Chapter 12: First Mission (1)

"Speech"

'Thoughts'

*Sound Effects*

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Chapter 12: First Mission

Koda solemnly rested one knee upon the dirt, his emotions were ambivalent as he looked at his collapsed mentor, laid upon the ground with tattered garments and rough bruising all over the exposed patches of skin.

The surroundings terrain was unrecognizable from the lush thicket it had once been, the sediment had been torn to shreds by the cataclysmic swings of Koda's Asauchi. Moreover, the surviving bark had metamorphosed into charcoal-like pillars. The latter of which, was not his doing.

Koda examined Yasui as he inspected her injuries, scratching his chin with a bemused look. 'A Zanpakuto with the power to command lightning itself, how terrifying…' He sneered as he glanced at the two gross festering wounds that spanned from the tip of both his wrists, all the way to the lower sections of his quadrangular area.

'Who's the real monster between us? I wonder…' He placed his palm on her skin as he performed an awfully primitive form of Kaido on her, if you could even call it that. In truth, he was merely disposing some of his excess Reiryoku into her body to accelerate the repairing of tissue.

On account of learning that failing to regulate his brutality could potentially result in the death of his friend, he had made sure to avoid her vital organs — to the best of his abilities of course. Thus, his inherent treatment and sufficient rest would be enough to resuscitate her.

Notwithstanding, he still hadn't gotten his Asauchi to awaken — whether it was by virtue of a lack of strength, or perhaps something else, he didn't know. Wistfully, his blade refused to tell him why it wouldn't make its name known, leaving him to somehow find the answer on his own.

It didn't bother Koda all that much since he still had plenty of areas to develop, but it never hurt to have more power.

"Would it kill you to show a little mercy?" Koda had already been aware of Okita's presence in the area, thus his sudden approach was hardly surprising. The man spoke with a hint of enmity in his voice, which Koda could understand.

"Apologies, the activation of her Shikai got me rather — uppity, to say the least" The worried parent shook his head, trying his utmost best to contain the venom in his voice, he knew that his daughter would be alright at the end of the day. But the sight of seeing her brutalized in such a manner left a bad taste in his mouth.

Koda scooped Yasui up in a princess carry as he walked back to the cabin, gesturing for Okita to follow. Once inside, he laid her down gently onto the mattress and took a seat on the side of the bed. "Well? I highly doubt you've come here for a social call" Tomorrow was an important day for him, hopefully Okita was finally intent on giving him the details.

He hummed approvingly as his gaze fixated onto Koda's face. "Correct but before that, what the hell is up with that haircut?"

"Is it that bad? I think it suits me…" Koda absentmindedly twirled his bangs, he thought it made his image more vivid.

"You look like a delinquent…"

Koda accusingly pointed a finger at his cloak in response. "Okita, aren't we literally criminals?"

"Touche, it still looks stupid though" The both of them shared a brief but quiet chuckle as to not disturb Yasui.

Okita's expression quickly grew somber, it was time for Koda to find out about the assignment that demanded a whole month's worth of preparation. "In the 64th District there's a multipurpose diner that also serves at gambling den, our scouts have reported an unusually high amount of Bala-, I mean Soul Reaper traffic in the area" It was abundantly clear what all that preparation had been for.

"The 64th District is an exceedingly valuable foothold for us, unfortunately I cannot disclose why just yet but I'm sure you'll find out in due time" Okita withdrew a singular cup as he poured a light halcyon liquid from a ostensibly baroque looking bottle.

Okita calmy pushed the cup towards Koda as he continued. "Your task is both terribly simple and strenuous to accomplish at the same time, at dawn, the same group of Soul Reapers visit the den daily without fail, annihilate them, and remember you will unquestionably be outnumbered"

Rather than showing signs of ambiguity or hesitation, Koda's lip casually curled upwards as he nonchalantly took a sip from his cup. "Soul Reapers huh?" He murmured.

"You don't seem all that worried?" Okita had mistaken Koda's lack of reaction for arrogance, causing him to scowl as he looked at his seemingly overconfident figure.

"Okita, I've been told numerous times that Soul Reapers are stronger than anything I could have ever imagined" Koda hurriedly gulped down his drink, as he motioned for Okita to pour him another. "Whether I end up fighting five of them, or five hundred I shall see to it that I enjoy this fight, more than anything I've ever experienced prior, I refuse to allow something as cowardly as doubt ruin such a moment for me"

His Asauchi emitted its own version of a growl, affirming that he was just as hyped as Koda was.

"I see…" The aged swordsman took a moment to ponder Koda's words before lifting his knees, preparing to make his way out. "Get some rest, tomorrow Yasui will give you more in-depth instructions"

Koda nodded and the day had arrived at its conclusion.

—

Radiant beams of sunlight infiltrated the small nooks and crannies of their humble lodging, her eyelids unwillingly parted open as she sluggishly sat herself up right. Yasui couldn't help but wince at the sensation of each and everyone of her muscles brimming with soreness.

"Koda…what are you doing?" Hunched over her bedside, was an imposing figure with a look that overflowed with impatience.

"Mission, today" He exclaimed robotically.

"How about we have some break-"

"Today" He repeated, but with slightly more edge.

"Koda, I could really use-"

"To-day" His voice grew even more monotone, his Asuachi radiating a similar annoyance.

"You're insufferable sometimes, you know that?" She retorted half-jokingly.

"Heh, and you love me for it" Koda dropped his antics and let Yasui get her morning routine over with, all the while discreetly monitoring her for any noteworthy damages she was hiding in an attempt to maintain her image.

"So, how much has Okita told you?" Koda could feel how high-strung she was, walking into a den of fully-trained Soul Reapers isn't something most tend to come out of.

"Nothing much, just that a few Soul Reapers are going to die today, you know — the usual" His overarching confidence helped Yasui relax a little, there was no denying that Koda had grown tremendously strong over the past month.

But was it enough?

"Cocky as always I see" Trying to hide her discontent, her lips broke out into a faint smile in order to prevent her unease from passing onto Koda. "In that case, go warm up with what little time you have whilst I prepare our meal, anything less than your best will spell your death"

Despite being warned not to get too close to him, it was much easier said than done.

Koda laughed her warning off with an audacious grin, "Hah, death alone isn't enough to stop me!" She had no idea how literal those words were.

After a heartier than usual breakfast the duo set off into the underground tunnel network that facilitated most of the Roamers movement. The two were forced to make small talk for an entire hour until they arrived at their destination.

They stepped into what seemed to be a wooden room that looked to be some sort of rudimentary clothing store. "The diner is only a few minutes away by foot, once you're inside me and my team will erect a barrier to prevent any sound from leaking out, people usually don't enter whilst the Shinigami are inside, but if they do…"

"I'll deal with them, but where's this team you speak of?" Roughly six figures made their presence known from the shadows, uncloaking themselves and revealing attire fully clad in black which concealed their faces just like Yasui.

"All these people just to block some sound?" Knowing Yasui's prowess Koda was sure that she could perform such a feat on her own.

The woman in question shook her head and looked at Koda as if he was an idiot, "We have to block your Reiryoku from leaking out as well, on the contrary I'd say we're understaffed for such a task"

"I'll take that as a compliment" Koda inched closer towards the front entrance before two of her underlings stepped in front of him, pointing at his cloak with looks of disapproval.

"You won't be needing that, we don't intend on making our presence fully known here just yet" Koda paid it no heed and simply left his cloak on one of the tables.

It was time for him to finally fight and see what a Soul Reaper's might looked like first hand.