Enemy of the State [Open]

The beads hung heavy on him as though his deceased predecessors' hands were gripping his shoulders in their pallid embrace. It chafed. Ichirō held his head in his hand, blinking away exhaustion. Papers were strewn over his desk, evidence of obstruction, eyewitness testimony of sabotage and 'affidavits of untrustworthiness' which had lately become enough to lock away most who were accused.

The 6th no longer had the resources to properly investigate every single allegation, yet orders had come down from above that any suspected traitors were to be imprisoned immediately. The risks of further assassinations and conspiracies were too great. With their cells overflowing, they were forced to dispose of those with even a shred of evidence against them.

With the crisis on Earth, every good sword was needed. Yet here they were, killing soldiers and potential recruits. The orders seemed tangled: every captain was at each other's throats, Central 46 was ripping itself apart and unable to fulfill their most basics duties.

Filibusters ground each meeting to a halt, discussions inevitably devolved into partisan tribalism and character attacks. The populists claimed the nobles were hastening the collapse of Soul Society by sending more souls to Earth via execution . The nobility accused them in turn of undermining order by freeing vipers and turncoats. Most days it seemed they were both at his throat - mad he had executed too many, mad he hadn't executed enough.



The accused was kneeling in front of the block, her head placed directly underneath the arc of the halberd above. It was a cheap imitation of the Sōkyoku, but not every two-bit thief in Seireitei was worthy of a grand execution. Besides, the sheer volume of saboteurs and traitors had necessitated the setup of dozens of execution centers across the city. He'd barely been the head of the family and a seated officer for a week, yet had already overseen the executions of a veritable deluge of petty criminals and enemies-of-state.

The woman stared up at him, neck writhing as she attempted to proclaim her innocence once again. He merely gazed back down at her with tired eyes, well assured by the 3rd seats of both the 2nd and 8th Divisions that their records held she was guilty of the crime. It no longer mattered to him: he hadn't bothered to verify much after the... He'd lost count.

The blade fell at lightning speed, obliterating what had once been the Shinigami. The crowd cheered, eager to see supposed justice done. At this point, the illusion that the problem was being dealt with was just as important as finding the actual criminals.

Name: Ichirō Takenaka | Black Hair/Eyes | Head of a Noble Family/Seated Officer (6th Div.) | Details aren't really important yet, can elaborate in other posts or Discord
 
Last edited:
Reiatsu
130
Strength
50
Defense
40
Speed
20
Spirit
20
The beads hung heavy on him as though his deceased predecessors' hands were gripping his shoulders in their pallid embrace. It chafed. Ichirō held his head in his hand, blinking away exhaustion. Papers were strewn over his desk, evidence of obstruction, eyewitness testimony of sabotage and 'affidavits of untrustworthiness' which had lately become enough to lock away most who were accused.

The 6th no longer had the resources to properly investigate every single allegation, yet orders had come down from above that any suspected traitors were to be imprisoned immediately. The risks of further assassinations and conspiracies were too great. With their cells overflowing, they were forced to dispose of those with even a shred of evidence against them.

With the crisis on Earth, every good sword was needed. Yet here they were, killing soldiers and potential recruits. The orders seemed tangled: every captain was at each other's throats, Central 46 was ripping itself apart and unable to fulfill their most basics duties.

Filibusters ground each meeting to a halt, discussions inevitably devolved into partisan tribalism and character attacks. The populists claimed the nobles were hastening the collapse of Soul Society by sending more souls to Earth via execution . The nobility accused them in turn of undermining order by freeing vipers and turncoats. Most days it seemed they were both at his throat - mad he had executed too many, mad he hadn't executed enough.



The accused was kneeling in front of the block, her head placed directly underneath the arc of the halberd above. It was a cheap imitation of the Sōkyoku, but not every two-bit thief in Seireitei was worthy of a grand execution. Besides, the sheer volume of saboteurs and traitors had necessitated the setup of dozens of execution centers across the city. He'd barely been the head of the family and a seated officer for a week, yet had already overseen the executions of a veritable deluge of petty criminals and enemies-of-state.

The woman stared up at him, neck writhing as she attempted to proclaim her innocence once again. He merely gazed back down at her with tired eyes, well assured by the 3rd seats of both the 2nd and 8th Divisions that their records held she was guilty of the crime. It no longer mattered to him: he hadn't bothered to verify much after the... He'd lost count.

The blade fell at lightning speed, obliterating what had once been the Shinigami. The crowd cheered, eager to see supposed justice done. At this point, the illusion that the problem was being dealt with was just as important as finding the actual criminals.

Name: Ichirō Takenaka | Black Hair/Eyes | Head of a Noble Family/Seated Officer (6th Div.) | Details aren't really important yet, can elaborate in other posts or Discord

OOC: If I may interject? I'm supposedly Fifth Seat of the Sixth Division, anti-populist (if not out of any particular love for nobles) and thus likely somebody who would either know you or be a direct superior. TLDR is that I'm a tall Japanese guy with Light Brown Hair/Hazel Eyes. Relaxed, value honor and justice but use those as a method of suppressing (and sometimes, justifying) my own rampant, unwanted bloodlust. Full bio with my whole story, stats, etc, is here.
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Takahiro raised his eyebrows as the halberd fell atop the accused's neck. The cut was clean; a squirt of blood fired from the miscreant's headless stump, and that was all. It was an execution that could not have troubled him less, frankly, much like any of the multiple he witnessed weekly. Yet still, he bit into his lip perhaps a tad too deeply as he allowed himself a moment to think on the loss of one whom, in a life without the trappings of politics, he could have grown to call a comrade.

Fought bitterly to the end, that one. Shame. Honor in death is nice, but tenacity makes for a good Shinigami. She'd have done better to just be sent on prolonged patrol in the world of the living, I'm sure.

His lips curved into a soft smile.

Oh please, I needn't be so sentimental. There's a job to do, after all.

At that, Takahiro briskly carried himself up the old wooden stairs leading to the execution stand, accepting a salute from a pair of subordinates standing guard at its base as he did so. Upon reaching the top, he was greeted with the sound of a cheering crowd, murder-happy at the sight of yet another criminal's demise. Capital punishment always did have a morbid appeal. Taka allowed himself a glance at the decapitated woman's corpse before drawing his gaze up to meet the eyes of a young man wearing the badge of a seated officer on the right arm of his shihakusho. A moment's look was enough to tell him the black-haired man was tired, newly formed bags resting under his eyes.

I recognize him, but I don't know his name; he must be the new appointee. I'll introduce myself, I suppose.

"Hello. I suppose you're the newest officer to attain a seat at the Sixth? I'm Hidekawa Takahiro, Fifth Seat. A pleasure to meet you."

Under different circumstances, Takahiro would have extended his hand, but considering the crowd in need of a brief address, instead, he offered a pair of short bows, one to his subordinate, and one to the headless corpse at his feet. Then, he turned his attention to the crowd. Raising a hand that called for silence, within thirty seconds, the screams of elation had boiled down to a bubbling murmur. Taking a deep breath, Takahiro summoned all the projection he could muster as he spoke clearly and boldly unto the small sea of cheering bodies in front of him.

"People of the Seireitei! Today marks another victory for us in the Thirteen Court Guard Squads who seek to preserve the delicate balance our society has maintained for thousands of years! To those who seek to corrupt our venerable institution and sow chaos in the Seireitei, let this be a message. Your kind is not tolerated, and your treasonous ways have no place on these great streets! To the faithful people of the Seireitei; your Gotei Thirteen will always strive to protect you. Where there is injustice, we will come down like a mighty hammer!"

After a moment's pause, the cheers erupted louder than they had been before. With that, Takahiro bowed towards the crowd, and turned away, walking briskly down the steps and gesturing for the fresh officer to follow him. For a moment, he contemplated the words he had just spoken.

How nice it is to see the people's faith in the Gotei remain strong.

Then, while nought had a look at his face, the soft smile from before returned.

Anything to keep the masses happy.
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