Training Session [Closed]

Sakura's appartment wasn't big. It was small and quaint. Now she shared it with someone fascinating. When she woke up, she slipped out of bed, got dressed, and cooked as quietly as she could. Once she had his plate ready, she placed it under a glass container to keep warm and ate while writing up a note. "Decided to train a little early today. If you need me, I'll be at the Ninth Division's training grounds." Once she was done eating, she left the note on top of his food and left with her Zanpakutō on her hip. The sun was barely rising when she decided to leave, but it would be up soon. It was a cool day, but that would change later. Sakura remembered today was going to get hot.

Sakura was wearing a more modern exercise outfit. The pants were tight, stretchy, and had two light pink lines down the sides while the rest was black. She wore black well-made running shoes and a white tank top. The training grounds were empty like she thought they would be. It was embarrassing having to train with others. She started off with stretching and made sure to limber up. After she went on for a ten minute run, did sit-ups, pull-ups, push-ups, and was finally ready to get to the more fun training. Well, the training she had the most difficult time with. She was a fit woman, so she barely worked up a sweat, but the moment she went to her Zanpakutō, she sat down and stared at it.

Sakura jumped and squeaked in terror when he suddenly appeared. She stared at him with a held breath and laughed it out with a hand over her heart. "You scared the heck out of me!" she said as she stood up and dusted the dirt of her pants. "Average...?" Sakura repeated and gulped, "Run longer... Weight lifting." She nodded and looked around the 'track' she created in her mind. "I'm glad you enjoyed it." she said with a nervous smile. She looked down to her Zanpakutō and clenched her fist around it a bit tighter. "I... have a-a piece... of m-my shikai, but not much else." Sakura looked around the arena, hoping no one else was going to show up. So far, it was just the two of them.

"And to answer your question... Y-Y-Yes, I know we agreed to you training me, but... F-Frankly, you make me pretty nervous..." she explained and looked around for a moment, "Do you even realize who you are? You were a Captain Commander, okay? I-I-I... I am just some weak... little... girl.. in comparison to you. I-I-I can't keep up with you a-and I can bet that you're going to get annoyed at me. I suck at this. I really do suck at it. I'm trying to get better, but... I'm slow at it and..." she shook her head with her mouth open, trying to say something and then just sighed, "You'll give up on me."

Sakura took a deep breath and stared at him for a moment. "Your training sounds like hell." she stated with another sigh and a hand on her hip, "But the normal stuff isn't helping me, so yes. If you're really up for it, I'd love it if you'd train me." His first orders were to repeat everything she just did, so she dropped to the floor and began her stretches again. She intensified them a bit more, bent a little farther, and held herself in odd positions a little longer, but after she was done, she immediately went for the run. She kept the run up for fifteen minutes, adding on that extra five minutes he told her to.

Sakura went from there and doubled her push-ups and her sit-ups, but tripled her pull-ups. By the time she was done, she had pushed herself more than she normally did. She stopped and dropped from the bar, leaning over with her hands on her knees while trying to catch her breath. Once she caught her breath, she walked over to him and took in one huge breath. "Okay... So, what now?" Luckily Sakura was pretty fit, so this wasn't too hard to do. Right now, her concentration went to not letting him down.

Sakura... tilted... her... head... "Just... talk to her? Yes, I can do that." Sakura sat down and placed her Zanpakutō over her knees. She closed her eyes and began the meditation. Within moments, she was in her spirit world. "Your new master is strange." "Yeah... I'm supposed to talk to you." "About what?" "I don't know. Do you?" "I have no idea, but I'm glad he's pushing you. Your routine has been repetitive and has gotten you nowhere." "I didn't know what else I was supposed to do..." "Ask for help? You never ask anyone for help, but always expect to be there for everyone else. It's a two way street and isn't that what friends are for?" "I don't have any friends!" "And whose fault is that?" "...Mine."

"I'm not meaning to be too hard on you, but you've stagnated. If you wish to advance, follow your master's lead." "Why do you keep calling him my master?" "Is he not? He is your teacher, your guide... You follow his orders and I've noticed you've cooked for him and allowed him to stay in your home." "That's what you're supposed to do for friends." "But didn't you just say you have none?" Sakura's eyes snapped open as she left her inner world. She stared down at her Zanpakutō for a moment and then up to Ryuunosuke. "I did it..." she said kind of quietly and stood up, Zanpakutō in hand, "I talked to him."

"Well... Um. He said that I... finally have a friend..." Sakura kept her eyes to the ground and a strong grip on her Zanpakutō when she said that. She doubted that he thought of her as a friend, so it was weird for her to say that. Still, Sakura was hoping it was true. She'd do just about anything for him to be one. "The weakest? Zanjutsu and Hohō... No, wait... I'm worse at Hakuda and Kidō, actually. I'm really bad at all of it, remember?" she explained with an embarrassed blush, barely looking at him now, "I'd like to get better at Zanjutsu since my Zanpakutō's first piece's weapon is a sword."

"Um... Before we get started again, do you mind me asking you a few questions?" Sakura brought up. If he said no, she'd stay silent, but if she was allowed to, she'd ask the following questions and give him time to answer each one before asking the next. "How long will you be willing to train me? What is your strongest and weakest skill when it comes to the Zakensoki? Before you were Captain Commander, which squad did you lead? How long did it take you to get strong enough to lead the Gotei?" And when the final question came, she'd look away, "How can I become your friend?"

He didn't get it, which means he didn't think of her as one. That's fine, she didn't really either. It was her Zanpakutō spirit that had put that idea in her head. "How stupid..." she thought. She asked her questions and added the final one that seemed to stump him for a bit because she hoped it was still possible. "So... anywhere from one week... to five years?" she thought and sighed. She looked disappointed for a moment and then quickly accepted the fact. There was nothing she could do about it, so making a big deal over it was useless. There was only one thing she could do and that was train.

For the next couple of hours, Sakura pushed herself more than she should have. After those few hours were up and she got her first break, she realized that pushing herself when he was already pushing her was only doubling that. It was painful. Her stomach was in knots and she was having a hard time breathing. Her blood pressure was almost too high and her pulse was way up there. Then they went through until the sun was going down and when he said they were finally done, Sakura fell to her knees and then all the way to the floor with heavy breathing. "It... hurts... so bad." she mumbled. "Can we go home now?" Sakura laid there with her eyes closed, hoping that he would say yes.

"Give... me... a moment... please." she said through breaths after he asked his questions. She took a minute or two to completely catch her breath. She'd rather not keep talking from her position on the ground, so when she was ready, Sakura pushed herself up to all fours. She then put one foot under her and forced herself to her feet. She stumbled, caught herself, and stumbled again. She fell over onto a bench and just sat there for a moment before looking to him. She could breathe now, but her body was not in a good place. "You definitely are a strict master and this is harder training than I ever experienced before, but I don't think I can give much else now... Only one day? I'll give you an opinion a week from now." Sakura took a deep breath as a pain shot through her right side, "It's the only way I get a friend, right? Then y-yeah... I have to continue. Don't have a choice... Even if it hurts."

Sakura stood up and picked up her Zanpakutō. She winced with every movement she made. "L-Let's go home. I need to get dinner on before it gets too late." Sakura said, but wasn't sure if standing was smart. It was her job though, so she'd do it. She began walking back home. Her body was in so much pain that she clenched her jaw to make sure she didn't whine with every step. She didn't ask for help, though she would accept if it was given. "One last question. I like having someone around to talk to. It's even better that you're not a chatter box, but don't seem to mind some casual conversation, so if I asked you to stick around, would you? I mean stick around w-with me... in the apartment."

"Eep!" a short squeak came from the little young lady as she was lifted from her feet. She couldn't help but blush over the way he was carrying her. "This has never happened before..." she thought as they walked along. So he would stick around if she asked? Now, to get the courage to ask something like that. Even though it was implied, she doubted that either of them would take that obvious hint. "It's the most expensive thing in my apartment for that reason." Sakura said with a shy smile. Sakura relaxed a bit more in his arms. Keeping her body tense was causing her more pain than she liked.

If this were an anime, Sakura would have gotten a bloody nose. So he was going to ride her into the ground? Hehe, fun. She stared at him while he told her all of that. Once he finished, she fell silent for a few moments. "I've always been useless and weak... Mom always told me so. If your own Mom says it, it has to be true. I tried feeling otherwise, but everyone and everything else kept proving me wrong and her right. I don't know how else to think anymore." she explained, staring at her fingers as she fiddled with them, "You don't like people who give up, but... I gave up a long time ago. I killed myself when I was human. With Mom telling me those things and me believing in heaven and hell, I thought my suffering would end, but it didn't... I just came here to feel it more. I hate being this way..."

The two of them finally walked up to her apartment and made their way inside. Sakura would ask to be sat down on her bed or at the dining table. When he asked about the positive things said, Sakura just kept shaking her head. "I don't remember." All she could remember was her Mom and how cruel the one person that she wanted to love her was. Was she really that blind to everyone else around her? Sakura couldn't look at him, but she found herself clenching his shihakusho with one hand. She trembled while trying to hold back her tears, but they kept coming out. "I just want to be worth something... I want to be needed." Sakura kept her head lowered so her bangs would block the sad face she was making. Her tone showed she was crying, but she didn't want him looking at her face. "I just want to be happy for once... You're my last chance." she said as she wiped her tears and looked to him with a clean face, "If someone with your skill and methods can't get me to where I want to go, then I doubt anyone in either world can... I can't mess this up. I won't do it. It's the only way."