Tiger King[Igen, Rio]

To hear that Igen had met and fought Shaoling had elicited another curious raise of the eyebrow. Rio was familiar with her to a degree, though such familarity might as well be considered inconsequential, truth be told. Theirs was entirely professional, more or less what one would expect between a retainer and the family they served. A path crossed now and again, a simple greeting perhaps, and little else beyond that. To know that she employed Shunko against him was certainly cause for intrigue. She could speak at length with Igen on the matter after their spar concluded. The time of battle was near.

Charging forward in a straight line, Igen struck her at the front. Noting the improvement in his speed compared to their last battle, Rio lifted her arm to impede the strike, reaching in with a forearm to deflect the blow off its intended course. Whether or not the simple counter would be successful was a matter to be decided by his reaction time. A counter is all she would be afforded at the moment with Ko lunging in at her back, executing a paw swipe at her side, avoiding the black blades trailing behind her.

Interesting. An attack from the front and an attack from the rear. Would that be their pattern? Rio chose neither to evade nor counter, but use her body as a shield to gauge the tiger's strength, maintaining a firm stance as her body was moved a few inches from its position. A hefty blow, to be certain, Rio acknowledged Ko as one who might pose a threat if she were truly caught off guard.

If allowed, Rio would swing the handle of Tetsumaru in her palm, appearing at random, to launch two black blades at a tree behind her. There were only two that remained at her side now. To either of them, the act may have appeared odd, rousing a measure of suspicion. To Rio, it was material collection. These blades thrived off of collecting materials from its surroundings to fortify their density and mold their shape into a form suitable to the Shihoin's preference.

Of course, that was Rio's aim. To divert their attention enough for her to soar in for an attack of her own. If Igen had remained anywhere near her, she would use Shunpo to vanish and appear before him, aiming to grab him by one of his limbs to throw him at Ko. Keeping them in the front with their attention focused on her would be ideal. That would give her enough time to reach in for those blades and show him the nuance of her Shikai release. She was a little rusty, after all, and facing what was effectively two opponents at the same time would be quite the refresher.

THUMP! The swipe of the woman's hand was more than enough to jolt his hand off to the side! His eyes widening just a little as he was diverted off course! The impact of Ko against Rio's back certainly seemed to get the woman's attention, though before he knew it, Igen suddenly found the woman grabbing him by the wrist and throwing him! A loud KRASH sounding as the instant she through him, he formed a reishi platform in his path to try and stop himself. But the impact alone simply shattered the barrier, slowing him, but not ultimately keeping him from still flying toward his zanpaku'to.

The tigress's body blurred, a shunpo moving her up above Igen before she PLANTED all fours down into him, sending him into the ground with a loud THUMP as she launched herself after Rio, a loud ROAR echoing through the forest as Ko promptly aimed to swat at Rio from behind and begin circling her aggressively. Swiping again and again to try and stall her attention and keep her attention, not to mention slow the woman's attempt to grab her weapons.

Meanwhile, Igen landed HARD onto his back, before grunting and getting up to his feet, huffing just a little before getting up and watching his Shikai harry the shihoin. Dammit. He could tell that she wasn't putting her all into this. Which... yea fair. But still! He felt his blood heat up a little, furrowing his brows and raising both hands. "Come on Rio. I need you to push me!" He declared, raising his hand up overhead and spreading his palm. His voice booming out as he started to chant.

""Sprinkled on the bones of the beast! Sharp tower, red crystal, steel ring. Move and become the wind, stop and become the calm. The sound of warring spears fills the empty castle!"" Electricity spiraled into his palm and rapidly began to fill the space. The spell swirling at his palms as it swelled in strength! Of course it was a pretty paltry attack. Igen didn't have huge energy reserves to put into this spell. But that didn't stop him from putting what little he had in! His spiritual pressure spiked and soon he lowered his hands to take aim at Rio.

"Hadō Number 63. Raikōhō!"

There was ... a respectable BOOM as he fired the spell, a burst of electricity roaring in the woman's direction, the sheer level of the spell was really all that was making the spell that threatening as it barreled toward Rio, Ko promptly having Shunpo'd away, IF she wasn't restrained or already beaten to the ground already, to make way for that spell to slam into Rio. It took....well..frankly a LOT of Igen's energy. As much as he had practiced with the spell, his reserves were still quite low. But on the other hand, he wasn't holding back, hoping to push Rio into a more .... aggressive tactic. That blast would be more than enough to properly injure one of his classmates. It wouldn't be serious, but it would still be rough for someone of his own durability. For Rio? He imagined it would, if nothing else, be an annoyance if it hit, but a fairly prominent escalation. Not to mention a considerable chunk of his energy spent.

Rio had to applaud Ko's relentlessness as she flash-stepped above and pushed off of Igen, using him as a spring to close the distance between them, swiping at Rio with fierce aggression. Rio chose to weather the storm of her initial blows rather than evade them entirely, golden eyes observing the tigress striking patterns. The Shihoin woman was determined to remain in a position close enough to the tree she was collecting material from.

However, that also meant she had to keep their attention. Maintaining the element of surprise would be ideal. As if to outpace the movements of the beast, Rio executed a series of counterstrikes, using one of the two remaining black blades at her back to swing at and attempt to push Ko back. From the way Ko circled her, Rio discerned, or assumed perhaps, that the beast was trying to compromise her movement, keep her from moving around freely.

Though her eyes remained on Ko, Rio could not help but chuckle softly at Igen imploring her to push him. She would have voiced her opinion on the matter, but her attention was being held by Ko. Therefore, a chuckle is all that she allowed herself. Push him? Rio supposed she would be doing them a disservice to go at this half-hearted. If nothing else, he certainly caught her attention as she listened to his booming voice, chanting the lines to a Hadō spell. Though her composure hid it quite well, Rio certainly didn't expect him to employ kido so early in their battle. He really was serious about forcing her to amp things up!

Ko vanished while that bolt of electricity came roaring in towards her. Rio didn't have time to dodge the blast entirely, but perhaps that might work to her advantage. The Shihoin would lift the blade occupying her free hand, drawing the blade before her body, manipulating the black sword into the form of a shield slightly bigger than her body. This blade was barren of the material necessary to erect a suitable defense. Therefore, her overall versatility and defense were limited as a whole. The only thing that even gave this shield the bare minimum defense was Rio's own Reiryoku, but the shield lacked any real density to keep her grounded due to the last-minute action. As a result, Rio was sent backward by that lightning strike.

Bumping into the tree behind her, Rio would grit her teeth as she quickly gathered herself, the force of impact softened only by the fact that the two blades she stabbed into the tree from before seemed to have gathered enough material for her liking. Reshaping the shield back into its bladed form, Rio would place the hilt of Tetsumaru in her jaw, biting down on it as she geared up for an attack of her own.

Stabbing the single blade in her hand into another tree, Rio would take action. A movement of flash step would allow her to quickly pull the two blades from the tree behind her, visibly altered by the material drain. If Ko or Igen bothered to glance at the tree, they would notice the difference immediately. However, Rio's aim was to make sure she made good at pushing him to his limit. Therefore, that meant going at this with more zeal than she was at the beginning.

The second movement of flash step would carry her behind Ko as she launched the material-rich blade at her from behind. At the very last second, that blade would shift into the form of a large sphere aiming to trap her inside and take her out of the battle. Black Iron Cage. Unfamiliar with Igen's shikai, Rio wanted to keep her as far away as possible. She was effectively a wild card. These blades were still held together by chains, and so, if Ko kept away far enough, she would certainly avoid the trap. There was a twofold purpose in that at least, keep her away even if she couldn't capture her.

As much as she desired to see her strategy come to fruition, Rio would quickly lunge toward Igen, transmuting the remaining blade in her hand into the form of a medium-sized hammer, swinging it towards him with the full force of her physical strength. One blade was stuck to another tree, one blade remained at her back, one turned into a sphere launching towards Ko in an attempt to constrict her, and one formed into the shape of a hammer. Rio was stretching herself, certainly, but Igen asked for this. Besides, it had been some time since she utilized her zanpakuto. She wanted to test the limits and see how far she could go as well.

Do you feel like a king?

Inner World:

Igen's eyes widened. Briefly catching the sudden fluid that seemed to protect Rio from his kido spell. Watching as that dark sphere wrapped around Ko. Something...dark spilling off of her frame and then lancing toward his body. And of course, he'd see Rio suddenly directly in his face. Pupils dilating as that dark metal hammer was swung in his direction. All in a fairly short span of time. He saw her rushing in to fight him.


A kanji famous for appearing on the stripes of tigers, a marking that slowly began to spread stripes across his body. And as her hammer closed in, Igen brought his arms inward, making an X across his chest as that hammer connected with his forearms. Reiryoku pumping through them before he was promptly sent flying! The impact making a loud, satisfying WHACK as Igen's body was shot back and impacted with a tree! Shattering the bark and causing Igen to tense up! The impact alone had broken through that dense layer of reiryoku he'd built up in anticipation. His hakuda defense broken, and so his body took the brunt of the attack! That preemptive Kaido of his keeping bruises and skin from breaking completely before it simply vanished, Another costly expenditure of spirit energy and concentration. He wasn't able to protect himself from the impact with the tree behind him, and shards of wood stuck into his back as the trunk shattered!

He dropped onto one knee, HUFFING as he felt his eyes going wide and his heart hammering away in his chest! His back was burning in pain, and his arms tingled from the impact with Rio's zanpakuto!

Yes. THIS was what he was wanting!

He shot back toward Rio, launching himself with a Shunpo to close the distance he'd lost from being thrown back. His arm cocking back as he declared. "Hadō Number 11. Tzuru Raiden!" He announced, electricity coursing along his fists and up his forearms, channeling the Kido through his body as he launched a series of sharp punches aimed at Rio's shoulders and sides, or well...whatever he frankly could reach.

Of course, these punches didnt pack as much power as he was usually capable of. They relied on that electrification to stun or shock Rio as he was already using a fair ammount of spirit energy to harden his body and for the earlier kido spell as well as this one. With Ko properly captured, all he could do was try to force her to use all those blades! After all, Rio was still carting the big black sphere with her in it around. Maybe if he pushed her enough, she'd be forced to release his shikai from the cage!

Though, unbeknownst to Igen, though definitely something noticeable by Rio, she'd see changes as those stripes spread along his body. Those black markings slowly growing out of his skin like black claws, curving over his knuckles, adding a more dangerous aspect to those punches, and feeling almost like solid steel as her own limbs would strike against them.

Maintaining and manipulating more than two blades was certainly a tall order to ask of the Shield of Shihoin. Yet, she wholeheartedly embraced it with nothing but unfettered joy gleaming through those golden eyes. One blade remained, but if possible Rio wanted to avoid using all four. The creative freedom Tetsumaru afforded her in her Shikai release was a versatile boon, but it was entirely capable of backfiring if she overextended her usage. Acknowledging that Ko had been successfully detained by Black Iron cage, Rio pressed forward.

As expected, instead of evading her strike, Igen chose to face her head-on. However, the Shihoin's golden eyes discerned a faint, yet wholly noticeable shift, a black mark forming on his forehead. An unexpected turn of events, to be certain, but Rio followed through with her attack. Igen employed enough resistance to avoid taking a direct hit, but he was sent flying back into a tree by her black hammer.

However, Rio was far from foolish to assume that this would mark the end of their battle as Igen fiercely launched himself toward her with unrestrained ferocity. Rio subconsciously marveled at his durability. Whereas most might have simply allowed themselves a breather to recover some modicum of composure, Igen employed his own attack. Another Hadō followed as electricity coursed through his fists and shot towards Rio, sharp punches repeatedly connecting with her limbs.

Rio could not conclude this with absolute certainty, but she wondered... was Igen starting to understand a way he could disrupt her durability? Each strike was growing increasingly annoying and although she remained stalwart, she was certainly feeling the effects of the electricity racing through her veins, the slight grimace in her expression a telltale sign that his strategy was bearing fruit.

The material-rich hammer was raised forward, trying to account for each punch but due to the unpredictable nature of Igen's assault, it could only deflect his wave of punches every now and then. Should she go to the tree and discard this one? No, that would compromise her even more. There was also Ko to account for; she had to keep her trapped within the cage if there was any chance of victory.

If Ko entered the battlefield again, coupled with Igen's fierce assault, the battle might well be loss. That wasn't the only issue, either, as black markings grew out of his skin, curving over his knuckles. Her enemy was no longer fist and electricity now. There was something akin to solid steel striking against her now. Was this the effect of a Shikai ability at work? Throwing the hammer into the air, Rio's palms would shoot forward to disrupt Igen's offensive, aiming to land a two-palmed strike against his chest to push him backward. Even if he remained grounded, Rio would attempt to grab her hammer again and swing at him with immense force behind her strike.

If nothing else, she hoped to try and push him back rather than be consumed by his endless wave of attacks. If she wanted to win, she'd simply have to deal with the pain. After all, maintaining that cage was key. She could use a shield, but frankly, there was no time to shift, and the sword behind her was material-barren, meaning defense with it would be practically useless. Igen was going in full throttle. Thus, her prized durability and countering his blows would have to be enough if she desired to wrest victory from the fierce tiger's hands.

Are you happy? Do you feel complete? A king with his Subject at his side. There should be little that can compare.

Inner world:

The sudden thrust of Rio's shove surprised Igen! His string of punches suddenly interrupted as Rio shoved him back and away from her! His eyes wide, startled as he staggered back, almost falling over as his stance was broken! Just in time for that hammer to swing in and aim right for him!

No time to prepare or block. The hammer his him square in the chest, and once again(?) the air was knocked from his lungs and he was sent flying! A Groan escaping him as he skidded along the ground and stumbled over the remains of that busted tree, bouncing once, and then hitting a nearby rock. "Ssssss! Guh..." He hissed, slowly peeling himself off the ground. Looking up and narrowing his eyes toward Rio and those dark blades. Huffing loudly.... slowly rising back up to his feet and gritting his teeth as his reiryoku began to circulate around his body, too tired.. he was trying to use hakuda and manipulate the kido at the same time. And he just didn't have the focus. A mess of energy coursing both into and outside of his body. A soft HISSSSSSSS as his clothing slowly started to burn away, his Shuhakusho smoking as it started to burn away from his back and shoulders.

"Hadō.....Number Sixty Three...." He managed to pant out, that reireyoku starting to glow around his back and shoulders, those eyes narrowed towards Rio as it coursed along his skin. Gritting his teeth. That alectricity began to singe not only his clothes, but burn his skin. He didn't know Shunko. He didn't even have the skill necessary to utilize it properly. But he still was trying. And the cost exerted on his body showed clearly, small patches of flesh turning red and hissing as he slowly crouched, and those black stripes thickened along his skin, as if trying to protect him from what he was doing. Eyes dead set on Rio as he started to charge up the spell as best he could with what was left of his reserves.

His willpower was truly remarkable. Each swing of her hammer had been executed with at least enough force to subdue the average opponent. Of course, Igen far exceeded what Rio would consider an average opponent. The sheer tenacity it took to rise up from being hit by a full-force swing was praiseworthy.

Repositioning the hammer in her hand, Rio breathed deeply to compose herself, assessing her own damage. Igen's fierce wave of lightning and steel blows had certainly left a significant measure of impact on her durable frame - internally and externally. Nevertheless, she still stood. Golden eyes gazed on, almost as if in disbelief, witnessing that energy coursing outside his body, his clothes slowly burning away. Rio admired his effort, without question, but worry had started to settle in at the thought of whether or not he was overexerting himself in this battle.

Without hesitation, he panted it out. Hadō 63...Was he aiming to use Raikoho again? For a moment, the Shield of Shihoin wondered if she could take the lightning attack head-on, wondered if his body could handle it. It was almost... humorous. Her? The Shihoin shielder doubting her durability? Or was it, perhaps, the unexpected shock she experienced in response to his indomitable spirit? No, she couldn't waver. He wanted her to push him. She could deal with the fallout and tend to their wounds after their battle had concluded.

Rio would close the distance and strike him down. That was the outcome she was aiming for. One strike. Anything beyond that, and she could risk faltering in her own resolve, loosening up her control over the cage that entrapped Ko. The incantation was not yet complete. She could still win.

Her firm resolve would guide her body forward as Rio propelled her body toward Igen, soaring in, prepared to land what she felt to be a finishing blow, aiming the hammer towards his midsection. It would all come down to timing now. What would happen first? Igen's Raikoho? Or Rio's mighty swing? At that moment, Rio surrendered herself to the heat of the moment. It was a risky bet, to be certain, but no battle could be one without giving it your all. Igen had proved to be walking proof of that in this battle. If he was giving it his all - so, too, would Rio.

What is a King to you?

Inner World:

"Rai...."

He raised his right fist, slowly clenching his hand as electricity began to circulate around his forearm and fist. Smoke curling from between his knuckles as he looked up, narrowing his eyes a bit at Rio.

"..Kō...."

He cocked that fist back, and the reiryoku at his back suddenly FLARED, a mass of electrical kido energy surging along his back, further scorching his skin as Rio promptly launched herself toward him! There was no real way for someone as slow as him to avoid an attack like that. She was putting effort into it. The only thing that helped was how many times Rio had already struck him. And so consistently as well. He already was throwing his fist, hoping to catch her as she swing.

"HŌ!"

In a flash, Rio had closed the distance between them. His arm all the way cocked back before her promptly aimed to slam his fist in her direction. an attack she would frankly probaly be too fast to be hit by directly under normal circumstances, but that was not really his aim. His aim was behind her: The ball that was storing Ko. Either blasting her into it, or simply by hitting the ball with that spell, Igen intended to free his Zanpaku'to spirit with that powerful spell. While that hammer simultaniously slammed into him. That powerful electric burst ROARED as he threw his fist, and then that hammer rammed into his chest, snapping the heavy stripes that attempted to curved up and protect his body. And then hitting him dead on. Were Igen not who he was, he likely would have snapped his ribs from the impact. But even so, as he was thrown into the nearest rock, it was still not a pretty sight. Having not had the reiryoku to spare for his preemptive healing, he'd hit the rock full force as a messy bruise spread across his chest from the point of impact, the air knocked out of him as he bounced off that rock, and then FLUMPED onto the ground.

Entirely knocked the fuck out.

His tenacity was truly a sight to behold. So unlike their last spar, this clash of will and wit exceeded Rio's expectation. What was intended to be a mere spar had escalated into something that felt much more intense. As a whole, she knew the gap between them was going to be difficult to overcome, and removing his possible equalizer certainly did little to help the matter... and yet, Igen pressed on. He was giving it his all, and that compelled Rio to wrest victory from his hands, to indulge herself in a moment of the joy one derived from a hard-fought battle. Yes, she wanted to ensure that he walked away without too much damage, but seeing his willpower on full display? She couldn't help but press on, to swing that hammer against him and end their battle.

Her hammer striking true, landing directly against his frame, Rio expected to endure what she felt to be his last bolt of electricity only for that spell to soar past her, racing towards the cage that kept Ko from impacting their battle. There was no time for Rio to shift her body to deflect it, and she theorized that the spell likely may not possess the energy necessary to break through the cage.What did worry her is that it would at the very least shift her attention towards filling the sphere with energy to keep her held in. However, the moment her hammer landed a direct blow, much of that worry about her companion came racing back to the forefront of her mind as he was flung forward by the hit, crashing into a rock at full impact.

It certainly was a worrisome sight, and so, poor judgment or not, Rio would cancel Tetsumaru's hold, fully prepared to face Ko if necessary. Black Iron Cage's effect was no more, the black sphere dissolving in it's entirety around the tigress. Resuming it's former shape as a black blade, Rio would guide the blade behind her as she rushed over to check on Igen's condition, placing his body upright against one of the trees as her eyes traced back to Ko. With hammer in hand, her eyes traced her surroundings in wonder, curious to see if Ko still desired to battle. She could certainly still fight, but at the moment, she felt he required her immediate attention.

Ko didn't get any sort of boost in spiritual pressure. But as Igen hit the rock, Rio would feel a SUDDEN intense intent behind her, and hear the loud SHRIEK of claws biting into metal from the inside of that ball. And once Rio dissolved the thing, she would see and sense Ko there for a fraction of a second before she simply vanished. It would only be Rio's own considerable skill in Shunpo that would give her any hint that Ko had shunpo'd clean past her, at a speed SIGNIFICANTLY faster than she'd shown before, one comparable to her OWN shunpo even as Ko promptly settled over Igen and took a moment to survey him. ..... THWACK!

She swiped him upside the head and Igen let out a YELP as he was swatted ut of unconsciousness! "OW! Ugh... oh jeez... oh.. heya."' He murmured as Ko promptly pushed her paw onto his face, shoving him back until he was laying down before sitting beside her wielder. Tell your big-chested friend to give you some energy, idiot. She growled to Igen.

The guy blinked for a moment before glancing up to Rio and giving a nervous smile when he saw the worry on her face. "Heya. I'm fine...ugh... though uh...if you got any skill in Kaido, A little energy would be nice." He grunted and gave a sheepish smile. He was more than capable of healing himself after all. He just was ...tapped out. But with a bit of juice, he'd be in shape to patch himself up no problem.

"Whew, man... that hurt a lot." He murmured, eyeing his scorched shoulders and furrowing his brows. "I don't think electricity is my gig. I heard that Shunkos had elements to them but woof... I didn't think it'd hurt this bad to use the wrong one." He murmured, wincing just a bit and touching his shoulder and back gingerly. "How did I do?"