Game 2 - Chapter 1

The door to the classroom suddenly slammed open, as loudly as a sliding wood-and-rice-paper door can. Inside stepped the Fourth Division's Lieutenant Isane Kotetsu, her eyes shut serenely, despite the angry veins obviously bulging out of her forehead. "In your seats, everyone," she said as calmly as she could muster.

Slowly, she stepped over to the blackboard and picked up a piece of chalk, then paused, slightly befuddled by the odd drawings there. Shaking her head once, she erased Rikiki's drawing and began to write:

虎徹 勇音 副隊長
Lieutenant Isane Kotetsu

She took her position behind the lectern at the front of the classroom. "So, our first day faculty meeting ran a little bit long this year." she said, smiling sweetly. "And... of all the instructors in this building here today, I'd like you all to guess who was the ONLY one to get called OUT of the faculty meeting to tend to a disruptive homeroom. Any guesses?"

Isane opened her eyes, smiling daggers at each and every individual in the room, noticing with some amusement how quiet most of them had gotten, avoiding her gaze.

"No guesses at all?" she said, clapping her hands together, her voice like poisoned honey. "Well, I'll make it easier for you, then."

With a slam, Isane pounded her fists into the lectern, her smile gone. "It was me."

"And of course," she continued, pacing at the front of the room. "It wasn't 'Lieutenant Kotetsu, your students are being loud,' or 'Lieutenant Kotetsu, your students are fighting,' or 'Lieutenant Kotetsu, your students are making out in the hallway,' -- though I heard about all that as well." She snapped her fingers at Naomi and Igarashi. "You two, opposite ends of the room."

"No, it wasn't any of that at all," Isane sighed. "Instead, for the very first time in the 113 years I've been an instructor here, I got to hear someone tell me, 'Lieutenant Kotetsu, your students have started a fire.'"

The members of the class exchanged an uneasy glance as Isane's forehead fell into her palm. "Look, how on earth... No." She shrugged. "You know what, I don't even want to know. I don't want to know how it started, I don't want to know what happened, I don't want to know... what on earth any of you were thinking!" She took a deep breath.

"You are the Advanced Class!" she shouted, slapping the lectern to emphasize her point. "Don't you realize what this means? You're the ones who are going to lead the 13 Divisions one day! You're going to be the seated officers! And the Lieutenants! Maybe even Captains! Do you think Shinigami officers and Captains act like wild teenage animals?"

Isane closed her eyes, her voice softening a little. "Honestly, you do realize that we'll be going on field training missions this year, right? Fighting actual Hollows? Honestly, if you all keep this up, you won't survive long enough to graduate."

Leaving the students in silence, Isane sat down at her desk next to the lectern and opened her attendance book. "Well," she looked over the room again. "It seems like everyone's here -- Wait, no, one absent." She made a mark in her book.

"So!" Isane closed her book with a clap. "Though it seems like you all seem to know each other rather well -- some more than others," she added with a sideways glance at Igarashi. "It's customary to begin the year with an introduction. I'd like everyone to come up here, one by one to the front of the room," she indicated the lectern. "And tell us all a little bit about yourselves."

Isane looked around the room again. No one seemed to be moving.

"Well?" she prompted. "Come on, don't be shy."

Igarashi had fallen into a light trance of sleep while waiting for anything else to happen, that day had felt like a very long one, despite the fact that only a few hours had passed. So of course, when the classroom door slided open, Igarashi immediately opened his eyes, which in turn saw a more mature looking silver haired woman, she did not look at all like a student, and most of all, there was something that surrounded her... some kind of aura that told Igarashi this was a different person from everyone one here, this one was surely a real shinigami.

Of course, when she asked to take their seats, there was no need for Igarashi to do this, as he was already seated, then as she began to ask a very obvious question, Igarashi stared at her, he knew what she was talking about, and tough he knew he was guilty about some of these things, he would not turn his gaze from shame, what's done is done.

However, when she mentioned something about two students making out, Igarashi immediately blushed a bit, a bit surprised and ashamed she had somehow knew about this, he silently complied when she ordered to take opposite seats, this time, he avoided the gaze of everyone as he sat into a new seat.

In his new seat, he once again tried to look serious and tried not to wince when she mentioned the whole fire incident, as he was part, and almost foolishly a victim of it, he heard the rest of her chastising speech without emmiting a single word, but he blushed a bit again when she glanced at him again while prompting them to introduce themselves.

In any other circumstances, Igarashi would have been one of the last in standing up and introducing, he found the whole thing stupid, but right now, feeling embarrassed by the Lieutenant and with an urge of just fading away, He decided to stand up first, tired as he was and walked towards where Lieutenant Kotetsu was.

While on there, he Tried to avoid the Lieutenant's gaze as she had effectively managed to make him feel guilty and ashamed, and then faced towards the rest of the class, and decided to try and start anew, introducing himself as he would normally do; "Igarashi Sakimoto, eight district from ryukongai, Came here to escape routine and find a decent challenge"

He then returned back to his seat, he didn't care if that was a short, cold, or lame introduction, he did not feel like saying anything more, he normally did not talk much anyway, and besides, all he wanted to do right now was to take his seat again and try to remain apart from everyone's else eyes as much as possible, especially Naomi's and the lieutenant's. Taking his seat, Igarashi once again tried to put a cold looking face for the rest of the introductions.

Like Igarashi, Midori was already seated when the door opened; unlike him, she felt no reason to feel ashamed - she hadn't been responsible for any of those incidents, and had done her best to right the situations, and was thus fairly absolved of any feeling of guilt when Lieutenant Kotetsu's gaze washed over her. In fact, she gave an audible sigh of relief when the person who slammed the door open was not yet another student but a short grey-haired woman wearing a Lieutenant's badge.

She was a bit surprised to see Sakimoto rise to introduce himself first, but once he'd taken his seat again she rose and followed suit, moving to the front of the room next to the Lieutenant. She gave Kotetsu-sama a respectful bow, unhesitant to meet her eye, before turning to address the class. "Midori Yuansuzaku, thirty-seventh district from Ryoukongai. Came to study and learn from the instructors here, beyond what I can teach myself." With another bow, this time directed at the class, she strode back to her seat. She wasn't looking smug with herself - in fact, her expression was particularly blank compared to most of the day - but neither did she look cowed or shamed following the lecture from before. From her best guess, she was one of the few in class who wouldn't... save those who probably would feel absolutely no guilt for their actions, such as Rikiki.

Now, considering how Takeshi despised everyone's eyes upon him, you may have thought him the last person to stand up to introduce himself, however he'd attempted twice already, and was beaten to it it both times. Finally able to reach the front of the classroom uninterupted, Satoko faced the rest of the class under the logic; I have to do it no matter what, may as well do it now. Clearing his throat slightly, Takeshi spoke without a hint of shame in his voice, believing the Kotetsu's opinion of his conflict with Kanue unimportant, as it seemed to be the fire she was most upset about.

"My name is Satoko Takeshi, I hail from somewhere on Earth. I've lived in the Soul Society for two years and am aged but a meager 18. I would prefer not to disclose my time here in the Soul Society up ill this point, as most of it is unfavorable. However I do chose to till you one of my reason's for being here; I have no idea who I am, or even what I feel. My memories and emotions are naught but shattered glass, and I've lived to long in anger, despair, and indifference. So I present myself here to learn and change, hopefully from and adolescent fool into a more intelligent, mature, man.

And I hate talking"

Takeshi coughed, his throat burning from some much speach, he wished he'd gone for something short like Igarashi. He then took the seat he'd possesed moments ago, and allowed others to stand and introduce themselves. He then noticed Kasahara was still looking down at her desk, surely she had nothing to be ashamed of? reaching forward over his desk, he gave her a pat on the back; "You Okay?" he coughed hoarsly.

I'm noticing that nobody's remembering to roll their dice. *points to dice thread* Remember that thing? Yeah?

Also, y'all'll be awarded EXP based on how well you roleplay your introduction and these opening few days.

Even though the door had slammed open and a fist had collided loudly with a lectern, Kasahara still had not come out of her slumber. She remained asleep until Takeshi patted her on the back. She jolted awake under his touch and looked about the classroom. Had the teacher appeared? There was a lady infront of the classroom and it seems that her classmates had their attention focused on her. It was safe to assume that she was the teacher. Kasahara noticed, at first glance, that the woman infront of the class was wearing an arm band with the number 4 written in kanji. Although the brunette hasn't been in Seireitei very long nor has ever seen many shinigamis, she could tell that this person infront of her was a highly ranked member of the soul society.

Upon reading the board behind the woman, Kasahara now identified her as Lieutenant Isane Kotetsu. "A lieutenant..?" It was spoken in a soft whisper and was only meant to be heard by herself.

... Isane-sensei looked like she was waiting for something. Apparently Kasahara had missed what she had said to the class earlier and knew nothing of what she was suppose to do. She looked around the classroom again to find them waiting for something as well. What are they all waiting for? She decided that it was best to wait too. Perhaps she could catch onto what they were told to do if someone else does it infront of her.

((OOC: IT'S STARTED! FINALLY! HALLELUJAH!!))

Daisuke turns to Midori in the next seat and whispers. "Did you say... Thirty-seventh District? That's quite a coincidence."

He stood up and marched to the front the class. Before anything else, he stopped, facing the teacher, and bowed very low to her, quite a feat for such a rotund man.

"Moushiwake arimasen. I apologize on behalf of the entire class for all the trouble we have caused for you, fukutaicho-sensei. Our behaviour was truly inexcusable, and we hope to repair the shame we have caused to you."

He stood up and turned and faced the class. "Ohayo gozaimasu, my name is Daisuke Kokubunji. In life, I was a sekitori, a sumo wrestler, living in Sapporo, Japan. Now, I am studying to become a Shinigami, hailing from the Thirty-seventh District of Ryukongai." He glanced at Midori, then bowed to the class. "It is a pleasure to meet all of you. I look forward to learning from you all."

He went back to his seat, then whispered to Midori again. "It's strange we've never met before. Sanjyuushichi isn't exactly a crowded place." He then straightened up and directed all his attention toward the teacher at the front of the room and the next student who went up for an introduction.






Moushiwake arimasen: a very formal apology, usually directed at a superior. Literally translates to 'there is no excuse.'

Naomi looked sheepish. She knew she was the cause of 3/4 things. She felt really guilty. She stood up and walked to the fron of the room. "Im Naomi Oxen I came here to learn and become a master of fighting. She then apoligized for everything she had done.

Untroubled by Lieutenant Isane's display anger, Ryouichi was the next to introduce himself. He walked with a confident grace to stand at the front of the room. Putting on a friendly smile, he turned to address the class. "My name is Ryouichi Kanue, of Ryukongai's 9th district. I came here to the Academy because I want to do everything in my power to help those who cannot help themselves, and you could say that I'm an amateur psychologist. If you ever find yourself troubled or in need of advice," he said, being sure to make eye-contact with every student in the room, "come talk with me, and I'll try to help you work through your problems."

Still smiling, Ryouichi returned to his seat and waited for the rest of the students to step up.

After watching Kokubunji, Naomi, and Kanue introduce themselves, Kasahara caught onto what the teacher had ask of them. Apparently, from listening to Kakubunji, the teacher had also scolded them earlier. Several things came to mind when she thought up of what Insane-sensei could have scolded them for. The damage or misuse of the academy's closet could've been one. She had no part in that, but she did have a part in 'stealing' medical supplies from the nurses office. Perhaps that was why their teacher was mad? Maybe the fire or having a tree knocked down angered her; Kasahara wasn't sure. She would have to ask her friends about it later.

After Kanue was done introducing himself, the brunette got up and walked to the lectern. Being fully aware that her clothes probably still smelt like smoke and that her pockets were over flowing with medical supplies from the nurses office, Kasahara gave a sheepish smile to the teacher.

She focused on her classmates in front of her and appeared confident as she spoke. "Ossu! My name is Maka Kasahara. Please address me by my surname, Kasahara. I am from the quiet 14th district of Ryukongai." The brunette decided against release more personal information about herself, such as her past and her reasons for being here; she felt that it was unnecessary. Besides, she had no recollection of her life while she was alive so that information could not be spoken about anyways.

"I hope you will come to rely on me as I will be grateful to trust and count on you. Let's take care of each other." She flashed the class a bright smile, unlike those confident grins she had been showing earlier. Despite her boyish nature, Kasahara was capable of being feminine sometimes.... Just not often.

The brunette left the front of the class and seated herself again in the middle of the class. She glanced at Takeshi, trusting him the most out of the entire class, as if to ask him if she had done what the teacher had ask for. She still wasn't completely sure.

*After Sensei Kotetsu, ordered students to take a seat, he had ended up sitting next to Duggo as that was the closest seat available. He disagreed with a few things the teacher had said, but he knew it was a bad idea to start trouble. He had already apologized to the one person he really needed to, and was satisfied with that. He tried not to let on he thought anything Kotetsu said was off base, and showed respect for her.*

It would have been nice to have some warning or intrusions on the board. Just something to let us know what was going on. Maybe then, we would have been less restless.

*Zetsumei approached the front of the room, attempting to smile. He bows to Isane Kotetsu and then faces the rest of the class.*

"Hi I'm Zetsumei Oushou. I'm from Rukongai region 67, which as you might guess is not a very... pleasant district. The higher in number, the more violence after all. However, I was able to spend some time wandering in the 9th district once I was old enough, and I met shinigami there. It's very complicated, but, in the end I decided to come here to this school. I want to get stronger to prove myself to a certain group of individuals. I make a lot of mistakes, but I try to put my heart into things. "

Those shinigami... I can never forgive. ((Thought, not said aloud.))

*Puts one hand on his forehead and smiles awkwardly.*

"I'm also bad at speeches. I have trouble getting along with people, because I'm very strange. I think I've talked enough for now."

*Zetsumei bows again to Isane Kotetsu. He then sits back down next to Duggo, where he was before.*

Junshirou stopped flicking through his notebook (now containing sketches of the floor plan of the building, as well as notes on several classmates and their likely strengths and weaknesses), and walked to the front of the class. He stood there for ten seconds surveying the group, leading many to wonder if he was actually going to open his mouth, before saying, in a loud voice:

Hajimemashite, Tenkawa Junshirou desu.*

He waited around for another few seconds, decided that he really ought to make a better attempt to make friends with some of the assembled shinigami, and started talking about himself.

"I've been in Soul Society for ten years now, based mainly in the 17th district of Rukongai. I got bored after a while, so I'm here. My dislikes include unexplained fires and people who sit in stunned silence. I'm hoping to become a flexible unit in battle, or perhaps a kidou specialist. I haven't quite decided yet. I hope we get along well."

He smiled at the class, then wondered if perhaps he should have been a little less specific with his dislikes, especially because the 'stunned silence' was exhibiting itself right at this very moment. After another seven seconds of stony silence, he dug his hands into his pockets and returned to his seat, his head turned interestedly towards the front of the classroom.

*Hajimemashite, Tenkawa Junshirou desu = (roughly) "Nice to meet you all, I'm Junshirou Tenkawa."

Satoko listened distractedly to the others introductions, caring little about the others pasts and goals, that is untill he saw Kasahara stand upright and start introducing herself. Naomi, Kanue, and Daisuke had been dully uninteresting to Takeshi, for unless it was relevant towards him, the past meant nothing to Takeshi. However he'd made timekill out of giving point form descriptions to the others, although not bothering to speak them aloud. However, when Kasahara stood, he'd become interested for she'd said nothing when he'd tried to get her attention moments ago, and he'd assumed she was thinking about what to say, it never occuring to him that she may not have known what to do.

After she'd spoken, Satoko nodded in acceptance, deeming it to be just a blunt introduction akin to Igarashi's. However when he saw that friendly smile she'd given the class, Takeshi was odded out; she'd never shwon a sligtest hint of an act like that. The way she spoe was out of it's usual sarcastic tone as well. Takeshi then realized that someone was looking at him, twisiting his neck slightly, he saw Kasahara in the middle of the room, appearing to be looking for approval. he gave her a curt nod and polite smile, confused as to her need for it, she'd been so confident when speaking.

Takeshi was uninterested in the others who followed suit, finding that Zetsumei seemed to get frustrated near the end of his speech, and noticing how Junshirou seemed to be much older, smarter, and more experienced then Takeshi. His goals also seemed the most realistic yet. Satoko looked at him with slight interest, beofre reverting his attention to the front of the room, where he awaited someone else to introduce themselves.

I appear to be the youngest student here... I was sixteen when i died and came here, and have been here but a mere two years... I wonder how much older then me Kasahara and Igarashi are? They both appear my age but so does miss Kotetsu, and she's been teaching for a hundred years...

Naomi was walking back to her seat. She sat down beside zetsumei. "It was an accident you were trying to help. Wait you said I reminded you of someone, who?"

Naomi Oxen wrote:

Naomi was walking back to her seat. She sat down beside zetsumei. "It was an accident you were trying to help. Wait you said I reminded you of someone, who?"

*Zetsumei tried to answer whispering quietly, as he didn't want to interrupt the other students introductions.*

"The first shinigami I ever met and became friends with. You two could have been sisters. She was with the 4th division and taught me a lot about first aid. I was never good at healing spells though. She... she's no longer in Soul Society though. She was... she was...

*Zetsumei grips the desk tightly and suddenly looks like a completely different person. He looks saddened, angry, and wild. He appears to be concentrating very hard on his desk. His grip makes a slight sound of creaking wood from the desk being gripped so hard. He shakes himself out of it, and appears to smile again at Naomi, as if nothing had happened.*

"Her name was Yuri. She was a wonderful person and my first friend. But we really shouldn't be talking during introductions, so let's catch up later ok?"

Why did I tell her all that? I spoke too much again.

Kokubunji-san was from the same district she was? How had she missed him indeed? She was visibly shocked out of her blank expression by this revelation, and wished she'd been able to speak with him more before class began and share the similarities in their time in Ryoukongai. She liked Daisuke, he was one of the more reserved - and to put it bluntly, more sane - members of her class and she found he had a calming effect on those around him. It was a noticeable relief that she'd been able to take a seat next to him rather than some of the louder or more eccentric classmates.

She gave the ex-sumo a polite nod, not wishing to further inflame the Lieutenant's wrath by carrying on a conversation in the middle of class, then turned her attention as well back to the rest of the introductions.

Rikiki moves away from the blackboard and looks over the class.

"Hello!" She chriped, "I am Rikiki Brown, and I was found in the tunnels under the Ryukongai. I was..." Her eyes unfocus and she trails off.

Zoning back in she continues happily, but on an entirely different subject. "And I tend to zone out when I'm talking about some things, so, well... yeah. that's it."

Rikiki returns to her desk.

Chiken was at first worried that he was included in the sensei's wrath, but figured that since he never did anything to worsen the situation he was better off than others. After listening very carefully to the other student's introductions, dieing to learn more about his classmates, Chiken figured he'd better go and give his introduction. He walked up front, bowing to Sensei Kotetsu on his way. Once at the front, he addressed the class,

"Greetings. I am Chiken Kazenosei. While here in Soul Society, I've never had one true home. I had just always moved from place to place, going wherever my curiosity led me. I have an interest in many things and after seeing some Kidou used by a shinigami, I really just wanted to learn it. That is my main motivation for enrolling, and I hope to learn as mush as I can." Chiken was getting flustered with his introduction and decided to cut it off there. He quickly excused himself back to his seat, mentally kicking himself for getting flustered. 'What happen? I never get flustered infront of others! Stupid, stupid, stupid!' Chiken forced himself to regain his composure when he sat down and started fumbling with his watch, not paying as much attention as before.

Igarashi had so far been able to archieve his goal in remaining serious and calm, and decided to pay a bit of attention in the introductions, especially from the people he had not really met yet, despite the Lieutenant's remark, igarashi had not met most of the people here asides from Naomi, Kasahara, Takeshi and Zetsumei, and while he did not care to make friends with everyone or anything like that, he thought it would be wise to know more about his classmates in general.

So Igarashi just sat there, looking and hearing trough each introduction, paying more attention in the way each one acted more than what they said, the next person to introduce next to him was that green haired girl he briefly talked to earlier, she looked like a bright person, was polite, and had kept a expressionless face most of the time, a centered person no doubt. After that, Satoko introduced himself, most of what he has said Igarashi had already heard it, so he did not pay particular attention to him, tough he chuckled a bit when he finished with his "I hate talking" remark. Thinking a bit more about it, that guy was quite similar to Igarashi in many regards, tough his lack of confidence in himself was dirturbing, Igarashi was still sure about his initial hunch, he was no doubt an experienced and powerful fighter, even if Satoko doubted about it himself.

After Satoko, a rather big man stood in front now, and first apologized to the Lieutenant first, that striked as a bit odd to Igarashi, especially because he did not remember seeing that man being involved in any of those incidents, still, maybe he was just being polite, something that was confirmed in his introduction, he looked to be another calm person, with an even gentler appearance than Midori, but Igarashi had learned not to trust so easily by looks, as that appearance could often hide less than gentle intentions, but Igarashi had no reasons to really suspect that man, so he shrugged the thought.

The next person was Naomi, not wanted to blush himself any further, he decided to look away a bit from the front when she spoke, her introduction was pretty standard and was relieved that she did not take that long, he still felt weird around her. And then another person passed this time, a blond boy. The way he walked towards the front of the room had been enough for Igarashi to lightly dislike him, Igarashi did not like arrogant people, and he looked like one. Things just got worse after his introduction, after it, Igarashi was sure, he really didn't like him, what he had said, and the way he had said it, it made Igarashi boil on his insides, that guy evidently thought himself better than the rest, and when he made eye contact with Igarashi, he looked coldly and almost angry at the man, Those words sounded too fake for him and made him distrust him even more, Igarashi would have to keep an eye for that man.

Igarashi calmed himself a bit when the next student came forward, it was none other than Kasahara, Igarashi had mixed feelings about her, most of their encounters so far had not been very pleasant to Igarashi, tough he was at fault at most, so he tried not to think badly about her, her introduction passed as normal to him, a bit surprised to hear her speak in a different tone than what she had used with him earlier. Next was Zetsumei, he seemed to have some grudge with his past, but otherwise he looked like a good natured man, and he had proved this before by assisting Igarashi earlier.

Next was a Black haired boy by the name of Junshirou Tenkawa, his introduction might have stiked as odd to most, or even a bit rude, but for Igarashi, it had been the most honest one so far, He did not even mind the fact that his named dislikes might have included him so far, he talked straight to the point, Igarashi liked this, and was looking foward to know more about him, he looked like an interesting person to Igarashi, and maybe a powerful ally....

Igarashi mused a bit about this before deciding to pay attention to class once again, Now a brown haired and very young looking girl was standing there, Igarashi had recognized her as the girl that has stumbled into the closet earlier, her introduction was short, and clumsy, but it told a lot about her, an hyperactive and troublemaking girl no doubt, Igarashi would no doubt want to stay away from her as much as he could. Then came a brown haired boy, Igarashi remembers a bit from him when he had knocked Naomi unconscious before, he looked high spirited, also quite honest, tough a bit more shy that Junshirou, Igarashi did not think much about him at the moment, he looked normal enough tough.

Igarashi just sat there the entire time, quiet, and observing, he had been involved in most of the mishaps of this day, he figured it was time to be an expectator for a change, and so far it suited him, he had managed to clear his mind from previous events and focus on who would be able to trust or not in the future.

Duggo was, as can probably be expected, amused by this turn of events. He barely suppressed a snicker each time one of his fellow students introduced themselves. After a time, it occurred to him that it would probably make slacking off easier if he at least pretended to go with the program, and, when a suitable pause made itself available, stepped to the front of the room.

With a flourish more suited to a player at a Renaissance Faire or a sommellier at Chez Snootee, he bowed from the waist to this new authority figure. "I cannot tell a lie", he quipped, "it was I who chopped down yon cherry tree". He stood back up and continued, "However, I can't take credit for the fire, more's the pity. That was pretty cool. Kudos to whoever pulled that one off."

Turning to the class at large, he said, "I'm Duggo. I like to go fast."

With, that he returned to his seat.

He then turned to Zetsumei and smirked, "When I asked you to tell me 'everything', I meant EVERYTHING -- like from the Big Bang onward. I sat here and watched everything you told me about."

It was getting harder by the second to control his mirth. Oh, man, this was so funny he was probably gonna fall on the floor laughing hysterically.

Smiling, the handsome young blond boy with the pale skin, breezed up to the front of the room.

"Good morning, everyone," he said politely, "My name is Anshou Mizukin, and I come here from the 78th District of Ryukongai."

A murmur spread through the class. 78th District? Did he really say the 78th? This pretty boy came here from one of the toughest, seediest, most dangerous parts of Soul Society?

Anshou nodded and closed his eyes, "I'm here because..I want to become stronger..and make a difference. For the people in my home district as well as everyone in Soul Society. I'm determined to become a Captain one day, and make life better. For everyone. Thank you."

He bowed deeply and returned to his seat.

"Well, isn't that simply lovely," came a deep, hissing voice from the doorway of the room.

Everyone turned and looked to see another person standing there, leaning on the door jamb, his arms crossed. He was clad in the white kimono of a Shinigami trainee, except his eyes were obscured by a pair of shining lenses, and a floppy red hat sat atop his head. His face was gaunt and pale; he resembled a humanoid snake... or maybe a vampire...

"I'm going to become Captain!" he mused sarcastically. "I'm going to change the world, he says," he stepped over to Anshou's desk and sneered down at him. "The world doesn't change so easily, friend. Peasants may become kings, and kings peasants, but there will always be those that are kings and those that are peasants. That's simply the nature of things."

Lieutenant Kotetsu, apparently unamused by yet another disruption, spoke up. "Excuse me, but we're in the middle of--"

"Cardinal Ximenez," he spun around to face her. He towered over her by at least a quarter meter, his outfit making him seem that much more imposing. "You'll see... I'm on that little list of yours there." He nodded toward her attendance book. "I'm... not late for class, am I?" And Ximenez smiled, a cold, insincere smile that drove fear into people's hearts.

He turned toward the class and placed his hands together in front of him. "Is this where we introduce ourselves to the class? Oh... how very quaint." He chuckled. "My name is Ximenez. Cardinal Ximenez. You don't need to know anything else about me. I'm here to gain power, and power alone. And if you get in my way, I'll kill you."

He bowed sarcastically to the class and smiled his cold grin again. "I do hope we can all be friends."

Ximenez slowly stepped to the back of the room and took a seat next to the person who seemed the most afraid of him.

The next batch of introductions were not as pleasant for Igarashi. After Chiken had introduced himself, that weird man that had cut the three off and almost caused Kasahara to fall stepped foward, Igarashi had not liked him before, arrogancy could bee seen reeking out of him, and his actions followed suit, also, he had somehow manage to make a shorter introduction than Igarashi, he did not protest however, he was not feeling like hearing much from that guy, he felt himself all full of style and flair but all Igarashi could see was a pompous jackass.

Then came another blond pretty boy, Tough he looked more solemn than arrogant, another polite student he thought, Igarashi also ignored the fact that he came from the 78th district, Igarashi did not care where one came from, all that mattered was the person was from now on, so he was not impressed by that fact, neither was he impressed by his afterwards speech, it was solemn, and soudned alturistic, but Igarashi was not one drawn by those kinds of ideals, still, despite his looks, that boy did not look as bad as the other blond, or that duggo jackass.

However, the worst so far had yet to come, just as the pretty boy returned to his seat, a voice was heard from the door. When Igarashi turned to see who it was, he was weirded out by the appearance of that man, with that much stuff in his head and just wearing the shinigami trainne outfit he looked more of a clown to Igarashi, a pale clown. Then the man came in, spouting sarcastic comments and snide remarks, Igarashi glared at him, another arrogant jackass he thought, but this one was more unnerving, his whole aura felt... odd... and made Igarashi dislike him even more.

Then, the man introduced himself, concluding with what he thought was a imposing death threat, Igarashi clenched his fist at this, it was not fear what fe felt at this guy, just anger, pure anger... he had just met him, but his whole appearance, attitude and aura were more than enough to make Igarashi's blood boil even more than with Kanue, Igarashi just closed his eyes in anger and tried to calm himself down, class had not yet started, he would not lose it again, and not because a guy like that, he was not worth it... So igarashi decided to remain in there and not make a move against that fellow, he did not even paid attention to his name.

Rikiki waved cheerfully at the new fellow. "Hello! That's an awesome hat," she said as he passed by, and took a jab at saying his name, "Zeemeekneez?"

Since returning to his seat, Junshirou had been scribbling notes in his notebook (which was almost full by now... he'd have to take out another one before the end of the day, he mused to himself) with his gaze transfixed at the front of the room. If anybody had looked at the notes, they would have seen a series of seemingly meaningless dots, lines and scribbles, but if anybody had looked at the notes and had a grasp of international maritime signal flags and thought of reversing the alphabet in order to decode it, they would have seen the following:

Naomi and Oushou talking muted. Disregard rules. Friendly.
Duggo potential danger. Hostile. Arrogant. Boredom. Manipulation target. Likes fire. "Goes fast".
Anshou Mizukin. 78th d. Noble intentions. Wants become captain. Strengths unknown.

At this, Ximenez interrupted with his speech from the doorway, and Junshirou looked interestedly at the figure. He thought it would be best if he wasn't seen writing, so he made his writing far smaller so that his hand movements wouldn't be so obvious.

"Cardinal Ximenez". Danger. Hostile. Arrogant. KY-type.

He thought for a second, then added

Inquire about holy water.

and wondered how on earth this person (if he was indeed a person) became a cardinal. He also gauged the reaction of the rest of the class, and winced visibly when Rikiki waved obliviously at the man.

Despite his inital interest, Ryouichi was becoming bored with the introductions. He was considering going into a trance again when he heard Ximenez speak up. He was slightly impressed with the snake-like man's introduction, and he applauded his ambition, but he was slightly put off by Ximenez's blunt manner. He's a fool, Ryouichi decided. True power can only be obtained through finesse. Using brute force leaves you open and vulnerable to attack. Still, this "Cardinal Ximenez" was someone to keep an eye on.

Midori instantly disliked the newcomer, almost as much as she had come to dislike Rikiki, and in less than a fraction of the time. He was brash, vile, and quite obviously lacking in respect for just about anyone. Furthermore, he was here for exactly the reason Daisuke said was dangerous - "power, and power alone; and if you get in my way, I'll kill you" - and Midori shared the sumo's sentiments.

It was off-setting, given the man's serpentine appearance and Midori's own adoration of the much-maligned reptiles, quite obvious given the elaborate tattoo on her bare left arm. In lore snakes were nearly always painted as deceptive, cunning, and abhorrently evil, and more than once Midori had been insulted or accused of something or other because of her connection to the creatures. Thusly, she quickly passed on that comparison and began to think of the man's appearance as the more accurate (at least in her mind) equivalent of the vampire. A vampire unfettered by the normal rules of day and night for their kind, she thought bitterly as he strode past her towards the back of the room.

"He's dangerous," she muttered in low tones once he had completely passed, then returned her attention to the Lieutenant, hoping things would be quickly moved on. After all that had already happened, this was an unwelcome turn of events. The last thing this class needed at this point was a power-hungry lunatic vampire.

Introductions flew by. Kasahara half-heartedly listened to them and took an effort to atleast remember their names. Oushou. Tenkawa. Brown. Kazenosei, whom she kept refering to as Chiken. Duggo. Mizukin. And then..

She kept her eyes on Ximenez since he first appeared in the door way. He interested her greatly; the man in the red hat was mocking the goals of various students who strive to better the soul society. Unlike Kasahara's usual teasing and mock insults, this student seemed to be kind of ruthless. She took his introduction to heart, noticing that her request for the students to help one another opposed his request not to have anyone hinder him. He also mentioned that he was willing to kill another student if they even tried to hinder him. The brunette took it seriously regardless of if the Cardinal meant that as dark jest.

To say the least, she greatly disliked this man. Out of all the students in class, she not only disliked him the most but she also feared him the most. Kasahara was confident, as she usually is for everything, about being able to hold her ground if she were to battle her classmates. She wasn't saying that she could beat them all individually, but rather the tough girl couldn't see herself losing to them... except him.

Ximenez, or so Kasahara thought, appeared as though he would eat her alive. Not in the literal sense of course. Being unsure of if she would be able to stand up against him lead her to fear the man with glasses.

As he sat down next to her, Kasahara tried not to look anything but confident. She didn't want to pay any attention to him; the brunette refused to look or speak to him. In fact, she disliked his presence so much that she wanted the class to be over so she could avoid being near him. Kasahara didn't let it show though. Others would just think that she was ignoring him coldly.

Duggo wrote:

He then turned to Zetsumei and smirked, "When I asked you to tell me 'everything', I meant EVERYTHING -- like from the Big Bang onward. I sat here and watched everything you told me about."

*Again, quietly as he did not wish to interrupt the rest of the students. He laughs slightly at Duggo's response. *
"Duggo, there's no possible way you could have seen what was happening in the forest from here."

That's just impossible. All anyone else could see was the smoke. The smoke was in the way... unless he can magically see through that...?"

"Anyway, if I knew the answer to everything, life wouldn't be as interesting right? Even if I did know, telling it to someone would ruin the surprise. I like life to be a little unpredictable. I know it's a simple thing to ask, but could we be friends? You seem good natured, and I like your style."

Heh, as if making friends were so easy, but maybe he'll say yes.

*Zetsumei starts thinking about the other students introductions as well.*

I think I like everyone so far alright. I just hope I can get along with them. I started off on a bad foot, and I need to do better from now on. Just because they're becoming shinigami doesn't mean they are like them.

Cardinal Ximenez wrote:

"I'm here to gain power, and power alone. And if you get in my way, I'll kill you."

Well, except maybe this guy.

*Zetsumei smiles at Cardinal friendly as if he had said something nice. However, he was thinking something else entirely.*

Heh, I don't like to get in other peoples way. However, if you want to kill me, I'd like to see you try. I'm not afraid of you. I would welcome the challenge.

Chiken was only paying half attention, when he heard the newcomer speak and introduce himself. The large red hat and shiny glasses were the first things to catch Chiken's attention, followed by his overwhelming sense of darkness. Chiken only caught the end of his words, a sarcastic remark, and thought, 'Idiot! I should've been paying attention! I could've found out more about him. He's so... interesting. To seem so dark, yet say he wants to be friends...' (He had obviously not been paying close enough attention to only hear the end remark of the newcomer and to take it seriously.) As he went for a seat, Chiken noticed how Kasahara seemed to be ignoring him. Confused at how the man said he wanted to be friends, yet she was ignoring him, Chiken shook his head and promised himself to pay more attention, especially to the newcomer.

Anshou smiled, unfazed by the newcomer's mockery.

"Yes..kings and peasants, quite true. However, it's also true that some people have loftier goals than others."

Daisuke shared Midori's misgivings about this new character. He shook his head at the pale man in the red hat. Where to even begin? The scent of vanity and foolish pride practically dripped from his person. Someone like that was probably too far gone to even attempt to reason with.

Awaking from his trance-like state, Kaito noticed the teacher had finally gotten there. It also seemed everyone was introducing themselves. He reluctantly pushed his chair out and began steadily speaking. "Hello everyone." He had said with an enthusiastic tone. "Some of you may already know me, but if you don't, I hope you will soon. My name is Rokurou Kaito, and I will be attending class with you. I'm rather looking forward to learning about and from each and everyone of you. My history is not really that important, and my intentions are truly not for you to know. But I'm open for discussion, and would like to meet you or get to know you all better." He grinned at the class, closing his eyes. As he sat back down, he couldn't help but think what it was going to be like at this academy. Staring blankly at the front of the room, he became still.

Takeshi had paid little heed to any introductions following the one he'd last listened too, and had been involved in his own little world. The then heard Cardinal Ximenez's none to subtle entrance, and was apalled and insulted by the man. He felt that overwhelming rage he had felt when Kanue had spoken down to him, had he not been practicing self restraint, Takeshi would have tested the man's claim he could kill any student. However, once the man finished, Satoko managed to come to grasp with the fact that he appeared to have been adressing the rest of the class, for his cold smile had stuck fear into Takeshi, for Satoko did not know what fear was. Takeshi merely felt and odd instance of the emotion and, not comprehending it's meaning, pushed it aside.

It was not untill Takeshi became aware that the rest of class had quited up and seemed to be murmering or lost in thought, that he realized that the man had been rather blunt, and had a dark feeling about him. However Takeshi did not dislike him, untill he reviewed what the man had said in his mind, and realized that it had been rather demeaning, and he stood to confront the man, but was interupted by Kaito who must have missed out on Cardinal's entrance. Once Kaito was seated again, Takeshi spoke to Ximenez;

"I'm curious as to how you can claim you will kill us, when you're presented in a class of our skill level, yet appear to be much more matured then the rest of your classmates, wouldn't that make you more of dunce?", Takeshi spoke calmly, and actually had a hint of curiousity in his voice. There was no malice, anger, or spite, for Satoko had no reason to feel any of those; he was simply curious. "I'm just wondering how you claim to be much stronger then us, when we're all of the same skill level?".