In a remote and unfrequented tract of the forest, beneath a luxuriant canopy of woody perennials, Kurisuna stood, sheltered partially from the battering rain, in front of a self-made training dummy fashioned from the boughs of trees and bound by wiry fibers. Her hair clung to the edge of her face, thin, messy strokes of red across the planes of her cheeks, bristly like the chaff of summer wheat. With her fringe furled from her unobstructed vision, she fixed her target with the diligence of a stalking feline and the acuity of a master swordsman, though this ordinary prey was one that would not, and could not fight back.

It didn't come close to the real thing.

Right foot swung in front of the other, a twist of the hips carrying her weight forward as her thumb, pressed against the guard of her katana, eased the sword from its sheath. A lustrous blur marked the Zanpakutou's course, from out the scabbard as she pulled the saya back, to the arcing, downward swing that split the wooden sprite once, and then twice. It fell with a subdued thump, muted by the downpour's symphony of rain filtering past leaves, rustling thickets, and inundated rivulets. The weather had shown no signs of improving, but she preferred it this way. It reflected her spirit, bled out to her like an open wound.

Five mannequins were left, deathly still in their inability to emulate an opponent of flesh and blood. Sadly, they would suffice for now.

SPOILER: Click to show

OOC
Summer, 1856 n.w.

It was a dark a stormy night as Ryuu travelled through the forest. Except it wasn't at night. Plus it wasn't really storming, although it was raining heavily. This was like a storm except it lacked the thunder and lightning that separated the storms from the heavy raining. But either way Ryuu was still travelling through the forest in the middle of the rain.

Some may wonder what diabolical task everyone's favorite psychotic cannibalistic smiling arrancar was doing. WHAT KIND OF EVIL PLANS WOULD REQUIRE THE ARRANCAR TO GO SO FAR FROM HIS HOME INTO THE DEPTHS OF SHINIGAMI PATROLLED TERRITORY. "Of course it had to rain when i was about to go fishing." Ryuu muttered to himself as if in answer to the question.

As he moved through the forest and ignored the drops of water that fell off of the many leaves, Ryuu thought he heard something in the forest. Deciding that he had nothing better to do (besides get to somewhere dry. But where's the fun in that?), Ryuu headed off in the direction of the sounds. Eventually he would emerge from a clearing and come upon both Kurisuna and her training dummies. "Hello." Ryuu said to Kurisuna with a friendly wave.

Luckily for Ryuu his attire was suited for the weather and he had taken the necessary precautions to make sure that he wouldn't be identified as an arrancar. Ryuu had a cloak on which helped conceal a few of his features. In addition he had put on bandages over most of the lower portion of his mouth. Thus Ryuu was confident that if anything did go wrong it would still be hard to identify him due to his disguise.

Kurisuna pivoted to face the leftmost figure, her grip two-handed upon the hilt of her sword. She glanced at the remaining four, each of them skirting the edge of a ring four yards from her person. This time, she would dispatch all of them, a danse macabre severing their wooden limbs before the final blow.

But then there was a noise, some low, dampened greeting sounding decidedly a lot like a ''hello.'' Kurisuna's stance didn't waver. She'd gone undisturbed for as long as she could recall, and madness was not above inane tricks of the mind. In fact, it specialized in it.

Except it wasn't fooling her. There really was someone there, and she saw him, cloaked and all, at the threshold of her peripheral vision, a haunting spectre that would've looked a lot more menacing without those... things on his face. He may have startled her, but she hadn't so much as twitched; no, Kurisuna simply turned halfway to meet him, her weapon drawn and primed. ''How... inconvenient to find anyone here.''

Noticing that she didn't so much as jump when he gave his greeting, Ryuu watched as she calmly turned to face him. Normally most people would be a lot more frightened of the sudden appearance of a stanger. However that wasn't the case with this shinigami. Although the fact that she was pointing a sword at him would do wonders for most people's nerves. However Ryuu had a feeling that she would be this calm even if she wasn't pointing a pointy metal stick of death at him.

"Sorry to have bothered you. I heard something and I was curious enough to investigate it, which led me to here." Ryuu said to Kurisuna with a lighthearted smile. Hopefully Ryuu would have seemed unthreatening enough to cause her to lower her sword. If not then things might start to go downhill.

"Why does she seem familiar?" Ryuu thought to himself as he waited for Kurisuna's response. He had a feeling that they had met before. Although at the moment Ryuu couldn't remember when they did or if he had just made a mistake due to a faulty memory.

Sighing, Kurisuna relented and assumed a less belligerent posture; sword dipped toward the ground by the Captain's left flank, and her shoulders rolled stiffly, tense from earlier drills. Her unoccupied hand went to knead the opposite side of her neck: she'd been at this for a while. ''There's nothing to see here,'' Kurisuna told him, muttering self-deprecatingly, ''Just an old woman training by her lonesome.'' For all intents and purposes, that was the gist of her excursion, the motive behind braving the elements so ill-prepared.

But what of her mystery man? An evening romp in the woodlands under a squall as fierce as the ongoing storm was not about to appeal to everybody. Perhaps he'd gotten lost; perhaps he, too, took advantage of the smooth, polished earth in her absence. Neither supposition seemed likely—nothing did. ''The forest? In this weather?''

Well she wasn't pointing a sword at him anymore. Mama Ryuu always said that was a good sign. Or it meant that the person was going to beat you to death with their bare hands which was notably less preferable than dying due to a sword wound. But Kurisuna didn't look like she was going to attempt to bludgeon him to death which was also a nice plus. Besides, Ryuu wasn't in the mood for a fight today. Well at least not a fight to the death (for the moment at least).

"Give yourself some credit. You don't look a day over two hundred." Ryuu said. Was two hundred considered to be a young age by these kids today? Well if not then Ryuu had probably succeeded in offending her already (that usually didn't happen until the attempted murder part of an encounter with someone). "Besides I would say that watching a training session could in fact be fun to watch." Ryuu continued.

Smiling at Kurisuna when she asked why Ryuu was in the forest. Ryuu then said, "Well i was planning on going fishing. There was a shortcut through the forest but then the rain hit. And before you ask, I usually just make a crude fishing rod out of anything that's at the spot." Giving a look around the clearing Ryuu then realized that he had no idea where he was. "And now that I think about it I might be a little bit lost." Ryuu said with a lighthearted chuckle.

As he gave his response, Ryuu was still pondering why the shinigami seemed to be so familiar. Had they had a large duel (possibly with background music)? Well probably not given that both of them were still alive and not maimed. Besides, Ryuu hadn't had any dramatic duels in a while now. "This is going to bug me." Ryuu thought to himself as he continued to ponder.

"… Thanks," said Kurisuna plainly, uninspired, wondering whether this stranger had meant to insult or compliment her. A slender brow cocked until she decided that she did not care, either way; this was a man, after all, that would be departing soon (with any luck), and would most likely never be seen by her again... Unless, of course, he would staunchly refuse to leave the premises, perhaps for a demonstration of sorts, or more nefarious purposes commonly associated with cloaked men and dubious motives. But this guy looked so harmless...

Then, paying closer inspection to his person, she saw it; a sheathe and its sword, dangling forebodingly at his hip. A fellow swordsman from the provinces of Rukongai, or worse? A sense of familiarity rolled over her, registering as a caution.

''I wasn't training.'' That implied getting better, didn't it? ''If you're lost, I can point you the way.'' Dismissive, certainly, but she hadn't come here to be disturbed.

Ryuu suddenly remembered who Kurisuna was. He had burned her home to the ground and killed a large portion of her family. Undoubtedly she was training to avenge...no wait that was another person. "I'm pretty sure I killed her a few months later." Ryuu thought to himself. Well it was back to square one with any theories that he had on why she was so familiar.

Smiling warmly in response to the uninspired thanks that his compliment had recieved, Ryuu then noticed that Kurisuna seemed to become more guarded. Realizing that this was in response to her noticing his sword, Ryuu then heard her not so subtle way of telling him to leave. Wondering if it was due to the fact that he was armed or she just wanted to be left alone, Ryuu decided to try and stick around for a bit. He could use a bit of conversation plus the trees were providing a decent amount of cover from the rain.

"I'm quite grateful for the help. However if it's fine with you I would like to wait here where it's significantly less wet. Besides I would be honored if I could have the privilege of watching you practice. I might even learn something." Ryuu said to Kurisuna. In Ryuu's experience a compliment or two could go a long way. Though for now Ryuu would just watch Kurisuna's reaction and hope that he wasn't immediately chased away.

''How good are you with that weapon?'' the woman questioned skeptically, uncertain of what to make of his arrival. Oh, he could very well lie about his skill; she'd met many that had, and would treat him as an experienced swordsman regardless of his answer. Kurisuna figured she'd recognize any sleight of hand when, or if he should ever unsheathe his blade; it seemed probable that he would, for whatever motivation (paranoia kept the possibility of a hostile alive), his reluctance to leave almost palpable. ''You can show me on that dummy to your left.''

HUZZAH. Ryuu had triumphed and wasn't kicked out into the rain from the nice semi-dry area that was covered by trees. Besides it was wet out there. And it was cold. But worst of all IT WAS BORING. Although making a mud angel or singing in the rain might not be that boring. He could just imagine it now, there would be dancing and singing. Perhaps some other random people would join him in this singing and dancing. And maybe if they made a good flash mob then he wouldn't brutally kill them and eat them later.

"Actually I'm not that good with it to be honest." Ryuu replied to Kurisuna's question. Ryuu had to admit that using a sword was a lot harder than he would have initially thought. Even after having it for years he still couldn't say that he was very good with it.

Turning towards the dummy that was on his left, Ryuu drew his sword. Deciding on what part he would hit, Ryuu kept both the sword and his free hand in front of him. Taking a step forward, Ryuu swung the sword and embedded it into the dummy's neck. Taking a step back, Ryuu would simultaneously pull his sword out of the dummy's neck and move it back to his former position. "Aside from randomly flailing my sword around thats pretty much what I can do." Ryuu said to Kurisuna as he lowered his sword and faced her.

Grimacing at his demonstration, Kurisuna appraised the amateur swordsman. If this had been a legitimate effort, it was hard to view his weapon as a danger to others, as opposed to himself. This tended to be the case with beginners who, lacking the guidance of a more experienced handler, purchased (or otherwise acquired) a katana to defend against the horrors that lurked between the rows: these were always fortunate to sustain no debilitating injuries by day two, fact being that many did.

''Well, you can swing a sword,'' she commented. Of course, anyone could do that. Did he carry it simply to deter others? To Shinigami and Arrancar, it was not a matter of choice, but the citizens of Rukongai occasionally displayed at their hip a blade she doubted most could use adroitly. ''Just terribly. A shame, too; it's a beautiful weapon.'' Been a while since she'd seen a spatha, to boot; the katana, and variations thereof were more popular swords. ''... Mind, it's also a curious choice.''

Noticing the grimace, Ryuu could tell that wasn't a good sign. RYUU WAS BAD A BAD SWORDSMAN. But on the bright side at least he was good at killing people in general. Watching Kurisuna come to a conclusion about his swordsmanship skills, Ryuu waited to hear what she would say. Once Kurisuna gave her opinion, RYUU'S FEELINGS WERE HURT. However when she complimented his sword (and technically a physical manifestation of his soul as far as Ryuu understood) RYUU'S FEELINGS WERE UNHURT (Ryuu always knew that his soul was as beautiful as a butterfly. It just so happened that this beauty took the form of a deadly weapon and occasionally an improvised dinner knife). ALREADY THIS CHANCE MEETING WAS TURNING INTO AN EMOTIONAL ROLLERCOASTER (whatever that was) OF EMOTION.

While he didn't betray any of the emotions that he had just felt during THIS EMOTIONAL ROLLERCOASTER OF EMOTION, Ryuu instead maintained his trademark smile. "Thanks for the compliment. When I found it I just decided to go with it." Ryuu said. Given the truth about his sword everything he did say was true. "But may I see how it is done? That might help me improve a bit." Ryuu then asked. He was there to be entertained and learning how to use a sword could indeed prove to be quite entertaining.

Blissfully unaware of any EMOTIONAL ROLLERCOASTER OF EMOTION (they tended to be very tiring, and were almost exclusively overdramatic under stormy conditions), Kurisuna debated whether or not to educate an absolute stranger in proper swordplay. After all, she'd ceased to pursue the avocation of a mentor long ago, in the not-so-fluid past. It just hadn't worked out; patience had been swapped for equal measures of intolerance, a critical flaw to any teacher, the wrench between the metaphorical gears.

But it wasn't like he was her student, not at all. She had no obligations to tutor him. Could walk away any moment she felt her blood beginning to boil in her veins because the simplest flick of his wrist saw him relinquishing his grip of the spatha (there are people like this). Still, there was another problem besides her decisive lack of enthusiasm. ''Perhaps... but I can't show you with my blade. The specifications of our weapons differ wildly.''

Watching Kurisuna think about something, Ryuu wondered what it could be. Would it be another contribution to THIS EMOTIONAL ROLLERCOASTER OF EMOTION? Or perhaps it was something else entirely. Hoping that she would indeed teach him or at least give him a few pointers, Ryuu waited for a few tense moments before she gave her answer. She had considered it to some degree. Obviously this was a GREAT VICTORY FOR RYUU'S SHORT ATTENTION SPAN.

However Ryuu now had to solve the problem of the differences between weapons. "Well you could use my blade to demonstrate." Ryuu offered. Sheathing his sword, Ryuu took both the sword and the sheath off of his side in preparation for Kurisuna's answer. "We can just hand the blade back and forth between demonstrations." Ryuu suggested.

Seeing that he intended to entrust her with his sword for demonstrational purposes, Kurisuna nodded in wordless assent and approached him; she had her own blade sheathed, now, and reached out for the stranger to present his own, so she may resume with a less conventional weapon. ''All right. Give it here.''

RYUU HAD ACHIEVED GREAT SUCCESS. He had managed to find a teacher. Not only that but he had managed to outmaneuver THOSE DASTARDLY OBSTACLES THAT THE TEACHER HAD PRESENTED. Smiling, Ryuu handed the sheathed blade to Kurisuna hilt first and took a few steps back to give her some space.

Standing patiently to the side, Ryuu then began to observe Kurisuna and what she would do next. WHAT LESSONS WOULD RYUU LEARN FROM THIS CHANCE MEETING IN THE WOODS?

Gripping the hilt, Kurisuna slid the blade out of its casing inch by inch. It could have been caution, the way she unsheathed that sword; there was a tentative air to it that seemed to elevate the weapon's significance to that of a priceless artifact, as if a trap would be sprung simply be her removing it, though she had, in truth, merely taken the time to appraise the spatha. It was longer than blades of its type. Utterly unlike the katana.

Her right hand held, raised, lowered, twirled it once, and then recuperated from the rotation to deliver a leveled slash where Ryuu had previously introduced his sword. It severed the supple dummy's neck faultlessly; Kurisuna was convinced the result would not have differed any had it been intact. These swords were lauded for their thrust, but were decent cutting weapons—most replicas, however, weren't. She retracted her arm, the blade, and her left hand crossed to support her right as she shifted her weight forward and impaled its chest.

IT WAS A DRAMATIC MOMENT WHEN KURISUNA UNSHEATHED THE BLADE. In fact it was so dramatic that while she took it out inch by inch distant BOOM OF THUNDER which seemed to be there only for DRAMATIC EFFECT. For Ryuu he could see that she was appraising it based on how she was quite focused on observing the blade.

Watching her test how well she could control the blade, Ryuu noticed the telltale signs that she was about to attack. Taking note of how she shifted her weight in order to move forward, Ryuu also noticed how she moved her arm in order to swing the sword. Watching Kurisuna then perform a thrust, Ryuu smiled when he saw it go through where the dummy's heart would have been.

"I'm glad I'm not that dummy." Ryuu said when he saw the results of her swing. As long as he didn't get ahead (pun intended) of himself he might be able to pull off a move like that. "So the attack should be like this?" Ryuu asked before imitating the movements that he had just observed.

Kurisuna pulled away from the figure as it succumbed lamely to the composite threat of exsanguination and hypotension. Blood streamed and surged at varying intensities from gaping wounds, diffusing into still-wet clothes and soil saturated from the rain. Indeed, this is what she saw. What swords were meant to yield. It was the singular appeal of a weapon; there was no beauty in wielding arms with precision, but there was a certain allure to splitting flesh that was lost utterly in the wooden practice dummy.

She watched him mimic her movements, but the execution was flawed. Sloppy, though a decent attempt nonetheless, particularly if he had no experience to begin with. She shook her head, then replicated the distinct, sweeping motions again. ''You're not into it. Here,'' Kurisuna handed the blade back to him, pointed at another figure. ''Try on this one.''

The red was still so pretty against the ambient backdrop of the forest.

Deciding to ignore how 'engaged' Kurisuna seemed to be with her handiwork, Ryuu had to admit that he liked how bloodthirsty she seemed to be when she was cutting things. It reminded him of himself. Although he was more gleeful and cheerful when he was cutting things. But everyone was free to enjoy what they did in their own way. Just so long as Ryuu wasn't next on her list which given that he was an arrancar might be likely if his cover was blown. THUS RYUU WOULD USE ALL OF HIS SUPER SECRET SUBTERFUGE SKILLS. And the power of alliteration. FOR ALLITERATION SOLVES ALL.

Listening to the feedback that Kurisuna gave him, Ryuu mentally went over the steps a few more times to get a better hang of it. Facing the dummy, Ryuu once again went over each step slowly in order to adjust for the weight of his zanpakutou. Then Ryuu performed the technique again. However this time Ryuu wasn't practicing. RYUU WAS PUTTING HIS HEART AND SOUL INTO IT. AND HIS WEIGHT. RYUU DEFINITELY WAS PUTTING HIS WEIGHT BEHIND THE STRIKE. Feeling the blade go a bit more than halfway through the dummy's neck, Ryuu then pulled the sword out and and stepped forward with a lunge. Smiling a bit as he felt the sword embed itself into the wooden dummy, Ryuu pulled it out and faced Kurisuna. "So how was that?"

Once more, she observed the maladroit, faintly coordinated movements of his spatha. The blade hacked and stabbed at the dummy in fatal, yet inefficient strokes, this time lodging itself farther into the column of oaken flesh; now that she had shown him the technique, proper dynamics correlating sword and body, he appeared at least somewhat capable, though his proficiency with the weapon was just a notch above the frenzied flailing he'd described earlier. ''Pretty horrible, actually, but it's...'' A step in the right direction, she supposed. ''I mean, I've seen worse. Granted, I've also seen much better.''

Listening to the feedback that he had recieved, Ryuu was once again disappointed to hear that his swordsmanship was pretty horrible. HE HAD BEEN AT THIS TASK FOR A WHOLE TEN MINUTES AT MOST. By this time he should be a master. TRULY THE ART OF SWORDSMANSHIP WAS A COMPLICATED THING TO LEARN. But Ryuu would stick with it (possibly for another ten minutes) BECAUSE HE WAS GOING TO BECOME THE VERY BEST LIKE NOBODY EVER WAS. Or at the very least he would be reasonably skilled in swordsmanship.

Step one of course was to find out what was wrong with his technique. "So what exactly was wrong with my technique?" Ryuu asked after choosing to go with the direct route. SOON THE MYSTERY OF HIS SUBPAR SWORDSMANSHIP WOULD BE PARTIALLY SOLVED.

''The dummy,'' she began, in a tone that suggested there was no real answer other than what followed, ''is what's wrong.'' Of course he wouldn't appreciate the verdict: he was too green, too inexperienced to get anything 'right,' because 'right' met her standards. Right entailed flawless execution, a delivery on-par with anything she could dish out.

Kurisuna saw in the gamut of black and white. White was exemplary, the pinnacle of swordsmanship, and below it, in countless, dreary shades, reaching down to the utter ineptitude of black, were the echelons of grey. All were improper to some extent—some, however, were markedly brighter than the rest.

''Its the head, you see.'' Back to Ryuu, her thumb had found the side of her neck, and it slid from left to right. ''It's still attached.''

And now it was time for Ryuu to learn from the master. BECAUSE KNOWLEDGE IS POWER. Knowledge in this case being the knowledge of how to effectively stab/slash/cut/cause large amounts of pain to another with a sword. And said knowledge would translate to the power to end another life in a most likely painful fashion.

What flaws were hidden within Ryuu's technique which prevented him from mastering the art of decapitation followed shortly by inserting a pointy metal stick into the torso of a hypothetical enemy? The answer was the dummy. A NEFARIOUS DUMMY THAT WAS TRYING TO CAUSE RYUU TO FAIL. Plus it was a dumb dummy.

"So is it just the fact that it's head is still attached or is there something in my technique that is preventing me from decapitating it?" Ryuu asked Kurisuna. Perhaps if she pointed out a flaw in his execution of the technique he would be able to PROVIDE THE DUMMY WITH A PROPER EXECUTION. In the meantime Ryuu would try to come up with some more clever wordplay. BECAUSE CLEVER WORDPLAY AND BANTER IS ALWAYS A HIGH PRIORITY.

Beneath the awning of leaves, she could hear the heavy pitter-patter of rain start to subside, feel the drop in pressure permeate the air again from the relative cool of the downdraught as the clouds, kindled by lightning like a nebulous rend, were swept North. There was a certain melancholy to watching the skies brighten; her mood was in diametric contrast to that of the storm, so that when it glided to parts unseen, she began to find the ambience less palatable.

''If there hadn't been anything wrong with your technique, it wouldn't have a head right now.'' Being evasive was not as demanding as pointing everything out to him, adjusting his posture, and actually caring to notice each contraction of muscle, though Kurisuna had still pinned down the misstep responsible for the absence of power in his swing. ''All your strength is going to the shoulder, not the sword.''

Set on wringing most of the rainwater from her hair, she thought of returning to Seireitei shortly.

It appeared that the rain was going away. Which as we all know means that HERE COMES THE SUN (Du du du du). Given the circumstances that had allowed him to stay and train for the moment, Ryuu had a feeling that it might soon come to an end. But it's alright. For he had managed to get a bit out of the lesson. Besides he might be able to convince her to give him more sword lessons some other time. Because as much as Ryuu didn't like to admit it he needed HELP. He needed somebody (HELP). But not just anybody (HELP). He needed someone (HEEEELP). When Ryuu was younger, not so much younger than today. He never needed anybody's help in anyway. But now those times are past and he wasn't so self assured. And now he did find that he changed his mind and he opened up the door. And then Ryuu recieved that help in the form of a brief explantion of how he should swing..

Listening to the specific flaw in his technique, Ryuu took note of what it was and slowly went through the motions again. Doing so for a few more times, it was now time for the MOMENT OF TRUTH. WITH THIS SWING RYUU WOULD PROVE HIMSELF TO KURISUNA. Although he didn't really care about anyone's opinion of him. He would make a pretty bad hollow if he did. CORRECTION THEN, RYUU WOULD SHOW KURISUNA THAT HE WAS WORTH TEACHING. And then he could learn more swordsmanship for his own NEFARIOUS PURPOSES.

Going through the motion of the techniques one more time, Ryuu took a deep breath. THEN HE PERFORMED THE ATTACK FOR REAL. AND THEN HE REALLY MADE SURE THAT THE FORCE WAS IN THE BLADE AND NOT THE SHOULDER. THEN HE REALLY TOOK THE HEAD OFF THE DUMMY. Although after several decapitation techniques being done on it, the head would have come off pretty soon anyway. AND THEN RYUU REALLY STUCK THE TIP OF HIS BLADE THROUGH THE DUMMY'S TORSO. "Was that better?." Ryuu asked Kurisuna.

Ryuu could practice his technique all he wanted, certainly, but she would not be watching him. Her eyes were drawn to the crisp vegetation, and the scarcely discernible path that led a tiresome trek to the fortified city she just about deigned to call home. In moments almost like these, amid the solitary stillness of the emerald forest, she felt compelled to pay serious consideration to dangerous thoughts, because there would be no one around to condemn her for them. In Seireitei, she didn't, and could not trust the Shinigami milling through; in her office, even the knowing gaze of her raven disquieted her. Never mind Sumie. If she knew...

Right now, it was her mystery man that was actively suppressing such an insidious brand of reflection. Even as she eyed the way back, Kurisuna held him in her peripheral vision, at least until she decided to seek closure.

She turned to face him. Her shihakushou clung uncomfortably to her frame, and the sodden earth sunk beneath her steps. She thought to preen her attire—this was her only gripe, and it came when rain ceased to fall—but paused as she saw Ryuu poised to strike the dummy. She may have told him what the problem in his maneuver had been, but he still had little to go on; she'd given him the why, not the how, and could tell as he struck that most of the swing's power was still packed at the shoulder. One doesn't become a master overnight.

What counted, in the end, was that he had lopped its head off. ''Yeah. That'll do.''

AND SHE HAD REALLY RECOGNIZED HIS TRIUMPH. Giving his usual kind smile as she confirmed that his technique was passable (or so he thought), Ryuu noticed that Kurisuna's body language indicated that she was a bit distracted by something. BUT WHAT COULD THIS SOMETHING POSSIBLY BE? It was a mystery that was wrapped up in an enigma and hidden in a puzzle box. BUT NEVER FEAR, FOR RYUU THE DETECTIVE WAS HERE.

"Thanks. You seem to have something on your mind. Anything you care about sharing about?" Ryuu asked Kurisuna. PERHAPS THIS FOLLOWING REVELATION WOULD GIVE HIM MORE INSIGHT INTO HIS MYSTERIOUS TEACHER. Who still seemed familiar and who Ryuu was just on the verge of figuring it out. BUT FOR NOW IT WAS STILL A MYSTERY THAT ELUDED HIM.

Whether he was able to solve this MYSTERIOUS MYSTERY or not, Ryuu wanted to continue to keep her talking. Because Ryuu knew that with the rain going away, his excuse for sticking around would soon become dust in the wind. AND AT THE MOMENT HE WAS FINDING THIS SITUATION TO BE ENTERTAINING. Plus he was learning about a skill that evaded him for so long. Which he wanted to continue learning. That way Ryuu could eventually BECOME A MASTER. Ryuu would become the best that ever was. To catch Shinigami, Rukons and Hollow was his real test. To kill and eat them (in that order if they were lucky) was his cause. But in order to do that he would need someone to teach him.

She was too easy to read, Kurisuna thought, as she observed Ryuu through the distant slits of her eyes. Placid, she was close to an open book, pages sprawled from worn and faded covers, her tale a deceptively predictable one to those calibrated to mortal cues. Anyone could've told what she'd been thinking of in that uneventful moment. Seireitei.

It was about time she returned.

But these layers could only be peeled back so far before they ceased to offer insight of that tranquil, calculating state, and instead tuned into the underlying madness. She felt dissatisfied, again through no fault of his own. He had been ideal, but now the storm had passed, and her readiness to train upon the inanimate and imaginary cleared with the skies.

''It's nothing you need concern yourself about,'' she bit back. What roiled in her mental depths, no one was privy to. She could not breach its sanctity by divulging… no, confessing, her innermost machinations. This prospect frightened her like nothing else. Those with whom she fought most assuredly caught cursory glances, but none of them so much as scratched the surface. Cautiously, she ventured a question of her own, ''Are we done here, or do you wish to continue?''

She knew what to do, were he to stay. Kurisuna could permit him a glimpse.

Smiling innocently (and childlike) at the distant observation that he was under as if he was oblivious to it, Ryuu noticed a glance or two back the way that she had presumably came. Undoubtedly she was going to abandon her most favorite star pupil ALL ALONE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE FOREST. All for a roof and a hot meal and whatever it was that shinigami did in their SUPER EVIL FORTRESS OF EVIL.

AND THEN SHE GAVE A RATHER DEFENSIVE AND MEAN RESPONSE TO HIS INNOCENT (and childlike) QUESTION. Undoubtedly she was trying to drive him away so he wouldn't have to deal with the EMOTIONAL ROLLERCOASTER OF EMOTION of being abandoned by his teacher. BUT RYUU WAS MORE DETERMINED THAN THAT. HE SAID WHAT HE MEANT AND HE MEANT WHAT HE SAID and as we all know a Ryuu sticks to his word 100 percent. Well not really, more like 70 percent...40 percent...20 percent...okay maybe 7.586 percent on a really really really good day (and even then Ryuu would be generous with himself). BUT HE REALLY MEANT IT THIS TIME (possibly).

Besides, Ryuu was curious to see what it was that she seemed to have on her mind. Afterall his interest had been piqued by how defensive she was. WHAT SECRETS WAS SHE HIDING? Well RYUU WAS NOW ON THE CASE. And thus when she asked him if he wanted to stay, Ryuu replied with an enthusiastic, "Of course I want to continue."

Waiting a moment or two Ryuu then said in a curious though rather disarming tone of voice, "Are you sure you don't want to talk about it? I can assure you that I would be willing to listen, and that if its something that does bother you its much better to talk about it instead of hiding it." PERHAPS THIS WOULD HELP RYUU SOLVE THE MYSTERY OF WHY KURISUNA WAS BEING SO DEFENSIVE. Or maybe it wouldn't. UNDOUBTEDLY THIS WAS ALSO A MYSTERY (although it would be solved in the next few moments).