[Private] An Unexpected Surprise

Seiji let out a sigh as he stared at the two unruly members of his squad that had been causing trouble earlier, beaten and exhausted before him, their Zanpakuto drawn as it ought to be for members of the Fifth... Or, most of them. Seiji hadn't drawn his blade more than halfway out of it's sheath at any point during the fight. He was roughing them up, beating a lesson into them. It was how he learned, it was how everyone who had ever studied or worked under Okami learned. These two had been causing trouble around the Gotei, sexual harassment charges being brought against them. Seiji's tired gaze scanned the two before bursting forward with a rush of speed, tackling them into the building the were fighting beside - the 4th division headquarters.

At long last, Shiori was finally able to return to her post within the 4th Division. Thanks to a few competent seated officers, there hadn't been a back up in work flow, so things were mostly manageable upon her return. However, she was restricted to light duty workloads, so much of her work still fell to others. While it bothered a busy body like Shiori to no end, she did what she could to distract herself.

For instance, at this moment, Shiori at beneath a tree at the center of the 4th Division's headquarters. A cup of her favorite tea in hand since doctors had the gall to tell her to lay off smoking until she's healed, she watched a few birds hop from branch to branch. In all honesty, today wasn't a bad day. So long as things stayed quiet, that is.

Loud crashing noises as well as screams began to rise up from the 4th Division headquarters as Seiji smashed the two Shinigami into the building by breaking the front door with their bodies. Though the two wayward members of the 5th had tried to mount some kind of defense, it wasn't nearly enough against their vice-captain's calm and brutal fighting style. They were swiftly driven back, as members of the 4th division still hard at work in the office began letting out angry and frustrated cries that probably included something like 'Damn meatheads!' 'Take your dick measuring outside, fuckers!' and the like. In fact, Seiji happened to think that last one was a rather good idea. And so, channeling into his connection to the wind, he fired a vortex blast of wind right into the two shaken Shinigami as what could only appear to them as a storm personified calmly and quietly blasted them through the window with a loud crash of shattering glass. The two slammed into the dirt, about ten feet from Shiori. With a graceful leap, Seiji landed onto the grass and raised a hand to his mouth and yawned. Only then did he blink, looking around at the destruction his discipline had caused. "'Sup, Shiori."

"Nope."

The commotion coming from inside headquarters wasn't exactly normal. Very few people could create that kind of ruckas so casually, and those people certainly knew better than to charge through the front door like that. She'd specifically told this specific someone that there was a back entrance if he needed to reach her in the gardens. Or that her office window was usually open during business hours and he could just jump in through there if he absolutely needed to.

"Nuh uh. Nope" Surely he wasn't this forgetful, right? Oh who was she fooling? As long as she'd known Seiji, he'd not been the best listener, or for that matter, the best at really trying to remember what he'd been told. Cracking bones and joins from limp bodies of delinquents rolling across the lawn told her that she was right in one of those two ways. Sure enough, the bastard landed gracefully in front of her, yawning like he hadn't just destroyed half of the 4th. She'd begun to tie up her hair in a sloppy ponytail in preparation for the draft that would follow his arrival. With some effort, she dredged up a smile as he greeted her.

"Hello, Seiji. To what do I owe the honor of this visit? Oh and did you follow the blue arrows? Those mark the path of least destruction."

Seiji stared at his old friend and former schoolmate, Shiori. She certainly seemed to be recovering well, he'd heard she got wrecked a bit ago, though by whom he wasn't sure. Taking a step over to one of the wayward and beaten Shinigami from his squad, Seiji gave the man a swift kick in the side. The man groaned, confirming he was still alive. That was good, Okami had told him he shouldn't need to exert himself to do this. Seiji blinked as he realized Shiori had asked him a question, and he turned to answer, "...What arrows?"

He blinked absentmindedly then looked back to the swathe of destruction he had carved in his wake. "...Oh. My bad." His eyes narrowed slightly in thought before he awkwardly turned to look back at Shiori, pulling out a hip flask (he had picked up many habits from his uncle, both good and bad) and took a deep swig before holding it out to the woman. "...Want some?"

It had taken time to master the art of suppressing reiatsu, especially for a once rabid girl like Shiori. It had taken even more training to master the art of suppressing persistent eye twitches that came with having to deal with Seiji on his careless days. Never the less, she'd mastered it within a specific level of stress. For now she was fine. She narrowed her eyes at him as he had apparently missed the arrows. She'd have to make them bigger again.

Without much care for the contents of the flask, Shiori took it and took a swig. Usual stuff, so she couldn't complain. The burn reminded her that she was alive. She forces herself into a more relaxed position, offering a somewhat relaxed smile. "So, regardless of the mess you've undoubtedly made, there's usually a reason for you throw unseated officers into my courtyard. What's the deal with these poor saps, hmm?"

Seiji swung his blade, stopping the edge just on the skin of one of the battered officers, the incredibly sharp edge of his blade breaking the skin enough to draw blood. "Apologize. Now." The man groaned, slowly shifting into a prostrated position as his companion did the same, even with their beaten forms. The two began profusely apologizing for sexual harassment that they had been accused of. Whether or not it was actually true didn't seem to have been something Seiji concerned himself. Seemingly satisfied, the Vice-Captain sheathed his blade and flopped down next to Shiori as the two ran away. Or, hobbled, more like.

"...Huh. I think that's more than I did last time..." Seiji remarked quietly while leaning against the tree. His eyes narrowed slowly as he gazed out into the distance, his body gaining a sort of stillness that people would find enticing if they hadn't known him for more than 5 seconds.

"...Heh. It's always weird, I thinking about what you're like now..."

Apologies at the end of a sword were usually less than heartfelt, though between Seiji's sword and Shiori's ridged ice bitch personality, they didn't have much of a choice. This particular offence was one that was a particular sticking point for Shiori as well. This usually lead to her suppressing thoughts of grinding their faces in the mud with her heels, though in this case it was outside her jurisdiction. No involuntary facials for them, lucky bastards. Instead, Shiori glared at them as they retreated in shame/defeat, wishing she still had a position in the 6th division. "You two are barely worth the ink expended on your processing paperwork. Begone before I recoup my losses in blood."

Shiori only snapped out of her loathing state when Seiji plopped down next to her and started talking. Something something weird, something something what you're like now. While it wasn't the death glare she'd used on the two lowlifes that had retreated in haste, she turned her gaze on him. "What I'm like now? Seiji, may I ask exactly what you mean by that? Surely I wasn't that bad in my youth. Stories are greatly exaggerated, as are your memories."

"I dunno..." Seiji drawled lazily, his head tilting back so he could stare at the leaves of the tree they sat beneath. The lush greenery rustled gently as a weak breeze blew past the two of them, dancing with the plant life around them. "You were a bit wild back then... I mean, even during the Incident..." Seiji turned to look at Shiori, meeting her sharp gaze without flinching. Granted, he wasn't exactly being fair to her, now was he? Back then, he often exclaimed with as much passion as he could bother to muster that he would never, ever do any work. Because doing work was for losers. And now here he was, making a social call after meting out discipline on his subordinates. What would his past self say, if he knew this was how he'd act in the future? A mystery, surely.

"Now you're like... Proper and stuff. It's definitely different..." Seiji raised a hand to his mouth and let out a small yawn before lazily smacking his lips. Some things, at least, never changed.

Ah yes, it was only a matter of time until one of them brought up The Incident. She couldn't help but smile a bit, even if her reputation required her to be annoyed at the mention of The Incident. "Oh my, of course you'd bring that up. As if I'd ever live that nonsense down with people like you around. I can't help but wonder if Sensei Ito still has the scars from... well, you know." She looked up at the sky above through tree branches blowing in the wind. A lot had changed since then, in both of them. Her zanpakuto would say that too much had changed about her. "And you're one to talk, Mr. Productive. Performed a task aaaand you've stopped by for a social call? Usually you only have the battery for one or the other. If I remember correctly, you couldn't be bothered to do homework by choice. OH, and something something nepotism, so you'd be fine."

A breeze blew across the yard, carrying with it leaves and a couple of fliers that had been ripped from the division walls as Seiji tore through at high speed. Shiori's gaze followed some of the leaves as they drifted away, though her gaze seemed to be somewhat distant. She spoke, though her voice was quiet. "Seiji, odd question, but I need you to answer truthfully. Looking at how I am and how I was, have... have I changed too much?"

"Heh." Seiji grinned at Shiori's dig at his rather privileged position. Reaching down, Seiji picked a long blade of grass from the ground and stuck it between his lips. The piece of plant matter drooped limply between his lips, occasionally waving as Seiji made farting noises through his lips. His generally carefree attitude was on full display, even as Shiori asked an incredibly heavy. Hoo boy, that was a doozy. Seiji crossed his arms and closed his eyes while folding his legs into a lotus position. Seiji entered the Big Think pose, humming for a moment before speaking.

"Hmmm... I mean, have you gone mad?l...? Have you become so broken that, like... Who you are at your very core has utterly changed...?" Seiji paused for dramatic effect before continuing, not really stopping long enough for Shiori to give any sort of input from her end. "You've always been like... A fire. You burn hot, and you burn continuously... That's just who you are. Just because you... Insulate others from your fire with... Politeness and niceties, doesn't change that you're the same spitfire girl I knew in school," Seiji leaned forward and aimed a flick at Shiori's forehead as he continued, "...Idiot."

Uh oh, extreme problem solving pose. Had Shiori's question been that out of place? Maybe it was just very inappropriate, or asked at a very bad time? Hell, he'd even stopped making fart noises. usually once he started it was hard to get him to stop. External sweating and internal screaming ensued as she waited for him to speak. She lifted her feet from the ground, curling up with her legs folded and pulled up close to her chest as his next words left her feeling somewhat hollow, if not confused. "I... Don't think so. I mean... I don't kno-"

The next oddly insightful words to come from the man's mouth set her into a quiet state, partially because she'd been cut off. Many would have agreed with him about her old self. Her mother, friends from the Rukongai, old classmates and teachers, all of them would have likely agreed that Shiori had always had an intensity to her. Even now, her subordinates lower down the ladder would comment that she was a bit of a hardass for the Vice Captain of a division like the 4th. But maybe he'd told her something that Suijingiri had been trying to tell her for years. It was just that his words carried more weight and less contempt of perceived weakness. Perhaps she had indeed been shielding others from her fire, intentionally or not. But maybe after so long she was starting to snuff it out, suffocate the fire in her heart.
She opened her mouth to speak, but was met with a flick to the forehead. Disoriented just long enough to be left blinking and stuttering, she buried her face in her knees for a moment while she took a few deep breaths. She was not and idiot, and she was definitely not blushing. Still... "I... Seiji, thank you. Can uh... Can I ask a favor of you?"