At once thin and heavy was the air he sought to replenish his lungs, sweat creasing above from his forehead atop his goggles. Loud was his panting, barely audible underneath the cacophony of tumultuous skies, fading from earsplitting roars down to air-quaking rumbles, and slowly diminishing still. Black were the clouds over the peak of great mountains at the furthest edges of the Rukon district, the heavy winds spinning them round dimming, as did the flashes cracking through the darkness.
Wide was the winning smile on Kotarō Ryōbo's determined face, even as his stamina gave out and he dropped to one knee, his trembling body's weight supported by the weapon still keeping him somewhat standing. A weapon at once old and familiar to him, yet brand new in the proud form it now took, one as versatile as it proved demanding from the toll it took on his untrained constitution.
At once a fan, an axe, a spear, and a lightning rod. No simple Shikai could assume such a variable shape or freely wield such calamitous potential... but, then again, this was no Shikai, let alone a power he could safely hone among his peers within the restricting confines of civilization.
That was why, during days off from his duties, the 13th Division's 3rd Seat isolated himself so far and removed from the Seireitei: to temper body and mind to his very limits, to forge himself anew amidst the elements, and to build upon this new foundation he strove to attain for years on end.
Alas, with the strain weighing heavy on his soul after another long and arduous day of training, Kota let go. Immediately, the great instrument at his side sealed itself back into the unassuming form of a katana, blade stabbed into the earth to keep him upright! Even then, however, he collapsed onto his back as fatigue and aftershocks finally took root, directing his gaze towards stormy heavens. His stormy heavens. He will have to make his way back to Captain Kuchiki younger's side sooner than later, certainly, but rest comes first so he may rekindle his ambition later.
The next time some terrible force rears its ugly head to endanger the peoples of the Soul Society, the world of the living, and Hueco Mundo, he will be ready for them.
That is a Kotarō guarantee.