as years pass | kyoraku shunsui

eleven - 'bold'

Shuriken slid Umi no Okami back into its sheathe as a long, hefty breath left her body. Parts of the First Division training grounds around her were soaked in Okami's water, while other sections had been fried by the lightning sent forth from Sasakibe's Gonryomaru. The lieutenant approached Shuriken with a proud smile upon his lips, a sight that brought immense glee to her heart.

The past few days hadn't been easy on Shuriken, and instead of letting herself become overwhelmed, she had decided to put all of that energy into something worthwhile - her bankai training. When she had begun to feel as if her emotions were all over the place, she had called upon Sasakibe, asking him to once more lend her a hand.

While she had begun to quite enjoy the company of Urahara, Shuriken's thoughts had been plagued by Shunsui. The last time that they had seen one another, when he had come to the First to deliver some surely meaningless paperwork, Shunsui hadn't been cheerful, nor had he been willing to stay and speak to her as he normally would.

He wasn't acting like himself and it was driving Shuriken up the wall. By now, she hoped, Shunsui's mind had been put back in the right place. If not, dinner with them, Jushiro, and Urahara in a few hours was going to be ridiculously awkward.

"I believe this is it, Shuriken," Sasakibe said as he placed both hands on the woman's shoulders. It wasn't often that so much emotion was present on the man's face, but his handsome features were alight in this sincere moment. "Although you have yet to achieve bankai, you are closer now than ever before. There is nothing more I have to teach you; from here on out, all of your progress is in the hands of you and your Umi no Okami."

"Thank you for everything, lieutenant," Shuriken cracked a grin as she met his gaze. "I'm very grateful for all of the help you've given me."

"You've no reason to thank me," Sasakibe shook his head. "You and your zanpakuto are strong, and I will always be willing to lend you a hand when you need it," He then released a small chuckle while dropping his hands back down to his side. "We are the ones most in charge of defending the Head Captain. There is no one else who I would be willing to put as much trust in as I do you."

Sasakibe wasn't a man who put his feelings on display very often and Shuriken wasn't about to take that for granted. She lightly bumped his shoulder with her fist while saying, "You're right; we're in this together," Shuriken paused a moment before adding, "Besides, when the time comes, I can't have you make a fool out of me by saving the old man before I can. And if I can't do that, then I'll at least have to play the best supporting role I can for you. That, I suppose, will be good enough."

When an even larger, more wholesome laugh came from Sasakibe, Shuriken looked at him with a puzzled expression. She wasn't sure when the last time that she had heard such a sound erupt from him was.

"You remind me so much of Tahara sometimes, Shuriken! For a moment, I could've sworn you were him," Sasakibe said as he began leading the way back to the First Division barracks. Shuriken followed after him, one hand resting on the hilt of Umi no Okami and the other on her waist. "He would be as proud of you as the Head Captain and I are, you know that, don't you?"

Shuriken's heart tugged in her chest at such mentions of her father, and the tears that began to form in her eyes were against her own will. However, unlike the younger Shuriken who would've been unable to stop herself from sobbing at such thoughts of Tahara, Shuriken was now able to fight through the wave of emotions that threatened to overtake her.

"I'd hope so!" Shuriken gave a laugh of her own. "I don't know how I'd live with myself if I thought I was bringing shame to the Natazaki name." After all, she was rebuilding the Natazaki reputation on her own following the erasure of its history for her sake. If Shuriken really was as much like her father as Sasakibe claimed, there wasn't a doubt in her mind that she could do just that.