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Post by Zenkai Taiyou on May 28, 2011 0:05:07 GMT -5
 Name: Zenkai, Taiyou
Zenkai, the surname, is derived from the word Kaizen, which comes from the philosophy of self improvement. “Taiyou”, her first name, means “Sun”.
Age: 359
Visual Age: 20
Gender: Female
Birthday: March 5th
Height: Five foot, two inches
Weight: 115 pounds
Eye color: Green-blue
Hair color: Dark brown with a white spot.
Division: 10th
Rank: Fuku-Taichou/Vice Captain
[glow=red,2,300]Attributes[/glow]
Constitution
-Strength: 14
Taiyou’s strength is a result of her work in other areas; she is strong, but not especially so.
-Endurance: 14
The woman has relatively good endurance, and can last for extended periods of time. However, because she was not built or trained to be a front line fighter, her ability to take damage is a little handicapped.
Dexterity
-Agility: 18
Taiyou’s petite frame plus years of traveling and training have made her an agile creature. She’s a fast runner and practically a pro at dodging.
-Accuracy: 20
Especially since Taiyou had gained her shikai, the lady has become highly proficient at close range combat. Also, because of her skills with kidou, her hands practically fly as she makes the proper hand movements required.
Zanjustu
-Attack: 14
Taiyou’s main offense lies in counterattacks, boosted by her accuracy. Thus, she doesn’t often play the part of the aggressor.
-Defense: 20
It’s in defense where Taiyou’s strength lies. She rarely keeps her guard down and is quick to dodge, block, and counter.
Kidou
-Hadou: 20
Taiyou, ever since the academy, had studied and practiced Kidou with a bit more enthusiasm than the blade. Her ability is above average, boosted by her accuracy. If she ever must begin a fight, she usually starts with hadou.
-Bakudou: 25
If Taiyou is a skilled hadou user, she prides herself even more in her bakudou abilities, which she had honed during her time in the 3rd division.
Perception
-Intelligence: 19
Taiyou is imaginative both on and off the battlefield, bright, observant, and a skilled analysis. She’s quick thinking, and knows how to stall if she can’t. She has learned how to think like the enemy (something not entirely difficult to do, as she was a hollow) and counter attack against their tactics.
She tries to use kidou creatively, and to make the most out of any situation.
-Concentration: 15
Taiyou’s resistance to spells is efficient, though not above average.
Presence
-Charisma: 10
Taiyou is friendly, open, and honest. However, despite her intelligence and personality, she’s surprisingly not that great at debating. Her emotions tend to give her away, she doesn’t get very polite, she’s too honest, and she’s impatient; in short, she’s lacking in the arts of persuasion.
-Leadership: 14
Taiyou’s good at keeping people on task, especially in a pitch, but otherwise she’s rather laid back. She can be a bit bossy especially since she doesn’t always trust other shinigami to do it themselves. Thus, she can be known to take hold of the reigns when it comes to small groups. With larger ones, she tends to back down and become a bit timid.
[x]
[glow=red,2,300]Appearance:
[/glow]
The first thing people often like to comment on is her usual natural hair color. It is long, reaches her knees, and she likes to keep most of it braided and wrapped in a cloth. On duty, the cloth is most often dark green, to match the division's color. However, it is unruly and wavy, so she leaves the shorter layer unbounded, which flow playfully. Her bangs are side parted towards the left, though a small portion of hair on the right side of her face is pure white. The color, however, doesn’t annoy her, though the questioning about it does.
Taiyou is short, achieving a height of only five foot two inches, which a lot of people (including her) mock her for. She’s curvy, with wide hips, bust, and waist. Her legs are muscular, and her upper arms are slightly so. Her stomach is flat and soft, though firm with abs. Her skin is of a light tan color, like sand on the beach. Her almond-shaped eyes are a green-blue color, a variation of her family’s usual solid blue eyes. Her feet are small, roughly the size of her hand, not counting her toes. She has long arms, which reach slightly more than half way down her thigh when standing straight up.
A small, modest diamond is planted into her right nostril of her slightly sharp angled nose. Her ears are also pierced, which she adorns with wear blue/green feather earrings, though that she knows better to wear those on duty . Her ears are small, and her ear lobes detached. Her eye brows are dark and thick, as are her eyelashes. Two piercings reside over her belly button, and one below it.
The young woman has also taken a fascination for tattoos. On her right shoulder blade is a tattoo of a butterfly, flying towards the heavens. On her upper left arm is a tribal tattoo of a black sun, with a round, black center. A bit above her left hip is a small tattoo of a phoenix rising from the ashes.
Her himika for shinigami duty is slightly different then the norm, as hers is sleeveless. She wears a pair of black sleeves that end a bit above the elbow. She wears her zanpaktou diagonally across her left shoulder, the strap being elaborately decorated with Chinese phoenixes in silver, blue, red, and green silk. Taiyou usually only wears her arm bands for important events, such as meetings, or sometimes when she goes on missions. To meetings, she wears it on her left arm. On the occassion that she wears them on missions, Taiyou secures it to the l
eft side of her sash, claiming it to be more comfortable that way.
In her gigai form Taiyou wears bohemian style clothing, finding the fashion the most comfortable to move around in, the most colorful, and also finds it as a reminder of her nomadic past. Though she is quite a tomboy, she is not afraid to flaunt her feminine side, and thus prefers to wear skirts over jeans. She either wears her hair in braid, down, or in a pony tail, but she never wraps it up in gigai form.
Her nails are kept short and clean, and she tends to only wear makeup on her days off.
[glow=red,2,300]Personality: [/glow]
Taiyou is quite laid back, friendly, and energetic, seemingly tireless in her efforts. She is quite brash and tends to tease and be sarcastic, though she becomes serious and very focused when she has to work. She's hard working and diligent and sometimes snaps at people who aren't. The woman can be rather independent, preferring to do some things alone such as paperwork assignments. However, she values working in a team, especially on the battlefield, and tends to get a little bossy.
She’s quite curious and a bit of a busybody, always hanging around the captain’s offices in both the 3rd and 10th division. Unfortunately, she’s also a kind and generous one, and is sometimes doped into doing extra paper work for them.
The shinigami hates procrastination- she prefers to get tasks done immediately. Otherwise, so she claims, she'll just keep on thinking about how she has to do it. However, that doesn't mean she never makes compromises; she has been known to attend certain division chill out sessions with sake in one hand and paper work in the other. Taiyou is learning to stop doing this, however, especially since the last time she did so she found elaborate doodles of various division members fighting dinosaurs in her own hand.
Extremely blunt and honest, Taiyou is quick to get frustrated at those who aren't or whose attitudes she doesn't like. (Arrogance tends to tick her off the most.) Taiyou values honesty over being polite, a trait that has gotten her into trouble on more than one occasion. In short, she more or less lacks tact.
She’s open for the most part about her emotions, but finds it difficult to show her more complex ones, such as anger or love towards one she holds dear. Thus, she often bottles up things for long periods of time. There are only a few people whom Taiyou really trust the most and consider her closest friends; it is in these people that she confides in. To everyone else she would answer honestly, though discretely. She’s gotten better at controlling her proud temper, though she can get rather hot headed. Taiyou is rather impatient, so that combined with her lack of control makes it difficult for her to have a proper debate in such a strict and disciplined system. Thus, she had learned to get her point across in other ways, though her means of persuasion are clumsy still.
Despite her tomboyish side, Taiyou is actually quite gentle, fond of cute things. She makes it a habit to address people with nicknames, finding many names too long to pronounce all the time, and finds it funny when they react.
The woman as also a sympathetic streak for enemies. She is almost never the first to strike and finds little pleasure in victory. Instead, she finds it necessary and always wishes the departing souls of plus good luck in their next life. She looks back to her past with some regret and sorrow, though she doesn’t like to wallow in it. To her, the past should be a learning experience, but is something that needs to be left behind. Taiyou grows a little bitter when its brought up in conversation, though she looks upon her sun with the hollow’s center as a bittersweet symbol of courage. Though she is caring and sympathetic, she tends to carry this sort of attitude with her about other tragedies, even if it might not be the most appropriate.
In a way, Taiyou uses such an attitude to hide from certain problems and emotions she doesn't want to face at the moment. Because of this, she can sometimes lead her self into a break down simply because she couldn't handle something she thought she was strong enough to.
She is, for the most part, brave, though she finds her hesitation a bit cowardly, though she’s in no hurry to ‘fix’ that part of herself, for she doesn’t think it’s necessarily wrong.
Though she can be quite energetic, she is also rather calm and laid back, a trait which helps her thinking clearly. She is thrifty, due to her vast experience of merchandising, and is intelligent. Though she likes socializing a lot, she also values her quiet, alone time moments, finding solace in the silence.
The woman is also prideful and a bit flamboyant. She is confident in her music abilities, and has no trouble pulling her flute out on request. Taiyou adorns her body with piercings and tattoos, and though she is not overly fond of make up, she takes effort into always looking her best. She refuses to cut her hair, despite it being impractical, claiming that she prefers it this way and that she's quite fond of it. The shinigami will throw a fit if her hair is treated with scissors. She also takes pride in her elaborately designed strap, and smirks whenever it is brought up in conversation. Though she values modesty in a person, Taiyou proves herself sometimes to be quite the opposite, boosting enthusiastically to her friends about her latest triumphs, no matter how small they are.
She sometimes gives the impression of being immature, as she can be quite stubborn, hyper, and impulsive. She sticks firmly to her beliefs, and doesn't budge easily, especially when she is told to do something in a way she considers 'rude'. Likewise, she doesn't like admitting defeat or being wrong. She is rather dynamic, and tears up a bit when she's upset, much to her annoyance.
Taiyou is observant and likes to be kept well informed. Her philosophy is that one must know as much as they can about their enemies in order to develop a more efficient technique to beat them. She gets lots in her thoughts sometimes, whether it is serious business or daydreams, thus making her somewhat of a ditz. She is very creative and imaginative, often incorporating this into her work.
Due to her free and independent spirit, Taiyou tends not to follow some of the customs that people, especially nobles, seem to follow, though she has come to accept that they do. She thinks some of it is absurd, though she knows to keep such opinions to herself. However, she does show some of her rebellious nature in small ways. She never bows completely to anyone, and only uses formal honorifics. If she’s close enough with someone to use ‘kun’ or ‘chan’, she tends to drop them completely, unless she addresses the said person by a nickname, or is teasing. There are bigger ways, too; since she doesn't really associate rank with level of respect as much as others do, she tends not to "know her place" and speak out of turn. This, too, can prove to be a disadvantage over an advantage.
However, despite her own personal struggles against the culture and its’ restrictions, Taiyou does believe in respecting others, though not because they're one's 'betters'. That said, she's not dumb. Though Taiyou tends to push her limits, she often understands where to draw the line and not make a total fool out of herself. She especially listens and values the words of those she trusts the most or holds in the highest regards.
When she gets angry or very frustrated, she tends to rant in a string of Arabic.
[glow=red,2,300]
Strengths: [/glow]
Taiyou has an easy going and friendly demeanor, making her an easy person to work with. When working, she’s sharp, calm, and focused, her mind always calculating, thanks to her experience as a merchant. It also helps her keep everyone focused on missions, as she refuses to accept anything less than the best. Not only has being a merchant taught her how to be thrifty, but traveling for long periods of time has helped boost up strength in her legs, allowing her to run fast for long periods of time as well as making her adaptable, allowing her to fit in many social circles and picking up bits and pieces of information. She’s a highly defensive fighter, and uses her talent for kidou to help boost her attacks or plan an escape. She has learned to turn her offensive weakness into strength by focusing mainly on counter attacking, always drawing the enemy towards her. She’s also relatively fast and deadly accurate.
The shinigami tries to find creative solutions to problems. Observant and with a thirst for knowledge, she likes to keep well informed, a trait that usually helps her survive on the battle field and learn more about her enemies. She takes a keen interest in hollows particularly, because she wants to learn more about the creature she once was. However, she is also kind and sympathetic, which keeps her somewhat humble and thus never throwing off her guard and a good friend. Also, being a great musician and an ear for music, she sometimes serves as a source for comfort and entertainment. She never holds a grudge for too long, either.
[glow=red,2,300]
Weakness: [/glow]
Despite her keen observation skills, Taiyou isn’t great at following vague directions when it comes to traveling. She prefers visual landmarks over anything, and tends to get lost, often asking for directions. She is also a little vain and has an attachment to her tattoos and piercings. Taiyou is rather impulsive at times, especially if she feels like something should get done at that instant. However, though that can lead to some good results, it also sometimes leads her to even greater trouble. It’s not the only thing that could lead her into trouble- her attitude can sometimes cause her to engage in heated arguments and her lack of suave can sometimes cause misunderstandings. The woman can be a bit scary when she is vexed and even more bitter at intervals when she holds something emotionally in too long.
In battle, Taiyou never quite lets herself reach her full strength’s potential, as she tends to focus on counter attacking and defending. That said, she can sometimes fail to initiate an attack when the opponent is not necessarily attacking her at that moment. Because of this, the shinigami sometimes loses advantages in battle. If she is with other people, she tends to encourage them to strike first.
Despite her fierceness, she can get quite overwhelmed when too many people depend on her.
The shinigami can be a bit foolhardy and has been known to sometimes bending some rules as well as some social norms, such as the ones stated above. Though it’s not necessarily a weakness, it does sometimes cause some misfiring.
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[glow=red,2,300]
Zanpakuto [/glow]
Sealed Zanpakuto:
Taiyou’s Zanpakuto is similar to the standard katana, except slightly shorter, the blade being as long as her arm, about two feet long, and the handle is roughly about another ten inches. The collar of the blade has an engagement of a sun, a reflection of her name, and the tsuka (handle) decorated with a blue/green cloth. Attached to the end is a small chain, four inches long, with a blue/green feather attached to the end.
Zanpakutō Spirit: Shio, short for Shiokaze, is a giant phoenix, about the length of a small classroom and, from tip of the tail to the beak, over thirty feet long. The feathers on the top of his head are white, his beak an orange brown color. The feathers on the side of the face start out yellow, then green, then tip off to red. His face is rather intimidating, as it appears as if he is wearing a bone mask over his eyes, the feathers sticking out from the side of it. His belly feathers are white, though they start to become green, then blue. Shio’s wings are huge and strong, with a wing span of over 70 feet. Longest layer feathers are white, the second longest green, and the shortest blue. Speaks of red and yellow feathers are scattered throughout. He has many tails, though the main three ones are long, about the length of his body, and have a small array of feathers at the end. These tails are adorned with orange and red feathers in the inside and yellow on the out. Nine other, smaller tails are also present, and are of different shades of red, green, blue, and a little purple. His eyes are large and black.
Shio lives in a brilliant night sky over a peaceful hill. A full moon glows over head, with a few, gently rolling clouds. On the hill is a narrow river with iris blossoms growing around it, with a giant apple blossom tree growing near it, sprouting blossoms of pure white and light pink. In the distance, mountains can be seen. The river has rocks and sand at the bottom, and the water is very clear. However, there are no fish or any other creatures living in it. There always seems to be a breeze or a strong wind in this world, ranging from peaceful to almost that of a storm.
Shio himself is of eccentric character. He is unemotional, and generally passive. This can probably explain why he does not mind the nickname which Taiyou had given him upon their first encounter. However, his actions and even words are unpredictable as he can say something kind one minute and a sarcastic remark the next. His intentions are honest; he wants to help Taiyou reach her goal, but he is a touch teacher, and lets her know it. He believes that instead of telling her the answers, she must find them herself. That said, he is calm and patient, something rarely broken though, and is very wise, though he doesn’t say much. Sometimes he snickers or finds odd things amusing, sometimes not explaining himself, to Taiyou’s distress.
He is very stubborn, frank, serious, and refined, and generally speaks in a much more polite manner than Taiyou.
Shikai Incantation: Tsubasa o hirogete maiagare, Shiokaze!
(Spread out your wings and soar, Shiokaze!)
Shikai Category: Elemental
Shikai Range: Short to mid range
Shikai Description: Sword becomes an elegantly curved sabre. The handle curves slightly, and an extra feather is added to the chain. (One feather is blue, the other is green.) The blade, though slightly curved, stays relatively the same length. On both sides of the blade, near the hilt, is a pattern of flames imprinted on the steal in the middle.
Taiyou is aero kinetic and can manipulate aspects of her element, namely wind.
She cannot use both of them at the same time.
When Shiaki is called, a twenty foot diameter circle pattern appears on the ground, of four, interconnected swirls, indicating the four winds. It is of a violet color, which is the same color of her riatsu while the edges shoot towards the sky and glow with a light, transparent, violet color. The techniques won't work outside of the arena. However, that doesn't mean the effects won't still be in place.
This arena will grow as she gains more experience.
Technique Name: Ranran Tsubasa Juuka. ("Fiery Wing Burden")
Technique Category: Augment
Technique Range: Short range (dubbed this for when blade makes contact with skin)
Technique Description: Taiyou controls the air channeling throughout a figure or object. The more Taiyou’s blade touches an object or figure, the more she is able to control the air channeling throughout them. By doing so, she has the option of either removing the air from them, causing them to go through hypoxemia, and suffocate. The first few hits would have an almost non noticeable effect, though they will start to find that their vision steadily becomes blurred, they become weaker, and become dizzier. With enough hits, they can suffocate to death. This technique has no direct effects on opponent shinigami zanpaktou.
Number of hits and effects on Receiver:
1-2: Light headed and starting to feel a little weaker.
3-4: Nausea increases. Harder to breathe.
5: Same as previous. Vision starts to blur.
6-7: Same as previous, steadily increases; suffocation is now in effect.
8-10: Increases to point of passing out or death*
(Site's rules on death apply. And Taiyou's conscious. )
Note that she has the option; it doesn’t necessarily happen immediately. If Taiyou so chooses to, she can hold back the effects of Ranran Tsubasa Juuka until she releases it, at any point in the process. For example, she could hit an opponent 3 times, but not remove the air from them yet. The more hits, the harder it is to control. It’s even harder to control an effect in the middle of the process. She calls this application ‘Torikkugēto’ or “Trick Gate”.
Torikkugeto:
1-2: Taiyou can control the release the longest from this point. If she only holds this out to 4 hits, she can do this again, but once is her limit if she holds it out for more than that.
3-5: Can only control release here once if hits go past 6.
6-7: At this point, she can only hold on release from her opponent’s passing out or death. (Again, site’s rules apply.)
8-10: If Taiyou has reached this far in the process, the only thing she can do to stop her shikai from doing any more damage is to dispel it.
The effects of this on the receiver, in or out of the arena, will still be in place until shikai is deactivated, Taiyou is incapable of control (passed out/died), or she changes her mind. Once the technique is deactivated, it'll take the receiver (depending on how many hits they took) several moments to several hours to recover. Meaning, if your vision was blurred and then she deactivates the attack, it would take a few moments for your eyes to go back into focus, etc.
Technique Name: Hishou Chuuten. ("Fly to the Heavens")
Technique Category: Offensive
Technique Range: Mid range
Technique Description: This phase allows her to manipulate wind. Taiyou can create mini tornadoes, using the wind in the pillar. The tornado bursts towards the opponent , or any other direction at her will. The strongest and biggest tornadoes take at least 5 seconds to make and are 15 feet in diameter, in terms of the widest point, where as the narrow end ranges from a few inches to a foot wide. Taiyou can make smaller ones in an instant, though those made in that time frame would be strong enough only to throw something backwards up to five feet or off course. The larger tornadoes, if it hits an opponent or an object, could potentially break it. (For example, if it hits an opponent, it could break bones. If it hits a wall, it could smash through it or dent it.) She can only make one tornado at a time.
The tornadoes cannot exceed the boundaries, but they still are capable of acting as a vortex. If someone was standing near the boundaries, for example, they would feel the force of it trying to pull them in.
Taiyou has not achieved Bankai yet.
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Post by Zenkai Taiyou on May 29, 2011 21:10:23 GMT -5
[glow=red,2,300]History: [/glow]
Part 1: Human
The desert wind blew fiercely against the walls of the tent. Taiyou’s people were nomads and were caught in the middle of a sand storm, though one thankfully milder than some. Her timing was unfortunate; they had been making way to an inn not too far, but her mother’s labor and the rising storm prevented the tribe from moving any further. Thus, tents were pitched, and the women bustled with activity while the men, including her father and her older brother, were made to stay out of the way. The night was long and the storm was harsh, but at the break of dawn as the sand began to settle, a new cry was raised. The babe’s aunt announced the news to the men, with a broad grin on her face. The baby girl’s father smiled thoughtfully; it gave him great joy to be given a daughter, but that meant arranging a dowry in the future. Still, they were well off, and the girl was welcomed. Another merchant, one of the rare Japanese merchants outside the country at the time, was traveling with the family and was given the honor of suggesting a name. He offered Taiyou, after the triumphantly burning sun, and the parents agreed.
Taiyou’s family were merchants who sold goods for other goods or currency, as well as participating in slave trade. The slaves would be kept in their own tents, herded together. As a young child, she was both fascinated with their different cultures, but also disgusted by them. She was disgusted and annoyed at the occasional sound of chains (though rope was used more often to bind them), she was disgusted with how fifthly most were, and how they seemed to do very little to the chores she did. So why keep them? She had expressed such an opinion to her father, but it only earned her a slap and a scolding. As Taiyou grew older, she learned to pity and respect (somewhat) their humanity, yet she tried to keep her distance as often as she could, as if to hide herself from the reality of it all.
Her family’s travels lead her to different parts of countries and empires, exposing her to a plethora of cultures. The girl had a love for learning; as a young child, she had demanded that she attend some of the lessons her father and uncles were giving her brother, Kaizen. From them as well as the people of their respective cultures, the girl was taught how to speak in different languages. However, she was only taught to read and write in Arabic as well as a minimum understanding of how to read Chinese and Hindi, two other important languages of the time. They didn’t want to teach her as much, for it was considered improper for one of their woman to know too much of such things. Despite the limitations set by society, Taiyou developed a flair for business, often selling or bartering. She loved wandering around markets, fascinated by the foreign clothes, tongues, and stories. What she loved most of all, however, was their music.
Music, the girl figured, was understood by everybody. It was all so beautiful and exotic. Her mother’s brother, an expert musician himself, would sometimes carve instruments. He taught her how to play a flute, something she picked up fast. She would play often, and she enjoyed learning new songs from people in the markets. Singing also passed the time, especially when traveling on horseback on long, winding trails.
Life as a nomad was more or less a pleasant one. The women of her group weren’t bound to the customs and rules of settled life as much. They had more say in politics, and grew up just as strong and as sharp as their men. Taiyou was no exception, often debating with others to the point where her parents forced her to be silent for perhaps being too bold. Her behavior was often looked down upon, especially by city dwellers, though others just found it ‘cheeky’. For survival purposes, she was taught how to hunt and was dangerous with either a bow or dagger in hand. Rarely, if opportunity presented itself, the girl would even play a game and dress up as a boy, finding it terribly funny and useful, as she could pick up more information that way. At this point, the girl was rapidly approaching her teenage years; her parents brought up marriage now and then, but with her brother around, they were lenient.
Then he left. On the first day that she had realized Kaizen had gone, Taiyou didn’t know whether or not she should have been angered that he had “abandoned” them, or laugh that his nature finally got the better of himself. She decided on the latter and worried little, but soon grew to miss the young man and his dog. Things were slowly changing. Her father’s sister had several young boys, but her mother had no children other than Kaizen and herself; marrying and running the household in the future was going to have to be her job. At first, she didn’t mind; life continued as normal. Sometimes, she would receive news that her brother had been kicked out of a province for asking too many questions, or found one of his new books. A few years later, they received news of her brother’s to-be wedding from a family friend. The family did everything they could to attend, and Taiyou marveled at the strange, new customs in Japan as she struggled to learn the language.
When she and her family had left, her elders also started discussing her marriage. They didn’t consult her, which annoyed her greatly, though she knew they wanted her to marry someone who was willing to join their numbers, a decent man, and as wealthy as possible. Finally, they found a husband from a clan that was friendly with their own. He was her elder by five years, a young man who was clever and bold, but believed that a wife should be subservient to their spouses. Taiyou didn’t hate him completely, but she had no love for him, not if he couldn’t respect her as an equal. The man was fiercely over protective; he wouldn’t let her go out into the cities without the company of some of the older women or communicate much in public, let alone with a man. She was allowed to, however, to help run the market stalls, a small happiness. He consulted things with her, sometimes, but those were rare.
It was in these conditions when she learned of her brother’s death. They were at a port where, from there, it was only a week’s journey to her sister-in-law’s province. She pleaded her husband to let her go and visit, but he refused. Annoyed, she packed some of her bags, left a note saying that she would be back in a few weeks time, and headed off towards Japan. She and her sister-in-law, Ishima, did their best to retrieve his body back from the palace and be given a proper burial instead of being buried like a criminal, as well as protecting Ishima’s household from any accusation.
Taiyou journeyed back to the port to be greeted by an angry husband. For the first time, he slapped her, hard across the face, for her ‘indolence’. Upset, she followed him back to their tents quietly. Slowly, she began to hate her husband, even refusing to sleep with him on some bad nights. However, as nature ran its course, two years later, Taiyou discovered she was pregnant.
The family was happy, but her husband became stricter than ever. What with all the pressure that surrounded the young to-be mother now, Taiyou often felt nauseated and miserable. All she wanted to do was escape. But she couldn’t. She couldn’t run away, the baby was growing in and she wanted to be around her own mother, even if it meant staying in the camp. However, the birth was too much for her; she had given birth to twins, a boy and a girl. The boy she named Asad, meaning ‘lion’, and the girl she named Anwar, meaning ‘light’. For a brief moment, the world was perfect, until something went wrong. She was rapidly losing too much blood, something that even her experienced midwives aunts couldn’t fix. Just as she came into the world with a cry, so did she exit human life with the cry of her children.
Part 2: Plus and Hollow
With the regrets of living the last part of her life restrained by a husband and dying before her children grew up, Taiyou became a Plus. For a while, she was a peaceful spirit, happily watching over her kids or watching festivities. She noticed the chain of fate connected to her chest, but thought little of it. However, as time passed and her babies grew to become kids, her chain of fate started to erode, and she started to transform into a hollow. Resisting, her mask began to form first, resembling the skull of a hawk. Knowing that she was a danger to her children, she fled to the desert. Angered, confused, and pained, Taiyou was determined not to let the hollow part of her existence get the better of her. Thinking that it was because of the chain that was connected to her chest, as an act of desperation, she did the only thing she could think of to do; she yanked it out.
Taiyou’s hollow form was of a warped bird woman, with large wings and bowed legs, with a giant hole in her chest. As a hollow, her powers became known to her; though she was a new born hollow, and thus one of the weaker ones, she observed that she had power over the winds and air surrounding her. For a few months she lived this wretched life, and learned to live as hollow, consuming souls, though the soul part of her always attempting to avoid her people.
But as time passed, things changed. With each passing year as she traveled the giant desert, the hollow Taiyou would feed off poor travelers and nomads and pick fights with other hollows. Sometimes she’d win; other times, she’d lose with barely her life. She was quickly forgetting her memories of her past life; or, rather, she pushed them in the back of her mind. Slowly but surely, she was losing her humanity.
The hollow had ran into shinigami three times. The first time was under observation, as she observed a pair coldly from afar. She paid the race no mind until one started to attack her, but he had been weak; he was dead within minutes. The second had been harder, and she would have almost had gotten him, but he escaped.
It was the third that ‘killed’ her. She had been traveling, in search for souls to consume when she came across a familiar group of tents. At first, she hesitated as she watched her family. The twins she spotted first. They were in their early twenties and were busy doing work. A laughing shout then caught her attention; that of her husband. The hollow impulsively attacked then. She consumed his soul quickly, his blood spilling everywhere. There was shouting and running about, most of which she ignored. Still hungry, her eyes fell upon her daughter who was frantically attending to the corpse.
Had this moment been years before, the hollow would have stopped, horrified by her own deeds. Instead, she only went berserk. The hollow was an invisible fury to the humans, who had no supernatural powers; instead, she brutally suffocated and tore apart anything she could. She croaked out laughter, mixed with triumph, suffering, pleasure and lust. And then, the third shinigami approached her. He had been companions with the last she had battled. But there was something different about him; he was more composed, a bit stronger. The hollow didn’t care, she had just massacred what was once her family, and she could best this insect…
Only, she didn’t. Within minutes she had lost, and what was laughter was heavy sobs as the hollow self shattered, leaving behind a vulnerable, small ghost of a woman. The shinigami, though cold in nature, was patient, and talked to her softly. He told her about Soul Society and what he was and how she was going to be okay and that she shouldn’t hold these events on her conscious. Overwhelmed and shocked, Taiyou only picked up words now and then, not even getting a really clear glance at her savior. As she moved on, Taiyou wondered wistfully what being a shinigami would be like…
Part 3: Soul Society
For a while, Taiyou was lost and mortified. Why was this place so much like Japan? Why were they all speaking Japanese? She was lucky to know the language some, but there were still so many things she just couldn’t comprehend. And then there was the hollow business…She had cried on and off for a few days before she could find the strength to pull herself together. She spent the first few weeks roaming in isolation; she interacted occasionally with others, often running off depressed or scared at the mention of hollows.
It took a while, but finally the girl reasoned that wallowing wasn’t going to get her anywhere, and that she wasn’t a monster. She looked up at the sky, trying to decide what to do next. Her thoughts drifted towards her family and that she wanted to become a shinigami. Lost in that thought, the young woman accidentally walked into an older woman on a stroll. She apologized, and the woman accepted, though she said something interesting; the girl looked an awfully lot like a curious boy she had met, long ago….
It was then that Taiyou realized what she had to do, starting with changing her name; she would no longer be recognized by her formal last name, but by Zenkai.
Determined to achieve her goals, she began to wander around, figuring she had all the time she could want. She would ask about her brother from strangers, and it was always the same story; either they had met the kid, but he had left long ago, or they didn’t know him at all. On her journey, she would ask for food in exchange for work. For some reason, people didn’t care to give it to her; it appeared that she was the only one around who got hungry. However, when she asked people why they didn’t grow hungry, they just shrugged. She didn’t understand completely why she was doing this, but figured it wasn’t only because she missed him, but she was lonely in this world, and it gave her something to do. Plus, the journey presented her a pleasant opportunity to learn more about these new people’s culture and music, after she had been granted a flute after working at a shop. The more she travelled, the better her Japanese got; her heavy accent, over time, began to thin.
She journeyed like this for years, going from sector to sector, until she encountered a merchant named Fukuda Minori trying to sell some items for way more then what they were worth to a naïve customer. She immediately interfered, and helped the customer obtain his goods for their proper cost. Something happened, then; her spiritual energy rose in excitement and anger, causing the merchant began to feel a little light headed, as if suffocating slightly. Having failed his own shinigami test three times over and trading with shinigmai long enough, the merchant knew that this girl had potential, and asked her to be his assistant, in exchange for food, shelter, and even help on her ambition. Delighted, Taiyou agreed, and started a carrier as a merchant’s assistant, again.
They continued throughout the sectors, stopping often at markets to trade, and exchange news and information, often for periods of a month or two at a time. Taiyou didn’t mind, as there was much to catch up with. For one thing, Minori discovered that the girl had no knowledge of reading or writing. Thus, lessons began immediately, though it was tough on the girl, who was used to a very different system. The education would frustrate her, and , at times, she would break into a string of her dialect of Arabic and walk out of the room.
From Minori, Taiyou learned practically everything she could about Soul Society and its’ history, as well as more about hollows and shinigami. He also covered math, as she only seemed to know how to perform basic calculations. As for news of her brother, it was always the same, but the thought that he was alive, at the least, comforted her.
Finally, the pair arrived at the Academy. Taiyou took the test and….failed. But only barely, and that encouraged the father and daughter-like duo. The next year, she retook the exam and had passed magnificently.
Part 4: Academy Life
For the first time in her life – or death, for that matter – Taiyou was admitted to an actual school. The experience excited and enthralled her; she had never really seen one before, much less participate in one. Willing to please and succeed, Taiyou became a good student. Even though for the past several years she had been studying Japanese and math diligently, she still struggled with kanji and equations and sometimes would stay after classes to review things with teachers and classmates. However, as the girl was so used to the independent life, settling in sometimes proved to be difficult, often resulting in a scolding or punishments for refusing to do something or breaking a silly rule or two, such as curfew.
At this point, she was starting to receive closure for her past actions. At first, when learning how to use the blade she was reluctant to attack, practically refusing to attempt to hurt another person. She still got nightmares, though they came rarely. She wasn’t afraid of hollows the same sense that most of the shinigami and students were; there was a bit of anxiety there, but there was also weariness, sorrow, and sympathy. Whenever the topic was mentioned or talked about extensively, she would sit and listen quietly with a small, sad grin.
Still, she had one major problem; she wouldn’t attack. Oh, the girl was quick to respond with a blade when attacked, but something always held her back. This habit took a while to break in class, but even during the remainder of her time at school did she hesitate before taking the first strike.
To her surprise, some of Minori's noble client's children were her senpai. As Taiyou practically grew up with some of them, she tended to treat them with similarity, something which rather annoyed them. Still, she had her friends, and even looked up to one or two of them, mainly because of the strength of their character and confidence. As she grew older, Taiyou incorporated some of those qualities into her own character.
Chaos struck her first year. A call in the middle of the night had roused her from her bed towards the science building. To her horror, she discovered a hollow prowling near by. She escaped it's watchful eye and breached the building's security, running into some other students. Some were her friends, one was her brother, and others were classmates. And then there was Kitoushi, who carried an aura that she neither liked or trusted. From him, they learned that hollows have been kept here for experiments and had been accidentally let loose. If being stirred from her sleep was reason to be upset, this pushed the youth over the edge for several reasons. But there was no time to argue, so, with a grim attitude, Taiyou set out to help clean the mess.
With Andrew as her partner, the two battled against an acidic opponent. Half of that battle was spent with her trying to desperately get out of it's grip. It's blood from the wounds dripped onto her, burning through some of her clothes and burning her skin. The outcome of the battle was hazy, but when Taiyou woke up in a hospital ward, the whole thing had been taken care of and most of her wounds were gone. Ever since that day, she stayed weary of Nakatomi's servant.
Taiyou didn’t bother thinking much about which division she’d get into. Oh, she was thinking about going into the 10th, but that was because of her fear that her shikai powers might be similar to that of her hollow ones. At this point, she had already found her brother, so she was happy in that regard. After talking with a teacher a bit before graduation, she had made up her mind to join the third division. It wasn’t just because of the comfort that her sibling was there, but they both felt that her abilities with kidou, her fighting style, and her intelligence would be an asset there. Diligent and a hard worker, Taiyou graduated a year early. There was another reason for that, too; since Minori was on the move, it was to her benefit that she stayed near Academy grounds in order to not interfere with his schedule. Thus, she took courses over vacation.
Part 4: 3rd Division
Upon entering the 3rd division, Taiyou was initially placed in the 10th seat. She started building up her kidou repertoire, larger than what she had ever known before. Taiyou enjoyed gathering and analyzing data, both about allies and enemies. As her skills grew over the years, she began to increase her rank, working her way up to eventually the sixth seat. Her work mainly involved dealing with hollows, analyzing the way they thought, moved, and attacked. Precious few did she trust with knowledge of her previous hollow life, though she shared information about them with her co workers as much as she could without giving anything away.
During this time she also took the liberty to look through archives of the old hollow bounties. She found hers within two hours; she had been called “the little Alkonost”, a troublesome desert creature. Upon reading the bounty description, she laughed for a few minutes, causing another division member to check up on her with concern. Taiyou quickly made a copy of the bounty to keep for her own personal records, hiding it within her personal things. The next day she had off, she went to quietly visit the shinigami who had ‘saved’ her, whose name she found out was Noda, a member of the 9th division. A woman, his wife, had opened the door to the house, and had let her in when she explained she was a ‘co-worker’. At first, Noda didn’t recognize her, and Taiyou quietly showed him the bounty. His brows rose in recognition as he handed the paper back to her. She had expected some sort of angry reaction from him, but instead, the man replied shrugged and offered her some tea. Surprised, Taiyou nodded. The two talked for a few hours about random things, mainly about their jobs and trading. It was a little awkward; the young woman learned she didn’t really need to stop by and apologize, for he held no grudge. Still, it had been a pleasant meeting, and it ended up with the two not being friends per say, but defiantly as two souls who could trust each other in times of need.
It was a bit after this episode that she met Shiokaze, through meditation. At first, he had simply spoken to her, never showing himself. All he said was ‘until you are ready’.
Until you’re ready.
Taiyou never understood the entire meaning of this until the week after a particularly bad hollow fight. It had been long and hard, especially since her opponent’s tactics required her to take the offensive and not simply counter attack and defend. It had taken two or three 4th division members to take her back to the hospital for her wounds to be treated. She didn’t remember much of that moment except that she was told she was found on her knees, muttering something about a child plus.
For some reason, she had been deeply disturbed by this, and was rather quiet during her recovery. Three days after she was released, she was allowed to go back to work and to pick up her training. It was a clear day, and she decided to meditate. It was then Shiokaze decided to reveal her world and him to the woman, causing her to gasp in both awe at the beauty but also in terror, for the magnificent phoenix’s eyes were covered with a mask.
It was a terror quickly subsided with uneasiness, as the two talked. He revealed his name unto her, declaring that he would determine if she was ready to receive shikai through training. As if in a trance, she agreed.
There was no time, not in this world, though Taiyou felt the strain of the constant training. She was allowed to drink and sleep occasionally, but that was it. It was always pushing harder and harder with Shiokaze, who forced her to become the aggressor more, who taught her how to fight more efficiently in a smaller space. It was not just physical training, but mental, too. He questioned and mocked everything, everything about her values, her existence. It was practically torture, but Taiyou knew it wasn’t just mockery, for the phoenix often spoke of truth, logic, and wisdom. So, she gritted her teeth and endured it until, finally, he stopped. He deemed her ready and would pick up in the next training session, though not then. He told her to go and not bother to try until he said so; this was getting bothersome and she was in no condition, then, the fool. Without even saying good bye, she was dispelled from the world, her consciousness jolting back to the barrack.
She had learned she was ‘gone’ for almost a week, and after practically eating her own body weight in food, life went back to normal. At least, for two more weeks it did. Shiokaze called for her again, and, this time, he began teaching her how to use her shikai. The woman trained for a shorter period of time; only four days and four nights. But during this time Shiokaze had forced her to come to terms with her own powers.
At the end of training, Taiyou sat in the barrack field for at least an hour’s time, somberly. Her shikai oddly represented that of her previous powers as a hollow. She wasn’t very pleased, though she wasn’t going to throw a fit about it. But the shinigami knew one thing; she couldn’t train and reach her full potential here. For one thing, she couldn’t control her shikai’s techniques without dispelling it. She had grown to feel as if the people in her division were part of her family (except for Kaizen, who actually was) but the 3rd division just simply wasn’t the best place for her to learn how to control and develop her shikai to its full potential. Another thing- her brother was raising ranks within the division. He was bound to become captain someday (so was her biased judgment) and she realized that if she stayed much longer, people would probably start rumors, especially since she was a higher ranking officer in the same division. Not only that, but she wanted to make a name for herself, as well. There was also one other reason, though she knew it was irrational; simply put, she was worried. She didn’t want to carelessly wield it, not here, not when she could hurt people. It was stupid and cliché, but Taiyou stuck stubbornly to this reason. Her mind set, the shinigami somberly went along her way and immediately went through the process of requesting a division transfer.
Part 5: Transfer to the 10th Division
Upon arrival to the 10th division, Taiyou was demoted to the 5th seat due to her lack of training with the very much in sync division as well as with her shikai. The secrets of the 3rd division were hers and theirs to keep. However, throughout her training in the 10th, Taiyou incorporated many of the tactics she had learned from the 3rd, as well as continued to approach opponents in much the same matter.
Life in the 10th was proving to be incredibly different than life in the 3rd. She felt more at ease with her shikai here. Another was the trips to the ocean and the shore lines. The hollow there were much different than the land hollows she had encountered before.
Despite Taiyou’s integration with the 10th division, she still held the 3rd and its shinigami close at heart. She visited often, and still does, often swapping information, though being careful not to spill any of the 10th secrets.
Within the walls of the 10th division, the lady began to slowly change. She was becoming more confident with her shikai as her knowledge, control, and power with it grew. Over the course of the next few years since her transfer, she had trained rigorously to improve her skills with the blade, shikai, and her kidou.
Her skin is tanner than ever due to her exposure to the sun at sea. One of the unseated officers of the division, a woman by the name of Arisa, was a tattoo artist. Taiyou, fascinated by the art, started to become one of her customers, and, to date, has received several tattoos by her.
Four years later, Taiyou was promoted to the 3rd seat, due to the previous 3rd seat transferring to a different position. Life had continued on as usual, though there were several main changes. One was the increased amount of paper work she found herself doing. The other was that as a 3rd seat, Taiyou began to notice that people were starting to look up to her a little more.
And then there were the hollow....Though the Captain-Commander had just sent out a message at the begining of Rebirth, shinigami were not wholly ignorant of some of the events occuring. Sometimes a fight would occur with a hollow who had claimed pray had came willingly, others boosting how they would someday be gods. She found this scattered knowledge odd but thought little of it, thinking it due to their arrogance.
Part 6: The Present
A few months prior to Rebirth, Taiyou got promoted to fuku-taichou. The promotion had came swifty and tragically. Her captain, Tachibana, had been on a top secret cross-division mission regarding some arrancar. He had came back alive, though barely. Tachibana was rushed to the forth division for treatment, but it was too late. Part of this reason was the importance of the information he carried; before he could be treated, he was quickly debriefed by the Captain-Commandor. He was then allowed to be treated by the 4th division members, but at this point, the man had lost too much blood. He died within the hour.
The details relied to Taiyou about his mission were hazzy, especially throughout all the chaos, but the woman rememered being told that it involved gathering information and attacking certain arrancar. Due to the secrecy of the mission, she wasn't allowed to know more. A week later, she was promoted to become fuku-taichou so that the previous could take Tachibana's place.
The shift in position had come as a shock. On one hand, she was rather proud, but on the other, she didn't expect this moment to come like this. The day she had recieved the notice, Taiyou had spent the day wandering around a park in Soul Society. She was scared. Suddenlly, people were expecting her to lead and teach. Though Taiyou didn't dare admit it, this new authority and position freaked her out. She had been looking forward to this, and yet she realized now what restrictions such a position held. At least as a 3rd seat, she could shrug things off to the fuku-taichou if she couldn't handle something, but now everything was up to her and her taichou.
It wasn't until a week later did Taiyou lock away such 'impractical and stupid' fears. For one thing, she had no time to dwell on them. The woman was shoved in a world of politics, of formalities and of mannerisms that though reminded her of the ways of a merchant, were, in their own was, quite alien. This is a system she is still adjusting to, though the woman is determined to learn how to master it.
The responsibilities were piled on, too, something she took on with fierce diligance, quickly (and sadly) finding her free time diminishing.
During this time, Taiyou had also discovered a different use for Ranran Tsubasa Juuka, though she is still in the process of mastering it.
Four days before the events of the RPG, Taiyou had returned from a mission. Now she is back, with more tales from the sea...
RP Sample
(This takes place a year before the events of Rebirth)
A figure crouched on top of a rock, a long, crimson cloth covered braid swaying gently in the wind behind it. Though she knew she was going to win, her eyes did not gleam of glory, mischievous pride at her upcoming trickery, or any other speak of happiness. Instead, her expression was serious, her lips set slightly apart as she prepared herself for the upcoming blow, her zanpaktou sheathed in its scabbard, hanging from her back; she had no need for it at the moment, and her opponent would only see the gleam in the moonlight. She shifted slightly as she heard the hollow’s cry. The shinigami was not alarmed- it was looking for her. It was just a matter of time before it got closer...
It came as the waves crashed against the shore. The hollow was crabbed shaped, and was furiously scrambling in her direction.
Now.
Taiyou reached out her right hand as she used her left to grab her wrist.
“Ye lord!,” she whispered, her green-blue wide eyes narrowed in concentration, “Mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man! Inferno and pandemonium, the sea barrier surges, march on the south!”
Her hands began to glow a bright, bright red, causing light to shine upon her face. Once the ball of light grew big enough to the size of her fist, it shot outwards and hit its’ target directly between the eyes, causing it to fall back down and fly backwards. Using this as her chance, the woman jumped down from the rock as she drew her blade. In a fluid motion, she ran her sword through the creatures joints, where she knew a crab of any kind was the weakest. The brute howled in pain, and Taiyou cringed as the cries grew more and more human, until , finally, an old fisherman stood before her. He looked at her with a mixed expression, filled with horror, confusion, and yet with a sense of awe.
Taiyou knew this expression well; she had worn it, once.
He tried to speak, but Taiyou shook her head, tapping his forehead with the handle end of her zanpaktou.
“Go in peace and good luck,” she said, simply, and watched as he dissolved into nothing, with a slight , sad smile.
“Happy birthday,” she muttered, a little sarcastically.
She stared at the place where the man had stood, silently sheathing her zanpaktou, the feather on the end of the hilt dancing silently in the breeze.
He was an easy foe, as far as they went; she was lucky she didn't have to draw the battle out. Taiyou gave a small grin, remembering the days when she had struggled somewhat to perform a level 30 kidou.
"Yo," a voice casually called out from behind her.
Taiyou yelped in surprise as she turned around; so into the moment was she that she had shut down her surroundings. Her companion, a fellow 10th division member, looked at the scorch marks on the sand.
"You beat me," he said, almost sadly.
Taiyou shrugged, a bit annoyed at this comment. Was this all really just a game? She opened her mouth to comment when, without warning, he swooped down to pick her up.
It wasn't that hard; the shinigami was short and light.
Taiyou laughed, placing a hand on her blade's hilt so that it wouldn't go flying out. This stunt wasn't uncommon for her fellow 10th division members to pull, and she had gotten used to it to the point where she stopped trying most of the time to avoid it. Besides, it saved her the effort from walking.
"Where are you going?" she asked, casually.
"Back to our meeting place," he responded, cheerfully, "We're headin' back, tonight."
Taiyou perked up at this, suddenly kicking to let herself free.
"Really?!" she exclaimed, excited. He didn't need to say any more.
The woman giggled as the man clumsily put her down and immediately started to run towards her right.
Taiyou couldn't believe she had forgotten. They were going back tonight! She knew what she was going to do, right after a good night's rest and washing her hair vigorously at a public bath.
'Bout damn time, too.
She frowned.
"But then after that, I have to write that stinkin' report," she muttered, her mind already conjuring up her next week's agenda. She wasn't a captain or even a vice captain- not yet. Even so, a 3rd seat's position required a lot of work, and that meant writing detailed reports of every mission she was sent on. Technically, she didn't have to do it the day after, but Taiyou liked to, especially when it was all fresh in her memory.
"Oy!" her companion's voice called after her.
Taiyou rolled her eyes.
"What do you want?" she hollered back, turning abruptly around.
Wordlessly, he pointed to the north.
Taiyou glared as she stubbornly walked in his direction.
He smirked, which only earned him a light punch in the back.
"Dumbass. Let's go," Taiyou replied and picked up her pace as she confidently walked north, as if she was the one who had corrected him and not the other way around.
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