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We stayed still facing each other, waiting for the other to make a move. Iba still had his Zanpakutõ in its sealed form. He thinks I'm not a threat. I was still trying to find a way to handle my blades and find a balance to them. Iba waited patiently for me to figure it out.

"A bit of help would be nice here," I said to my Zanpakutõ.

"My power is yours, just ask," it responded.

"Please help me," I asked patiently.

"Okay, just relax and let your reflexes take over."

I took a deep breath and relaxed my muscles. Iba took this moment to strike.

"Never relax around your opponent, especially if they are stronger than you," Iba lectured.

My body moved without me consciously telling it to do so; I sidestepped Iba, rotated my whole body, and slung both my blades at him. He turned around just in time to block my strikes. He was visibly startled at the way I effortlessly avoided his attack. I took the opportunity to start slicing at him with both of my swords, forcing him to go on the defensive. I found the balance between hilt and blade and felt a bit more in control. I let my body move of its own accord. I backed away from Iba and resumed a stance with one blade above me pointed at him and the other placed horizontally across my body in a defensive position.

Iba took up a stance my body recognized before my mind could comprehend. He's going to use shikai.

"This is where I really shine!" Kagami yelled inside my head. An image formed in my hand as visual instructions.

I brought my swords together to form a circle in the middle and focused my reiatsu before yelling, "Launch!"

A black sphere erupted from the circle and hovered over me and Iba.

Almost instantly, Iba's reiatsu started to drop. He stared at his own blade in disbelief. I could see wisps of vapor-like energy rise from Iba and started to pool into the sphere.

I knew what to do next when I saw the swirling mass inside of the sphere. "Fire!" I yelled. A beam of white light shot from the sphere and hit Iba square in the chest. He was sent flying back into a wall and was there long enough for me to cast a spell.

"Carriage of thunder. Bridge of a spinning wheel. With light, divide this into six! Bakudõ 61, Rikujõkõrõ!" I screamed the incantation at the top of my lungs. Instantly, six lines of light buried themselves in Iba's midsection. I ran toward Iba with my swords trailing behind me. Iba broke the spell and appeared on top of the wall thirty feet away. I started swinging my swords above my head by the ropes at their hilts and launched them toward Iba at blinding speeds. Iba disappeared before either of my swords could hit him. I yanked the ropes and as the swords flew back toward me, I caught them, going back to my stance.

"You are really strong aren't you?" I asked Kagami in my mind.

"You have no idea," She replied, "but the strength is as much yours as it is mine. There's more to it than this." She told me a little bit more, in detail, of what those powers entailed.

"Let's see if we can finish it," I said, "but let's not hurt him."

"Agreed," She said with finality.

I took control of my body back and started tying the ropes on the ends of the swords together. Iba looked at me with curiosity as I finished the knot and tested its strength. I raised the ropes above my head and started twirling them like the blades of a helicopter. The swords started lifting up and eventually became level with the rope. Iba was still looking at me in shock. I pulled my body back and then launched the spinning blades at Iba. They hit him before he had time to move out of the way. He tried to slash through the ropes, but it wouldn't cut; the rope entangled him. He lost his balance and fell forward. When he hit the ground, the blades embedded themselves on either side of his neck in such a way that if he were to move he would be decapitated. He looked at me in shock.

"Damn!" was all Iba said. "I guess that means you win. Now get over here and untie me please."

I was in shock; I just took down a lieutenant without getting a scratch on me. I walked over to Iba and lifted the blades out of the ground, then I found the knot and untied it. Iba's bonds fell away and I gave him some space.

He wasn't mad, but he was looking over at the black sphere still floating around. "What the hell is that?" he asked.

"That would be one of Heiwa-tekina kagami's abilities," I said. "She launches a black sphere which can absorb enemy reiatsu and either fire it back toward the enemy as a high intensity beam or fill me with it and allow me to briefly mimic your abilities," I said as I dismissed the sphere. "Later, I should be able to summon more than one, but that is my limit at this time."

Iba let out a low whistle. "That is certainly an ability that will come in handy; but for the record, the next time we fight I won't go easy on you like I did this time." Iba finished the statement with a small warning in his voice.

Captain Komamura walked up to us and placed a hand on my shoulder. "Well done, that was an amazing performance, especially seeing as that was your first time. How did you do that anyway?"

"I didn't," I said simply, "It was Heiwa-tekina kagami. She fought through me. I let her take control of my body," I explained at the curious looks that Komamura and Iba were giving me.

I was about to ask what was next when my legs buckled; I would have hit the ground if Captain Komamura had not caught me. I blacked out as I heard Komamura say that we were done for a little while.

*****************************CHANGE OF VIEW**********************************

Komamura had just laid the boy down in his bed and let his hand trail over his cheek, when Iba cleared his throat from the doorway. Komamura turned around quickly and looked to see if Iba had seen what had just occurred; he had. Komamura signaled for them to go out into the room and talk.

Komamura turned around and gave Hiroshi one more look before he turned to be confronted by Iba.

"Would you let me know what THAT was about?" Iba asked his voice devoid of accusation.

"You have to be a bit more specific, Tetsuzaemon," Komamura said, a small pit of anxiety forming in his stomach.

"I mean what is with that little love scene in there," Iba said, still without accusation.

"I have no idea what you mean, Tetsuzaemon," Komamura said, trying to stall for time.

"I don't care about it, but I am worried about you to be honest," Iba said with a hint of sorrow in his voice. "After the incident with Tosen happened, you have been distant. You have been acting weird ever since the incident three years ago. I don't mean to pry. but I would like to know what is going on inside your head."

Komamura was silent.

"Your secret is safe with me; no one else will find out I swear that to you," Iba said still trying to figure out what was going on with his captain.

"There is no chance of you letting this go until I give you an answer is there?" Komamura said wearily.

"None at all." Iba smiled, happy to be through with the overly mushy crap.

"Fine, let's sit down and I will tell you," Komamura said as he sat down.

Iba followed suit as Komamura started to explain.

"It started three years ago when I went on patrol with Goro," Komamura started.