The Perfectionist's Storms

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This article, , is part of Bleach: Sun and Moon Chronicles, taking place during Part I of Bleach (Kenji Hiroshi). Tsukimaru Tokugawa and Kenji Hiroshi serve as the primary characters.

With the wind's currents moving, without any particular guidance. The rays of the sun that shined bright over the Tokugawa Dojo hit it's wooden makeshift, before reflecting off to another unknown location. The way the sun shine, the placement of the dojo, was all evidence of where this specific dojo was located. The. The loud chants from within the facility signified that there had been some sort of training regiment underway. To most outsiders, it would seem as if the dojo had been undergoing a special day, though in reality.. This was the average day of the dojo. Each dojo, in the different locations, all had different training methods. The dojo in the Human World would always be learning something different from the one in the Soul Society.

Inside the dojo, there were people gathering to see an event that was almost special. At least in it's own way of course.

"Tsukimaru Tokugawa, get ready! It's impossible for me to lose here. I'll show your father and everyone else, that I should become master of this Dojo." Enthusiastic and energetic, the young teen behind the voice dashed at the one who designated as Tsukimaru. A careless strike with his blade held high into the air, and clashed against the hand of Tsukimaru. Inside of the room they were in, there may have been around twelve students. Yeah fourteen exactly, counting Tsukimaru and the teen who'd clashed with him. There was a silence in the air, each student's eye bigger than the student that sat next to them.

A smirk grew on Tsukimaru's face, glaring into the unfit eyes of the teen that opposed him. "Reikoku, you are still naive. In fact, I must say, you are an idiot. My father should've left you in the Rukongai where he found you." Tsukimaru mocked Reikoku. This was something Tsukimaru did when they clashed nearly every time and because of that, Reikoku was accustomed to it. Perhaps Tsukimaru was correct. Maybe Tsukimaru's father should have left him where he was. Reikoku however, knows there was something that the man saw in him, especially if he invited him with open arms into his domain. Reikoku couldn't let whatever the man saw in him be in vein, so no matter what he trained to get better. He wanted to justify himself.

Positioning himself by taking a leap backwards Reikoku created a gap between himself and Tsukimaru. Grabbing his blade's hilt he held it downwards. "Coronate, Kaikoishi! Your times of overpowering me with your strength are over." His once average katana extended outwards turning into a long broadsword. Rather than a metal makeup, his sword, Kaikoishi, took on the properties of the earth. "I can't believe I thought I'd beat you will just but Zanpakutō in it's sealed state. Now Tsukimaru, face the terror of Kaikoishi and myself!" Rushing towards Tsukimaru yet again, he lifted his blade high into the air, and allowing it to fall down directly above Tsukimaru who'd moved out of the way with a simple side step. Reikoku wasn't done though, as Tsukimaru side stepped, Reikoku followed him with another swing, and began to continue his slashes at Tsukimaru. Each one that missed, crashed around the floor boards of their sparring room ripping into it. The students in the room all gasped, but Tsukimaru was too quick to be caught by Reikoku's sluggish slashes.

Reikoku's swings began to get quicker, catching Tsukimaru completely by surprise. "Where'd he get this speed from?!" Tsukimaru question, before a slash came flying from his left side. Quickly reaching to his own left side with his left hand, he threw his haori back grabbed the cross guard of his blade, pushed up against it and it flew from it's scabbard into his hand, blocking Reikoku's powerful blow. A thunderous clash from the two students of the dojo, and both held their blades up against the other. "I must admit, that you've increased your speed but.." Tsukimaru ducked low, twirled around his blade with his leg extended outwards, tripping Reikoku laying him flat on his back.

"You just can't be me yet." He finished, with the tip his blade pointed between the eyes of Reikoku. "You took the fact that I'm not great at Hakuda too lightly, and left yourself wide open. Pathetic." Removing his blade from between Reikoku's face, he placed it in the scabbard and began to walk off. As he turned around, the feathers from that extending from his haori shinned over a laid out Reikoku. Exiting the dojo completely, Tsukimaru now stood on the outside getting a sweet breath of air.

"Admit it," a voice exclaimed in irritation. "You've got us lost again!"

The person speaking was lean, short, and in possession of more than enough energy to do both himself and the larger black-haired man walking a little behind and to the right. His blond-coloured hair blew somewhat lazily in the breeze and a pair of bright blue eyes regarded his surroundings.

"I haven't gotten us lost!" Replied the larger man. "We're merely... ugh... exploring! Yeah, exploring. Come on or I'll leave you behind!"

The larger black-haired quickened his stride and soon opened up a noticeable gap between himself and the younger man. The latter, after looking to the right and left with a somewhat worried expression, ran to catch up.

"Kenji, wait!"

Kenji glanced back with a casual little half-smile playing at the corner of his mouth but his pace did not lessen a hair. If anything he got quicker; his blue-coloured kosode was billowing in the wind, his sleeves the only part tight against his muscled frame. The younger man, trying to catch up, tripped and pitched forward.

"Kazuma!"

Instead of eating dirt however the young man known as Kazuma instead pitched forward onto Kenji's back, who had flash-stepped backwards to ease his pupil's fall.

"You really need to be more careful." Kenji exclaimed, patting his head.

"Hey! Look over there! Is that a building?"

Kazuma ran off too quickly for Kenji to stop him. Instead he hung his head and exhaled sharply; this was usually how he got into trouble. He swore under his breathe before putting one foot past the other to follow.

"Would you slow down a bit!? And stop barging into mysterious buildings! That's just asking for trouble!"

A vibration through out Tsukimaru's entire nervous system occurred. "An unknown spiritual pressure has passed through the barrier. Now, this should be fun." Tsukimaru dashed from the front of the build, towards it's western corridor. Peering out in the distance, he could see a entity charging directly towards the dojo. Tsukimaru flash-stepped completely disappearing from his current location landing just in front of the young man.

A his physical make up became know, Tsukimaru's killer presence was given off as well. In the presence of Tsukimaru, the young man would possibly lose his breath. Tsukimaru towered over the young man, a sinister glare in his golden eyes he stated. "Why are you trespassing?"

Kenji registered the movements and narrowed his eyes and barred his teeth. "What has that little brat gotten me into this time!?" Then Kenji felt the killing intent. "Over my dead body...!"

Kazuma, however, couldn't have responded even if he'd wanted to. He couldn't explain it; one moment he was running and Kenji was scolding him, and then the next he had been driven to his knees, and hearing had deserted him! The air was so thick and heavy he couldn't breath -- and that killing intent! The only other times he had felt a presence so strong was when Kusaka got excited and went on a rampage.

"Can't... breathe...!" He exclaimed in desperate tones.

His eyes where threatening to roll back in his head.

Then it was gone. The feeling of heaviness left him just as quickly as it had first descended and when young Kazuma lifted his head to see what perhaps had caused this, his vision was filled by a royal blue kosode. There was an arm around his neck. Kazuma was staring into Kenji's chest.

"Don't move from this spot." Kenji whispered.

He cast a quick look over his shoulder. The man responsible for driving all the air from Kazuma's lungs sported solid gold eyes and white-coloured hair; very different from Kenji's black-as-coal hair and blood-red eyes. As he rose Kenji left an active Kidō around his student before turning around to face this unknown man.

"Is that how you greet kids with too much curiosity? What threat is he to you?"

Kenji's words where a mirror of his current mood: he was pissed.

Without any movements, Tsukimaru let out a slight breath. The sun's rays - rather than beams off the building - had concentrating on the golden pupils of the young man. "Can you not tell, I too am young? Maybe about, fifteen years old?" The wind currents began to slowly pick up. As they did, Tsukimaru's haori followed in their direction. "Too keep one possible of a threat, away from the dojo is my job. To lay 'em down by having their breath be effortlessly be taken away, is true perfection."

Placing his hand in his silk white hair, he brushed through it easily. Not a single tangle that resides in "nappy" hair. "Now, unless you too wish to suffer that same fate.. I suggest you both, travel back down your original path." Turning around, to make his way make into the dojo, the back of his haori became visible to the two intruders. As well as his two feather wings that were attached.

"... I don't think so." Kenji exclaimed.

He didn't normally pick a fight; not if he could help it, at any rate. He much preferred kicking back with a whiskey and his pipe to be honest. But this was different. "He would have killed Kazuma like that if it weren't for me. He couldn't breathe; he saw that, and yet he didn't stop after he was already incapacitated?" That did not sit well with Kenji Hiroshi.

"The kid hardly constitutes a threat. Age means little. All you had to do was look at his face; that expression you get when one knows that they're free, and you would have known he wasn't a threat. But tell me this: am I a threat? I'll let you be the judge of that."

Kenji injected his own reiatsu with a surge of his own killing instinct and is if in answer his eyes, usually blood-red, flashed the brightest yellow for the briefest of moments as his Hollow powers momentarily flared to the surface.

"... Kenji..." Kazuma whispered, awestruck.

Tsukimaru began to think back. Looking through his memories for the time he had encountered Amatsukami for the first time. His eyes, matched his. Though, instead a masked donned his entire face. He was mind-less. He changed from man to beast. A tool, only for the pure use of destruction.

"Ah yes, this does bring back many memories." Tsukimaru pushed his left hand back, and brought his right hand forward. "I should go ahead and stop you while I have this chance right now. One could never reach true perfection until they have complete control over their own mindset. Someone that allows themselves to become taken over by their emotions..Is nothing but a disgusting beast. Something of this caliber could never hope to achieve true perfection."

"Bakudō #61. ." Six yellow rod formed from the blankness of the atmosphere. Each, traveling at the one known as Kenji at great speeds.

"Bakudō #39. ." As Kenji snapped his fingers six oval-shaped barriers formed over the locations where the six rods would have struck, and thus impacted the barriers instead of Kenji.

He merely flash-stepped to the side away from the scene. His hand, drifting to the hilt of his Zanpakutō, hovered over the handle. The stance he favoured at present looked lazy; he was slouched, with his right foot edged forward, the left hanging back. His blood-red eyes where scanning for openings.

"Apologize to Kazuma." Kenji said at last. "Do that and we'll honour your wish and leave. Or am I too beastly for that?"

"Oi?" Tsukimaru gave off a insulting chuckle. "Oh no! You are more than just a disgusting beast. How dare you stand in front of someone, and ask for them to apologize. You're a pathetic beast! You couldn't reach perfection if it were embedded in you." Turning his back to Kenji yet again, he could sense the dukkha of Reikoku who stood on the "porch" of the dojo.

Looking at the situation at hand, Reikoku began to leap, but was stopped by Tsukimaru's hand being held out. "It's okay, Reikoku. Scum not even worthy of your sword."

"Tell me something Kenji... When did the future master of the Yuengiri allow himself to be baited so?"

The voice was in Kenji's mind and belonged to that of Kyoaku. That gruff tone, tempered by age and experience, and filled with a level of wisdom Kenji doubted he would ever come to possess, conjured up an image of the man who owned the voice. Kyoaku was lean-built with neatly styled shoulder-length black hair and red eyes; in many ways he was like Kenji, albeit his host was fiercer, more muscular. Koaku, on the other hand, looked more poised and in-control; he wasn't weighed down by the expectations of those around him, and he was in complete control of his emotions.

He's what Kenji aspired to be himself.

"Find your centre and compose yourself. Calmness... Oneness."

The tension went out of Kenji's body. His hand came away from the hilt of his daishō and he exhaled slowly, deliberately; as if he where expelling his anger and frustration.

"Thanks, Kyoaku."

The look he sent Tsukimaru was now one of calm and composure.

"I think we both got off on the wrong foot, don't you? I'm Kenji Hiroshi and that's Kazuma Nishiki."

With his spiritual pressure lowering off the chart as if the young boy was concealing himself, Tsukimaru turned to face Kenji. With his own hand out, Tsukimaru states. "I'm Tsukimaru Tokugawa. Lovely master of this dojo." With his words, followed a firm tone of elegance. Even for his young age, for one to talk as did were quite special. The slight wind currents pushed the boy's haori in the west direction and his white silk hair ruffled in the wind. It would seem nearly impossible that Tsukimaru would be so kind.

"I won't apologize nor say sorry for my action. But, I will ask you to excuse me as a am a very cautious person."

"... I can understand that." Kenji replied.

There was a slight rise to his anger; the resurgent flicker of a near-dead ember which had not quite guttered out. It didn't show on his face. He repeated Kyoaku's words in his mind and grasped his centre like a man drowning would grab at driftwood, and forced down his anger, frustration, and lingering annoyance.

The silence was broken by Kenji snapping his fingers.

The barrier surrounding Kazuma melted away and the young blonde-haired youth sprang to Kenji's side, though his posture betrayed his doubt. He made sure that most of Kenji's body was between himself and Tsukimaru.

"Kenji... There's another one." He whispered into his hand, referring to Reikoku.

"Yeah, I know." Kenji revealed. "Be calm Kazuma; this needn't end in violence."

Holding his hand out for the men to follow behind him, Tsukimaru nodded his head ever so slightly. Making a noise as if he were calling a dog. This noise wasn't for Kenji and Kazuma though, instead directed towards the fact that the saw Reikoku as a potential threat. Shaking his head side to side, he laughed once and began to walk. Hoping the men followed behind him, he would lead them into the dojo.

"Reikoku is everything but a threat." He states, placing his hand on Reikoku's shoulder.

"Good to know..." Kenji answered, before adding in an aside to Kazuma, "For now we follow." He eyed the heavens. "You know what to do."

As they walked along after Tsukimaru young Kazuma loosed a noticeably weak into the heavens; one few would class as little more than a light-show, for it was certainly not powerful enough to be a threat. As it reached the zenith of its arc and threatened to gutter out in the sky above, Kazuma closed his fist and whispered beneath his breathe; the words he said, whilst going unheard, where obviously an incantation. The sphere of red fire exploded in the heavens above like a firework!

"Kusaka and Ino won't have missed that. Now, at the very least, we have some insurance if this goes south." Kenji thought. His inner monologue was answered by Kyoaku. "Be wary, Kenji. Being cautious and prepared does not make one a coward." Kenji rolled his eyes. "Yes, thank you, mother."

Without another train of thought, Tsukimaru welcomed them into the Dojo as if it were their own home. "This is the dojo in the world of the living. We aren't allowed to release our zanpakutou in front of the humans here so that it doesn't raise any suspicion. My dad doesn't want things to get all out in the open, so he has prohibited the use of a released zanpakutou. If a human were to see us swinging around large hammers, they would know."

Kenji glanced at Kazuma briefly and exhaled sharply as he utilized forbidden Kidō to transport two bodies to his location, which lay slumped at his feet. His physical form, as well as Kazuma's, seemed to shimmer for a moment; when it ceased, he and Kazuma stood completely changed! The duo rose from the previously unresponsive bodies. Kenji was dressed in a loose-fitting denim jacket, a white under-shirt, a pair of ripped navy-blue jeans and fingerless gloves with studded knuckles. Kazuma, on the other-hand, was dressed in a form-fitting black sleeveless shirt, a pair of dark denim jeans, and a sleeveless denim jacket over the top.

"We'll go with our Gigai then." Kenji stated.

"I hate this thing." Kazuma remarked.

"Oh, can it." Kenji remarked. "And stay close." The last he said in a whisper.

With his part said Kenji quickened his stride and was soon standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Tsukimaru. Kazuma, almost running, fell in beside his teacher; he wore a worried expression, and his shoulders where noticeably slumped. Kenji grasped him by the shoulder and smiled down at him reassuringly.

As the two walked down the halls of the dojo, they would see many rooms with lots of students on the insides. Each room, teaching something different. The first room they passed, was composed of nothing more than book work. Each student within the room had a large book at their desk. The next room they passed, they could hear the teacher speaking about general rules of fighting, as well as self defense. The next, the teacher showed moves physically demonstrating on training dummies.

"In this facility, we allow each student to choose their own art of combat. If they don't like it, we allow them to change their preferences."

"Rules of battle?" Kazuma asked, turning to Kenji.

"There are none." Kenji supplied. "At least according to the Onmitsukidō, at any rate. My rules depend on the situation. It's not important. Tsukimaru, where exactly are we going?"