“Whoa!” she exclaimed in surprise as her sister disappeared from view. While the others had started their attacks earlier, the sheer speed of the Blitzkrieg Captain surpassed each of them with ease. In a single move she calmed her mind, the world dilating and slowing as she focused on the oncoming barrage. Her mind ascended to the state of control that could only be achieved with the technique Go no Sen.
Snapping her head upwards she locked onto the oncoming attack, before ducking low. Without hesitating she transitioned towards the second. She contorted her body as the second attack appeared to her, seeming to halt for a fraction of time. Contorting her body further it only met air. The third appeared from behind, hitting her back with a powerful open strike. She was jutted forward, as she was shifted off balance. Rotating once more, she met the fourth strike with her own blow in response, deflecting it with ease.
A fifth strike hit the back of her neck, her head being pushed down by the force. However, she rolled with the oncoming strike, pivoting to dodge the sixth. A controlled breath exited her mouth, as she snapped her head, following the sevenths path. With minimal wasted moment, she knocked away the seventh, contorting once again to shrug away the seventh with her shoulder.
From her peripheral vision and from instinct alone she sensed the eight approaching from her side. She stepped back a fraction of an inch, the bare minimum required, as her sister’s hand jutted forward into the air. Another strike to her gut caused her to hiss in annoyance, as the ninth sucker punched her low. For the last she stepped forward once more, the final strike appearing to hang still for a fraction of a second giving her the window she needed.
While to her the entirety of the assault felt like hours, to the outside viewer it was nothing more than a few seconds at most. Her vision caught Nana’s reappearance far behind; however; she did not dwell on it for long. Instead, she shifted her attention to the assortment of shinigami in front of her.
The heavy mud of Clay began to climb rapidly around her shins. With minimal effort she shrugged off the attack, exerting reiatsu in response to suppress the bakudou. Her own reiatsu shattered constrictive energies in turn. She first turned to deal with Adele, her hand already rising in response to the oncoming strike. “Aggressive and agile. Tangent!” Her left hand shone with white light, as it traced an arching barrier into the air.
The cat-eared girl’s strike was caught, the repulsive effects flinging her back with a skid. That was two down, three left to go. Why do they always go for the side? she mused to herself as she snapped back into her state of awareness. “Katsujinken!” she called out, as her subordinate approached. She reached forward to grab the healer’s wrists, in a quick moment diffusing all the momentum and bringing the strike under her control.
“Tenchinage!”
Against her will, Ansherina was wrenched from her spot, the entirety of the momentum being transferred along. She twisted her body to where Ren and Satoru approached, in turn forcibly dragging the first girl along. With her immense physical strength, she pulled her along with ease, using the Russian to knock the remaining two Mystics away with a single swing. The three tumbled together, as they were all thrown onto ground.
Wrenching her feet out of the muddy ground, she remained standing. “Wondering why I asked you to do that? It wasn’t because I wanted you all to get a few potshots on me, but it was mainly for me to figure out each of you guys out.”
She spun around, first turning to face her sister. In a staggeringly sarcastic voice the medic began to speak, “For example Amaterasu-taichou is a bad listener. One strike sis. Not ten.” She waved her hand, “Then again, each of those strikes were carried your trademark confidence and unmatched skill, even though I know you’re not a natural hakuda practitioner. Safe to say, if you had decided to use your sword, things would have gotten messy quick.”
Twirling back around, her lavender haired created a long arc in the air. “Mystic Satoru! Bakudou against a hakuda specialist isn’t always a best move. When we fight, we want to ensure that we’re free to move. That’s why we’ve developed and used techniques to thwart bakudou and anything that seeks to bind us,” she reached down, offering her hand as she lifted him back up.
“That being said, your kidou choice was cunning. Even though I was capable of dispelling Clay’s growing effects, I couldn’t do anything about the mud. Shows you’re the cunning type!”
She extended her hand down once again, this time offering it to Ansherina. “Sorry about my response, but I didn’t want to get hit by that Breaking Palm. Don’t want to cast Lacuna Release this early. If I recall correctly, you’re not the biggest hand-to-hand fighter. Remember I just said one move, never said it had to be a melee strike. You’re good at kidou, you should really use your skill to your advantage! A little more confidence would go a long way!
The noblewoman gestured towards Ren, extending her hand to the man. “Fast, accurate, and seemed to be the most controlled of all strikes. It’s a good quality to have as gun-ho brawlers are pretty predictable and easy to deal with. You’re a bit of a puzzling one in all honestly. Your hit seemed so... neutral in a way? Almost textbook if I had to classify it somehow.”
“As for you Miss Pierce,” offering her hand to the girl, “Didn’t dwell on it much, did you? Quite the gutsy type aren’t you? You should be a bit more careful. Personal experience, also known as running straight at the Soutaichou, has taught me that it’s good to remain cautious. That and shouting while you attack makes it a bit obvious that you’re approaching.”
Breathing out, she felt rather satisfied with herself. “Like I said, you can learn about a person when you fight hand to hand against or even with someone. But I don’t want to keep prattling on for too long, it’s your turn now. When you all attacked me, did you keep an eye on what the others were doing?”
Lucia pointed at Ren with one hand and Ansherina with the other. “Ren, what did you learn about Anshy from her attack? Likewise, what did you learn about Ren, Anshy?” She pointed at Satoru and Adele, “Same with you two!”
Stepping back she moved closer to Nana, whispering something under her breath. “I’d ask them to do the same to you but I don’t think any of them had a chance to see anything.”
[1,144 / 1868]
