The weather was unusually sour, Shuya noted, as he stepped out into the courtyard. Gray clouds covered the sky, filling the air with a level of humidity that threatened rain. The area in front of the Captain's office was otherwise pleasant and mild, with a cool atmosphere brought by an abundance of mature trees, creating a subtle gloom that fit the 2nd division well. The wind felt cool on his shoulders, and other than the faint smell of cigarettes, here he felt rather immersed in nature.

It wasn't a bad setup, to be honest. Perhaps, something to aspire to. However many centuries that would end up taking, he didn't know. He'd done well, so far, but vacancies beyond his current position were far and few between.

The young man sat down before the sliding paper door. He didn't knock - simply choosing to announced his presence. His presence had long been detected already.

He put his head down in a half bow, black bangs falling forward over his face. "Fourth Seat Kitakaze, reporting." He announced tersely, as etiquette would dictate. He would wait for a signal to enter before moving at all further.

Foul weather was all the rage these days it seemed, at least it'd seem that way to anyone who bothered to look skyward. Ika loved his office, it was one of the only benefits to the position he'd agreed to and one of the select few things he'd miss if he would ever elect to leave his position within the Gotei. Many a fight had been had with his old man about Ika's preference towards this particular location, but given the time he'd spent and smoked here it really did feel like home.

Shuya was an interesting prospect within the ranks of the Shinigami. He wasn't necessarily a prodigy by tradtional standards, but he was the next closest thing and had made his name within the Gotei pretty quickly. The question wasn't if he'd become a Vice-Captain someday, the question was when it would occur and to what squad would he be appointed. Ika liked the idea of him being appointed within the ranks of the 2nd squad, but as things currently stood it just simply wasn't in the cards barring changes.

"You can come in, I did request you after-all."

Ika was nothing if not unmoved by Shuya's presence. His shoes were firmly planted on his desk, his eyes were towards the ceiling and even as he spoke he was halfway through a rather lengthy drag on his cigarette as the smoke began to work it's way into the air in front of his face, then towards his new guest. "Heard you've been wiping out Hollows at a pretty steady rate lately, any inspiration for that action beyond duty?"

Shuya pushed open the door when prompted and stepped inside. The tobacco and tar scent of his smoke filled Shuya's nose immediately, but he was, by this point, used to it, perhaps uncomfortably so. He quickly bowed again at his Captain who seemed less-than-worried about his pleasantries and formalities. He looked his superior in the eye as he began to spoke. It was a quick question, just to start off - the fact that he'd gone after so many hollows. Shuya wasn't necessarily surprised that he picked up on that, but he was somewhat surprised that he felt the need to bring it up. Speaking honestly...

"I've been dealing with all of the Hollows that I've encountered, yes. Hopefully there's no problem in my performance." He remarked. If anything, he excelled, and he knew it, but getting that level of praise out of his Captain would warrant a greater level of efficiency still than what he could muster. "I've been continuing to work on new applications for my shikai to handle Hollows as efficiently as I can manage."

"No problem at all, just curious why you're going above and beyond your post when there seems to be very little in the way of incentive to do so. Whether it be some internalized need to push yourself or aspirations of rising through the ranks, I wouldn't be much of a Captain if I didn't at least have some grasp on your motivations and whims now would I?"

Ika's lips curled into a smile as he let his favorite flavor of cancer dance between his mouth and lungs, in an instant they'd scream for respite and prompt an exhale as he began to slowly retrieve his lower appendages from the desk in front of him, letting them slump lazily to the floor in front of him as he moved forward to make eye contact with the youngest member of his squad. "Be candid with me Shuya, if I know what you want I can better serve your pursuit of obtaining it. You're not going to have my ear at all times, but if I know what you're working towards I can work on it even when we're not talking. Do you want to be a 4th seat forever? Is the call of responsibility and obligation that strong to you? Or do you want something more akin to my position someday..?"

Shuya nodded, looking at his captain. As he posed the question, and started to adjust his position, Shuya shrugged. "Well, candidly as you say, Captain, who doesn't want to rise up the ranks? I believe that I would be better able to serve were I capable of performing the duties of a higher rank. That makes sense to you, right?"

He crossed his arms. "I'm well aware that you've got your own matters to attend to that have nothing to do with me. There's no rush, but..." He paused here, finding the right words to say, "yes, I definitely wouldn't mind being considered for promotion, should that be of interest to you."

Surely he didn't come across as begging for it here. His captain had asked him to be candid, after all.

Ika smirked and took a moment to ponder what the boy had said. It may not seem that way, what with Ika's eyes seemingly tracing the formations of smoke in the air in front of him, but this was just the best way he could manage to think. What the boy said was fair in theory, but in practice, well.. "Some people aren't as willing to shoulder the burdens of increased responsibility, and many are content with the prestige and power their particular ranks afford. Take someone like Sumoki, if he ever wanted to be a Captain he would be, but he's decided the life of a Vice-Captain suits him better. Plenty of seated members have similar positions, but they cap their careers a little earlier than he did."

Ika smiled a bit, reflecting fondly on a time in his life where he thought he'd be more like the Sumoki's of the world. That simply put, wasn't a choice he was afforded. As a Mazi the expectation was he became a Captain or died trying, and his father was never going to let that particular expectation fall to the wayside. "But, I suppose for someone your age with your motivation the answer to that question was a bit obvious. You're certainly strong enough to promote, and your credentials match or better those of others who'd been promoted by this time.. Are you set on this squad young Shuya? Or would you go anywhere so long as title followed?"

Shuya considered Ika's words. While he wasn't that familiar with the man, Sumoki Kuma wasn't a stranger to him. But even still, Kuma was a Vice Captain, which to Shuya felt like quite a lofty title still. He was far from the first to stop there, that was for sure. "I believe my duty is to serve the Gotei, not the other way around, Captain. Whichever squad fits me best is fine -- what matters is that I'm placed somewhere where I can be effective. In my opinion, since I've served in this squad for so long, it would make sense for me to continue here, but... I suppose anyone may make use of me, in combat, if they need to." He cupped his chin in thought. "Do you have an opinion on this, Captain?"

Shuya's approach to things was befitting of his role and perhaps even a higher role within the Gotei. He was introspective, honest, thoughtful as far as these conversations were concerned and seemed genuine in his hope to help the Gotei however he could. Ika was almost jealous, if he'd been able to put on appearances even close to the ones Shuya was currently mustering he might be the Captain Commander right now. "I think while everyone has a squad that best fits their skillset within the Gotei, it's safe to assume that sometimes you may need to transfer around a bit just to ascend the ladder so to speak. A lot of the availability within this squad is going to depend on whether or not Seiji transfers out. If he does, all of a sudden a promotion within squad 2 becomes more likely."

Ika took a drag off his cigarette, smiling a bit before continuing on. "If he doesn't.. shifting to something like squad 7 or 8 might help you ascend the ranks a smidge faster than you are currently, even if they're technically less adequate as far as being a fit for your particular skillset. It's a lot to consider, but I'll be sure we follow up a bit more regularly. It's the least I can do right?"

Shuya nodded. "Whatever you think is appropriate, Captain. At the end of the day, there's no rush. I'm not going anywhere." He shrugged.while it definitely could come off as him laying the loyalty on a bit thick, he did genuinely feel that way. While he certainly did want to advance, he also felt that begging for any kind of promotion would be a little tacky. He would earn his position through merit, as far as that would take him.

"You may be right that I won't be able to apply stealth principles as much in those two squads but... I reckon there's plenty of room for creativity in spite of that." Shuya smirked, his tone becoming somewhat confident and casual here. "Whatever happens, I'm sure I can find a way to ensure that my black sand is an asset."

The boys words were reassuring, and Ika made sure to take mental note of the tone of this particular conversation. Shuya was absolutely in line for a promotion at this stage, and it would probably the Gotei well to reward his overpeformance with a promotion. Sure, he was probably laying the loyalty bit on a little thick and it was likely that the way he felt was probably somewhere between what he said and how most others would feel, but the maturity was at least.. respectable. Ika smiled a bit, walking towards the door as his fingers slowly dragged it open. "I appreciate you stopping by, and I expect if you keep the current pace you're on you'll be promoted in no time. Let's touch base again soon, and we can discuss the vacancies within the Gotei and what might make sense for your ability to grow."

The suggestion by this particular gesture was obvious, Ika wanted him to leave so he had time to himself to think. "Will there be anything else?"