A meeting is in order (Open/Azure sky)

The past week hadn't been going so well for Tetsuo, as lieutenant of squadron 10 of the Gotei 13. He stood pacing around in his so called "office", as he awaited the arrival of one of the seated officers underneath his command. The area he claimed as an office was incredibly informal, with posters of various human rock bands hung up everywhere, and a large couch in front of a flat screen television. There was even a mini refrigerator, stocked with energy drinks and soda and the like. All of these things, he'd obtained in some of his many trips to the human world and back in a Gigai.

Here he was, surrounded by all of these informal things, yet dressed in his "formal" attire. The usual shinigami robes with a few different touches here and there. Namely, the top half was loosely hung open, and white, with a black shirt underneath, and the few emblems he wore, like his wrist guards and necklace. "Stupid hollows, there just haven't been enough of them this week. Even when I go out to look for the damned things. It's like I have nothing to do!" The shuffling sound his sandals made as he paced back and forth began to irritate him, so he walked over to the beige couch seated in the middle of the hardwood floor paneled room, and plopped down. Picking up a remote, he flipped the television on and his favorite movie began playing. It was an old school samurai movie, that was poorly produced and only contained overly bloody and cheesy fight scenes. Go figure.

"Man, where the hell is that 3rd seat guy, anyways? I told one of the little paperboys from squad nine to find him and deliver the message. Pfft, probably didn't even bother..." He groaned. He'd been exceptionally bored as of late, nothing to do as far as hollows go, since sadly enough they'd either been under good control as of late, or hiding well enough to not be found even through relentless search. Eventually he took it upon himself to do normal Lieutenant stuff he never did. This time around, he'd be familiarizing himself with all of the lower officers in the squadron, starting with the next one down. It wasn't an order of his provocatively busty and beautiful captain, but that didn't mean it wasn't something he couldn't do.

Anyways, there he sat, watching the gruesome movie, enjoying the head slicing and whatnot, and awaiting the 3rd seat to arrive. The door to his office sat wide open, and welcomed any who decided to show up. *cough third seat cough* His plans for the third seater? Introductions were in order first of all. Maybe if things lead to it, a test of power on each of their ends was in order. All in all, he was just looking for something to do. Damn those hollows, not being around when he needed something to stab.

Damn it, he was late! He had gotten the message alright, but he was still in the middle of a short patrol over at the OTHER side of Rukongai. Why did people call for him exactly when he was the furthest one? Well, either ways, this was a sort of order from the Lieutenant so there was no way he could miss that. He knew his Lieutenant, or at least his track record. Not a very bright fellow, but still friendly and responsible (and powerful) enough to actually make it to that stage. Rumors was it that he was close to the captain and even further rumors told he was actually stronger than her.

As he ran, he could feel the weight of his Zanpakuto at his thigh. Even though he seriously the type of person to solely rely on Kido and his own Reiryoku, Ryohei's Zanpakuto was actually pretty big, going from his abdomen to the ground, almost scratching the bottom of the sheathe on it at times. It was a huge hassle to carry it, but as a Seated Officer on patrol, it was a must. Even in Soul Society, Hollows appeared everywhere and God King knows what else might also attack. It would be around this time that Tsukuyomi would yell at him.

Tsukuyomi, the moon son on the great Izanagi, or probably just a reincarnation of that god. When people thought nothing more about Ryohei could scream "arrogant", the spirit sealed in his Zanpakuto begged to differ. Either ways, thinking about him right now wasn't really something he needed to do. He had arrived at the 10th Squad Barracks and started to casually walk, occasionally saluting a few known people who had been his partners in previous missions. Before actually appearing in front of the lieutenant's office, though, he straightened his robe and checked if nothing was out of order.

"Sir, Ryohei Okumura, 3rd Seat, 10th Squad, presenting himself!" he introduced himself, with his formal-looking face, as he entered through the door and bowed slightly. Looking at that room, he could really tell that most of the rumors flying about him were probably true. He also seemed to be a lover of human arts, but that was no of his personal business, as the posters and general way of the room seemed to bore him. He could see where this way going to. "You asked for me, Lieutenant?"

War clicked his teeth lightly, the sound echoing through the room, as a man was gruesomely decapitated on the screen, the thinly dyed water in a poor attempt to imitate blood spattering everywhere. He began watching these movies to fill his time when he wasn't getting combative action to satisfy his base desires. While he thoroughly enjoyed them, mostly, they were often anticlimactic in some parts. Likely a result of the fact that he battles he fought usually ended up with a shattered landscape, and fighting on a much higher caliber, but sadly since Shinigami or otherworldly fighters didn't record their battles, human movies would have to do.

He tilted his head against the back of the couch, to face the young male that entered through the door in the back left corner of the room. Though he was viewing him upside down, as a result of him not quite wanting to stand just yet, he could tell the other shinigami was around the same age as him.

"Sir, Ryohei Okumura, 3rd Seat, 10th Squad, presenting himself! You asked for me, Lieutenant?"

Ah, yeah, welcome Ryohei. Come on in and have a seat next to me, I've been wanting to meet you." His tone was a relaxed and informal one, the one he always used unless addressed by someone of higher rank than him. Though even in those situations, he didn't quite know the meaning of formality. He scooted to the right of the couch he was sitting on, as the credits for the movie rolled. The title of the movie scrolled down in giant dark red letters.

Bloody death blade of death!

Obviously an overly cheesy and poorly produced movie. "By the way, you can just call me Tetsuo or War, either one's fine. No need for the 'sir' or 'lieutenant' titles. I'm not the stickler kind that's going to reprimand you over a name. Well then, you're probably wondering why I requested you here, after all. Aren't you?" He examined the zanpakuto at the young man's side. Rather large... (no homo)... Had he not learned to control his spiritual pressure to take on a more comfortable form? Or was he simply the arrogant type that preferred his blade to take a larger form, considering that a show of power? Eh, it didn't matter, Tetsuo wasn't going to sit here and analyze his personality just based off of appearances. He just hoped the guy wasn't a pompous ass like some of the other shinigami he was stuck working with.

Ryohei nodded as his Lieutenant gave him permission to fully enter the room, even though he found it gaudy as all Hell. Yes, he did take it into his mind that Hell wasn't the prettiest of places to be, as he had been given the "Don't send that many Hollows to Hell" speech many times over. Well, not like he could help it. He didn't really control the amount of sinful Hollows he came across with. Besides, it seemed this Lieutenant was also VERY obsessed with sending Hollows to their pitiful demise, so he guessed it wasn't too far off of an insult.

Though he hated how much familiarity this man was giving him. Even if he was of a higher rank, that didn't mean he could treat Ryohei as if they were long time acquaintances. The man sat down next to his Lieutenant and nodded. "Yes..... Tetsuo...." he replied, watching as the letter on the screen just went by and by until the gruesome letters appeared. Ryohei was seriously about to leave. He just couldn't take it anymore. This was seriously pushing it.

He liked to roam around the Human World as much as the next guy, but he was dead and, as a dead man, he wasn't supposed to be there, so he refrained from taking too many missions "down below". That was also a side-reason why he couldn't really stand that room, filled with earthly things. But he simply sighed it off. No use being all stiff about the environment he was in. Each person was entitled to their tastes, that much he remembered.

Looking a bit more relaxed, Ryohei tried to remember how to act casually, even though he hadn't learned to do it perfectly yet. "I think anyone summoned by their Lieutenant would be wondering why. Even a lowly 3rd Seat like me." Though anybody would interpret that as a sign of inferiority complex, that was actually true to many. 3rd Seat was nothing. Anybody could reach the 3rd place in a Squad pretty easily. The 1st and 2nd ones, well, that was another story entirely. Those involved more strength, responsibility and character.

It'd seem that Ryohei still felt rather uncomfortable. Maybe it was the environment, maybe it was being in the presence of someone considered above him, it could be either one. However, Tetsuo didn't like it. He disliked the formality or the nervousness that he was subjected to by anyone of a rank lower than he was, because all it really was was a number. "Lowly? Man, back when I first became a shinigami, i hated the rank system" He yawned, causing the words to become distorted, as he rose and placed his hand on his right zanpakuto in a casual leaning position, while clicking the television off. That kind of attitude his poor. Just like I'm directly underneath Captain Leona, and can be considered her right hand man. You are directly underneath me, and can and should be considered my right hand man. You're the next best thing there is to the lieutenant, you're like a lieutenant's lieutenant. Not a bad position to be in. After all, something as silly as rank doesn't determine power or character in the slightest. It's just a number."

He motioned with his left hand for Ryohei to rise and follow. "What do you say we go for a walk around Seiretei. I'd like to get to know who I'm going to be working with better. Don't worry, I'm not going to try to hold you hand or anything. He chuckled slightly and walked out the door to his office with a large grin, and took a right down one of the outermost streets of Sereitei. Anything to get the kid out of his office, it seemed to make him feel even more uncomfortable. "Close the door behind you.

Ryohei shrugged off the way his Lieutenant disregarded the ranking system. Not like he felt any affiliation to it either, since he could care for where he's positioned, but that didn't stop his way of being a stickler to rules. He had had heavy etiquette hammered into his brain when he was alive, and that same way of being was the only thing that remained from his living days, which was very bothersome, as he'd actually love to have his personality back.

He sighed and rose behind Tetsuo, following him outside and closing the door behind. Wouldn't make a difference though, as no one of the 10th Squad was enough of a scoundrel to plunder the lieutenant's quarters. Very much because they knew Tetsuo would actually pummel anyone who would do such a thing to the ground, with or without the Captain's consent. He picked his pace and joined his Lieutenant in his walk.

"Not to be rude or anything, Tetsuo, but isn't that just a vicious cycle then? Turning everyone lower into something of an equal will give in to outbreaks and lack of respect towards superiors. If, say, a 10th Seat gets around to think he's all that great just because he's the lieutenant of the lieutenant of the lieutenant of the lieutenant of the lieutenant, etc etc.... That would cause him to treat all others like they were his equals, or even of lower standing than him, leading to probable violent events which will actually disgrace the name of the 10th Squad."

He tried to explain as plainly as he could that way of thinking, though he was worrying too much, he guessed. He knew there was probably no way to change this Lieutenant, so he lowered his head and exhaled. "So, what would you like to know about me that isn't in my record? Because there's really not much I can say about myself before waking inside a house in Rukongai." he asked. What he was saying was only a half-truth though. There were lots of stuff he could say about himself that weren't on his record filled with only formal information.

He waved suggestively to a low seated female officer of one of the other squadrons, who happened to have massive jugs and wavy blonde hair, as she passed him. She waved back with an all too familiar smile, implying that they'd been involved at some point in time. His sandals clopped against the ground as he lazily raised his feet in his half assed attempt at walking alongside Ryohei. "Maybe, but I'm not exactly the type to demand respect or pay it in kind. If you're going to disrespect someone, you'd better damn well know you can handle them if they try to act upon it. So, as long as you're secure with yourself, then do whatever the hell you want as far as rank goes, right? We're all here to serve the same purpose anyways. The pieces at the bottom are the foundation, like a totem pole... The top pieces wouldn't be at the top without them." A little bit more wisdom than he would generally provide, he'd been grasping the totem pole reference piece by piece (har har pun) with his wise Zanpakuto. Turning a corner he shrugged as he was asked about what he actually wanted to know. Truth be told, he didn't have much of a real directive, he just needed to know about the person he'd likely be working with the most closely over however long his shinigami career would be.

"Ha. Do you honestly think I read anything in anyone's file? You must not know a whole lot about me, huh? He chuckled casually as he began leading Ryohei towards one of the exit gates to Sereitei, though they were still a way's off.

Ryohei's seemed to have been hit by some sort of weight just then. Tetsuo was right. The task of reading people's profiles was too much to ask of him, as he could've probably figured out. Score -1 for Ryohei Okumura. Continuing to walk alongside the Lieutenant, the man started thinking of what to say. He had to put in the plainest terms, so that his lazy superior could understand. Not that he was disrespecting him or anything. He just preferred to keep things simple and clean.


"Umm..... Have you ever had a memory blank? Forgot why you were doing something or what you're supposed to act like? Almost like someone stole your personality or just erased it out of your mind? That's exactly how I feel like every single second that I can remember directly of being in Soul Society. That's what you'll have to deal with by working with me. A blank slate, with its only purpose being to recover the personality that it lost and the memories of its previous life." he explained, hopefully clarifying the issue.

Though, he still wasn't very sure if Tetsuo would understand his position. It wasn't like it was normal amnesia, or even a self-induced repression of bad memories. It did something else to his persona. It made his way of being completely vanish, besides the things that been drilled and hammered into his mind day after day after day, the etiquette of the higher society. His quest sounded selfish, but he really wanted to be back to his old self. It seemed he was far better than now, an empty shell who could only ac naturally cold to others and occasionally pick up a new emotion to copy and make his own, turning into a blend of feelings and responses that weren't even close to being called a "person".

"Huh." His paced sputtered out to a complete halt as he looked upward, towards the sky above the Sereitei. It was similar to the sky in the human world, but antithetic simultaneously, and it made him wonder when the next time he'd make an appearance in the world of mortals would arrive. "No, I can't really say I understand that feeling. I can't say I'm picky about who I work with, so long as they don't get in my way, but it makes me concerned. Why exactly do you choose to be a shinigami, working with the Gotei 13? Is it for yourself, is it for others, or do you simply not know?" In his cognizance, he recalled why it was he chose to continue down the path of those he once disregarded and viewed as the root of all poison in the lives of both the spiritual and physical beings of all.

"If you don't do this for a purpose, if you don't have something that's driving you to do your best at your position and the force as a whole, you're going to end up falling short, or getting in someone's way. I don't need that from anyone, I already have to overcome my own shortcomings often enough. It may be my job to help direct you guys, but I'm not fond of carrying the weight that someone else is capable of carrying.

You have no other goals, only to regain your former self? What will you do after then? I need to know these things before we continue."

Ryohei suddenly came to a stop. What he would do once he found his personality and his memories? Actually, he never had thought about what he REALLY wanted from the Gotei 13. He just found the organization a quick way to get his memories back, what with the trips to the Human World. Yes, he hated being down there, but it was sometimes necessary. Not like anything from Soul Society would make him remember what he had done during his human life. He turned around to face the Lieutenant, resting his hand on the hilt of his Zanpakuto and the other on his hip.

"Well.... I can't say I solely became a Shinigami just so I could get my memories back, even if that was the main reason. I'm sure that, deep down, my soul has memorized the things I would want to do when I was human. Like how a human once said, there's a black box inside one person from which everything flows out of, by pure instinct. The rational mind's function is to decode those feelings and needs and make our body do them." he knew he was getting into some deep theory, so he came to a halt, sharing the view of the sky with Tetsuo.

"You know, Tetsuo.... I think I was a good person in life. I didn't become a Hollow, nor did I go to Hell. My soul wasn't ravenous and it didn't argue, by what they told me. It was calm and serene, almost like a gentle breeze. From just that, I can guess I was a nice person." he told the man. Without even acknowledging it and instinctively, his mouth bore something new. A new feeling that he never had felt before. He smiled openly for the first time. "Tetsuo, once I find myself again, I don't think anything will change. My best bet is that I'll want to protect the weak and save the ones who can't be save, both in Soul Society and in the Human World..... That's what my mind believes in, at least."

A faint smile, glimmering only for a brief moment before fluttering away, and fading from his face, was shown. He was pleased, but at the same time, frustrated with his comrade. "I'm glad to hear you feel your intentions will be pure when you find yourself, but there's something you've got to realize. "Good, you're thinking more clearly than usual. Glad to see our nervewracking conversations have been paying off. In his mind, he heard Zeijaku Sei speaking to him, referring to the wisdom of thinking about each moment you find yourself in clearly, that he'd been trying to impart in Bonehead. "You have to realize, you're not human anymore. You may never be human again, and what you were then is not important compared to who you are now. Even if you weren't as good a person as you imagine, you have the opportunity here to be whatever you choose to be. Just... Don't waste it, you know?"

He laughed a little and patted Ryohei's back before pointing forwards, towards the eastern gate of Sereitei. "See the gate? Have you ever seen the furthest edges of the Rukongai that surrounds our 'peaceful' society?" Placing sarcastic emphasis on peaceful, as he knew all too well the Sereitei was as innately violent as any other place. Not that he had the blatant room to speak, as he was incredibly violent in his own right.

Ryohei's eyes rolled over a bit at the man's warnings. He knew very well he wasn't human anymore. He still thought that way anyways. He was still bank slate. He was no better than what he was "down there", in fact he was worse, situation-wise. Yes, he became less surprised about things, but he lost the edge of quickness and sharpness of decisions, since he had no morals to base himself on, besides the ones already taught to him.

"I've..... been around to most of the areas of Rukongai, yes. No biggie. Haven't really visited the peaceful and actually good areas though. Duty always calls....." he trailed off, thinking about the area he had been dispatched to himself when he got there. If he remembered the number correctly, he would swear he lived for all those years in a small shut-in hut in District 26 of North Rukongai...... Actually a pretty peaceful area in itself, with only small incidents and nothing out of the ordinary.

Though he knew what was going to happen, he questioned his lieutenant anyways. "Tetsuo, are we going to a rough district or something? I know you want to know me and all, combat skills included, and I AM supposed to be on patrol duty, but I don't think going up and causing trouble in already dangerous places is a good idea. ....plus the squad would look like a troublesome one and the pride of our captain will be stained, not to mention we'll be compared to the brutes of the 11th Division..." he muttered the last part to himself, however long and indiscreet it was.

"Huh? Then what do you suggest, wise guy? You should know I have no issues with being compared to the 11th squad in the slightest. It would be a damned honor! He withdrew his right side's Zanpakuto and pointed it at Ryohei's face, while stepping in front of him. He chuckled slightly as if to imply that he was jesting with his faux attempt at showing aggression, before raising the blade in front of him and looking at it, as the oddly similar shinigami sun casted light that glinted in several directions. Man, I could use a good fight or something, it's been so long. How about it?

A devilish grin crossed his face. The guy was a third seater after all, he couldn't be that far behind a mere lieutenant when it came to battle strength or experience, it shouldn't be too easy. "Of course, since your ideas are better than mine, I'll let you decide what we do. Just don't be boring, I hate boring. He resheathed his blade as to divert the damned attention he was receiving from random unseated shinigami as they passed by, seemingly frightened and whispering oddities about how insane the 10th squad's members really were. In reality, he needed something to do, as well as a way to see if he was working with idiots who got away with talking like they knew it all, when in reality they couldn't fight, and possessed no way to aid anyone. Nor he or he Gotei 13 had any use for those that couldn't fight, didn't have the guts to fight, or any potential to become what they needed to be.

At the immediate action of unsheathing from the Lieutenant, Ryohei quickly rose the sheathe of his own Zanpakuto, to at least be prepared. This man was clearly insane. If he wanted to be compared with the 11th Squad, why not just go and ask from a transfer? Well, against facts there were no arguments, but the man seemed to match that Squad's mindset much more than the 10th, who was one of the more composed and orderly Squads in the Gotei 13. Though, after hearing the request from Tetsuo, he actually found it a bit interesting.

The words his superior had said somehow started to make Ryohei's blood boil, something very rare. "Interesting..... curiouser and curiouser...." he quoted in a whispering voice. "Okay then! Let's go! Here or on a proper arena? Your choice!" he shouted out, properly accepting the challenge imposed to him. There was no way in hell he would miss the change to actually measure his Lieutenant's powers. He was just glad he could finally find something that would make a difference to him. Between killing Hollows and patrolling Soul Society, nothing had really happened ever since he got promoted to 3rd Seat, after he put himself to the test with Tsukuyomi.

Good show. You're finally talking like the person who houses the greatest strategist of the world. a voice terribly evil sounded from within Ryohei, who then became a bit more wary. What do you want now? I'm not you, you know? Ryohei tried to shoo that person away as much as he could. There was no way in hell he wanted to become like his spirit, Tsukuyomi. He seemed the true opposite of the Ryohei before his death. While he supported alliances, he was true to the saying "Today's friends are tomorrow's enemies.", and advised to dispose of anyone that ever worked with Ryohei.

"Ah, you've actually accepted? That's good, for a moment there I was worried that you were a total cowardly shit. Hmmm" He scratched his chin for a moment, a five o clock shadow was becoming irritating as it grew on his face. Right here in the middle of Sereitei like a real fight, or a proper Arena where things would be set up, and would be more organized. On one hand, fighting in the middle of the Sereitei would be natural, they would have a better landscape and everyone could see the power of the 10th division... on the other, they'd get in trouble, whereas in an Arena they wouldn't get in trouble. "It's a hard decision, and I don't like to make decisions. So, I guess I'll go with whatever happens to be easier at the time... Prepare yourself."

He calmly drew both of his zanpakuto, with a wicked smile on his face. This, this was going to be fun. "Fellow shinigami that happen to be around us, listen up. Take cover and watch from afar, you're about to get a show, and a break from your dreadfully boring lives on patrol duty!" As he was done speaking, he shunpo'd directly at his third seat, both blades in hand, ready to strike Ryohei's left side with an over the back shoulder slash with the right hand, and then go with a sharp thrusting jab from his left handed Zanpakuto directly to the midsection. Prepared to have some fun, and even rough him up to hell and back if necessary. Of course, the fight didn't even warrant release as of yet.