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 Posted: Wed Sep 05, 2007 6:48 pm
"d'Alkirk? I haven't actually had the opportunity to assign him a rank yet, I've been so busy," the Commander-General admitted, though he was only slightly embarrassed. It was true that his station kept him busy a vast majority of the day every single day. It was only because he had finished several pressing matters that he rewarded himself (and helped ease the situation for Saburo) with this trip to his old division. "He is a formidable fighter, though, so you have my permission. I will have the 10th redraw their defense strategies while you are away in order to compensate."
There was little to say past giving his assent to the captain of the 6th. He knew that if it was at all possible for his mission to be a success, that Kuchiki would see it done. However, that wasn't to say he could simply expect things to go smoothly. As he knew all-too-well, things were never that easy when dealing with a madman of Ghaleon's caliber. Ukitake's smile slipped a little as his mind drifted towards his knowledge of the Magic Emperor. Nothing scared Jyuushirou like the thought of what might happen if Ghaleon were ever truly provoked to the point of an all-out assault...for not even he nor the other leaders of the Resistance could hold a candle to the might of that man.
'He is truly capable of anything...benevolence of the highest order, or cruelty that is without equal...and that is what I cannot bear. We must restore order...we must restore peace.'
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Posted: Wed Sep 05, 2007 6:53 pm
Saburo watched the antics of the metal-clad hero with an amused grin on his face until he crashed into the desk and sent papers flying then the young Captain could no longer contain himself, laughing heartily. That was.. until he noticed a liquid seeping out of the collapsed desk then he dropped to his knees and started crying. Pulling broken pieces of Sake bottles out of the crumbled desk, he cried out, "They were so young! Why did they have to die?! They never hurt anyone!" Then Saburo pauses and adds, "Well, not directly..." Realizing he was still in the company of two other Captains, Saburo quickly regains his composure takes the paper from Byakuya, restarting his work from before.
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Posted: Wed Sep 05, 2007 7:51 pm
Byakuya waited silently then, assured that everything would be completed, spoke. "I will wait at the spirit gate. You need only notify me when you have completed all that is necessary." That said, the captain of the 6th turned and left the room quietly as he had come.
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Posted: Wed Sep 05, 2007 7:56 pm
With Byakuya gone, Saburo relaxes a little more and looks up from his work to Captain Ukitake with an apologetic look on his face, "I'm sorry about my actions earlier, sir. I don't know why but I just can't feel comfortable around him, and... I hadn't expected to see you so soon.. despite my reaction, I'm actually glad you're here." Sighing, the young Captain pauses his pen and looks around at the mess. "You know, I'm still surprised you let me succeed you, sometimes I think the other captains were right about my abilities." Saburo admits.
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Posted: Wed Sep 05, 2007 8:16 pm
"There's no need to be so formal Saburo-san," the polite but friendly captain assured his colleague, a genuine smile on his pale lips. "Sometimes, I believe, everyone needs to relax and enjoy themselves. Even Kuchiki-taichou cannot remain focused forever. 'A single-minded dedication to one's profession does not a good captain make.' I believe there is some truth to that statement, don't you?" The Commander-General suggested it, knowing Musashibo to be quite the opposite of that type of captain. It wasn't unlike another beloved captain he knew, with whom he knew the Captain of the 13th would have definitely got along.
Jyuushirou didn't wait for a response to his rhetorical question, instead continuing on a bit whilst looking towards the nearby window. "As simply as the tides ebb and flow, so does a man's strength. The balance of things can never be undone, and it is unnatural to try. Working to surpass the limits of what is possible is not unnatural...but forcing it all at once can result in disaster..." The sickly captain's voice trailed into a small but violent cough that left the smallest trickle of blood running from the corner of his mouth. With a slightly apologetic smile he wiped the stream away.
"Forgive me, I am not a pleasant sight today," he said simply, before continuing on with a wider smile than before. "What I am saying is that to be effective in our duties, we must find balance in our lives. Our jobs are necessary, as are recreation, relaxation, and friendship. I believe you are strong in each of these areas, Saburo-san. Don't you think?"
Jyuushirou knew that no matter his faults, Musashibo was without question a warrior with Captain level skill. And to him, such things as paperwork were far less important than one might have believed. Nevertheless, he could see through the faults to the potential within. Ukitake had no doubt he had made the right choice, even now.
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Posted: Fri Sep 14, 2007 10:31 am
For a moment, Captain Ukitake's words had the low born Saburo a little dumbfounded until they were explained, then the young Captain lets out a short laugh and scratches his head, replying, "Some might think I spend a bit too much time in the relaxation and recreation aspects, you know? I've just been kinda busy lately, as you know." Feeling a bit more relaxed now, Saburo finally let slip his famous wolf like grin, a true sign he is content. "So, before we get down to the business of Captain Kuchiki's departure, would you like a drink, Captain?" Even though his desk supply had been destroyed, he had ready supplies hidden throughout the room, in case of an inspection, they were carefully placed.
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Posted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 7:46 pm
"I'm afraid not, Saburo-san," Jyuushirou pleasantly denied the man's request, knowing it was not the time to partake in such recreation. Not because it was a particularly formal occasion or that he wasn't the type, as Shunsui-kun had often drug him out during his academy days to imbibe more than is healthy and simply enjoy the company of one another. However, the violent coughs that had spilled precious lifeblood over his lips had torn his throat raw, and if even a drop of that undoubtedly strong liquid touched the open wounds it would hurt more than the elder captain cared to experience.
"Let me be blunt, Saburo-san," Captain Ukitake began, running his thumb over his lips once more to ensure he was as clean as he could be. This was, after all, a serious matter. "We are quite certain that the Magic Emperor has made use of the traitor Mayuri's reincarnation of the Hogyouku to create several Espada-level warriors in the newly forged Hueco Mundo. Also, from what our scouts from the 2nd have gathered, they are planning an attack. Where, we aren't certain...but Captain Kuchiki had a hunch the Empire would strike at the Ruined Capitol in Aron."
Jyuushirou paused momentarily and let the gravity of all he had imparted to the new captain sink in. This move by the Empire meant open war upon the Resistance, and by affiliation, the Seireitei. Brown eyes burned with determination and worry.
"What we have feared most is come, Saburo-san," the captain muttered, his voice stern and deadly serious. "Ghaleon is no longer holding back his wrath...the end of everything may come, and sooner rather than later."
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Posted: Wed Oct 10, 2007 9:46 am
Taking a moment to let it set in, Saburo slams his fist into the remnants of his desk but, before the indigo haired captain can reply to such news, more news quickly made itself known as the door to his office suddenly bursts open, revealing a sickly looking, out of breath Squad Four member. Turning to face the young shinigami, Saburo's eyebrow quirks and he calls out, "What's the rush?" In his usual tone, though strained as it may be from the previous upset.
The sickly man takes a moment to catch his breath before replying, a hand on his chest and a wide-eyed look on his face, "Captain Ukitake, Captain Musashibo! They've returned! Well, one of them has. Captain Gheis appeared in the Seireitei just a few minutes ago and called for us, Squad Four I mean. Kyle d'Alkirk has been seriously injured and Captain Kuchiki and Gustav Meridon have yet to be accounted for!" With his message relayed, the Squad Four member collapses against the doorway, catching his breath.
Saburo's eyes widen at this news, had they been wiped out? No... he could sense Byakuya in the Rukongai with another, Gustav maybe, but when Gustav had left, he had no spiritual pressure. "If you would rather rest here, Captain Ukitake, I'll be glad to go and check it out." The young Captain hastily remarks, knowing Captain Ukitake's condition was not likely to improve with rapid movement.
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Posted: Wed Oct 10, 2007 12:54 pm
"Very well," the Captain-Commander agreed, though a bit reluctantly. No one knew his limits better than he did, and in spite of his desire to pay a visit to the injured returning from Aron he knew it best to take a short rest after his unexpected dash to his old division's headquarters. "See to them, and then return once you have something to report on the situation." Jyuushirou paused, taking a moment to regard Saburo as he prepared to head out.
"Take care, Saburo-san, but don't wear yourself out," Ukitake warned him, his voice falling growing dead serious. "This battle was only the first of many...we may have need of your skill, yet."
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Posted: Tue Oct 23, 2007 7:05 pm
She was here. She didn't know why, nor did she understand why, but she was here. Maigo let out a breath, feeling herself slightly worried at what was going to jump at her... it was understandable since she's dealt with unforgiving surprises before.
"I wonder if everything's alright," she mumbled to herself, her black hair falling over her shoulders.
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Posted: Tue Oct 23, 2007 9:02 pm
As Maigo wandered aimlessly through the halls of Musashibo's 13th Division, a startlingly harsh cough echoed loudly from a nearby set of sliding doors. The traditional Japanese style of most of the 13 Protection Squad's headquarters made it easy for sounds to carry, as the hacking continued to be heard by the majority of those in the Division's employ. Meanwhile, inside that same room where the sounds of a sick man raged on, Commander-General Ukitake was struggling mightily to stave off this current round of wheezing and catch his breath.
The cloth in his hand was stained crimson and laced with a sickening black color from the depths of his tainted lungs. His chest throbbed with a dull ache that was ever-present and often stole from him the ability to draw air. Now was one of those weakened moments, and as he sat curled in the chair where Saburo-san had left him he lamented the disability which kept him there. Yet, it was a lament with which he was well-acquainted...a longing for strength that would never be there. Not that he wasn't strong...for he was the strongest of the shinigami...but his sickness was a wild card that made one of the world's most formidable foes impossibly defenseless at the worst times.
Tuberculosis...not a healer in the world knew a technique which could cure it, nor was there a vaccine capable of destroying it at this late a stage. If only they had known back then what they knew now. But then, there really was no use dwelling on the past, now was there?
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Posted: Wed Oct 24, 2007 5:20 am
Still the coughing lingered, the young hanyou twitching her ears from the sound of it. Maigo frowned, never liking the sound of such. The healer in her was almost, she's sorry to say, giddy that she might be able to treat someone. And so, the sounds led her through the halls, really depending on her ears to look for the source.
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Posted: Wed Oct 24, 2007 5:17 pm
 
"No way, Booger-girl! I found her first and I'm goin to be the one to take her to Captain Ukitake because I TOTALLY love and respect him WAY more than you do!" the young man protested loudly, grabbing suddenly onto an arm of poor Maigo, who was now being pulled in the same direction by two different and deceptively powerful people. "C'mon, let's go! I'll introduce you to our wonderful Captain!"
"You can't do that, you jerk! I got to her first, so you can't steal her away!" the blond countered with her poorly thought-out retort. Suddenly her grip on Maigo lessened and she jumped in front of the hanyou sporting a sickly-sweet smile. "Hiya! I'm Kiyone Kotetsu, 3rd Seat of the Number 1 Division in ALL Seireitei! You ARE Maigo Kokoro, right? The weird girl who hangs out with the demons who Captain Ukitake wanted to see?"
"Of course she is, Booger-girl! Look at her ears...he said they'd be like that, didn't he?" the young man countered, before jumping in front of Maigo and producing his own false-friendly greeting. "I'm sorry for her, she's a little slow! I'm Sentarou Kotsubaki, 3rd Seat of the 1st Division and Captain Ukitake's favorite disciple! I'm here to take you to see him!" His contention brought about another round of angry huffing and foot-stomping from his companion, but he paid no heed and swiftly drug the hanyou girl closer and closer to the door which hid their hacking leader.
At last, when the trio had reached the right door, the two slid the door open to reveal their pale-skinned, white-haired (a side effect of his sickness) Commander-General who gazed with mild wonder at Maigo from his sunken brown eyes. Immediately, the two fell to their knees in a respectful bow. It was Kiyone who spoke first, to the chagrin of Sentarou.
"Captain Ukitake, I humbly deliver to you the girl you wanted to see, Maigo Kokoro, and will continue to do everything you say no matter what, sir!" she shouted, with Sentarou echoing her sentiment before going back to arguing with his companion. As the two went on, however, the sickly captain only watched, his piercing gaze sizing up the one who might tilt the scales in this hopeless war.
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Posted: Wed Oct 24, 2007 7:11 pm
The poor young woman felt as if she was a rag doll, mistreated and abused. She was called wierd for her ears and that only brought up those childhood memories she thought she was content with. Her head was throbbing from the physical argument and her ears were ringing by the loud voices of the two... assistants, she gathered.
Maigo looked up after collecting herself and tensed slightly by the gaze she was recieving.
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Posted: Sun Oct 28, 2007 1:56 pm
After a few moments of silent inspection, the Captain righted his expression and smiled a warm, sympathetic smile at the newest patron to the 13th Division. His charges had apparently followed him to the Division and were treating the poor hanyou as if she were their own plaything. Then again, that wasn't uncommon for Sentarou and Kiyone either. Motioning for the two to leave them, they complied without hesitation. With his subordinates gone, he stifled a cough and motioned with his free hand for the young woman to enter.
"I apologize for Kotetsu-san and Kotsubaki-san," the mature commander smiled weakly, wiping a small trickle of dark blood from the corner of his mouth. "Their innocent devotion to their duties often devolves into childish bickering, but rest assured that they both mean well." He waited for the door to close behind her, watching through deep, chocolate-brown eyes as she came into the room as he decided the best way to break the ice between them.
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