~Journey to Rukongai

The Captain entered the Rukongai by foot, opposed to a carriage which would typically transport high
ranking shinigami there on business. Alas he wasn’t a noble, and did not intend to receive any special
treatment simply because of his position. A small crowd began to form along the pathway; it was as
though they had never seen a Shinigami let alone a Captain.

Saito wasn’t use to all of the attention; he lowered his eyes with a sigh. He noticed a young man standing
below the crowd, there was something in the boy’s eyes that reminded Saito so much of himself. Part of
his reason for being there was to be reminded of the promise he once made to change things from the top,
also to keep In touch with his roots.

Nearly arriving at his old district, a faint feeling of nostalgia took its toll on him.He gazed around only to find
an old neighborhood he no longer recognized, what once was dirt streets shrouded by huts where the lower
class lived, now replaced with bars and weapon shops.
He sighed heavily entering one of the bars, all eyes turned towards him, they examined his attire, made
immediately aware of his stature only by the white robe draped over his right arm.
He sat at the edge of the long wooden table accompanied by men slumped forward over
their drinks.
“What are ya havin’ captain?” said the bar tender with a frown on his face.“Sake” Saito replied, he ducked
beneath the counter to fill the small cup, then slid It from his end of the table, down towards Saito.
He lifted the cup to his mouth taking asmall whiff of it, he then sat the cup down and slid it back to the bar tender.
He calmly uttered"This time without poison please" suddenly the majority of the bars Inhabitance stood up behind him
“What’s a big time shinigami got business down here?” exclaimed one of the men.“We don’t like your scent captain,
run along back to your precious Seireitei if ya know what’s good for ya” Satio remained seated“No sake then?”
He turned around, causing some of the men to flinch back“It's not in my interest to start a bar fight” he frowned “not with weaklings, now stand Aside! "

"Same old Rukongai scum huh?" a voice said loudly from the doorway. In the doorway stood a man of average hieght, wearing an odd shinigami uniform. "You are all so willing to ask for a helping hand and beg for your lives whenever a hollow shows up, but then again when we come by for a drink......you want to start a fight. It just might be me, but it seems like somebody is pretty unappreciative." The Shinigami stated as he stood in the doorway, arms crossed with a crocked smile.

"Waka you son of a......" A voice rang out before quickly being cut off by the young shinigami. "Ohh Shut it Hattori, or do you want me to put you through another wall?" He said, as the crowd became quiet once more. The Shinigami made his way over to where the captain sit, grabbing an empty seat. "The name's Waka, Leutenant of division 8." Waka said holding out his hand to shake the captain's. "Don't worry about these guys, they talk a big game, but put a few through a wall and they're like beaten dogs."

Saito smiled at the young shinigami “Yeah, I was hoping to avoid that this time” he shook the lieutenant’s hand.
He Turned back facing the counter “So your Ferri-chan’s Vice eh, I don’t think I’ve had the pleasure, I’m Saito
Captain of the 7th squad” he abruptly banged his fist once on the table “Barkeep! Make that two sake’s,
easy on the poison, if I ever catch any of you trying to provoke an officer again I’ll personally hall you down
to the detention area…Try to poison me again and I’ll kill you without hesitation” he usually wouldn’t allow such antics
to get him riled up even the slightest bit, but there was something about this being his old neighborhood that
bothered him the most. “Wakka was it, I grew up around here, but you seem to be more familiar with the
districts most recent activity…when were these establishments built over the lower classes living quarters,
and are you aware of where it's old inhabitance are living now?” as he spoke the now more pleasant bartender
placed their drinks before them.

Waka watched as the barkeep brought two glasses and a sake bottle over to the two. This time he glared at the two, as he sat down the drinks. Wakka stuck his tounge out at the barkeep, daring him to try something stupid. He was used to this kind of treatment from the locals, however he would always meet these challanges head on. "I grew up here as well, reason being the attitudes here make me sic. The people of these districts only complain, and cause trouble. They never try to better themselves and blame everyone else for their problems. I became a Shinigami so that I could make something of myself. But these people never will. They'll rot having accomplished nothing." Waka said drinking his cup down, as if it was a shot glass. Waka. "I don't really know when things changed so much. It just happens some times you know? Rival gangs start wars, take territory, and people move. The districts change so much, and so often now, that I can't keep track." Waka stated refiling his cup.

Saito promptly swallowed down a full cup, refilling it only moments after. He chuckled a bit, Waka was a lot like himself
in more ways than one, but he might have been wrong about something “That’s true for some maybe, but what about
the others, the ones who want nothing more but to better this place somehow, those who decide to learn from there
experience in these slums and make something of themselves, perhaps set some sort of example, just because your
born poor doesn’t mean you can’t become something else… Like you, and me for example.”
It was then the loud thump of a hand slammed against the sound of hard timber.

“That's it! I’ve heard enough from the two of you i don't care if youre shinigami, all together we can beat the two of you”
Saito raised his arm out towards them “Then again…Maybe your right Waka-kun”
His spiritual pressure beat down on the lot of them stunning their movements for the most part, Saito appeared beside
the man who had made the outburst, and chopped the rear of his neck rendering him unconscious, it wasn't until his body
hit the ground, did the crowd realize Saito had even moved “You want to become stronger, strong enough to defeat us…
then enroll in the shinigami academy, let that be your motivation” said the captain picking up the
large bottle of sake and heading for the exit, the large group of angry men then charged at him while his back was turned
“Waka-kun would you like to finish this, then we could go to a place with a tad less noise”

Without hesitation Waka gladly stepped in front of Saito's back, blocking the crowd from him. However unlike Saito, Waka felt it nessesary to add insult to injury via only fighting on the same level as the other men. Waka at the time was holding the empty sake bottle by the neck, as if to use as a blunt object. The first of the gang to attack, lept forward punching towards Waka. However Waka sidestepped the man, letting him fall forwards out the door. He then lept into the crowd before all chaos ensued. It would be hard to make out what exactly was going on, as the mass group of citizens were now in a massive barfight. Soon waka emerged outside holding the broken bottle. Behind him was a group of men stacked on top of one another, writhing in pain.

As the two made their way down the strip, Saito filled the cups, and handed Waka his portion.
He sighed glaring up at the moon “It’s full tonight… A Shinigami should know only his duty
and nothing more… if anything were to distract you from this fact, it would make you a liability”

He lowered his head, smothering his face in the palm of his hand " I believe it to be so true,
that I live my life by that proverb…though I have a dream…to become a member of central 46 chambers,
it’s the only way I’ll ever make a difference here, or anywhere else” they soon came across a hefty
tree just on he outskirts of the district, Saito sat at it’s root and folded his legs together
“Tell me Waka-kun, do you too have a dream?” He brought the cup to his mouth taking small swigs

Waka laughed as he sat down in front of Saito, taking a quick drink before he spoke. "Only one thing, to make a name for myself. I was born under the worst conditions here, and even in the academy people considered me to be Rukongai trash. I never even wanted to feel accepted, I just wanted to know that I was on the same level as everyone else. Not because of my name, but because of who I am, and what I can do." Waka said looking up at the stars. He hadn't had time to gaze into the sky recently, what with all the work he had to do as a leutenant. Waka didn't have the prestige and the power that the other leutenants had, most still veiwed him as the same Rukongai trash that he had been before. His rank changed, however his status remained the same. "doesn't matter though, one day they will respect me.....weather they like it or not" Waka said with a huge grin.

Saito consumed a bit more, but when he glanced over at Waka after he hadspoken, his eye’s grew, as though
he could see the young mans future, a captains garment draped over his back. He laughed, it was the first time
he had laughed in a long time “You will make that name for yourself Waka-kun, but beware…with it will come
great prestige as well as responsibility.” The sake had finally began taking it’s toll on Saito his eyes lowered in
a hazy manner “But you know what? Us guys from the Rukongai had to work the hardest just to get into the
academy, you’ve already accomplished a lot, with a simple referral a nobles kid can grasp a seated position
without a hitch” and then for almost no reason at all he laughed again, he knew there was more to say on the matter,
but only he forgot how to say it. "I'm afraid you've caught me at a rather drunken state" he slowly stood up, that was when a
rush from the alcohol went straight to his head, he felt lighter. It was then a hell butterfly spawned into the area, he nodded, he immediately understood a captains meeting was a foot, he glanced back at waka
"well, it seems as though our time together has been interrupted for now" he smiled waving back at the lieutenant as he drew near the commanders quarters
[EXIT]

Waka nodded and smiled, as he too was called to the meeting. "See you there i guess" Waka said before flash stepping towards the commander's chambers. He began to wonder what the commander was wanting calling a meeting so soon after being appointed.