The Animal I Have Become

Tenkai slowly awake in a daze, though where he woke up was unfamiliar at first. He expected to see the ceiling of the Fourth Division Medical Bay, but there was nothing but open sky. Someone was standing over him though, certainly no nurse just from the gruff breathing he could hear and their imposing figure. It only took a few moments to put together where he had awoken, his inner realm. Slowly raising himself up from the ground, he glanced around taking in the surroundings. For the most part his inner realm had repaired itself, his mind returning to the calm place that it was. However there were still portions of it that were burnt and desolate, not having recovered from his ferocious encounter.

Looking at it carefully he could tell somewhere in his mind that it would never recover. It was a tainted portion of his soul, reflecting the hollow powers that he now possessed. It was depressing to say the very least, having become that which he pledged to purge from the earth and all realms in between. Letting himself drop backwards into the ground to his previous position, he heard a grunt from the being that stood over him. "You said you would never use that power unless absolutely necessary. You know what repercussions it has on our mind and body." It was slightly amusing, the extremely impassive concern Oni had shown for Tenkai. It was rare that his zanpaktou held an opinion towards him that was not some form of mockery, superiority, or disdain.

The two had values and opinions that varied greatly, but they both relied, and respected, each others strength and conviction. Though they believed in different things, they could at least stick to the ideals that they believed in. Grunting quietly, Tenkai pulled himself up from the ground and shook off the dirt from his haori. He faced opposite from Oni as they both gazed out at their inner realm. "You know I wouldn't have if I did not have to. But that beast, you saw how strong it was, the ferocity with which it fought. It would have been the end of both of us if I hadn't." A grunt was the only argument that came from Oni as he crossed his arms. Tenkai accepted that as enough of an admission as he was going to get.

Oni would never outright admit to anything every being stronger then them as there hadn't been anything stronger then themselves for quite some time now. For this, creature, to arise that was as strong as he was, it was something that he had not had to face in a great deal of time. That was the first time that Tenkai had used his bankai since fighting Gervas. He was significantly weaker when he had faced him as well. It was scary to see the strength that it possessed, and by extension, the power he possessed. "We are the same being Tenkai, as much as I hate to admit it. I can feel and hear everything that you think. You claim fear of our power, yet continue to allow it to grow. Could you truly be such a hypocrite?"

"There is no hypocrisy in what I say and you know it, you just do not think like I do, despite us supposedly being the same person." Tenkai cleared his throat and looked down at his open palm, feeling his power pulsate through his body. "It is essential to always fear the strength you possess no matter how strong you are, or become. We have the power to singlehandedly destroy entire civilizations, is that not something to be feared?" Oni simply grunted again, this time however with a smirk on his face. He turned to look at Tenkai, berating him as he did so. "Those words are simply those of a coward, one who is not brave enough to wield the power they possess. You sound nothing more then a pedantic fool."

Closing his palm, Tenkai clenched his fist holding his hand shut tightly. He too turned as he did so facing Oni with a face more of seriousness then having an answer to quell him with. "Those words are of sagely quality. They have come from ones who possessed a great deal more power then either of us. Would you have seen Old Man Yama in such a light as well? Is he too a pedantic fool that you would see as a simple coward; I would think not." Oni laughed mockingly, confusion spreading across his face as he realized how serious the phrase itself was. "Surely you jest? The greatest shinigami in existence could not have been such a coward to have feared his own strength."

"I do not, much to your apparent chagrin. Though you claim to have lived many millenia more then myself you still have a great deal to learn Oni." The massive demon simply roared angrily before walking off dismissing the argument. Tenkai had essentially referred to him as a child, one of his zanpaktou' largest buttons. He knew it would set him off as well, though it was well warranted. Sometimes he did act like a child despite being as old and as 'wise' as he was. But he was there when it was important. That, and his advice had kept him alive at times that he would have surely perished otherwise. Though it was technically only self preservation, he knew that Oni did not mean any ill will on him despite their frequent arguments.

Waving his hand dismissively Tenkai began to slowly fade away back to the physical realm where he was most certainly in the medical bay. He had a strong feeling that he had been asleep for a significant amount of time, more time then he had truly wished to have been incapacitated. There were questions that he could not easily answer, to any and all of his subordinates. He had especially hoped that Rensaku had not bared witness to anything that had happened at that time. Nobody had seen what had happened, only Sansuka had. He did not need another witness to deal with as well, one that he was not entirely sure of how well he could be trusted.

As he came to into the 'real' world, his body was suddenly overwhelmed with aches and pains. They were the various wounds that had been inflicted onto his body by Sansuka no doubt. On top of that were any of the abuses that he had caused just from having such a heated battle within his own mind. His powers had been used to an extreme and he had physically and mentally exhausted himself. Groaning quietly, Tenkai slid himself off the bed placing his feet on the floor. Steadying himself, he stood up slowly and stretched out his arms and back. A loud mixture of a yawn and groan rippled through the room as he emptied his lungs for a breath of fresh air.

Apparently the noise he was making was enough to illicit attention from the hallway outside his room as the last person in the world he needed to see show up. Granted, he did not mean that in any negative reflection, but more as not needing the attention that he was about to receive. "Grandpa, grandpa, you are awake!!! Are you alright, are you hurt, what happened to you!?!?" Tenkai simply held his arms out in an open manner letting his granddaughter pounce on him with a hug. He smiled and laughed lightly as she unleashed a barrage of questions and concerns into him which only proved to agitate her as she was genuinely concerned for his safety and health.

"I am fine Yumiko, I promise. I just overexerted myself is all with a bit of training, I think I will live on." He patted her head lightly and moved her away from himself gently. "I need you to get my shihakushou and haori together, I have some important business I need to tend to regarding the prisoners. Could you do that for me please Yumiko?" She nodded eagerly as she raced off out of the room but stopped short just before exiting. She turned around with a quizzical look on her face and asked what anyone else would see as a simple question. "What prisoners?" Tenkai could have smacked himself in the face if not for the fact that he did not need to be in any further pain then he was at the moment.

He had forgotten that the issue itself was fairly under wraps with only the highest ranking members of the Gotei Thirteen being privy to it. Even his son had no idea what had transpired in that regard. The only real news that had been publicized was that he had taken up the post of Captain Commander in a duel between himself and the former Captain Commander Toshiro Orahara. There were some that were against the change, especially in so drastic a way, but no true opposition to him having taken power other then the rogue Captains. His name was just as well known as the former Captain Commanders, perhaps even more so due to his long lineage with the Gotei. He had been alive for nearly three times the Toshiro's life span.

Beyond that he had been in service with the Gotei for many centuries more then he had been as well. He hailed from one of the four great noble houses and was the current head of his family. His father was also a founding member of the Gotei Thirteen and the first Captain of the Tenth Division. The name Bushinji was known to anyone who would call themselves a shinigami. It was one of the greater privileges that Tenkai had throughout his life, as well as tutelage in the arts from the great man he called his father as well as many of the former Captains of the Gotei Thirteen. He had been born with a silver spoon in his mouth and it was only to be replaced by a golden one as he became older.

Not to toot his own horn but he was born as a very privileged individual and he had made the most of what he had been given. He was the strongest shinigami in the known existence and the leader of the organization that the shinigami belonged to. He had nowhere else he could truly climb, except for Division Zero. Sighing lightly, he had been caught up in his own thoughts again and waved his hand dismissively at his granddaughter. "It is nothing you need to worry about Yumiko. I will inform everyone when I return to the manor. When I get a moment away from my work at least." He chuckled lightly as he sat back down on the bed, allowing himself to lay down for a moment longer.

It was not often that he was allowed to relax like this. While he had the privilege of doing so he was going to abuse it maliciously. He heard only the pitter patter of his granddaughter leaving the room to acquire his belongings before silence filled the air. There was the occasional chirping of birds, but for the most part there was only silence and peace. Tenkai took in a deep breath through his nose and slowly exhaled it through his mouth. A smile dawned on his face despite all that had transpired in the last few months. Despite the current state of affairs, he was somewhat happy, and at peace. Happy at least for what he could only say was the animal he had become.

WC: 2,076

The noises started coming back, however they were louder and a great deal more prominent. It slowly dawned on him who it was that was drawing near and became all the more clear once he was actually there. Propping himself up on his left elbow, Tenkai leaned up in his bed to greet his new visitor. "Good morning Sansuka, or evening, or whenever it happens to be." He did not manage to get out much more then that before he was cut off by Sansuka. He did not say a whole deal but was certainly startled by whatever it was that he had seen. Apparently a feature of Tenkai's had changed, and noticably so. He had not had the chance to look in a mirror yet, but neither was he really expecting what had happened.

Getting up slowly he made his way to a small mirror that was across the room with a strange look on his face. "What could be so startling that it would get your screaming....like that..." It was at that moment that Tenkai had seen what Sansuka was pointing out. Grabbing a fistful of his hair in each hand he took full notice of the change. His wonderful jet black hair had turned stark white at some point while he had been resting. Perhaps it had been the shock of the sudden transformation and battle with his inner hollow. Either that or some god out their thought it would be a hilarious case of irony. Releasing his hair from his hand he looked down at the ground and shook his head lightly.

"This is either some sort of strange practical joke or someone out there has a kick for irony..." Sighing loudly Tenkai turned to face the door now fairly angry about everything that was happening around him. He had no one to particularly be angry at and no one to blame. That was, for the most part, the reason he became to upset to rapidly. "Where the hell are my garments, I already have enough shit to deal with without my hair changing colors!!!" It was clear that his shouting was no isolated to just the immediate area as a few shinigami in the halls stopped dead in their tracks and peaked in the door. Granted they only looked in for a few moments once they saw the occupants of the room, but it was enough to get attention.

It was not too long after that Yumiko had come into the room holding his folded shihakushou and haori. "I am sorry it took so long grandpa. I just figured you would want them cleaned as they were quite dirty from your activities. That is why it took so long..." It was clear the young girl felt dejected considering Tenkai had been essentially complaining about her taking so long. Sighing lightly he moved forward towards her and removed the garments from her hands. He placed them down on a chair that was sat near the door and then patted his granddaughter lightly on the head. "Forgive me Yumiko, I am not upset at you, just at my hair. I certainly had no intention of my hair changing color as it has, now people will know how old I am."

He smiled lightly hoping the joke would put his granddaughter in better spirits, which it certainly seemed to do. She quickly hugged him and gave a big smile and said one thing before leaving the room. "It's ok grandpa, I can't stay mad at you. Just please try to come home and visit us more. I know you are busy, but we all miss you!!" Tenkai rubbed his left arm for a moment as she left the room feeling slightly bad for a moment. He really should have tried to get home more and actually see his family. His work kept him busy and with him taking up the post of Captain Commander he was even more so. Still, there were times that he just needed to say no, and take a day to be with his family. They wouldn't be there forever after all, neither would he.

Sighing, Tenkai turned and picked up his clothing and stepped into the bathroom attached to the main room. "I'll just be a moment San, then we can discuss other matters." Shutting the door behind him he changed quickly out of the white robes that he had been dressed in and placed on what was now his standard uniform. Once his sash was tied on and his haori snugly fitted over his shoulders, he emerged from the room in his full capacity as the Captain Commander. Moving across the room, Tenkai approached Sansuka stopping three or four feet from him and lightly brushed out the sleeves of his haori over his arms. "So, other then to make sure I had not actually died this time, what have you come here for Sansuka?"

WC: 876

Tenkai nodded slowly as Sansuka began to unveil his reason for visiting; other then the obvious that was. It had to deal with the prisoners, which set the irony levels in the room to the highest levels ever seen. Tenkai himself had been thinking on how to deal with them up to this point. It had basically been brought down to his own discretion on how to deal with them, as was deemed by Central Forty Six. There had been a brief, and by brief he meant BRIEF, discussion between himself and them on the fate of the prisoners. Tenkai's methods were well known, and while he was certainly merciful, he was more so just. He would dole out the punishments that were deserved and make sure they were carried out.

For now he had remanded all of them to remain in the Senzaikyu until he had personally dealt with them. He still dwelled on what to do with the rogue Captains. They were in short supply of high ranking individuals in the Seireitei and executing three Captains was not going to help matters. However, they were all criminals of the highest caliber and needed to be punished. That very situation caused quite the dilemma for Tenkai. Regarding the other two though, they would be left off a great deal lighter. They most likely acted only under the command of their Captain and could be given a significantly lightened sentence. He figured a demotion would suffice and perhaps moving each of them somewhere they could be watched would do them well.

Patting Sansuka lightly on the shoulder, Tenkai moved past and made way towards the door of the room. "I suppose we should deal with this now then. I had intentions to do so soon as well so it makes this all the easier to do. Let's go talk to the two brats then I suppose, the others will be dealt with at a later date." Tucking his arms into the sleeves of his shihakushou, Tenkai exited the room quietly and made his way out into the hall. His destination was the Senzaikyu, with Sansuka in tow they would decide the fate of two young shinigami. Hopefully they would use this as a learning experience in the future. Following the orders of your superior was not always the best course of action.

One sometimes need to listen to what their own conscience told them to do and follow it. That was how individuals were formed and molded and turned into splendid shinigami. Granted that does not mean to disobey orders whenever one felt like it, that led to just as much trouble as following the wrong command. One must simply, view justice as what it was. Granted there was a gray area in the midst of it, but a person of good morals tends to know where the line lay.

WC: 503