An Unwarranted Ascension

"There's no way..."

Shigaisen stares wide-eyed at an open window to her office. There, upon a sill behind her desk, a Hell Butterfly rests. As its message is relayed into her head in an all-too-familiar voice, a moderate chill treads down her body from head to toe. Slowly, her hands curl into loose fists; her palms begin to feel a bit clammy.

'Shungi's retiring...? Why? Something drastic must've changed with him...and now Ika Mazi's summoning me. It's most likely concerning Shungi, but still...' Kyura ponders as she rises from her seat. Of all the Shinigami, and certainly of all the Captains, it's her own leader that she finds the most difficult to read. The subsequent uncertainty feels partially unfounded; even the Captain-Commander ultimately worked at the behest of the nobles and governing bodies above them.

But what if that Captain-Commander is a major figure of the former? In conjunction with his black-sheep nature, what are Ika Mazi's hopes for his position and for the Seireitei at large?

Shiga shakes her head. 'There's no use in thinking about those things right now. It's not like I can do much about it, even if there is something wrong in there. I'm still...trying to figure myself out.'

She sighs and pulls a notepad over, ripping off a page and jotting down a message for any of her compatriots that may come to her office:

"I'll be right back. I've just been summoned to a meeting w/ the Captain. Refer to the 4th Seat for anything you may need at the moment.

-Shigaisen"

Kyura sets the pen down, takes a deep breath and closes her eyes. With a small spike in Reiatsu output, she Shunpos the relatively short distance to the grandiose office of the Captain-Commander. It takes a mere second for her to re-appear before Ika's presence--more out of a sense of obligation, she phases into existence with her body already lowered to one knee and her head bowed.

"...I've received your message, Captain. What did you want to speak about?"

Well crazier things had certainly happened in Ika’s run as Captain Commander. Shungi had largely been attached at the hip to Ika’s father Doku throughout his career. Frankly, Ika was more than a little convinced he was only sticking around to see the transition of power to it’s fullest fruition, and judging by the letter he had just received he was almost certainly correct. A small frown made it’s way across Ika’s face as he gave his stamped approval to Shungi’s retirement, and he immediately decided he knew of a worthy successor. In fact, said successor was currently occupying the squads barracks, so this was more than easy enough to get out of the way.

He sent a letter out to 3rd seat Kyura Shigaisen, and then opted to light a cigarette while awaiting her arrival to his office. In truth, he’d had plans for her to eventually replace Shungi in this role, but this had expedited those plans to a rather drastic degree. A small sigh parted Ika’s lips, and as he heard the sound of footsteps making their way down the hall towards his door he would sit up, doing his best to make himself at the very least semi-presentable. “Come in Kyura, I believe it’s time we spoke one on one about the current situation, and the nature of your new promotion.”

For a couple seconds, Shigaisen doesn't respond--yet, if Ika could get one good glance at her, he'd likely understand why. On the other side of the door, still kneeled down, Kyura's wide-eyed shock is affixed to the crack between the door and the floor. Until her fingers clench against her knee, her entire body feels a bit lighter than normal.

'He's already selected me...?'

The return of feeling in her fingers rapidly spreads to the rest of her body, and she slowly rises to her feet. She exhales; gradually, the disbelief drains away at the same rate as the resetting of her expression.

'I shouldn't be surprised. Regardless of context, a promotion in this manner would likely always be inevitable. Still, I haven't been a Third Seat for very long, and I've only gone on one major expedition...looks like I'll have even more work on my plate.'

Shiga gazes forward, defying the nature of her final words with a level, serious expression. A similar energy circulates throughout her as she reaches forward and pulls the doors wide open. Standing tall, she steps through into the office, her eyes shifting to Ika's form ahead.

Through the torrent of Reiatsu that tugs at her balance even in its suppressed state, she treads without pause. One foot, then the other; right foot, then the left. The pattern continues until she arrives at the desk and a pair of seats, of which she comes to rest in the one on the right. Exhaling once more, she keeps her hands atop each other in her lap.

'At the very least, I can learn more about you. Could some of the other Shinigami be correct after all...?'

She blinks.

"I'd like to know why Shungi's decided to retire to basic patrol-work--if he gave you a reason, Captain. I find it hard to believe he would've done this on a whim."