Hollow Kata

Hollow Kata (虚型 (ホロウ·カタ), Horō Kata; literally "Form of the Hollows") is a style that is said to personify the most raw and underlying basis of the unarmed craft of the. Though its name suggests that it is a specific method of, it actually embodies the very core of combat which is reflected in all of the martial art disciplines; including , , and even the method in which  is. The secrets behind this style are held by the "Abysmal Fist" of.

Overview
It is said that the origin of martial arts came from a necessity for mortals to fend off the animals in the wilderness; essentially, they were born from an instinct to survive. In order to compensate for their fragile constitution and lack of vicious appendages such as fangs or claws, they had to hone their physical abilities, and in one way of doing this, they would take to studying the movements of the beasts in order to harness some degree of their ferocity. The same origin can be cited for the as well as other, as their natural enemy since the beginning has always been the. In this sense, the Hollow Kata has been regarded as perhaps the most raw representation of Hakuda's ancestry and overall intentions, which were to fight as the Hollows do in order to defeat them.

created by the first "Abysmal Fist" of, the Hollow Kata focuses on emptying one's heart of the "self" in order to draw in and personify the essence of Hollows. The first step in this would be to mimic how Hollows fight. Rather than studying any form of refined technique, Hollow Kata is initially unkempt and sloppily aggressive, forgoing form for aggressive combat. In this sense, the goal would be to naturally attune one's reiatsu to an aggressive wavelength. Instinctively, the reiatsu would behave for the sole purpose of survival and slaying one's prey, meaning that it would slowly develop into a more dense and darkly powerful tone. Eventually, the martial artist would reach a point where their reiatsu becomes much more dense and thick, almost to the point where it can suffocate others around them. Without even intending to, reiatsu would be released at moments of impact during strikes, surrounding the martial artist as a powerful aura. Over time, they would even learn to wield their reiatsu in more creative ways, such as forming claws out of them to further mimic Hollows or perhaps even sending off massive waves of spiritual pressure with the mere movement of the hand.

Of course, that is but the beginning. The true secret of Hollow Kata is that, once a martial artist moves beyond the stage of mere mimicry, they can actually begin to embody and personify a Hollow as if it were their own power; essentially invoking something very similar to "hollowfication" (虚(ホロウ)化, Horōka; literally "Hollow Transformation"). In order for a martial artist to reach this point, they must have spent a great deal of time among Hollows in order to truly personify their purest nature. They are able to draw upon a mask which covers their face and causes their spiritual pressure to become all the more dense and ferocious, which demonstrates the principles of in that one embodies the concept in which they are resonating with. Since it is actually not a transformation but simply a transient form taken on when one utilizes Hollow Kata, the mask may sometimes form on its own without its user intending for it to appear, while those that have mastered Hollow Kata generally bring it out by swiping at their face or simply making some form of gesture unique to themselves.

Applications
It is possible for a practitioner of Hollow Kata to employ certain techniques unique to Hollows through their mimicry. Their strikes can release powerful bursts of reiatsu very similar to the, even to the point where a faint discharge surrounds their hands after attacking. It is possible for them to even utilize as well in various ways.