before this moment.

Not *all* hope was lost, though -- fortunately, Ryouta could spot a few out of the flock that had indeed wisely used the time he had given them and were wearing their well-earned superiority like a golden mantle. It was only for them that Ryouta had managed to retain his composure and watch this sorry show for as long as he had... but even then, his patience had limits.

Ryouta stood, making a beckoning motion with his hand to catch the attention of a few of the members currently looking his way. Steadily, the other members followed suit, their eyes turning to their captain before congregating around him.

"You're all pretty damn horrible." There was no drudging about on the matter; Ryouta had neither the desire nor compassion to temper his words, and it was all spoken with neither care nor animosity. In fact, his comment had initially been taken with a note of confusion, the tone fitted more for one who had just commented on an interesting piece of furniture or article of clothing as opposed to one meant to degrade everybody present. The confusion didn't last long, however, and a great wave of unrest made its way throughout the crowd. While some merely looked to the ground in shame and acceptance, others returned a glare that spoke of nothing but defiance. It was these dissenters he addressed next.

"What, do you think I'm wrong?" he all but shouted, returning his own glare to the crowd. "Do you really think the level you are currently at is anywhere near a level to be proud of?" He moved his hand to rest along the grip of his Zanpakutou, sorely tempted to show those before him just how little they understood of combat. Slowly, relunctantly, he released his hold, turning instead his finger to point at one of the more talented among them. "You there. Boy. Go fetch Erika of the thirteenth division. Tell her to bring her zanpakutou."

Slicing them apart was the wrong way to go, Ryouta figured. A battle between captains was what would truly demonstrate just how much further they had to go. It'd also work to release the tension he'd been building up, cooped up inside his division hall without an actual challenge of his own.

When the 7th division's messenger finally found Erika, she was doing the exact same thing as Hideaki. She was training participating in a training session with a group of recruits to 13th division, as well as a pair of seated officers. Most of 13th division was fairly experienced, and with all the training Erika had done in the past, the higher ranked members were able to take care of the training of recruits without her input - though Erika often took over, there was no need for her to do so. This was not unlike most divisions, and likely fairly similar to Hideaki's as well, though she didn't know enough to comment.

What Erika did know, was that she had a much different approach to training than the 7th's Captain apparently did - that much she could tell just from the look of the messenger. He was composed, but clearly troubled. Based on his state of exhaustion, however slight it might have been, Erika could assume that he had just come from training. When Erika trained her troops, she pushed them to their physical limits. She did not, however, push on them mentally. Reprimands and corrective action were necessary, but such actions could be taken without the need for harsh words and tones, which was something many Captains did not seem to realize, or simply didn't care to realize.

Erika figured it had to do with her experience as a mother. Dealing with small children was surprisingly similar to dealing with raw recruits.

With a light sigh, Erika excused herself from the session, delegating command to the most senior of the two officers. She ten looked to he 7th division's messenger, and nodded. It was a short message - she was to head to 7th division's training grounds with her zanpakuto. No further description was necessary. Hideaki obviously had a spar in mind. Despite her outward appearance and mannerisms, Erika quite enjoyed such things. So, she dismissed the messenger, and made a quick trip to her office to retrieve her zanpakuto, which hung on he wall behind her desk.

The trip to 7th division came next, and it didn't take long. Erika did not use shunpo, but even then for a Captain traveling across the rooftops, such speed was easily achieved. Even though she sent the messenger away before leaving herself, Erika still arrived ahead of him. It hadn't exactly been a fair race.

"Captain Hideaki Ryouta..." Erika started, having landed by the entrance to the training grounds, so she could walk in without disturbing the gathering too much. "I can't remember the last time we've met under these circumstances. Is it wrong to assume you're looking for a sparring partner?"

By the time Erika had arrived to the little gathering he was somehow meant to instruct, his bad mood had been largely abated. It had, indeed, been quite a while since he had sparred with his fellow captain, and the thought of doing so once again was enough to brighten his spirits. He had his Zanpakutou unsheathed and out, intent on going through a few simple movements to make sure he was loose enough to get involved in what he was hoping would be an intense match. He had decided he would enjoy this.

The captain in question actually arrived somewhat earlier than Ryouta had anticipated, having believed her to be wrapped in similar matters with her own division. He originally gave a slight frown -- surely the person he sent hadn't made it appear *that* desperate she arrive -- but he was instantly relieved upon hearing her entrance speech. It seemed he wasn't the only one looking forward to a challenging match.

He raised his right hand, bringing it down in front of him before sweeping it to the side, indicating to the rest of his division to clear out of the immediate area (a feat they handled with a great deal of proficiency). He made his way towards the middle of his division's clearing, giving the captain a nod while drumming his fingers along the grip of his zanpakutou in anticipation. "Glad you could make it, Erika. Hope I didn't interrupt anything -- the decision to call you was a bit hasty."

Glancing around the training grounds, Erika was able to confirm her suspicions about what had been going on. A training session, obviously, and by the general mood amongst the lower ranked members, she could guess at how Hideaki had been training them. Erika didn't plan on commenting on it though - every Captain had their own preferred method of training their subordinates, and even if she disagreed with it, it wasn't her place to comment.

"You didn't interrupt anything. I was just participating in a combat training session with some of the newer Division members. My officers can handle that though," Erika replied, moving to take her place at the opposite end of the training area. Her zanpakuto, which took the form of a nodachi in its sealed state, was not strapped across her back as it usually would be. Instead, she had it in her left hand, held at the end of the sheath just above the hilt.

"Shall we set any rules before we begin?" Erika asked. At the same time, she took hold of her sword's hilt and drew it out. At the same time, she let go of the sheath with he left hand. Like some zanpakuto, the sheath for hers faded away when it was drawn, to facilitate the drawing of such a long blade. Until she had an answer to her previous question, she held it low and to the right, passively.

Ryouta gave a slight nod to the captain's question, sweeping his arm to indicate the subordinates along the side lines. "The main reason I requested you here was for the benefit of these kiddies. We should try to keep it within the immediate area, where they can see us." He gave a brief nod, agreeing with his sentiments, before a small smile alighted his face, "However... if it starts to get intense, then it doesn't really matter. They'll follow us if they want, and run away if they don't."

He effortlessly slid his own wakizashi-styled zanpakutou from the sheathe secured to his left side, holding it along his right with a manner of nonchalance. "The rest is pretty much the standard. The winner is the person who can incapacitate the other and manage to get them medical treatment when all is said and done." He paused for a moment, unsure of whether that was actually a standard rule in place by the other squads before continuing, intent on clarifying himself. "Even if I knock you unconscious, if I don't have enough in me to carry you to the fourth division, then it's a draw, at best. If you're good and dead, then you won't be getting medical treatment, anyway, and it'll be my loss. It'd probably be my death, too, once the Sotaicho caught wind of it."

Ryouta considered the situation with more effort, speculating as to whether he had missed anything of importance or whether they could finally start the match. "Anything you want to add or disagree with?" he questioned the other captain before shifting into one of his less common stances, his body relaxed in a normal standing position with his right side facing Erika.

Erika couldn't help but raise her eyebrows. She had been expecting a good, intense fight, but she hadn't planned on such high stakes. It wasn't that she was worried about it at all, it was just quite surprising. Perhaps Hideaki was in a bad mood? Either way, it wasn't all that different from usual sparring rules. It just held special significance since Captains didn't usually fight with these rules. Of course, with the 4th division's Captain being so skilled, it was unlikely they would need to worry about either dying as a result of this fight.

"I don't have anything to add," Erika replied. She then raised the nodachi's tip before her, placing her left hand lower on the hilt. Usually, she would use another stance, with the weapon aimed down from her shoulder, but Hideaki was a more dangerous opponent than most. Since he had a shorter weapon, he favored closer range combat and thus she would have to keep her own blade between his and her as much as possible. "I am ready as you are. I would like to note, though, that it would be best if your division kept their distance somewhat. It wouldn't do well to cause collateral damage when the intent is a demonstration.

Ryouta favored the woman with a nod, glancing to his subordinates to make sure they heeded the sound advice before returning his gaze to his new opponent. She was sporting a much larger weapon than his own -- larger, in fact, than most people he knew -- which would make it easy to exploit overextensions but far more difficult when she was stabilized, as she was now.

With a direct physical confrontation too risky to pursue, Ryouta gave a brief smile as he raised his left hand to chest level, the palm facing towards his foe. If he wasn't able to attack her directly, he'd force her to attack him, instead. To this end, he prepared a bluff -- Raikoho's incantation. He didn't plan on actually committing to the kido in question -- in the event Erika allowed him to finish, he would look quite foolish, indeed, as nothing would be produced -- but instead planned to draw her into attacking *him* directly in his supposed vulnerable state.

He pushed his plan into motion, speaking the beginnings of the incantation in a loud, clear voice, intent on leaving little doubt to those nearby just what he was speaking. "Sprinkled on the bones of the beast! Sharp tower..."