Azdeha stopped outside the doors to Squad 9's office. Shifting from one foot to the other she tried to practise what she was going to say in her head. It wasn't an easy request to make and no doubt her senpai would question why she hadn't just asked her brother or her own captain to help her, but the truth was, she was scared. Scared at their reaction, and the possible consequences of her request.
She raised her hand to knock on the door when it slid open revealing Hisagi. He jumped when he saw her standing there, hand in the air.
"Azdeha-chan. You scared me. I wasn't expecting anyone to be standing there."
"Hey Hisagi, I came to see Chusei."
"Do you have an appointment?"
Azdeha frowned at the lieutenant, "Are you serious?"
Hisagi nodded, "Ukitake-Taichou is very busy today with paperwork, so if you need to talk to her I need to schedule it in."
Azdeha sighed and stood up on her tiptoes, yelling over the males shoulder. "HEY CHUSEI! Your guard dog won't let me in. He says you're doing paperwork and I need to schedule an appointment"
"Argh mo-ei Hisagi!" came a very stressed-sounding reply, which caused Hisagi to turn on his heels, face not amused.
"I told you visits were going to have to be arranged until you have caught up!" He practically yelled back, stepping enough to the side for Azdeha to make out Chusei sitting at her desk, paper before her, tapping a pen on the desk, the other hand propping up her head.
"And what if a captain wants to speak to me? You're going to just tell Soi Fon to jog on? I don't think so!" The pen slammed down on the desk. "I said yes to meetings being scheduled but don't be such a hard-ass that conversations have to be scheduled too!"
"Hey it's not my fault this week’s paperwork is behind!" Hisagi left the doorway completely and stood arms folded before Chusei.
"No but it's not the end of the world either! I am all for being impressive with figures but it’s near the end of the year and Kenpachi is yet to hand in ONE paper! Do you see Sou-Taichou kicking his ass?!"
"Yes." Hisagi answered bluntly. For several long moments the pair stared at each other.
"You win this round." Chusei admitted, a hint of a smirk at her lips. Kenpachi being berated by Sou-Taichou had been a hilarious experience. "Anyway, off you trot." Chusei shooed Hisagi away. "I need Tohru's report handed in so go find her."
Mumbling something incoherent, Hisagi passed Azdeha without a word, leaving the door open as he left.
"Konnichiwa Deha." Chusei finally smiled, interlinking her fingers before her on her desk. "How can Kyu-ban Tai Taichou help you?" She beamed.
"Are you seriously pulling rank with me?" Azdeha strolled into the room and sat down in the chair opposite Chusei, putting her legs up on her friend’s desk, knocking a pile of paperwork onto the floor.
Both women looked at it as it floated to the floor, shrugged and turned back to each other. "I came to ask a favour actually."
Azdeha shuffled uneasily and swung her legs back off the desk. She leaned forward and put her hands on the hard wooden surface, then bowed low, her head resting on them. "Tasukete kudasai, Chusei senpai!"
Chusei regarded her with curiosity but let her friend continue, "I really want to learn Bankai so that I can be more helpful in battle. I think I'm almost there, but I need someone to help me push past that point."
She looked up, "I would ask Renji but he's really busy and he'd probably either laugh at me or outright ban me trying to be all protective big brother like he does. And Taichou, well...I'm terrified of sparring with him because I know he'll go all out to work me hard and well, I'd rather not be going up against Senbonzakura."
Chusei smirked, "Is that the only reason?"
"Ok well, we both know me and Byakuya probably wouldn't get much training done, and even if we did, there's enough rumours floating around about the amount of time we spend together, I don't want to add fuel to the fire."
"They're only rumours if they aren't true, baka."
"Shush, they don't know that. Will you help me or not?"
The expression on her friends face told Chusei this wasn't some fleeting joke. Sighing, Chusei unlinked her fingers and one hand scratched the side of her face as she leant back in her chair.
"I will help but I have to be honest, it's a bugger of a thing to achieve." Chusei spoke frankly, regarding Azdeha with casual interest as she went over details in her head.
"Well I know that." Azdeha rolled her eyes.
"No I am talking proper hard-graft here." Chusei's gaze hardened. "If you are to achieve Bankai you must truly get to know your zanpakuto. Know its flaws, its quirks, you must fight it eventually - and when you do you better win!" Chusei stepped up and off her chair, turning to the wall behind her to collect Shunen-Ryu off the stand on the wall, before returning and placing her blade on the desk.
"For example," Chusei sat back down, "Shunen-Ryu is an impatient and angry blade. Like a storm, there is little stopping him when we both get caught up in a battle. When I achieved Bankai both of us were beaten down to a pulp....but I got that decisive blow." Chusei lay a poignant hand on Shunen-Ryu's handle. "And the pact was then made." Chusei's eyes flared with passion as she remembered the battle.
After a moment or two, Chusei let go of Shunen-Ryu, leaving him on the table as she reclined back in the chair.
"Bankai means descending that bit more in to the ties with your zanpakuto...but not so far that you begin to merge with it. Let's not forget the stories of people like Baishin." Chusei's tone wasn't condescending, more concerned as she looked down at her sword. "Communication with zanpakuto is one thing but Bankai is a whole different ball game. It's the hardest thing anyone will ever achieve." Chusei should know, she only just managed to attain it initially. By some good grace that moment when Shunen-Ryu could have taken her life he hadn't. That was the moment he had decided Chusei had became his true master.
Azdeha looked at Chusei and cocked her head to one side. "So you're saying I gotta be one with Kurobara?"
She leaned back in the chair and put her feet back on Chusei's desk, much to her friend’s irritation. "That sounds kinda...kinky."
"Deha, if you're not going to be serious..."
"Ok, ok. So I have to beat Kurobara, show her that I'm worthy of wielding her? And to do that I have to battle her to the point of near death and bring her under my full control."
She looked thoughtful for a moment then sighed, "That's going to be hard; Kurobara can be a bit of a bitch at times. Then again, Taichou says that Zanpakuto's are the embodiment of our repressed spirits and emotions, so it's probably fitting right?"
Planting her feet firmly on the floor, the girl raised herself out of the chair and slammed both hands down on the hardwood desk, nearly knocking more paperwork onto the floor. "I'm in. You name the time and the place and I'll be there."
