---

"Crap," Tony whispered at the strike. He coughed and quickly tried to keep up with the movement of the Hollow, but it was of no use; it was way quicker than anything Tony had ever faced before.

His option would be to try to read the movements of the lanky hollow. Shifting his guard multiple times, waiting anxiously for the hollow to attack him. He could suppose that running away wouldn't help so much, given that the hollow could close the distance more than he could. So, his only option was to fight off the Hollow.

His gaze became sharper, slowly getting to see the trails of the hollow, but it wasn't enough for him; he wasn't particularly good at speed, but his durability helped him survive a lot of punishment. Right there, Tony began to hear the voice again. - You'll need to be precise... Although you're clearly outspeed by the hollow... Do you have an idea who he is? -

Tony shook his head, trying to push the voice away. He needed to be focused. At last, he seemed to have a clearer image of the hollow, so he decided that it was the moment for a strike. "Triple..."

Tony gripped the handle of his Zanpakuto, "Spicy..."

"SLASH!!!" Tony rapidly slashed his blade three times, desperately trying to hit the hollow.

Sara wanted to curse out loud as she failed to lure the Hollow to the open space. Instead, it darted further into the ally. Luckily Rei was paying attention and managed to fire off a quick barrage of Kido. From where she was standing, she couldn’t see if Rei managed to get it. She did see Bakuto fall down from the roof and land in a different spot than where Rei was firing. She couldn’t get a good view of that either. Was he attacking the same Hollow Rei was, or was it a different Hollow all together? She wasn’t sure what option was worse.

Sara hissed though her teeth. She had made a bad decision when darting out into the main street. It had seemed like a good decision at the time, but it had instantly backfired. She couldn’t see what was going on and diving back in was a sure way to ensure friendly fire. Given the tight quarters, it felt like there were too many chefs in the kitchen. Was there a Japanese equivalent to the American phrase? She wasn’t sure and didn’t want to really wonder about that now. She had to figure out some way to help. Quickly, before her allies got hurt.

The same almost eerie voice filled her mind, “Steady Sara.”

Right. Adrenaline was useful for making her reflexes sharp, but it wouldn’t do for that to turn to panic. She held her Zanpakutō out in front of her, both hands in clasped around the hilt. Then she let her eyes slip close. In. Out. In out. She let her breathing steady and her racing heart calm. Was that the best thing to do? She wasn’t sure. But it was the only thing she could do right now. She didn’t allow herself long though, before opening her eyes and shifting back into a proper combat stance. She wasn’t as steady as she liked, but Sara figured that it would have to do.

---

The combination of Bakuto and Rei aiming to strike down the small, weaselly Hollow was met with some success. Though Bakuto's attempt had missed, it was only by mere inches, as the Hollow, shocked, broke it's stealth in a shrill cry before suddenly being apprehended by Rei's Kido spell, Horin. It was now bound, and a simple jab or swing from Bakuto, not even the most committed or strongest swing he can muster would be enough to end it's pitiful existence. All it could do was hope these two were boneheaded enough to not strike him down immediately.

Though Sara had cursed that they were out in the wider main street, rather than the small alleyway... It would turn out to be a decent decision, as a large serpentine presence suddenly made itself known. It's length, unfathomable in the darkness and nooks and crannies, and it's width taking up maybe half of the narrow alleyway. This thing had been slithering around her house, looking like it had been seeking a way in silently, and now it was frustrated. Just like the hollow they were just fighting, it was yet another cowardly type, not wanting to make much noise, and to hunt it's prey as quickly as possible.

In this instance, Sara's signals of danger flared up, and fortunately she had ample space to move as large fangs darted out towards her from the darkness of her own home. Even if the sharp fangs were avoided, without ample movement, it's heavy body would serve to body check anything nearby too. It was strange such a thing was so cowardly, with this sort of strength it could fight directly, yet still it held to it's cowardly creed.

---

@McNephelim Tony

---

Tony's hurried decision to strike the area in front of him turned out to be a good idea, it kept his weapon out, and though his opponent's speed was greater than his, it was not so great he could not react. The dangerous swings in front of him caused the blue hollow to halt almost abruptly, suddenly, giving Tony but a precious moment to compose himself. Of course with such speed and control, striking it down like this was not possible, one's move had to be deliberate and planned, but it's fear of his strikes also served to teach him that it might not be so resilient.

Whatever thoughts he had in this moment, he would have to put them on hold as the lanky blue demon seemed to flicker before appearing at Tony's right... Huh? Even as he turned right, or left... He felt it's presence on the other side too. Was this intense speed? Was this cloning? Or just an illusion? He had but a single moment to decide what it was and respond accordingly.

The presence on either side was real, there was no mistaking, it's hand was raised, a blade forming as it's claws combined to form a puncturing weapon, going for a thrust. Does he call it's bluff? Or does he deal with it as if both were real? Or even, another option should he think of one.

---

@LC Darius Stone

---

Darius' sudden vigilance around his house was a surprise, not only to him, with the voice in his head... But also to the presence here. This one had been watching this home carefully for a couple nights... Initially, he followed the scent of a particularly strong human here, yes, one who had a good amount of reiryoku, would certainly be quite satisfying, but seeing this man had a woman with him too, one that had been slowly rubbing off of him, and she too had begun to become more appetizing. It's greed knew few limits, rather than going in for an easy meal, it waited, wanting the two of them to be a meal that would last it months... It was also lazy... But now he saw, this man... He was a Shinigami, and one that was now alert to him. But how? This one had concealed itself perfectly! Especially on a night like this, with so much happening, it's presence could sink beneath the waves... Yet this one was sharp.

That's no good. If he remained alert each night like this, this one would simply lose it's chance to eat...

As Darius made his patrol around his house, reaching the front gate, he saw it... Something that had been there all this time, yet at the same time... Why did he not notice it before? He had actually passed it, maybe two or three times, yet he did not notice it, and why? Because it did not want to be seen. But while it was in this state, it could not move, and so was no danger to anyone but it's prey on a lonely night.

What he saw before him was a statue come to life, a body that seemed to be entirely made from the bone of a Hollow mask melted off of it, falling to the ground like ash, before a goat mask formed upon it's head. Two red eyes, and a large dragon-like jaw, with hulking arms. It sported two feathered strands on it's back like thin wings, but did not seem to be matured enough to be in use... Though, it did at least look mildly intimidating.

Without a word it raised it's arm, large hands with massive talons ready to rip through anything that came into it's path.

---

How could he have missed it? He must have passed it so many times, on tonight's patrol, and even before that, yet somehow this was the first he'd ever seen of this Hollow, lurking outside his home. He'd been about to walk right past it yet again, too, when that shell began to melt away, its arm coming up in preparation for what surely would have been a brutal, if not outright lethal ambush. If Ouga's text and his own ominous dream hadn't put him in such a state of paranoid vigilance, he doubted he would have felt the thing's spiritual pressure even when it did move... But as it was, he was just on edge enough to feel it, his stride halting just a moment before he might have strolled right into its reach. He tried to make it seem like chance, avoiding looking directly at the creature, simply straightening up and yawning, hands pressed to the small of his back so he could bend backwards, cracking his back noisily. Just a pause in his patrol, a matter of happenstance.

He hoped that was what it would believe, at least, even as the action brought his hand closer to the hilt of his zanpakuto. The key to any good ambush, after all, was surprise, especially when trying to reverse one. He made a point of staying loose, leaning one way, then the other, as if to stretch. Just as he started to let his hands drop again, weight shifting to resume his walk, he finally let his eyes snap to the waiting Hollow. One smooth, precise motion, his only chance to catch an ambush predator off guard; That simple step becoming a lunge, the drop of his hand instead drawing his zanpakuto from its sheath, bringing it up and out in a thrust meant to take the lurking Hollow right in the center of that goat-like mask. It wasn't a complex attack, nor even a particularly fast one, but it was well aimed and smoothly executed. Darius could only hope that would be enough to, at the very least, put the monster onto the defensive, and take the momentum of the fight early, even if it weren't enough to kill it outright.

Banking that it wouldn't be, he focused his reiryoku even as he struck out, weaving the first Kido he'd learned to ward against counterattack. A lattice of reishi, laid across his body like chainmail; Kōshi. It was weaker than it could be, woven fast and without incantation or expression, but it should have been enough to save him from any unexpected counterstrikes.

Sara heard Bakuto’s warning and saw the Hollow emerge at roughly the same time. Well, close enough that it counted as the same time. For a brief moment, her mind descended into wordless, panicked screaming before another adrenaline rush cleared her mind and had her body moving before her ming could process that it was moving. She fell backwards into a flip with just enough Reiryoku in it that it cast her slightly further back than a normal flip would. That gave her enough time to get up and take a few precious seconds to come up with a plan. It wasn’t much of a plan, but it was a plan. Without thinking about why she was doing it the way she was about to do it, Sara placed two of her fingers on the back of her Zanpakutō’s blade just past the hilt.

Then she slid her fingers down the steel with almost cold fury in her voice, “Hadō Byakurai.”

The shocking lightning of the Kidō raced down her blade, engulfing it in electricity before blasting towards the Hollow. Sara had chosen the old spell, rather than the one that she had learned earlier in the day because she had better control of this one. Running it down her Zanpakutō seemed to help with its accuracy, but that was probably the placebo effect. She didn’t want to hurt Bakuto, who was rushing towards the Hollow. She had already hurt the other woman, and even mildly, that had been unacceptable. Still, she had to do something with a Hollow that size heading towards her. Vaguely, in the back of her mind, that didn’t really register, there was relief that she had gotten to a space with more room. If that Hollow had decided to stay in the alley, there would be no room to fight. Now there was room to move.

She could also hear the voice in her head, a steady chant, like counting for dancing, “One. Two. Three. Four. One. Two. Three. Four.”

---

"Shit."

Tony's eyes shifted from one hollow to another, not knowing which one was the real one, or if they were some sort of clone. Tony quickly attempted to block the thrust. Before he could fully block it, the voice struck again, this time harder. - You've been tricked by the hollow... don't try to attack, you'll only make it worse. -

Tony's head was killing him, briefly losing his zanpakuto's grip, but he managed to stay on his feet. He shouldn't let that voice affect him. Although he finds this extremely interesting, perhaps too interesting.

"One last time."

Tony was going to attempt one last Tsubame Gaeshi, but he was going to try it differently; he knew that if he didn't strike both, he would be met with horrible consequences. So he picked up power and jumped high.

"Double Spicy..."

He raised his sword, preparing his strike, breathing out to push all of his doubt away.

"SLASH!!!"

He falsely slashed the two hollow ones twice, but in the last, stronger strike, he truly struck the hollow and then spun in the air and connected another slash on the hollow.

"TWIN EDITION!!!"

@LadyAnnaLee@BladeSS4@Sho Minazuki

---

Rei looked around her, Bakuto's the only one so far.

Seeing how things as is, she figured, returning the earnest favor.

Pound for pound, blow for blow, as is for Kido, Rei observed for the time being as how things panned out. Catching them like she used to, isn't going to work, it's as if they're multiplying, or they're just that many.

She fired. "Sho!" Thrice.

After that. "Byakurai!" Assistive follow up to what Sara has thrown.

Rei found the situation to be pesky, frustrated to what's happening, she remained calm to try and analyze the situation.

She gets into stance, preparing another Sho.

---

The arrival of a new Hollow was a surprise, but one that was met with. Sara evading backwards and Bakuto running in the way to guard her against the attack. Sara was most certainly safe for this moment, while Bakuto attempted to thrust his blade into it's open mouth. It was a foolhardy move, after all he was putting part of himself into it's jaws, and he would discover this rather quickly as the moment his arm crested past it's white teeth, it would chomp right down on his arm. The bones in his shoulder would feel themselves being squeezed and pulled. To his fortune, this would only last mere moments as Sara and Rei blasted it with Kido, but it had done some damage to his dominant sword arm.

The Hollow reeled a little, pulling back away, angling it's head down to try and hide the mask on the underbelly, it's true face. It began to slither side to side, seeing between the three combatants, Bakuto after his move was now the weakest link, and dove straight for him, aiming to use it's head to batter him quickly.

---

@McNephelim Tony

---

It was an inspired choice to go up and into the air to avoid the attack, giving Tony both a vantage point, and avoiding both attacks wholesale. The timing of his plan was a little off however, as the after image would fade as soon as it finished the thrust, dashing through at the same time as the real one, a blue flash would follow as it adjusted it's bladed arm to strike up into the air. Steel met bone-like steel as the Hollow met each blow with it's own blade before avoiding the last one, dashing away quickly, recognizing that the weight of Tony's final swing was greater, given more strength as he was coming from the air.

The hollow stood a little ways away, maybe around several to a dozen feet, three or so blade's lengths away. It looked at Tony carefully, tilting it's head slightly, quickly, it appeared to laugh as it opened it's mouth, no more than a few inches apart, making a rattling noise as it did. It was difficult to understand but it appeared as if it was enjoying itself... Was it impressed that Tony managed to avoid being skewered? Or perhaps it simply liked to fight? Whatever the case may be, it seemed to not attack, it's gestures in fact implied it wanted Tony to approach this time. If Tony took too long, the curious blue Hollow would even raise it's untransformed arm to beckon with it's hand, a rattling laugh following.

---

@LC Darius Stone

---

The opponent before Darius was a lumbering beast, large, powerful, and pretty soon as Darius would feel it... Heavy. The next thing he would feel would be akin to a truck striking his side, the entirety of the left side of his body would feel as if it was flattened against a wall and flung across the asphalt. However, he was not without success of his own, the strike he attempted in this short moment struck true, however without proper form and power, it found itself shallow. The mask cracked a tiny chip, the large hollow barely registering the attack, slowly turning it's head towards Darius, but doing no more. No follow up, just... Acknowledgement.

The Kido spell he employed, Koshi, ensured he would be better for it, though it was patchwork, the entire side of his body might be fractured at best, numbing dull pain radiating through his arm and ribs at worst. Yet it prevented him from taking the attack wholesale. Though despite the size and power of that attack it felt more like it pushed him than struck him too. A half measure for offense would be too shallow for this one, but a half measure for defense would be too weak to withstand more than a few more attacks too. The fortunate thing is that he was up against a Hollow that was uniquely... Not in a hurry. He had time to decide.

Sara’s eyes went impossibly wide as she watched Bakuto do something truly idiotic. She knew that he was brash, rash, and bordered the line between confident and arrogant, but hadn’t thought he was truly stupid! Yet that was the only explanation she could come with for why he would stick his arm down a Hollow’s throat! Had she ever done something so mind-blowingly stupid? How could she prevent herself from doing something so bafflingly idiotic in the future. He really was lucky that both her and the other woman’s Kido had hit the monster to pull it off him. As it was, Sara did not envy that arm injury. It would take massive about of healing that no one in this battle had the skills or time to do.

The voice again, “Sara! Worry about idiots later! Focus please!”

She gave her head a quick shake, her voice just a little bit shaky, “Right! Focus!"

She tried to take a more objective look at the battle. The snake-like Hollow was chasing after Bakuto. Was it intelligent that it knew that Bakuto was the weakest link now, or just instincts? Did it matter? Sara couldn’t really see the other woman from where she was for the moment. Sara herself almost fired off another offensive Kido, before remembering just a few moments before when all her Byakurai hadn’t done any real damage. It had just managed to get the Hollow off Bakuto. It hadn’t even managed to get Bakuto free of its attention. One teammate was injured, none of them had much practice working together, and this Hollow was certainly different from most other Hollows she had seen before. They needed a knew plan than just attacking all out. But she could only think of one.

That decision made she held her Zanpakutō in a slash across her body with her palm spread out behind the blade, “Bado Hainawa!” As the Kido raced out, she hoped it caught the Hollow and that she was strong enough to pin it down just a moment. She then called out, “Someone push their emergency button!”

---

For such a lumbering beast of a thing, the Hollow was quick enough to hit him, and hit him hard. Darius couldn't even muster the wind to yell in pain as his attempt at reversing the ambush was thwarted, his kido only barely saving him from what might have otherwise been a crippling counterattack. He was grateful harm to his spirit form wouldn't translate to his real body, in that moment, slamming into a nearby fence with enough force to shatter it, under normal circumstances. Instead, in his spirit form, the fence served as immovable, making it all the worse to slam into. Pain radiated out from his side, and while he could move his arm, it was hardly pleasant. Even as the pain registered, he was rolling with the impact, stumbling back onto his feet on the other side of the fence, blade up to defend against... Nothing? No followup attack, no brutal mauling while he was down- Only an almost patient stare, as if this thing were content to wait for him to come to it.

He might have tried to walk away, and test just how patient it was, if there weren't other people to worry about. Focusing, he could feel surges and flashes of spirit pressure from all over town- Nobody else would be coming to help, if they were all busy... And if he didn't deal with this thing now, there would be no going to help the others. More than enough reason to face it down himself. He'd always had an easier time finding the steel in his spine when it was other people he needed to worry over. Blowing out a steadying breath, he lowered himself for a more explosive start, and lunged once more, this time with a solid plan in mind. A series of fast, harassing thrusts with his short blade, a constant forward momentum meant to put the Hollow on the defensive, keep it retreating while he put his relatively smaller frame to work dodging under any return strikes- All for the goal of buying time, as he concentrated reiatsu into his hands, more, more- compressing it down in the manner Ouga had shown him until he was ready.

Then, feinting at the creature's mask once again, he instead dropped low, driving both his fists forward into it's torso with a roar of effort- unleashing the gathered energy in a violent Shoushouhou. Enough force, he hoped, to send even this lumbering brute flying back into the nearest building. He followed after it with a leap, zanpakuto held high, ready to drive the point down into the Hollow's mask while it was down. The pain from that first strike, though, was a telling thing. It made him slow, made him cringe with the exertion- Left him open, even as he pushed the assault.

---

"Hey, I'm not coming closer at any given time!!" Tony shouted, pointing his sword at the hollow. He was sure that it was a trap, and he didn't want to risk it all.

"And what do you find so funny? Is it the attack name? Or perhaps, you're just an idiot!!" Tony kept saying, unconsciously approaching the hollow some inches. And then some more.

"C'mon, Stop. LAUGHING!!" Tony raised his zanpakuto and slammed it into the ground in front of the hollow. He then proceeded to attempt a desperate slash to the chest of the hollow, moving with a mixture of anger and desperation.

---

Rei is baffled that one way or another, the Hollow just had so much tricks up its sleeve, it's like one of those unforeseen factors in a corporate work as a career woman/salaried worker.

If this was based on Zodiac signs and the Hollow being a person, it'd definitely be born in the year of the snake. Sighing out of frustration, Rei calmly watched to anticipate its movements despite her Team's combined efforts, she just let things pan out. That being said, Rei got herself to assume the Kenobi stance with her Wakizashi-themed Zanpakuto.

'I have to keep a calm mind to maintain high ground.'

"Bakudō #9: Horin!" For once, end this shit.

---

He soared into the air as the combined efforts of Rei and Sara bound the serpent Hollow in it's place, preventing it from attempting to strike or move away from his incoming strike. The tendrils of gold and orange light wrapped around it, then either anchoring themselves against the environment or in the hands of the users. The two Kido users would find themselves stumbling a bit as the two of them wrestled with the enormous hollow struggling against it's fate. With a cry fit for a warrior, Bakuto coming down with the moon's light behind him, and his one good arm exerting as much force as it could come crashing down. A silver streak was seen as he landed the blow, dust blowing up into the air and then...

It vibrated and pulsed like a wall of energy, as Bakuto's blade would instead of meeting obsidian flesh, came into contact with a force field of some sort. The moment of shock would accelerate Bakuto's awareness to a point where he would notice it. He could not cut it. His blade as much as he pushed while suspended in the air would not push through, then in a sudden movement the black serpent coiled and spun around, breaking away the two binding Kido spells applied to it. The subsequent movement sending Bakuto flying back... It had a hidden ability? As Bakuto's vision began to fade, he spotted it... The mask on it's underside, it's eyes were glowing brightly as if it was active... And then, darkness.

---

His vision and sense of hearing was a barrage of flashes of blue and silver, clashing and causing sparks, the sound of steel smashing against steel ringing in his ears enough to drown out his sense of hearing and with each strike the blue hollow before him parried, it seemed to laugh, harder and harder. Cackling, taunting, even as Tony inevitably slipped up and showed wide openings, the Hollow did not take them. Was it just playing with him? Assuredly it was doing that, but why? Hollows were mindless, or at least... Most Shinigami understood this, until they would meet stronger, more intelligent ones yet even then... There was not a single one known to taunt their enemies. Only to lure them in, yet despite how often it could have done it, striking down an angry Tony, it did not do it, enjoying and relishing in the battle.

And then... It was satisfied. One moment Tony was swinging, and the other his arms and legs began to falter, looking down he saw blood, leaking from his shoulder and onto the asphalt. The strike was severe, causing a great deal of bleeding as it pooled up enough that he could see his own reflection in it and then... His vision began to darken as he fell to his knees. The blood he gazed into... Appeared to pull him in.

---

He was beginning to understand it, the right idea so to speak. Focusing on high offense, he began to see results as the Hakuda technique Shoushouhou managed to make the lumbering Hollow stumble back, it's heavy, lazy body hitting against the wall behind it, causing a crater, before he would attempt to put in a finishing blow with his zanpakuto. However, while it was lazy, it was not one to ignore a threat to it's own life, as it's heavy arm swat Darius right out of the air. You wouldn't know it from how he went tumbling and bouncing against the asphalt, but he was a large, well-built man, military trained and possessed of a powerful physique... Yet against a supernatural threat, he began to see the limits of what made sense for humans. Eventually, he could defeat this thing, of course, it was not particularly... Proactive, the injury he just sustained was not so bad he could not continue fighting, a bit of focus and he could try something new but then... The sound of a door, opening.

It was not particularly loud, but because of where he was, Darius was particularly keen of hearing for it. It was the door of his house. His wife, had stepped outside, she was... Looking around. Did she hear the fighting? Was it the crash against the wall earlier that had awoken her? No, none of that mattered. The Hollow spotted her, and was beginning to turn it's body towards her. With all of his might Darius would stand, the Hollow raising it's arm, it appeared to intend to strike or grab her as she stepped forward curiously. Her eyes widened as a large, black figure although blurred came into view. Moments after, another black-cloaked figure would enter her view, and for a moment she recognized that backside before it became blurry again... "Darius...?"

Injured, and forced to defend to love of his life, the Hollow before him would prepare for what would inevitably be a fatal or near fatal blow. He knew that with what it was able to do before, he could not stand before it, but he had to... He had to... And so he braced himself, his vision would begin to glaze, and time felt like it would stop.

---

"Such determination, and yet that alone was not enough. Young Bakuto... Hm, this is perhaps the first time you've heard my voice isn't it?" A beautiful visage of a sea of clouds surrounded the young boy, save for an old shrine in front of him, as well as what appeared to be a road leading up to the peak of a mountain. There was a particularly... Zen feeling to all of this, the stormy sea that was Bakuto's hot-headed heart felt calmer here. He would turn around and see another shrine, although this one seemed to be possessed of a statue of a black dragon.

"Oh him, he hasn't woken up yet", the voice... He looked around, to see a shining white dragon, as it descended from the sky to perch upon the shrine that was in front of him initially. "So, you saw it didn't you, a target... Out of your reach"

----------------------------------------------------

"Hahahhahaha! Ahahahahahahaha", a cacophonous laugh echoed and rang in Tony's eardrums as he appeared to groan getting up from the ground. His hand would push against the rocky ground, it was warm... Or rather, everywhere around him felt warm. He looked around, the very visage of hellfire and brimstone. Even the air here felt hostile, each breath would test his grit and determination to breathe. It smelled of stone and fire and charcoal, and as he managed to stand up, the roaring plume of fire that erupted next to the stone platform he was on assaulted him with a wave of heat. He saw sitting on an obsidian throne a figure in a black jacket and dark hair...

"Come on, you gotta admit it was a liiiittle funny. Really shouldn't take so little to rattle ya kid", he leaned back in the throne and nonchalantly dropped it. "Anyway welcome to hell, you're dead"

----------------------------------------------------

"A valiant stand", the voice... It was clear. It still rang like great bells yet it's clarity was not muffled. The moment Darius had blinked he was back here again... A battlefield, a drawbridge, a great, stalwart fort though battered by seige weaponry still stood strong and tall... And at the center of the bridge, a powerful, imposing knight, clad in thick steel armor, holding a great shield. The sound of war raged behind him, the war cries of soldiers who were not there rang out constantly like a phantom of the past, the craters and explosions and the sounds of sword and steel clashing, drawing blood, it was much clearer this time. And the knight that stood at the bridge looked at him.

"Yet despite your valor that body you possess is not enough... Not yet at least", the wind seemed to shift, the wildflowers and distant trees sway with it, and the sounds of war began to quieten. Quieten enough that he could hear this knight before him more clearly... "Your soul cries for it does it not, a grit to match your own valor"

---

"Remember that desire that will, your determination was not insufficient. Focus, and anything can be yours", the white dragon's eyes flashed with power and lightning as a storm brewed around it, the sound of thunder echoed around Bakuto.

"So... That makes this the perfect opportunity for you. How would you like to become a demon?" The man in black stood up, his form seemed to shift for a moment, a demonic visage with horns and wings before he turned back to his usual form, like a glimpse of what he was offering to Tony.

"Then turn and face it! Only in the face of adversity, do you know what it is you risk!" Inevitably, Darius would turn around, the battlefield that had previously been at his back suddenly roared to life again. The unseen phantoms of the soldiers began to come into view, banners rose up in the horizon...

---

For the second time of the night, Darius had been sent flying back like a sandbag, tumbling across the street, zanpakuto braced against his forearm if only to keep it from impaling him in that wild sprawl. He didn't even get the comfort of rolling for the last few feet, his momentum slowed just enough to turn the final stretch into a slide that left his arms and knees with a nasty case of road rash. He was left huddled over, groaning and questioning the wisdom of getting back up for round three. He wanted to lap back down and take a nap, more than anything else; But there were people here more important than his rest, people to protect, no matter how badly he got thrashed in the process. He was just struggling to his knees when he heard the door, gaze snapping around, wide with concern, to behold his wife stepping outside.

She looked for him... And the Hollow looked at her. Pain didn't matter. Stiffness in his joints, just an inconvenience, to be ignored, pushed through, as he got his legs back under him. He didn't understand how he covered the the gap to put himself between the Hollow's rising arm and the woman who held his heart so close- A flash of movement, a blur as he raised his zanpakuto in a feeble defense. Steadfast, in the face of crushing power.

Then time crawled, and he was brought somewhere else, to hear that voice like bells once more, resonating in his bones. Words spoken, in this strange world of phantom battle- And the words that hadn't been spoken yet, filling his mind with a certainty of purpose, a surety of correctness. How had he not heard this knight before, when it shouted so loudly, proclaimed itself, ready to take up arms in defense, eternal? Turning to face the phantoms that charged the bridge, he raised his arm, the world flickering around him. A charging battleline- A rearing Hollow. Fields, a bridge- His own front porch. Two battles, and a single purpose.

We fight as one... Stand firm before the tide, KENGOUOU!

That plane of his soul faded entirely, as the real world snapped back into sharp focus, time lurching back into proper pace. The Hollow's arm came down with force fit to crush buildings, and with the peal of a great bell, met a wall it couldn't so much as scratch. Rebounding back with enough force to make it stumble, the Hollow was confronted by the upraised shield of Kengouou, a vast ripple of light and spirit energy radiating out from the point of impact, fading with the thunderous ring of the bell. The sidewalk had crumbled under Darius' feet, a small crater in his lawn from the strike that had driven him downwards, but his legs didn't fold, his back didn't shatter. He felt strong enough to tackle a tank, sturdy enough to survive one's blast...

And pissed enough to rip one apart.

He followed the Hollow's backwards stumble at a slow walk, jaw set, shield held forward and ready. One more flailing strike, and another, taken against the face of Kengouou, sent reeling back each time, before he stepped in close to drive the top edge of the shield up under the Hollow's chin, an uppercut like a cannon blast to force the thing to look to the sky. Darius leaped after it, feeling as if he could float there, for a moment, outlined by the roof of his home, the starry sky beyond it- A domain to protect, as he brought the angled point of Kengouou's base down on the Hollow's upraised mask, intent on driving its skull down into the pavement and seeing the damned creature dissolve into nothing.

Once the deed was done, he stood straight, letting his head loll back, breath rising above him in silvery mist as he let it out in a long sigh. He felt... Good. He was overflowing with Reiryoku, the aches and pains of his injuries seeping away while strength flooded him, all pouring into that heavy silver shield on his arm and back again, a self feeding loop. He knew, the way he had known that name, that he would stand out like a beacon now, to anything with the sensitivity to feel that spiritual pressure. All the better, to keep the attention of things on him, and off of his companions.

Slowly, he let his head roll to lay his eyes on Aiko. She had called his name... Could she see him, like this? Pick him out from the blurs and shadows? He favored her with an almost guilty smile, shoulders rising in a shrug, whether she could see and hear him or not.

"Sorry, Aiko. Retirement just didn't suit me, I guess."

Sara managed to get some distance between here and the Hollow as Bakuto’s reckless actions gave her a chance to drop her Kido and move away. Since no one else seemed inclined to follow what she that was a perfectly reasonable request to push the emergency button she reached into the sash on her waist to pull out her Soul Pager. Only to stop as Bakuto suddenly froze. What was that idiot doing now!? Did anyone have any sense? Did she have any sense? Questions for another time. Swearing, Sara shoved her Soul Pager back into her uniform and moved to defend her teammate.

Only to stop as the man screamed out what sounded like a name. Sara’s eyes went impossibly wide as the shape of his Zanpakutō changed. Well, that was interesting. She had heard about this, Shi Kai, at training earlier in the day. She was under the impression that it was a rare thing, and if they did get Shi Kai, it would be a long time coming. Then again, they weren’t Shinigami, not really. They were Substitutes and she had a slightly annoying feeling that Substitutes were a newish sort of thing. Who knew how things really worked.

“SARA!”

She cursed again as she used just a pinch of Reiryoku to increase her dodging speed to get out of the way of Bakuto’s reckless and wild fighting style. The spear, which had a specific name, Sara just couldn’t think of it at the moment, seemed like the perfect weapon for Bakuto. Or maybe she was imagining things or seeing things that weren’t quite there. It was just Bakuto was … brash. Maybe aggressive was a better word. He went all out, staying on the offensive, not really giving much thought to defense. A spear seemed fitting. Especially a spear that appeared to be collecting energy somehow. Then the spear tip started to rotate.

Sara whispered to herself, “A spear that turns into a drill. Right. That makes complete sense.

“SARA!”

Her Zanpakutō’s second warning came just in time for her to dive to the ground away from the fight that Bakuto had unwittingly monopolized. There was a clash of some loud noise, and Sara didn’t see clearly what was happening. You know what. Bakuto could have the Hollow. He could have the whole damn fight. He actually seemed to have this covered. If the Hollow somehow survived that attack she would be greatly surprised. This was Shi Kai? Did she want it? Each Shi Kai was unique, right? What exactly was Shi Kai? Was there a way to get a better answer than what they had been told yesterday?

---

"I died? Aw man... I had so many things to do..." Tony falsely lamented, before smirking at the sight of this black-clothed individual briefly flashing a power he was certain had never been seen by him, "Is it permanent? I become a demon forever and ever?"

He turned to see the whole hellscape around him, sighing before turning back once more. "Whatever, I just want to finish this weird chapter of my life. Give it to me... I'm just tired, and I'm certainly getting a bit hungry."

Tony walked closer to the spirit, extending his hand forward and pointing at him, "Let's get this thing spicy!!"

Tony's body began to shine red, soon becoming a sphere of light which erupted towards the roof of the hellscape. Inside the light, Tony felt his body tingling with energy and power, though he shouldn't get blinded by this feeling; he needed to master it.

Tony raised a hand and snapped his fingers, prompting the light to disipate. Tony had changed his shinigami clothes, which had become overall less baggy, with shorter sleeves. Also, the once white parts of his clothing had turned red, all of this alongside a red shine in his eyes.

"Let's get this serious!!"

"Well, well, well, enjoy being a demon then."

The Hellscape crumbled around Tony, the shinigami spirit smiling as everything around him faded, returning to the street where Tony once was, facing the hollow once again.

"Super Spicy Lord... I mean, Kouennou!!!"

Tony got into a fighting position, pointing his blade, now a massive longsword with a heavy double-edged blade. "Bring it on!!"