Rolled 3, 5, 4 = 12 (3d10)

>>3376510

Rolled 10, 7, 8 = 25 (3d10)

>>3376510

Rolled 5, 8, 1 = 14 (3d10)

>>3376510

File: Very nice.jpg (45 KB, 462x356)

45 KB JPG

>>3376526
Thank you

>>3376526
well done my friend of african descend, very fine work indeed

>>3376722
Shit, that didn't work right.

Give me a few minutes to straighten this out.

>>3376510
With a deep breath, you find yourself somewhere entirely different.

You're in a dojo, and a fancy traditional one at that. Dark wood, tatami floors, and light streaming in through rice paper frames. The scent of incense fills your nose from the alcove at one end of the room, over which hangs a scroll with the characters for... is it 'balance' or 'equilibrium'?

Probably the latter.

On each side are racks, on which are resting a series of training weapons. Shinai, bokken, and what you imagine are iaitō.

“So, do you like it?”

The voice which greets you belongs to a young woman in a shihakusho, with messy orange hair that's cut short in front and on top and left long in the back. Honestly, it looks a little like something halfway between Ichigo and Orihime.

This... is in your head?

“I do,” you admit. “It's surprisingly classy. So you'd be Tōōkenju, right?”

“That's right,” she nods.

>Train me. I want to know how to fight better with you.
>I need to learn Bankai.
>So... what can we do now that we're in jinzen?
>You look awful familiar.
>Other?

>>3376856
>>So... what can we do now that we're in jinzen?
>>You look awful familiar.

>>3376856
>You look awful familiar.

>>3376856
>So... what can we do now that we're in jinzen?
>You look awful familiar.

>>3376856
>>So... what can we do now that we're in jinzen?
>>You look awful familiar.

>>3376856
>>Train me. I want to know how to fight better with you.

>>3376856
>>So... what can we do now that we're in jinzen?

>>3376856
>>>So... what can we do now that we're in jinzen?
>>>You look awful familiar.
when'd she get shin powers?

>>3377217
When riku (us) stabed her through her pressure points with an asauchi
Mad spirit scientist riku at its finest
We almost killed her

>>3376856
>>So... what can we do now that we're in jinzen?
>>You look awful familiar.

Orihime and Ichigo mixed just has to be at the very least a F cup.

>>3376856
“You look really familiar somehow,” you frown at Tōōkenju. “Why is that?”

“I look like Kurosaki Ichigo with tits, right?” your zanpakuto smirks at you. “Why would you expect me to not be female?”

“It's not that,” you point out. “It's more that you look so much like Ichigo.”

Tōōkenju snorts with laughter. “Well, of course I don't really know. Maybe he's part of the reason you have powers. Maybe you're just really into him and your subconscious made things so they ended up this way.”

“Unlikely,” you roll your eyes.

Your zanpakuto shrugs. “Hey, this place is all you. So you gotta ask yourself why I look like Ichigo.”

“Anyway, I'm new to this whole thing,” you admit. “So what can we actually do in jinzen?”

“There's actually a lot of advantages,” she replies. “To a degree I can control your perception of the passage of time if I need to, so that's a real advantage. You're also more in touch with my abilities, so you can practice things that you ordinarily wouldn't have the skill to manage in combat.”

“It's a good thing too, you need a ton of practice.”

>Then let's start sparring. No sense wasting time.
>Then teach me how to use you. Speed the process up.
>What do you mean by that?
>Other?

>>3379686
>>Then let's start sparring. No sense wasting time.

>>3379686
>Then let's start sparring. No sense wasting time.

>>3379686
>Then let's start sparring. No sense wasting time.

>>3379686
>>Then let's start sparring. No sense wasting time.

>3d10, best of three

Rolled 7, 7, 6 = 20 (3d10)

>>3380040

Rolled 4, 8, 6 = 18 (3d10)

>>3380040

Rolled 10, 3, 1 = 14 (3d10)

>>3380040

>>3380040
“Well then let's get to it,” you suggest, settling into a fighting stance leading with your left hand. “If I need to improve as badly as you seem to think there's no sense waiting around, right?”

After a moment, Tōōkenju smirks at does the same. “Yeah, guess you're right.”

The initial exchange is as brutal as it is direct... it's been a long time since you've fought like this, against someone not only equal to you in skill but whose technique is so similar to your own. It's almost like you're fighting against... well, you suppose you are fighting against yourself, aren't you?

She deftly blocks your attacks with her forearms and elbows, countering with powerful punches of her own. But after several punishing blows that don't slip past your guard, you find both your fists caught in her hands. With a confident smirk she phases her hand through your forearms and connects her fist with your cheek in a powerful right hook.

“You did that so quickly,” you grunt, wiping a bit of blood away from the corner of your mouth. “I'm impressed.”

“You can do it just as quick,” Tōōkenju shrugs. “Otherwise I wouldn't be able to do it, you know?”

In response you through a left jab that passes through her arms and connects with her nose. Pretty hard for a 'boop', but in fistfighting terms that's about what it amounts to.

But in response to that blow, after she wipes the blood away from her nose, she simply does the same to you. Her fist and arm just slip through your guard with no effort.

“This just isn't really amounting to anything,” you grumble. “Is it?”

“Not really, no,” Tōōkenju agrees. “But you caught on pretty quick, you shifted much faster than you used to.”

You can't help but sigh dramatically. “So are we gonna fight without that, or not?”

“I don't see a point,” she admits. “You're already a great fistfighter. Passionate, and you've been doing it for most of your life. You couldn't beat Riku probably, but she's a freak so that's not really much of a knock against you.”
>1/2

>>3382241
“But will it be enough against Aizen?” you press. “He's been training longer than Riku has.”

“Probably not,” Tōōkenju admits.

“Then how do I fight someone like that?”

Your zanpakuto makes a grandiose flourish. “That's why you have me!”

>You mean your Bankai?
>You mean your shifting ability?
>What other things can we affect?
>Other?

>>3382256
>You mean your shifting ability?

>>3382241
>>What other things can we affect?

>>3382256
>>What other things can we affect?

>>3382241
>>>What other things can we affect?

>>3382256
>What other things can we affect?

>>3382256
>>You mean your Bankai?

>>3382256
>>What other things can we affect?

>>3382256
>>What other things can we affect?
Well thank god we're not being a basic bitch like Ichigo and going straight for biggatons.

>>3383167
canon Ichigo I mean. We've been a pretty good influence on SSQ Ichigo.

>>3382256
“So... what else can we do?” you ask. “I mean I get how this phasing thing works, but what else could actually be used in a fight?”

“Well,” your zanpakuto muses. “Why don't we come over here and explore that question together?”

You follow Tōōkenju to a wooden man, a dummy with multiple wooden 'arms' that simulate various guard positions attached to a thick wooden post to simulate an upright human body.

“Hit it,” she tells you.

After a few seconds of inspecting the target, already suspecting a trick of some kind, you throw a punch. Your knuckles collide painfully with a solid barrier hovering in front of the dummy, which flickers green as you recoil from it.

“Fuck!” you hiss, waving your fingers.

“A lot of spiritual beings use defenses like this, including Captains, quincies, arrancars, and so forth,” Tōōkenju informs you, circling around the wooden man. “They use their spiritual pressure as a barrier. Arrancars like Starrk, Halibel, and Apacci call it 'hierro'. Quincies like Ishida and the Kurosakis call it 'Blut Vene'. Shinigami have no name for it, because so few people use it 'naturally'. But they can approximate it using kidō.”

“It's one of the most serious problems a fistfighter like you will have to deal with. Think of it like punching someone in plate armor.”

“So I strike for the weak spots,” you suggest.

“Which is where in this case, precisely?” Tōōkenju asks with a smirk.

“Well,” you frown, biting your lip. “I... have no idea. But I could use hakuda.”

“You already did,” she points out, “you do that instinctively. But hakuda has its limits, namely that while it can focus reiatsu it can't move reiatsu out of a body region entirely. So as opposed to punching with 'all of your power', the limit is around half. Maybe two-thirds for someone like miss Shihōin or Riku, but usually that's enough.”

“For you though, half your power will never reach Aizen.”

“So how...”

Your question is interrupted as Tōōkenju puts her hand effortlessly through the dummy, using a flat fist to strike it.

“By using all your power. Normal people can't exceed the limitations of hakuda like this, but you're not 'normal' people.”
>3d10, best of three

File: d4acc01.jpg (115 KB, 900x655)

115 KB JPG

>>3383569
>pic was intended

Rolled 3, 8, 8 = 19 (3d10)

>>3383569

Rolled 3, 2, 1 = 6 (3d10)

>>3383569

Rolled 2, 7, 1 = 10 (3d10)

>>3383571

You get one more as >>3383694 is linked to the wrong post.

Rolled 8, 4, 3 = 15 (3d10)

>>3383569

>>3383571
Well, you have to figure that just following Tōōkenju's instructions worked out great the first time... so it only makes sense that following her example this time would probably lead to the same results. That logic proves flawed, however, as you flatten your fist and throw a punch at the wooden dummy only to hear your knuckles crack loudly against a kidō barrier.

“Why!” you demand loudly, cradling your hand.

“Again!” your zanpakuto orders.

With a shout you throw a second punch, to the same effect. This time a little bit of your blood splatters against the floor by the time the barrier dissipates.

“Why can't I do it!?” you protest.

“You can do it!” Tōōkenju insists loudly. “Quit trying to do it and do it!”

You throw a third punch, again only succeeding in hurting your hand even further.

“Why would you think that after seeing how the first try went?” you demand, now cradling your hand again.

“Because that's what our power does!” she shouts. “You should be in complete control of your existence when you fight, none of this stuff should be beyond your ability.”

“All you need is to know that you can do it!”

“You watched me fail the first time!” you protest again.

“Does that mean you plan to fail every time from now on?” Tōōkenju counters. “When you screwed up the first time in a karate lesson did you stop?”

“No,” you admit.

“When Ichigo beat you the first time what did you do?” she presses.

“I practiced more,” you recall “until I could kick his butt.”

“You're goddamn right you did!” she shouts. “So just do the same thing again this time, idiot!”

>Do it again. This time like you mean it.
>Have Tōōkenju give you an easier task. Making constant progress is key when training.
>Other?

>>3384102
>>Do it again. This time like you mean it.

>>3384102
>Do it again. This time like you mean it.

>>3384102
>>Do it again. This time like you mean it.
Quitting is for losers.

>>3384102
>Do it again. This time like you mean it.


>>3383707
well that's embarrassing

>>3384102
>>Do it again. This time like you mean it.

>3d10, best of three

Rolled 3, 4, 3 = 10 (3d10)

>>3387470

Rolled 8, 8, 5 = 21 (3d10)

>>3387470

Rolled 6, 3, 7 = 16 (3d10)

>>3387470

>>3387470
You take a deep, cleansing breath in preparation for what may well be another stunning failure on your part. You're going to do the same thing again, which some people would call the definition of insanity. But this time you flatten your fist, and focus on literally anything but the fact that you failed the first time you tried this technique.

So instead of breaking your fist again, your punch actually cracks the barrier.

“See?” Tōōkenju smiles. “The limits of what you can do with any specific quality are only defined by what you think you can do. And what qualities you can affect are only defined by the limits of your creativity.”

“That can't be true,” you counter. “Shouldn't I have to at least have some understanding of how that quality varies?”

“Well, there is that,” she admits. “Mass, reiatsu, tangibility... all those things are things you can grasp in your mind. They're things you can understand in practical terms. And naturally, you're limited to affecting one of those things at a time.”

>Then the way forward is to learn a few more things I can affect.
>Then I need to learn how to either affect two things, or switch qualities instantly.
>What about Bankai?
>Other?

>>3387525
>>What about Bankai?

>>3387525
>Then the way forward is to learn a few more things I can affect.

>>3387525
>>Then I need to learn how to either affect two things, or switch qualities instantly.

>>3387525
>Then I need to learn how to either affect two things, or switch qualities instantly.

>>3387525
>Then the way forward is to learn a few more things I can affect.

>>3387525
>>Then I need to learn how to either affect two things, or switch qualities instantly.
Basic things, but honed to a high quality. Definitely seems better than being basic bitch level at multiple effects if we can't make maximum efficient use of them.

>>3387525
>>Then I need to learn how to either affect two things, or switch qualities instantly.

>>3387525
>Then the way forward is to learn a few more things I can affect.

>>3387525
>Then I need to learn how to either affect two things, or switch qualities instantly.

>>3387525
>switching qualities wins
>3d10 best of three

Rolled 10, 5, 7 = 22 (3d10)

>>3389402

Rolled 6, 3, 3 = 12 (3d10)

>>3389402

Rolled 6, 3, 6 = 15 (3d10)

>>3389402

>>3389402
“Then it makes sense to work on switching what I'm actually affecting faster,” you decide. “Since I doubt that our shikai can just be tweaked to work with two things at once.”

“You'd be right,” Tōōkenju agrees. “Shikais really don't tend to work that way, at best you get a bunch of related abilities... but those abilities don't suddenly have their limits expanded.”

“So how do we go about doing this?” you ask.

Your zanpakuto laughs. “By fighting, of course!”

“With a wrecked fist?” you press, skeptical of this plan.

“We'll give it some time,” she nods, accepting your concerns as fairly valid. “Work on shifting your reiatsu to each of your eight 'weapons' in turn: fists, elbows, knees, feet. You can do that while you wait.”

You do as Tōōkenju suggests and work on shifting your reiatsi around within your body, isolating it almost entirely into one place at a time before moving it to the next spot. It takes a while at first, your focus shifts painfully slowly and it's plain to you that were you in battle you wouldn't be able to manage it.

Tōōkenju wasn't kidding, you really did have a lot of improving to do.

It seems like forever before your hand is in the sort of shape where you'd be comfortable striking with it, an impossible amount of time to even tell. But you do get plenty of opportunity to work on what Tōōkenju probably considers the basics.

“Alright,” she nods, raising her fists. “Hit me.”

You immediately do as she demands, throwing a powerful punch that has the full weight of your reiatsu behind it. She allows it to slip through her head before she sidesteps and aims a punch at your ribs.

The fist collides before you can shift yourself away from that spot, but it's a very close thing.

“Get up,” she orders as you stagger to your feet. “Again.”

The second time you rely on the idea that Tōōkenju will strike at the same spot, and while you very nearly succeed she changes her target at the last second. Because of that, you end up on your back again.

“Again.”

The third time, you barely manage to evade.

Tōōkenju nods. “Well done. I think you've earned a break.”

>Accept the offer, try getting to know your sword's personality a little.
>Decline the offer. Keep working on this important skill.
>Decline the offer, try working with a different attribute.

>>3389544
>Decline the offer. Keep working on this important skill.

>>3389544
>Accept the offer, try getting to know your sword's personality a little.
Isn't the plural of shikai just shikai?

>>3389544
>>Decline the offer. Keep working on this important skill.
I get the feeling she would appreciate us being this dedicated to both the skills involved wielding her and martial arts in general

>>3389544
>>Decline the offer. Keep working on this important skill.

>>3389544
>Accept the offer, try getting to know your sword's personality a little.

>>3389544
>>Decline the offer. Keep working on this important skill.

>>3389544
>>>Decline the offer. Keep working on this important skill.

>>3389544
>Decline the offer. Keep working on this important skill.

>>3389544
>>Accept the offer, try getting to know your sword's personality a little.

>>3389544
>Decline the offer. Keep working on this important skill.
"Barely" isn't good enough

>>3389544
>Accept the offer, try getting to know your sword's personality a little.
>>3389544

>>3389544
>3d10, best of three
>DC 19, crit 23

Rolled 4, 10, 5 = 19 (3d10)

>>3392074

Rolled 5, 6, 9 = 20 (3d10)

>>3392074

Rolled 10, 2, 8 = 20 (3d10)

>>3392074

>>3392074
You elect to press on instead... you've been making good progress for once, so you don't want to risk wasting that by taking a break when you don't need to.

“We'll go again,” you insist, raising your fists. “Until I'm satisfied.”

Tōōkenju laughs, taking a slightly lower stance to counter your own. “You've always taken that approach to things, haven't you? Ever since you first started learning karate back in the day.”

She throws a punch at you, which you push aside with your wrist before quickly countering with a jab. The scrap only lasts a few moments before she takes a step back and away from you.

“You spent every evening after school hammering away at the dummies while your mom was at work,” Tōōkenju continues, renewing her attack. “You know what was different then?”

You slip through another punch to deliver a powerful blow of your own, which passes clean through Tōōkenju's body. She easily reverses, catching you in the jawline with her elbow.

“I was younger,” you admit, raising your knee to strike at your zanpakuto's ribs.

“You had drive,” she counters. “You weren't any good back then and you knew it, and that ate at you every day. You kept on improving, and then when Ichigo beat you once you started pushing even harder.”

“But once you realized you were the best in Japan you plateaued. You haven't really improved in years.”

You want to argue... but you realize that it's true. Or at least it was true, up until you followed Ichigo into the Soul Society. It was then that you found out how outclassed you were by the standards of the shinigami. The Ninth alone had a half-dozen people who could take you in a fair fight, and at least one who could take you and everyone else you knew at the time with one arm tied behind her back and a blindfold over her eyes.

That drove you to take risks, to start moving forward again. You realized that you only thought you were strong, but that you had so much further to go.

Tōōkenju throws a punch that you allow to pass through you, and in the next moment you drive your elbow into her chin just the same way she did you.

After a few seconds of rubbing her chin, your zanpakuto smiles. “Now that's more like it.”

>Take a few minutes to relax... you want to know just how much Tōōkenju knows about you.
>Challenge your zanpakuto to teach you something new.
>Other?

>>3392538
>>Take a few minutes to relax... you want to know just how much Tōōkenju knows about you.

>>3392538
>Take a few minutes to relax... you want to know just how much Tōōkenju knows about you.

>>3392538
>Take a few minutes to relax... you want to know just how much Tōōkenju knows about you.

>>3392538
>>Take a few minutes to relax... you want to know just how much Tōōkenju knows about you.

>>3392538
>>Challenge your zanpakuto to teach you something new.

>>3392538
So that worked, now see what she knows
Get to know her a bit, then back to beating the crap out of each other

>>3392538
Can tatsuki split her mass between different sections of her body, or does it have to be all together?
Like for example, can she make only the middle of her body intangible to dodge a sword swipe by shifting her mass to her upper and lower body, splitting it in two but keeping it within herself without passing through anything?

Couldn't she create a style based on rapid movement through sudden shifts in weight?
>shift almost entire mass of body to forearm
>use retard strength to move almost massless body suddenly to one side using the weight of the forearm hanging in the air at mach 12
>sucker punch enemy in the side of the head

>>3392538
“So I'm starting to realize something,” you admit, flopping down onto the dojo floor. “I really don't know anything about you.”

“I'm your zanpakuto,” Tōōkenju states simply, taking a seat facing you. “For most shinigami that'd be enough.”

“Yeah, but the shinigami I've met aren't 'most shinigami' you know,” you point out, “so my standards are kinda skewed. And I really don't think that's a bad thing... something sets people like Riku and Lady Yoruichi and even Kuchiki Rukia apart from the rest, and I don't even know enough about how this whole thing works to say what that is.”

“Every time someone raises their fists or draws a sword, it's to protect something,” Tōōkenju replies thoughtfully. “Their pride, their way of life, someone or something important to them, their honor. Every single time.”

“What about mercenaries?” you press. “People who fight for money.”

“Pride,” your zanpakuto insists. “Their pride drives them to earn money in such a risky way rather than lower themselves to making less money in a safer way. It gnaws at them daily, the idea that they are worth more than their position in society would suggest, and they seek to prove it through force of arms.”

“Soldiers?”

“Country. Home. Family.”

“Politicians?”

“Power. Resources. Face.”

“Axe-murderers.”

You think you have her for a moment, but she simply chuckles. “Self-worth. The confirmation of their own existence. Ego.”

“You're cleverer than Ichigo, I'll give you that,” you sigh, admitting defeat. “So what sets those other shinigami apart?”

“Their refusal to accept their own limitations when they're protecting something.”

“I will allow you one more question, then we should start back into the training.”

>How long have you existed for?
>Do you know what I'm thinking right now?
>What part of me are you?
>Other?

>>3394735
>How long have you existed for?

>>3394735
>>How long have you existed for?

>>3394735
Why are you fighting?

>>3394735
>How long have you existed for?

>>3394735
>What part of me are you?

>>3394735
>>How long have you existed for?

>>3394735
“How long have you existed?” you ask.

Tōōkenju nods thoughtfully. “Good question, actually. I suppose you could say that I've existed for as long as you have. But I was only aware of myself from the point where Ichigo's aunt shoved a sword inside you.”

“And how much about me do you know?” you press.

“The basics of your life until my 'birth', I guess,” your zanpakuto declares. “After that... only impressions. When you celebrate I feel joy, when you cry I feel sorrow. But I don't always know exactly why.”

“As an aspect of your soul, I'm incomplete. I guess you could say I can never fully understand you, nor is that a goal of mine.”

Then she rises to her feet. “Enough talk.”

“Then what do you want to do...” you begin, only to be forced to roll away as Tōōkenju brings down a curved blade right where you'd been sitting an instant before.

“That was dangerous!” you shout.

Your zanpakuto returns to a guarded stance, never taking her eyes off you. “All training is, to some degree.”

>I don't actually know anything about kenjutsu, aside from some really basic stuff Ichigo showed me once.
>Let's work on shifting another “trait” with shikai (write-ins considered)
>What about Bankai?
>Other?

>>3395318
>What about Bankai?

>>3395318
>>I don't actually know anything about kenjutsu, aside from some really basic stuff Ichigo showed me once.

>>3395318
>What about Bankai?

>>3395318
>>What about Bankai?

>>3395318
>>I don't actually know anything about kenjutsu, aside from some really basic stuff Ichigo showed me once.
Can Tatsuki really call herself proficient if she has to rely on her shikai to fite gud? Gotta learn how to use her sword too.

>>3395318
>What about Bankai?

I think Bankai is too early, but I can see where others are coming from. Steady increases in basic abilities might not be enough.

>>3395318
>>What about Bankai?

>>3395318
>>I don't actually know anything about kenjutsu, aside from some really basic stuff Ichigo showed me once.

>>3395452
No matter how good her basics get, Tatsuki's not touching Aizen without bankai.
Her strength lies solely in the special properties of her zanpakutou, when compared to the big shots at least.

>3d10, best of three

Rolled 3, 6, 10 = 19 (3d10)

>>3397991

Rolled 2, 10, 8 = 20 (3d10)

>>3397991

Rolled 4, 2, 9 = 15 (3d10)

>>3397991

>>3397991
“What about Bankai?” you ask.

Tōōkenju chuckles for a moment, before frowning. “Wait, you're serious aren't you?”

“I am,” you nod. “Shikai is great, but do you really think we're gonna be able to touch a Captain with that, let alone a guy that makes even Captains nervous?”

“If your reiatsu were strong enough you'd be able to,” your zanpakuto insists.

“But is it?” you press.

“... no.”

“Then we really have no other choice, do we?” you continue, driving your point home. “If you've got another idea I'd be willing to hear it.”

“There really isn't an alternative,” Tōōkenju admits. “The trouble is that our Bankai would be extraordinarily dangerous if you're not ready.”

“And you don't think I'm ready?” you ask.

She shakes her head. “I know that you're not ready.”

“Then what would make me ready?”

“More experience,” she tells you. “A better grasp of your abilities. This isn't like with Ichigo, you can't just brute force it and have everything turn out alright.”

>Then we continue to practice, nonstop, until you think I'm ready.
>Can you at least tell me what our Bankai is supposed to do?
>What about a 'fake' Bankai? A temporary solution that'll help against Aizen?
>Other?

>>3398042
>Then we continue to practice, nonstop, until you think I'm ready.

>>3398042
>Then we continue to practice, nonstop, until you think I'm ready.

>>3398042
>Then we continue to practice, nonstop, until you think I'm ready.

>>3398042
>>Then we continue to practice, nonstop, until you think I'm ready.

>>3398042
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 7, 7, 1 = 15 (3d10)

>>3398293

Rolled 2, 10, 6 = 18 (3d10)

>>3398293

Rolled 3, 3, 1 = 7 (3d10)

>>3398293

>>3398293
It takes what feels like days.

Trading an endless series of punches and counterpunches with Tōōkenju leaves you with the sense that even as you grow more exhausted you're getting quicker at managing your shikai ability. Eventually you collapse to the floor, unable to even lift your arms.

“Not even close,” she sighs, sitting down next to you. “Sure, you're getting better. But there's still something missing.”

“And what's... that?” you pant.

“The raw power,” she admits calmly.

“You saying I'm weak?”

Tōōkenju falls onto her back, staring at the ceiling. “That's not what I mean. You're still plenty strong, I'd say at the level of most of those Lieutenants. But most Lieutenants can't use Bankai... that's what separates them from Captains.”

“What about Rukia?” you press.

“Fifty years of experience and exceptional guidance,” your zanpakuto explains. “Sorry, but the kind of ability you need to use Bankai can't come from just a few months worth of work, even if Captain Kusajishi gave you a huge head start.”

“So what do we do?” you demand. “I can't just not fight, not when my home is being threatened! My friends! My mom!”

“We can't do it,” Tōōkenju insists. “Not in here.”

“You need to learn how to manifest me.”

In an instant the dojo is gone, and you're back where you started.

Ichigo's dad is still sitting where he was, and lifts a single eyelid. “What's up? There's no bathroom here if that's what you're after.”

>What do you know about zanpakuto?
>I need to manifest Tōōkenju. You know anything about that?
>Just give it a go. How hard can it be?
>Other?

>>3398435
>What do you know about zanpakuto?

>>3398435
>>What do you know about zanpakuto?

>>3398435
>>I need to manifest Tōōkenju. You know anything about that?

>>3398435
>I need to manifest Tōōkenju. You know anything about that?

>>3398435
>I need to manifest Tōōkenju. You know anything about that?

>>3398435
>I need to manifest Tōōkenju. You know anything about that?

File: __shihouin_yoruichi_bleac(...).jpg (108 KB, 471x650)

108 KB JPG

>>3398435
Seems fairly heavily leaning in one direction, but I don't have time right now anyway so I'll leave it open until the evening.

>>3398435
“I need to manifest Tōōkenju's spirit,” you tell Ichigo's dad. “Without that I can't progress with my training any further. Do you know how to do that?”

He nods in response. “I was pretty good at it, once upon a time.”

“Can you teach me?”

“I can,” he agrees, “but it takes years of training to reach Bankai. You'd be called a prodigy if you did it in ten.”

“Ichigo did it in three days,” you point out.

“And he had help from Urahara,” he counters. “Used some tool that forced the manifestation. Usually it takes years of training, experience, and meditation to reach that level of self-knowledge, and even more years of specialized training after achieving manifestation.”

“From what I can tell Riku's been practicing with her Bankai for a hundred years and still doesn't consider it 'mastered'. That thing you call 'Bankai' isn't just a technique to be learned, Tatsuki. It's a lifetime worth of improvement.”

“But I don't have a hundred years, or even ten!” you protest. “There has to be a way!”

Ichigo's dad is silent for what feels like hours, but you know it's probably just a few minutes. Eventually he nods. “If you could figure out what aspect of your soul this 'Tōōkenju' reflects, and I mean really figure it out, you could use that as a starting point. Maybe.”

“But unless Riku really messed with how your abilities should work, this isn't going to end with you getting Bankai.”

You cross your arms. “Are you trying to talk me out of it?”

He chuckles lightly. “You've been Ichigo's friend for long enough that I know better. I just want to make sure you know what you should expect.”

>Go back into Jinzen, see what Tōōkenju has to say.
>Try and bounce some ideas off Ichigo's dad while you have his attention.
>Meditate on your own, not even Jinzen. Just... think about it.
>Other?

>>3401393
>Meditate on your own, not even Jinzen. Just... think about it.

>>3401393
>Meditate on your own, not even Jinzen. Just... think about it.
Let's give it a try.

>>3401393
>>Meditate on your own, not even Jinzen. Just... think about it.

>>3401393
>>Meditate on your own, not even Jinzen. Just... think about it.

>>3401393
>>Meditate on your own, not even Jinzen. Just... think about it.

>>3401393
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 2, 7, 8 = 17 (3d10)

>>3404182

Rolled 4, 6, 10 = 20 (3d10)

>>3404182

Rolled 5, 9, 6 = 20 (3d10)

>>3404182

>>3404182
You decide to try meditating on your own. Not jinzen or any other fancy techniques, but the sort of meditation that you were trained to do as part of your karate practice. It's probably been your least favorite part of the whole thing if you're being truthful, something you just never got the knack of.

The first step of course is to sit in seiza, which isn't even comfortable for most Japanese people aside from those involved in kendo or iaido. Took you a while to get used to it. You place your palms carefully against your thighs, and half-close your eyes.

You slowly become aware of yourself, first the rhythm of your breathing then the tension in your muscles. Breathe in, hold, breathe out, hold. Slow, even, relaxed.

“Damn it!” you shout. “Why does this have to be so boring!?”

“Because otherwise it wouldn't be meditation,” Ichigo's dad sighs. “Seriously, that's the entire point.”

You let out a deep breath, and settle back in to try again. You walk yourself through the same steps a second time, and eventually manage to relax back into a meditative state.

What is the point of this anyway?

It's something you never really understood, what are you even supposed to get out of something like this? Does all this introspection actually help you fight? And why is it you have so much trouble doing this, anyway?

You guess you just have problems with inaction, when it comes right down to it. You prefer to learn by doing, to make advances by working and practicing and training. All this contemplative stuff doesn't suit you.

After all, you didn't learn karate by thinking about it. You learned by practicing until your fists bruised and bled, then by repeating the process as soon as your hands were healed enough. That's just who you are.

So what does that mean about your zanpakuto, you wonder?

>It's your drive, your motivation to improve, clearly.
>She's too cerebral for that. Try talking to her again.
>Try some kata meditation, move while you're thinking.
>Other?

>>3404357
>>Try some kata meditation, move while you're thinking.

>>3404357
>>>Try some kata meditation, move while you're thinking.

>>3404357
>>Try some kata meditation, move while you're thinking.

>>3404357
>>Try some kata meditation, move while you're thinking.

>>3404357
>>Try some kata meditation, move while you're thinking.

>>3404357
>>Try some kata meditation, move while you're thinking.
She's off to a good start but I'd be shocked if it was that simple.

>>3404357
>Try some kata meditation, move while you're thinking.

>>3404357
3d10, best of three

Rolled 8, 4, 4 = 16 (3d10)

>>3406639

Rolled 7, 4, 5 = 16 (3d10)

>>3406639

Rolled 5, 10, 2 = 17 (3d10)

>>3406639

>>3406639
It doesn't take a genius to come up with the idea that maybe you'd get better results if you were meditating while performing kata, being an especially versed practitioner especially inclined towards constant physical activity.

So you work your way through several striking exercises, then through movement exercises ranging from basic to more advanced acrobatics. Then you move on to a set of movements intended for partner exercises, imagining yourself facing an opponent who follows your progression perfectly from start to finish. But after spending some time shadowboxing like this, you start to realize something.

You're thinking too much about the martial arts aspect of all this to actually meditate.

You immediately stop.

“So you figured it out,” Kurosaki Isshin muses. “You're a bright girl you know... at least that's what my brat said once. But I'm surprised it took you that long.”

“What do you mean?” you demand.

“You think too much when you fight to use a trick like this,” he explains his observations. “You can't help but critique your own performance at each step, and imagine an opponent to face off against. Without imagining an attack, or a movement, you feel like you don't have anything to respond to. It would just be pointless flailing.”

“That was what you were thinking, wasn't it?”

Your silence is all the answer he needs.

“Riku and Yoruichi can train like that because they never actually think about fighting,” he continues. “Like me with a sword. We've all done the movements for long enough that they're completely thoughtless. Reducing the techniques to instinct lets us think about other things while we execute them.”

“You understand, right?”

>This is a dead end. Try speaking with Tōōkenju.
>Use your shikai a hundred times. See how that feels.
>Try 'kata', but without thinking. Do what feels natural.
>Other?

>>3407370
>>Use your shikai a hundred times. See how that feels.

>>3407370
>>Try 'kata', but without thinking. Do what feels natural.

>>3407370
>Maybe try Kata while in Shikai?

If she has her Shikai to focus on while going through the kata movements then she might be able to stop thinking about self critique and more about how her weapon feels, while avoiding being inactive.

>>3407370
>>Try 'kata', but without thinking. Do what feels natural.

>>3407370
>Try 'kata', but without thinking. Do what feels natural.

>>3407370
>don't even bother with kata, just attack without thinking, and let your muscle memory do the work.. shadow box someone you know well. against ichigo.

>>3407370
>Use your shikai a hundred times. See how that feels.

>>3409500