Form I: Chūishiki

The Chūishiki (中位式, Medium Style) was the first form of Zanjutsu combat which was initially taught by all three spiritual realms, specifically Soul Society, Horiwari and Heisekai. Following the events of The Collapse the only place one could study this form was the Reikai, which housed Kentaro Hiroshi's new Shinō Academy, which was ran by Head-Instructor Shiju Shūdō and his Second Ashido Kanō.

Description and Application
The main opening stance of Form I is Kenji's favoured stance regardless of the form he uses, appearing as a lazy posture with the blade angled away from the body slightly and pointing down. Another, favoured by Kentaro years before The Collapse, featured a reverse-right-handed-grip. The form is stylized as the "Most balanced of all forms" and is typically the first style taught to aspiring students, with a clear focus on balance. The basic goal of Form I is the creation of a solid foundation with which the practitioner can build upon further through training and experience, leading to their own unique style. All the advanced styles developed by Kenji and Kentaro arose from Form I techniques and principals, specifically the Niten form created by Kentaro.

The form is practised by countless individuals though Kenji, Sanada and Shiju stand out as masters of the style, with subtle differences between each individual that sets their style apart from others. Hitsugaya was yet another noteworthy practitioner, as was Kentaro Hiroshi. At its core Form I was based on an equilibrium between strength, speed, offence and defence, and was utilized predominately as a means of building a solid foundation; Kenji and Kusaka retaught its basic use to Hitsugaya following the theft of his Bankai, and the effectiveness was immediately made apparent through the zombified Hitsugaya's rapid defeat of both and, as well as the revived. A skilled practitioner was at their home in either attack or defence, and where renowned for their versatility on the battlefield.

Practitioners
Kenji utilizes a dual-bladed variant with a "wait-them-out" philosophy built on quick counter-strokes, and tends to attack with his left whilst defending with his right, though he is ambidextrous. Sanada practised Form I exclusively, having mastered it to its highest level, utilizing clever feints and hit-and-run tactics to hold his own against swordsman with significantly more physical strength than he; this included Dastan Shiba and Averian. Shiju's personal style was compared to Form I more than any other style; with Kenji describing him as being "Fit to do scary things with a Zanpakutō". Shiju utilized the articulation points in the wrist to subtlety alter the angle of his blade-work, and was fit to change his method of attack from slash to lunge in a heartbeat. This enabled him to overwhelm his opposition with a bare minimum of effort. Hitsugaya used Form I to rebuild his foundation, and quickly integrated its teachings in order to mix his ice-generation abilities with Hakuda.

Techniques

 * Vanishing Slash: a riposte manoeuvre used by Sanada to tag Kenji during their battle, though the way in which Sanada performed it was unconventional; he admitted that Kenji should have been able to avoid it.

Behind the Scenes

 * The author, Kenji-Taichō, would like to accredit Another Poetic Spartan for helping to construct what is written here.


 * The author, Kenji-Taichō, would also like to credit the various individuals involved with Star Wars related works, which inspired most of this article.

Trivia

 * Kenji was known to teach the style to his students through a combination of demonstration and diagrams drew on a chalk-board, the latter of which often depicted himself defeating Van Satonaka.


 * had an opposing style, dubbed Form I: Honpou, which was utilized by the swordsman Kei Yume. It was known as the most basic of his "Seven Faces" style, and was likewise utilized by the Yume Class, amongst others.