Ruins of the Past

Deep in the sands of the Hueco Mundo Desert, a low level Arrancar would be chipping away at his research when he sensed Shinigami Reiatsu radiating from Las Noches, and he started making his way towards his home, the ruins of an ancient structure long since left to rot. As a Numeros, he wasn't going to be a big factor, however he could at least do something. The Arrancar wouldn't hide his signature at all, in fact he was flaring it to try and attract prey as he went into the ruin he called his home. Every intricate passage was mapped out inside his head, and they were lined with potential traps that Cirdon had put up.

Now, he waited in the depths of his lab, waiting for any wayward Shinigami to split off from their group.

It had started off as a normal day for Yato, he was meandering about the office getting a few stacks of paperwork finished and ready to be sent on to the captain for final approval. That is, until a messenger arrived bearing the seal of the Captain Commander. Knowing better than to refuse a summons from the leader of the Gotei, he would gather his things and rush to the head office. Arriving there with several other shinigami of varying ranks in the room and they were debriefed on the situation. This is what led him to treading the accursed sands of Hueco Mundo.

His task was rather simple, he was to take the eastern side of the desert and see if he could locate the Kido corps captain. The moment he arrived in the Desert, he released his Shikai, knowing that any hollows he found there, he would need to take seriously. "Shine, Tengetsu!" With that, his blade would be released, ready for action. The thought of taking on a powerful hollow made him excited, his Reiatsu flaring wildly, though being so strong that the weaker hollows fled as he drew near. He wasn't one known to be a very powerful sensor, but he did get a funny feeling coming from some ruins nearby.

Approaching, he could feel there was something strong in there, something waiting for him. Flaring his Reiatsu in kind to the pulse he felt from within the stone walls. As he entered, he was barely able to dodge a spike trap that flung itself from the ceiling when he accidentally pulled on a cord across the doorway. "How unimaginative. Hadō #57, Daichi Tenyō." Raising his hands, several gravel sized pieces of rubble would rise and follow him as he walked through the veritable maze of hallways. He would release them forwards as he walked, setting off most of the traps before he even got to them. The ones he didn't set off were rather simple to avoid. It was obvious that his opponent wanted him to arrive.

The ruins of his old laboratory were still here, complete with old specimen bottles that lined the shelves of the room that Yato eventually found himself in. The hollow before him was lean, silent, and the gaze he gave him was cold. Of course, he had sensed the flaring wild Reiatsu that this Shinigami gave off, and he had already released his Shikai. That was certainly troublesome, and it was likely that this Shinigami had come to look for something, as was the same for the rest of his party. "You are very far away from your comrades. To have come this far and into my home....I would ask if you would at least remove your shoes, but the time for formalities has probably passed, at least for you." Cirdon spoke in a low, monotone voice that indicated apathy to whatever Yato would say, and the Arrancar would slowly draw his Zanpakuto.

"Tell me, do you think what you're looking for is here?" Cirdon didn't look strong, but licks of purple Reiatsu flared for a moment, indicating he could match Yato's output for the time being. His blue eyes were analyzing the Shinigami, focusing on the sword that he wielded. It was growing stronger each minute, but Cirdon was confident in his survival capabilities, should he not be able to go for the win.

Upon entering into the chamber, Yato would notice the tell-tale signs of an old laboratory. It was odd, he had heard of Hollows that had adapted and become more human-like in their demeanors, but he had never encountered such specimens in person. But, there, in front of him was a rather tired looking man with black hair. The only signs of him being a hollow were his putrid feeling Reiatsu and the fragment of a mask in the shape of goggles over his eyes. The man spoke, sounding almost bored or apathetic to the situation, accusing Yato of disrespect. Nodding, yato would smirk, his Reiatsu continuing to rise. He had already scanned the room, he couldn't feel any other presences, particularly any that felt like the captain of the Kido Corps. Taking off his sandles, he would place them neatly by the door, he wasn't a disrespectful person after all, "I didn't realize this was your home. I apologize. I have never met a hollow that behaves in such a manner akin to being a social being. Most of them i've met are far more primal. But, given that you look mostly human and have what appears to be a Zanpakuto, I'll presume you are in the rare few that arent as monsterous." Giving his words a moment to sink in, he would then speak again. \

"I'm not sure if you have what I am looking for, but if you do, I will ask you once to hand her over and I will leave peacefully. If you refuse, you will find no mercy from me, only pain and blood." with his final words he would let his Reiatsu loose, along with a healthy dose of killing intent, to show that he was dead serious. His power would only increase the longer he was here, and the Reiatsu dense environment of Hueco Mundo only made him feel more alive!

Rather than make any sort of aggressive move towards the Shinigami, the Hollow lowered his guard just a smidge and nodded as the Shinigami took off his shoes and placed them properly beside him. For this, he was grateful that the Shinigami had class. "Not to be insulting, but I would not be the one guarding someone as strong as what the Primera has stolen. I would also not be stupid in going to look for them. They have an extremely protective nature as far as whatever they consider 'theirs'. As for being monstrous, it's the natural struggle between the two factions that drives that rhetoric. The Heroic Gotei versus the Soul-Eating Espada. Do you get what I'm saying?"

In a way, he'd given Yato the information he sook, but also probably denied a person who was itching for a fight. This was why he kept up his guard, watching and waiting for a good opportunity to counterattack whatever may have come his way. "Should you still seek to shed blood, I would warn you that I'm very stubborn." He wondered if he would win a war of attrition against a blade that kept gathering power into itself. At least he could survive and be a nuisance.

Listening to his opponent, he would nod. He had been given the information he needed, but also realized that he wouldn't be able to help in that endeavor. He knew that some of the stronger Shinigami had gone towards the center of the desert and that is where he would assume the strongest hollows were. Meaning that if he left here now, there was nothing saying that the hollow across from him wouldn't follow him and then give himself and his comrades another enemy to face. Letting out a slight laugh, he would give the Arrancar a genuine grin. "I do not view the world in such black and white terms, hero and villain. I don't even view you as my enemy. I think of you as more of an opponent or even a rival. Someone against whom I can test my mettle and improve, and possibly even allow you to grow stronger as well so that the process can repeat the next time we face. And since you gave me the answers I seek, I will not attempt to kill you this day. Although, I would ask a favor..."

Getting into a ready stance Yato would grin, "Please fight me! Neither of us will be any use in the main battle, given that you'll follow me and add to the opposing side or vice versa. So, we might as well keep eachother occupied here and get a couple of rounds in, right? Our bosses do want us in tip top shape and what better training than against our natural opponent?!" He prepared his body for the coming bout, hoping that his new frien.. acquaintance accepted. His Reiatsu was going wild as he anticipated a good fight from someone with such a strong feeling coming from them.

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Cirdon didn't care to fight, in fact, it was quite the opposite. He was a scientist first, a fighter and a Numeros second. As such he audibly sighed when faced with his eager opponent, and closed his eyes as he lowered his sword. "Should you want to fight, I shall fight you to the best of my abilities. However, I will warn you that I have no taste for fighting, and as such I don't think I will present much of a challenge. Nonetheless....Scour, Zamuro." Reiatsu exploded from the Arrancar, forming dark grey wings that sprouted from his back, white bone armor that covered his body, a bird skull replaced his goggles from earlier, and a ring of feathers was placed around his neck. His feet were now similar to a large bird's, with talons that probably would be avoided if need be.

Zanpakuto now gone, what was left was rather confusing. The hollow didn't seem to have any weapons, and didn't make any sort of move for a weapon. "I hope this battle will be to your satisfaction. It certainly won't be to mine." Cirdon said this with an extremely dull tone, almost to the point where it was self-pity, which was partly true. However, in his released form it would not be good to underestimate the Arrancar, borderline pacifist or not.

It was clear that while his opponent was strong, he didn't relish battle as much as Yato did. Which did give him a ping of guilt for coercing his newfound acquaintance into a fight he wouldn't enjoy, but it was quickly overcome by the excitement of fighting a Hollow unlike any he had ever battled before. He didn't like forcing people into fighting but sometimes that was the only way that he was able to get a fight. Most shinigami didn't like to fight him due to his battle lust, but he would take the opportunity appreciatively. As he was already released to his Shikai, he wouldn't release again just yet. Feeling his reiatsu surging at the feel of his opponent's might flaring forth got him even more ready to battle.

He would offer a respectful bow before settling into his fighting stance, "I appreciate the opportunity to cross blades with you. I will not hold back and I ask that you do the same." Cracking his neck, he would dash forwards to attempt a diagonal slash against his opponent's chest. Of course he wasn't aiming to kill his opponent in this fight, but he wanted a good battle nonetheless. Should his attack succeed, he would attempt to leap back to gain distance in case of a counter attack, or just to see what his opponent would do next.

The Shinigami lept at him, and combat began with a simple diagonal slash that came at him quick. Rather than blocking the blade head on, the Arrancar would step to the side and into close range of the Shinigami's range. The holes in their hands would be filled with an ash-like substance that quickly condensed and morphed into a hook that caught and diverted the Shinigami's blade away from him. At the same time, a long knife formed in Cirdon's other hand, the dark sheen attempting to cut through the Shinigami's midsection. However, something would go very wrong with the Arrancar's first move.

He had underestimated the power of the blow, and the hook construct shattered, causing the blade of the Shinigami to bite through the Arrancar's forearm, severing the arm just below the elbow. Once this occurred, the Arrancar still managed to follow through with the knife slash, though he stepped past the Shinigami and simply stared at his arm. It didn't bleed, but looked as if Yato had cut through a burnt log. Regardless of whether or not Cirdon's attack was effective, he was clearly outmatched in power. "That's unfortunate."

Upon seeing his blow not only deal a rather deep wound to his opponent, but also he had shattered what defenses his opponent put up with very little effort on his part. His opponent's counter blade was aimed to pierce his midsection, but he would move his hand to attempt to stop it. Should he be successful, he would hold the blade in his hand, droplets of blood falling to the floor. It was clear that this was not only an unfair fight, but a one sided bout. The last thing he wanted was for his opponent to not get any enjoyment, he had thought that once they got going the Hollow would get into it, but not so much.

"I apologize, sometimes my enjoyment of battle can get the rest of me. It is clear to me now that while you might be a powerful adversary in your own way, if you lack the will to fight, then this will be a short battle. I refuse to engage with someone that is clearly weaker than I am, I despise bullies, I will not become one. Again, i deeply apologize for my actions. I can offer you a healing salve to treat your wound with if you need it. But, my strength is needed elsewhere, so I will be leaving. Please do not follow me, or I will be forced to incapacitate you." With that, he would turn and attempt to leave the room after listening to whatever the Arrancar had to say, provided it didn't require his own response in return.

Upon seeing his opponent cease his attack once he was wounded, he rambled on about it being a one-sided affair. The Arrancar nodded in agreement, but let the injured arm simply degrade to ash on the ground, which began moving of its own accord back towards Cirdon. However, once the Shinigami had his back turned, the ash being quickly leapt at the opportunity to stab him in the back, bringing the dagger formed previously and another blade that formed out of the severed stump of an arm up to do so.

He doubted the attack would do any meaningful damage, and he was sure to get countered, but a Shinigami of this level that could get stronger over time couldn't be left alone. "I'm sorry, Shinigami, I'm afraid I can't allow you to do that."

Feeling a stinging pain in his back he would stumble forwards slightly, realizing after only a moment that he was stabbed in the back after showing a degree of mercy for his opponent. It actually saddened him that now he would be forced to take more drastic measures against someone who normally couldn't give him a challenge at all. Perhaps he should show this person just how far he was outmatched. Letting out a somewhat pained sigh, he would turn back to look at his opponent, "So, you have chosen pain and blood. Bankai." With that final word, Tengetsu would change from the black flaming sword into its Kami Tengetsu form. The flames would burn brighter and brighter until they simply seemed to burn out revealing a black blade with glowing trim along its edges. Yato's power skyrocketed even more and his Reiatsu permeated the air around him. It would completely cover up the area they were in, even seeping out into the halls and to the outside of the building. Looking at the Hollow who had betrayed his trust and thrown away his attempt at mercy, he would let his Reiatsu explode outwards with the force of a Cero. "Impulse Catastrophe!"

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