THE SHINIGAMI APPLICATION
Name: Sakura Senba
Age: 28
True Age: 718
Title: The Rose Flash
Sex: Female
Personality: [ESTP-A] - [The Entrepreneur]
Lawful Neutral is called the "Judge" or "Disciplined" alignment. A Lawful Neutral character typically believes strongly in Lawful concepts such as honor, order, rules and tradition, and often follows a personal code. Characters of this alignment are neutral with regard to good and evil. This does not mean that Lawful Neutral characters are amoral or immoral, or do not have a moral compass, but simply that their moral considerations come a distant second to what their code, tradition, or law dictates. They typically have a strong ethical code, but it is primarily guided by their system of belief, not by a commitment to good or evil.
Due to the code of ethics she follows and believes in with her full heart, Sakura can come off as a difficult person to read. Certain things may make total sense to people while other things seem completely out of character if they don't know her that well. Sakura's code is the only thing that will stick with her until either she finally dies or time stops being a thing, whichever comes first; either way, her code is all she cares about to the highest extent, and while she will make an effort to help other people get stronger or care about them, they will never matter to her like her code does.
Sakura enjoys being surrounded by people regardless of whether or not she knows them, because she enjoys hearing all their stories and tones of voice and how much they've grown... but for some reason, she always ends up alone in the end. She has difficulty holding friendships and relationships, and even rivalries eventually burn up. While this does make her sad and lonely, she tries to not let it bother her and simply smiles at the next person she sees and tries again.
Despite her desire to be with groups of people, or even just one good friend, Sakura doesn't know how to express herself when she's upset or angry... well, when she's angry that usually gets expressed by punching something, a lot, but when she's emotionally hurt or upset or sad, she doesn't know how to express that feeling to someone else, and while she attempts to it never comes out right and she ends up being alone again. This makes her semi-reclusive, and sometimes she's forced to convince herself that it's worth it to try again because every time she gets hurt she ends up alone, and it's a never-ending cycle that kills her slowly on the inside.
When two or more people are having a disagreement which isn't based on opinions, Sakura enjoys being the person who can either help them decide the outcome or correct one of them; Sakura enjoys being the arbiter. She seeks out people with problems that she can fix, whether it's rebuilding parts of their house that got destroyed or helping someone train to get stronger so they can beat their rival, and due to this nature of hers she's often seen looking around for groups of people and walking away disappointed when they're not having an argument.
Perhaps one of her biggest weaknesses, though, is that even when people stop caring about Sakura, she continues to care about them. People who've once been close to her will know that no matter what happens, she will always take an active interest in people's protection and will sacrifice nearly anything to keep her friends safe, even if they don't remember she exists. Sakura's unnatural care towards other people, at least in her eyes, is one reason she doesn't understand why no one remains for long, and why it upsets her when people inevitably walk away.
While on a mission or in a fight, Sakura seems to become a completely different person. All she cares about is efficiency, ending things as quickly as possible so that she can return to being care-free. This is not true when she's in a duel or a spar, but if she's fighting for her life (or the life of someone else), Sakura will stop at nothing to end it as fast as possible. She does not enjoy fighting the same way other people do, and while she is very good at sparring and training other people, that's because she never needs to fatigue herself by using any of her techniques, so she can spar for extended periods of time with no sweat.
Due to Sakura's slow development of a Family and caricaturized views of what that should be, she is highly protective of the people she cares about, and will even ignore direct orders if she believes they have the slightest chance of hurting her loved ones. While she goes to great lengths to care about everyone she meets to an extent, the few who actually get deep into her heart will stay there forever, and she is more loyal to her family than she will ever be to the Gotei 13.
The rare occasions when Sakura is not pushed away by the people whom she loves are met with an unwavering loyalty and disregard for her own safety in lieu of theirs. Those people, whom Sakura views as her true family, are under her direct protection; in the event that anything happens to these people, Sakura takes it as a personal failure on top of their own passing in regards to emotional instability, and a single death of someone she loves can spiral Sakura out of control. Aside from doing anything she can to directly protect them, Sakura will go out of her way to make sure these people are able to handle themselves as well, and will train them with everything in her arsenal.
CHARACTER APPEARANCE
Height: Five feet, seven inches; 170cm
Weight: 143lbs; 65kg
Physical Traits:
Standing a little over five and a half feet tall, Sakura is the perfect height to be so focused on her speed. Her short pink hair is spiky and wild, but even in humid weather she keeps it under control. While she has bangs to cover her forehead, they are also long enough that they reach to where she ties it all up, making it completely clear and out of her vision. Her eyes are a soft, warm, and inviting shade of green.
Despite her age, Sakura has no scars or blemishes anywhere on her body. She has never marked herself with a tattoo or anything else that could break the perfectly pale skin, aside from having her earlobes pierced on both ears. While she is very strong, her appearance doesn't discern this detail, making her appear almost rather weak, with soft, subtle muscles on every visible piece of skin. She keeps herself shaven, with no hair anywhere that isn't her eyebrows or her head.
Gotei Uniform:
Her own personal twist on the Division 2 uniform, Sakura wears several layers of clothes which provide some protection and, more importantly, look super cute. She wears a white tanktop with a built-in bra on her torso, short enough that it shows her middrift while being loose enough that it doesn't restrict her movement. To cover herself a bit more, she also wears a black sleeveless vest over the tanktop, almost always zipped up to keep herself from being exposed. On her left bicep, she wears a single red ribbon which is used to tie her hair up when she needs to do so. Both hands are covered in black leather gloves to provide protection for when she fights.
Sakura's lower body is a bit more complicated, starting with skin-tight black shorts to cover her minimum parts, with a pair of black shorts that reach her knees over them. The second pair of shorts is much baggier than the first, and allows her to keep her full range of movement while not revealing anything when she does move in specific ways. Over this she also wears a unique black skirt which reaches halfway down her thight in front with two pockets that she can store small things in, and exactly halfway between the front and back it's sewn to a much longer extension which reaches her ankles when standing perfectly straight. While this outfit does expose her calves and knees, she prefers it like this so she can keep her full range of motion, which is very important in her fighting style. On her feet, Sakura wears black leather shoes that are perfectly fitted, with cleats on the bottom to keep traction.
Aside from the red ribbon on her left arm, Sakura doesn't have many accessories she wears. Both ears are pierced with a single silver teardrop pendant, and that's about it. She has her nails painted occasionally, usually in black or red, but rarely shows them off as she almost always wears her gloves. Additionally, Sakura also wears a single solid silver bracelt on her left wrist, which makes some noise as she moves but is just comfortable to wear.
Omnikitsudou:
When undergoing official missions of the Omnikitsudou, Sakura wears a different outfit. Her upper body has a sleeveless, skin-tight black tanktop with a thin iron plate over it, as well as long black gloves stretching to her upper arm. Under these gloves, she wears tape over her skin wrapped in a specific way which lowers her bleeding if she does get cut. Her pants and ankles also have the tape and same skin-tight clothing, with open-toed sandals made of black leather.
Stealth Operations:
If Sakura is working outside of the Omnikitsudou's range, missions that she has no official approval for or otherwise staying hidden, she changed her hair color to black and her eye color to pink with a little bit of reiatsu. Additionally, she changes her outfit insofar as wearing only a croptop white shirt with a long black coat over it, a simple belt and uneven pants, open toe shoes on her feet, and wraps both hands and arms in tape for some protection. All in all, this outfit is meant for when she doesn't want to be found or seen.
Casual Attire:
In her casual attire, Sakura wears a pair of blue denim jeans and medium length black boots with bright red laces. She also wears a black tank top under a yellow shirt, with a red coat over that; though the coat has long sleeves, Sakura almost always pushes them up to her elbows. Her right wrist has several bangles and bracelets on them, while the left wrist is bare. She wears a necklace with a paddle on it, as an homage to her time in the human world, just like the rest of this ensemble. She also wears a small red clip in her hair, keeping her bangs to the side and her face clear.
Formal Attire:
When Sakura is required to dress more formally, she also has a dress for that occasion. A silky, shiny red frames her body with white trim, almost in a kimono-like fashion, opening at her naval cavity and framing her hips. With short khaki pants that are rolled up to just below her knees, Sakura also wears black sandal heels, with her finger and toe nails often painted red. The only accessories she wears in this outfit are two thin black bangles on her right wrist.
FIGHTING STYLE
General Fighting Style:
Utilizing her speed and strength, Sakura makes quick work of most opponents. Due to the nature of her Shikai, she is far more proficient with Hakuda than she is with Zanjutsu, and in fights that matter she has a few trump cards to utilize. Since she doesn't enjoy fighting for fighting's sake, Sakura will often burn everything on an opponent at the start, not wanting to waste time with sizing them up or figuring out what they can do, and almost never explains her own actions to her opponent unlike some people.
If she is sparring with someone to help either herself or them train, then Sakura is a completely different person. She will help someone learn how to use their techniques more efficiently if she can figure it out, which she usually can since she's an excellent fighter. Unfortunately, strategy is not her strongest suit and she sometimes screws up with the order that other people should be using their techniques, though her own don't suffer from that since she mostly fights based on her instinct.
Her instinct, as mentioned above, is what Sakura trusts more than anything else when in a fight, even going so far as to ignore direct orders if she isn't supposed to use certain techniques or other such things, as she forgets that she isn't supposed to use them when she's fighting. Most of how she fights is a culmination of her lifespan being spent on Hakuda and Hohou, so she has very good instincts in a fight.
While not the true Sendo Genkotsu that the Lisola Bloodline specializes in, Sakura has enough experience in the style to immitate it. Sakura's variant of Sendo Genkotsu is more about utilizing her entire body as a weapon similar to standard Hakuda, but also the fluidity of constantly changing the style she's referencing for a given technique. While Sakura's is fairly locked in place, unable to forever grow and become better, she still practices with it due to preferring it in a fight, since it's nearly impossible to predict unless you've fought her before. This does make rematches and other such secondary fights more difficult for Sakura, as her style is semi-locked.
Strengths:
Hakuda Grandmaster- As former Captain of Division 2, Sakura's Hakuda is far greater than her Zanjutsu. Due to the nature of her Shikai, she also uses Hakuda while in that state as well, giving her even more training.
Enhanced Speed- Sakura has enhanced speed due to the lightning nature of her abilities and constant pulsing of it.
Enhanced Strength- Due to intense training, Sakura's strength is above the normal level of a Shinigami of her stature, making it fearsome to be around. She holds back in normal circumstances, unless there's a major threat that she needs to show everything she's got, or someone pisses her off.
Enhanced Stamina- Mostly due to intense abuse of Shunko and Shunpo, Sakura has an incredibly high stamina, capable of running at top speed for several hours and keep up an assault for just as long.
Kidou Master- Sakura is well versed in Kidou, and as such can use Kidou up to #80 without their incantation at no loss in power. In addition to knowing every Kidou Shinigami normally have, Sakura has created a few Kidou of her own. Sakura is a master at Hadou and Bakudou, and an expert at Kaidou.
Weaknesses:
Zanjutsu- While Sakura is capable of wielding a sword and killing low-level Hollows with it, she is not very good at the intricacies of zanjutsu. Due to her obsession and devotion to Hakuda, he Zanjutsu is mediocre at best, making it by far her worst fighting style.
Endurance- Due to her speed and skill at fighting, Sakura hasn't had a lot of experience in actually taking hits, meaning that she can't take a large amount of damage before being considered "defeated".
Reiatsu Control- Although she used to be very poor at controlling her reiatsu, Sakura has now developed (due to abuse of Shunko) a decent amount of control. Sakura can seal the majority of her reiatsu when relaxed, but any sudden emotions (happy or angry, or anything else) will cause flare ups that leak all of it. It takes a moment for her to gather it again, though.
Long Range- Perhaps Sakura's biggest weakness, she is completely centered and focused on close range combat. While she does have a few options in regards to longrange, they are far less applicable than her melee proficiency. As such, the easiest way to defeat her is to simply stay out of her range.
PERSONAL TECHNIQUES
[石規模]Stone Scale
Ability Description: By channeling reiatsu through their arms and legs, the user is capable of covering them in a material with the density and hardness of stone. They retains their movement, but attacks which hit them confront the stone armor first. This technique lasts for 5 posts with a 3 post cooldown, beginning after the technique ends. This technique requires the user to be at least tier 3-5 to use. Using [Stone Scale] puts all other _Scale techniques on cooldown.[鉄規模]Iron Scale
Ability Description: By channeling reiatsu through their arms and legs, the user is capable of covering them in a material with the density and hardness of iron. They retains their movement, but attacks which hit them confront the iron armor first. This technique lasts for 4 posts with a 4 post cooldown, beginning after the technique ends. This technique requires the user to be at least 2-5 to use. Using [Iron Scale] puts all other _Scale techniques on cooldown.
[魂規模]Soul Scale
Ability Description: By channeling reiatsu through their arms and legs, the user can cover them in a material with the density and hardness of a Zanpakutou, making them much harder to destroy or be damaged. They retains their movement, but attacks which hit her confront the armor first. This technique lasts for 4 posts with a 5 post cooldown, beginning after the technique ends. This technique requires the user to be at least 1-3 to use. Using [Soul Scale] puts all other _Scale techniques on cooldown.
[生活規模]Life Scale
Ability Description: By channeling reiatsu through their entire body, the user can cover themselves in a material with the density and hardness of a Zanpakutou. This essentially makes the user unable to be cut or sliced in any way, but blunt attacks and energy-based attacks still hit correctly. They retain their movement, like the other _Scale techniques. This technique lasts for 2 posts with a 7 post cooldown, beginning after the technique ends. This technique requires the user to be at least 0-5 to use. Using [Life Scale] puts all other _Scale techniques on cooldown.
[瞬閧]Shunkou
Ability Description: An advanced battle technique which combines the physical techniques of Hakuda and the spell-based techniques of Kidou, Shunkou is the peak of Hakuda and Hohou techniques. Shunkou comes in natural elements such as lightning or wind, based on the user's personality and reiatsu. When active, the technique rips apart the fabric on the user's back and arms as they're flooded with Kidou. Sakura's active element can be changed once every post, but is always activated in Lightning-Element. Sakura's mastery of this ability is instantly shown, as it will not destroy and of her clothing when used.[HUTON] - Water
x2 Speed, +Regeneration - While this is active, Shunko has a feint blue color.
[KATON] - Fire
x4 Strength - While this is active, Shunko has a feint red color.
[DOTON] - Earth
x4 Stamina/Endurance - While this is active, Shunko has a feint orange color.
[RAITON] - Lightning
x4 Speed - While this is active, Shunko has a feint yellow color.
[FUUTON] - Wind
x3 Speed, x3 Strength - While this is active, Shunko has a feint green color.
[完璧瞬閧]Perfect Shunkou
Ability Description: A perfected version of Shunkou which brings Sakura to the peak ability of her tier. Essentially, this means that the elements do not give direct boosts, as simply being in Perfect Shunkou gives a set boost. The elements give different effects. This cannot be activated in the same post as Shunkou itself, and is activated in the same element as Shunkou currently is. Sakura can change her active element once per post. Much like Shunkou, Sakura's mastery of this ability is shown vividly as it does not affect her clothing at all.[HUTON] - Water
Sakura is coated in Water, and has High-Speed Regeneration. While this is active, Shunkou has a feint blue color.
[KATON] - Fire
Sakura is coated in Fire, and all attacks deal 2nd Degree burns. While this is active, Shunkou has a feint red color.
[DOTON] - Earth
Sakura is coated in Earth, and takes 33% less damage from all sources. While this is active, Shunko has a feint orange color.
[RAITON] - Lightning
Sakura is coated in Lightning, and moves 50% faster than before. While this is active, Shunko has a feint yellow color.
[FUUTON] - Wind
Sakura is coated in Wind, and her attacks are 100% faster due to lack of air resistance. While this is active, Shunko has a feint green color.
[完璧な調和]Perfect Harmony [Passive]
Ability Description: Although this could be taken as a constantly released Shikai, Perfect Harmony is truly just a level of Harmony between Inazuma Kettou and Sakura herself which allows Sakura to access her Shikai techniques even without her Zanpakutou on her person. While she does not get the boosts from actually using Shikai, Sakura does have the harmony with Inazuma Kettou required to use any of the Shikai techniques at any time.
[千鳥]Chidori
Ability Description: By channeling reiatsu into her palm, Sakura can create pure electrical energy for 1 entire post. This ability wraps Sakura's hand in electricity, constantly dealing damage akin to Hado#60 to anything she touches except her own body. Sakura cannot use this ability if she does not have at least one open palm, limiting this technique to melee range. Chidori has a 1 post cooldown before it can be used again. Sakura must say the name of this technique to use it.
[雷切]Raikiri
Abiltiy Description: Raikiri is an enhanced version of Chidori. By channeling reiatsu into her palm, Sakura can create pure electrical energy for 1 entire post. This ability wraps Sakura's hand in electricity, constantly dealing damage akin to Hado#80 to anything she touches except her own body. Additionally, Raikiri extends 7 inches past Sakura's hand, and Sakura can use this ability regardless of whether she is holding anything. Raikiri has a 3 post cooldown before it can be used again. Sakura must say the name of this technique to use it.
[麒麟]Kirin
Ability Description: Kirin is a very unique ability with heavy requirements, and as such can only be used in specific circumstances. To use Kirin, true lightning must be present within 50 meters of Sakura. Lightning generated directly by abilities does not count, but a natural thunderstorm created by abilities does. When the requirements are met, Sakura must point a finger at the sky, release a trace amount of reiatsu, and guide a thunder bolt with her finger. The lightning will reach the ground in 1/100th of a second, dealing damage almost instantly, akin to Hado#90. When this technique is used, the thunderstorm will disperse immediately. While this technique has no cooldown, it is extremely difficult to use it more than once in a fight.
[飛雷神]Flying Thunder
Ability Description: By placing a trace amount of reiatsu on any flat surface, Sakura can create a seal which only she can see. Sakura can place 1 seal per post, and when a seal is exactly 10, 20, or 30 yards away from two other seals, all three seals (being equidistant) can be teleported to. The seals last forever, and the user can teleport to a seal which meets the requirements once every 3 posts, but can place more seals in the mean time. The distance the seals are apart is unaffected by verticality, and only horizontal distance matters.
CUSTOM KIDOU
[静寂歩]Silent Steps
Bakudou #27, Omnikitsudou | No Incantation
Description: Silent Steps is an Omnikitsudou-only Bakudou created by Sakura which forms an invisible barrier 3 inches from the user's feet. This barrier travels with the user for up to 10 posts, preventing any noise from escaping it. This means that the user can run silently, step on anything, and make no noise whatsoever from their feet.
[静寂言葉]Silent Words
Bakudou #28, Omnikitsudou | No Incantation
Description: The user of this Bakudou touches the back of the neck of up to 9 other people, allowing all 10 (the user being the 10th) to communicate with each other telepathically. This allows for silent information transmission and is restricted to Omnikitsudou. This Kidou cannot be used on an un-willing target.
[多彩な檻]Versatile Cage
Bakudo #89, Restricted | No Incantation
Effect: Creates a dome, 50ft in radius and up to 200ft tall, centered on the caster's location. This dome is unbreakable through any means, and nothing can pass through the walls in any direction, including the caster themselves. This Bakudo remains until the caster either chooses to take it down, or is otherwise unable to continue fighting (whether the caster is fatigued, unconscious, or dead.)
[荒波]Aranami
Hadou #?? [10/30/50/80], Restricted | No Incantation, must be Charged
Effect: Caster charges a small blue orb in the palm of their hand for up to three posts. At any time during charging, or after it, the caster my fire off a large wave of energy; if this Hadou is not charged or is fired within the first post, it is equivalent in power to Hado#10; after one post of charging, it is equivalent to Hado#30; after two posts of charging, it is equivalent to Hado#50; after three posts, it is fired off at Hadou#80. Caster may move and attack while charging, but one hand must be kept free to charge this Hadou.
[嵐の雲]Storm Clouds
Unassigned #33, Restricted | "Guided by my touch, the weather responds in kind."
Description: This Kidou creates a natural thunderstorm in the immediate vicinity, but is slow to react. Upon use, the air will begin to tense up; three posts after use, it will begin to rain lightly; three posts after that, it will begin to rain heavily; three posts after that, it will begin to strike down with lightning once every post.
[人生の絆]Seal of Life
Kaido #99, Restricted | "Transcend Mortal Limits."
Description: Sakura releases a store of reiatsu, which (when sealed) takes the form of a small green diamond in the middle of her forehead. When activated, Sakura's reiatsu is fully restored, all wounds are healed (including lost limbs), and her physical body feels no stamina drain for the next 7 posts. After those 7 posts, if Sakura is still alive, she immediately collapses from the strain on her body, as all of the stamina that was not drained is drained at once. Additionally, the store of reiatsu immediately reseals, taking 50% of her total reiatsu. Every post that the seal is active, Sakura ages by 10 years.
ZANPAKUTO
Sealed Appearance:
While sealed, Sakura's Zanpakutou takes the form of a straight wakizashi of elegant design. Mostly blue or silver in color, the handle is a solid piece which looks like it wraps around itself several times, forming the spiral design which allows a stronger grip on the weapon. It has no true guard, with the handle expanding outwards and immediately becoming the blade which thins back out toward the tip. Both sides of the blade are sharp despite the appearance. The blade is approximately 20in long, with a 4in handle, exactly enough room for Sakura to wield it comfortably.
SHIKAI
Call Out Command: Lend me your strength, Inazuma Kettou!
Appearance:
Sakura's Shikai takes the form of two identical gauntlets in the shape of a lion's head, with steel plating, bronze trim, gold ornament and reiatsu leaks. The two gauntlets are rather heavy, about fifty pounds each, but Sakura does not feel the weight of them due to her connection to Inazuma Kettou. With a simple steel lion's head as a base, the gauntlets have bronze trim aroud every edge with gold to signify more important pieces of the lion, such as his nose and whiskers, and has glowing blue eyes, as well as three teardrops in a circle on the top. The two weapons also form bracers on Sakura's wrists which protect them, due to the nature of how they are used making it necessary for Sakura to be in close combat extremely often.
Abilities:
[雷ブレード]Lightning Blade
By channeling her reiatsu through each weapon, Sakura is able to form solid blades of compressed lightning-like energy that form from the lion's mouths on her Shikai. These blades are one foot in length from the edge of the mouth to the tip, and are a very pale blue. Having the properties of lightning, neither blade ever seems to sit still, always sparking off in random directions. While this technique is active, the three teardrops on the top of her Shikai also glow in the same bright blue as the eyes. This technique can last indefinitely and has no cooldown.
[雷玉]Lightning Ball
By compressing her reiatsu in her fists, Sakura can unleash a ball of pure lightning with the destructive force and speed of a Bala, released by throwing a punch. While this is normally used for ranged combat, Sakura can also use this in melee to augment her punching. This technique has no cooldown, but can only be fired a maximum of 20 times per post.
[雷撃の鎧]Lightning Strike Armor
This technique allows Sakura to cover her body in lightning. While this provides no explicit defense, it does increase her offensive capabilities dramatically, with everything she touches being electrocuted as though struck by lightning. This technique lasts for 3 posts with a 5 post cooldown.
[雷の速度]Lightning Speed
A variant of Shunpo, this technique channels lightning-element reiatsu through the standard Shunpo and allows Sakura to make two Shunpo movements in the time anyone else would use one, with the sound of a thunderbolt. This has a 2 post cooldown.
[雷が速い]Lightning Quick
Once every 4 posts, any one physical attack which would hit Sakura is instead countered, deflected, or blocked, depending on if it was from her front, sides, or rear, respectively. This occurs due to a constant stream of reiatsu flowing through Sakura's body, giving her abnormally fast reflexes, but it takes a few moments to recharge after being used.
Boosts: 2x to Everything
BACK-DROP
Background:
PREHISTORY- Before you can look at who Sakura is as a person, you have to look further back from that. The end of the 13th century and dawn of the 14th century are riddled with missing information, power struggles, plagues and other such things that make it impossible to have a complete story. While Sakura herself may not remember anything from her human life, she does remember that certain things didn't line up; things that you'll come to realize in the passing days as I tell you this story, but things that Sakura doesn't remember directly and never can, for they may very well destroy her.
Our story begins not with Sakura's own birth, but with her father's apointment as head of his clan. A clan which, by all means had no large impact on history, has had its name written out through time, and none alive can even begin to remember any part of it. This clan was small but fierce, a pack of wild wolves which looked for anything they could do to make themselves be more well-known, even if that fame was instead infamy. Being the child of the head of a clan like this made Sakura who she is, even if she wasn't... a she.
BIRTH- Born in the year of 1344, just under halfway through the 14th century, was a boy by the name of Hikaru. Hikaru was by any normal stretch an ordinary child, but was never permitted to leave the clan's grounds. He was forced to learn and be well-taught by his father, even if he never felt like he fit in. While his father made him train in the way of the sword, he didn't feel like it was the correct thing to do even though he was very obviously a male. Hikaru did as he was told, as he always did, but he always resented his father for forcing him to do things he did not want to.
On the day of his eighteenth birthday, Hikaru was to be wed to a neighboring clan's daughter. This marriage would have binded the clans and made Hikaru's father head of both, giving him more power and more resources to be aggressive with. While Hikaru fought and tried to stop the wedding before it happened, his father reminded him of everything he'd been given as a child, and this one act was his payment for all of it. While Hikaru didn't think that was fair, he did not make any further attempts to stop the wedding, believing his father would release him after it and allow him to live his life as he wanted to.
DEATH- The wedding never happened. Well, it did, but it didn't finish. See, during the ceremony, a samurai clad in black bursted in and called it to a halt. Believing this was an error, or an act of insubordination, Hikaru's father stood up to the samurai and attempted to make him leave, only to be killed in a single swipe of the samurai's blade. Trying to hold back tears, Hikaru only managed to fall to his knees before he watched the Samurai kill every single person in his clan, and then finally turned his blade to Hikaru himself.
Opening her eyes, a teenaged soul woke up in the Zaraki district of Rukongai; a district so renowned for its anarchy and lawlessness that it was a threat for her very soul just to be there. Immediately sensing and running from the danger, Sakura lived on the outskirts of the Zaraki District for several years before she learned about the other life she could have if she attended and passed the Shinigami Academy. It took her nearly an entire year to navigate from her hideout to the gates of the Academy, but once she finally did it, she was able to relax for the first time since she woke up and slept for nearly a week straight.
BECOMING A SHINIGAMI- Swords. Once again, Sakura was expected to learn the art of the sword, and once again she refused. While she did the bare minimum required to pass the Zanjutsu section, her Kidou and Hakuda training were beyond excellent. Since fighting with her arms and legs was more comfortable for Sakura, she continued to hone them to be the very best, and before she was even out of the academy she was requested to join the Onmikitsudo; secret police of Division 2, who made sure things weren's falling apart at the brim.
Sakura's graduation from the academy took a total of two years, despite it normally taking much longer than that. When given her personal Asauchi, she decided to ignore it and instead continue to focus on her Hakuda and Hohou training to be the best in the world. It was at this point she first discovered that fighting just for the sake of fighting irritated her, but she still dueled everyone she could and made a name for herself, even if it was just the Duelist. Eventually, Sakura realized that without committing to her Asauchi and discovering her true Zanpakutou, she would never become Lieutenant.
INAZUMA KETTOU- Finally, Sakura gave in and performed Jinzen. While she didn't think it was worth it at first, the duel she undertook with her Zanpakutou spirit was something she had never dreamed of, and it felt like it took years for the fight to finally finish, with her landing a clean kick that ended her Zanpakutou's spirit to fight. Finally, it gave her it's name and abilities, and she achieved her Shikai.
Her Shikai, of course, was completely focused around Hakuda. With her new techniques at her disposal, the Duelist continued to duel every single person who said yes, and went on for several decades without losing a single fight, all the while maintaining her status within the Onmikitsudo. Sakura was making a name for herself and was starting to become well known, but that wasn't enough for her. She wanted to be known by everyone for a single thing: her speed. It needed more practice.
INAZUMAKEN NO DANSU- It took her nearly ten years to manifest her Zanpakutou spirit in the physical world. Ten years she practiced and waited, training every single day so that she could finally achieve her bankai, and once again her and her Zanpakutou clashed, though this time the fight only took a single hour to complete, as Sakura didn't waste any time trying to size up her opponent this time. From that fight onwards, Sakura would never waste effort trying to figure out what someone else could do, and would just pummel them down anyway. Once she achieved her Bankai, she spent the next fifty years training it.
Fifty straight years of training her Bankai and using it in nearly every fight she could, just so she could say she mastered it, before she even told anyone she'd achieved it. When Sakura told her Captain she achieved Bankai, she was laughed at; knowing the third method of becoming a Captain, Sakura requested a fight to the death with her Captain in front of 200 unseated officers of her Division. The fight lasted exactly seven seconds.
SEVEN SECONDS- Within those seven seconds, Sakura had ripped out her former Captain's heart, broken her former Captain's Zanpakutou, and became the new Captain of Division 2. Those seven seconds lasted for a very long time, making many people scared to go anywhere near Sakura. She handled her Captain duties well, and helped train members of her Division, but longed for the life she had before she had all these responbilities. Still, she wasn't one to give up on anything, and with her mind made up, she continued to be Captain for a long time.
"A long time" is, apparently, one hundred and twenty six years. Sakura remaind Captain, living a very boring and narrated life, for exactly one-hundred and twenty-six years before she finally gave up and retired herself. Stepping away from the Gotei 13 as a whole, Sakura needed some time to herself, where she could either duel other people or just relax and not live such a stressed life. It took seven days for relaxing to get boring, so Sakura returned to looking for someone to fight who was an actual challenge.
Sakura never found someone to fight who could put up a real challenge to her, so she decided to devote her life back to perfecting Hakuda and making it a more dangerous fighting style than Zanjutsu ever could be, though with the cutting power of a Zanpakutou she didn't really know how that was going to work. Still, she needed to keep her mind in the clouds and focus on the positives, as this is where the story starts to change a bit.
You're probably getting bored now, so I'll speed things up a little bit.
Sakura developed a unique technique which channeled Kidou through her arms and legs, causing them to have much more strength and speed than before, and even though she couldn't hold this form for long it was immediately decided as her trump card in a fight. The Shunkou technique is one she only uses if she has to, or if she's irritated, and few have seen it.
Sakura's life was pretty boring aside from those acts, and most of it was spent wandering around and enjoying life. After retiring from Captain, she had too much time on her hands and become more positive and focused on the good things in life, stopping to smell the flowers and all that, because even though she could kill nearly anyone in an instant (or, at least seven seconds) she didn't need to be so focused on speed all the time.
THE PAST- Though she doesn't like fighting just for it's own sake, Sakura is still looking for someone who can put up a challenge in a duel or worse, and wastes no time in fights because she doesn't think it's fair to hold back unless she's training someone. While she has her Bankai at a level she's okay with, Sakura doesn't often use it because it doesn't fit her style, and even though the element fits with what she prefers she still steers away from it, preferring her Shikai most of the time. Her only goal is to be the fastest Shinigami to ever live, and she constantly works towards this goal, even going so far as to make a Kidou which gimmicks the title and makes people think she's faster than she actually is, even if she's insanely fast.
THE SINNERS- When the Sinner Incursion happened, Sakura was dispatched to fight Kaze. Unbeknownst to everyone else in the incursion, Kaze broke Sakura's bankai in a manner she still doesn't fully understand, having some weird Dragon devour the blades whole, and left her in a weakened and near-death state. Not having the power to return to Soul Society, Sakura slowly healed her body with her limited knowledge of Kaido and lots of rest, and began to train her Shunko to be better. Since she didn't have Bankai anymore, and knew that she couldn't get into Soul Society without all of her power back, she spent three months training her body.
Going back to Soul Society, Sakura approached Rena and explained her situation; Rena brought her into the Dangai, where she spent 5 years mastering Shunko and perfecting it, finalizing it to a point where she didn't believe she could be beat by anyone else. Now, with her power higher than ever, Sakura set out to reclaim her title of the Rose Flash, and to finally start a family.
HUECO MUNDO- During the invasion unto Hueco Mundo, Sakura was entirely preoccupied and unaware of Rena Lisola's situation. Upon discovering her death, Sakura went cold for a short while, not even particularly warming up to Yorui, simply believing she had not only failed her Captain Commander, but her sister and herself as well. For the first time in several hundred years, Sakura questioned her ability to be a Shinigami.
She was not fully over this event when the CHAOS Organization attacked Soul Society, and after losing a fight to Selica Aciles, she cursed herself and fled Soul Society to not only train herself up but also stay alive, unsure of how the rest of the fight would go, and convincing herself that if she wasn't even present if anything were to happen to Akane Makishima, it would not under any circumstance be her fault.
SHATTERING THE HEAVENS- Sakura changed her appearance lightly and stayed lowkey, operating in the shadows to build up her strength. She wasn't going to lose another fight, and if she did it would be her last. She was done running, done protecting herself; Sakura Senba was not going to let someone else she loved die, not while she was still alive. Sparring with Naruko Lisola, whom the Committee saw fit to claim as one of their strongest fighters, Sakura was reminded of Rena Lisola and meditated on their fighting style, which Rena called Sendo Genkotsu at one point.
SENDO GENKOTSU- While Sakura, not being a Lisola by blood, could not truly master this impossible style, she was able to adopt some of its theories into her own. Essentially she could not constantly grow it, and hers stagnated to a degree, but when fighting someone for the first time it became clear she was not using an orthodox fighting strategy; on secondary and tertiary encounters, her fighting style would seem much more similar and easier to combat, however.
KIRIN- Training with Lightning itself, Sakura developed two new Kidou that complimented each other, and meditated with Inazuma Kettou to access her Shikai's techniques even without the Zanpakutou on her body. With all of her new techniques, Sakura felt she was ready to step back into the world... but for now, would still stay below the radar until she could find the outcome of the CHAOS Invasion. |
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