Soul Society
~150 Years Before Canon
Rukongai
District 78, Inuzuri
Blood.
It was all around.
I felt it on my face, my chest... all over my body.
My first thought was that I was dreaming, but then the pain hit.
I felt like my chest had been crushed underfoot, but there was no external pressure. The last thing I remembered was the truck, then nothing... but I should be dead.
Why am I not dead?
Why do I feel pain?
At this point, my eyes finally opened, and what I saw around me was carnage.
Adults and children alike were hacking away at each other. It was a free-for-all, but much, much more brutal, and at that moment, I finally felt my limbs.
Placing my hands on the floor that was filled with blood, I slowly pushed myself up until I stood on my two feet. But it was too late for rejoicing, not that I could.
A foot crashed into my side, sending me tumbling down a slope.
This could not get any worse, I thought weakly.
But then it did.
Something solid and sharp pierced through my abdomen as I reached the bottom of the slope, amplifying my pain.
The pain got too much to bear, and I passed out.
I woke up again.
I had hoped I would wake up from this nightmare, but I didn't, and now I had more or less accepted what had happened.
I had transmigrated.
To where, I didn't know.
And I hoped I wouldn't have to find out because waking up in the middle of carnage was two of three parts certainty that I had landed somewhere that was far from peaceful.
Time passed.
Hours.
Days.
Weeks.
Still nothing.
No one passed by the slope.
Not that I was expecting someone to pass by.
There was nothing in sight that would draw anyone here.
Once again, I closed my eyes.
It seemed like sleep was my only escape, temporary as it was, away from this pain that threatened to drown out my sanity.
This time, I didn't wake up in pain.
I was laid down on a rug. Even my wounds had been cleaned and bandaged.
I weakly turned around to see who it was that helped me, and then I saw her.
Resting against the doorpost was a little girl.
Against the world around her, she looked immaculate compared to the surroundings, and at first, I thought I was hallucinating.
I tried to sit up but brushed against my wounds, causing me to wince.
The sound woke her up from her sleep.
She blinked hazily for a moment before her eyes locked onto me, and they changed from drowsy to alert.
She rushed to me, speaking hurriedly.
"No, no, no. Otou-san said to stay still or your injuries would erupt again."
Why did she care so much?
That was all I could think about.
I could see the worry visible in her eyes, and it puzzled me, but I listened to her and lay back.
She left the room for a moment and came back with some rice gruel in a bowl, then sat beside me as she raised my head and placed it gently on her lap.
"Tabete."
She said it simply.
"You need your strength if you want to survive."
Two things struck me as odd.
Her care for me and the calmness with which she spoke about survival.
It was unnerving.
I ate up all of the gruel even as the taste seemed awfully pungent to me. Not like I was expecting a five-star meal here... wherever here was.
Once I had eaten my fill, she laid me back to rest and left the room again. This time, not returning, and I closed my eyes to get some rest and try to ignore the pain that I felt in my head.
As I was about to sleep, she walked into the room and sat down again at the door frame.
I felt compelled to start up a conversation, and so I did.
"What is your name?"
"Yumi... Yumi Izumi."
"Oh, okay. I am Yoshinobu Jinsei."
"Yoshinobu... Jinsei-san?"
"Yeah."
I looked at her for a moment before glancing around the room.
There was still something bothering me.
"Why did you help me?"
She looked at me but didn't answer immediately.
"You... your father, whoever he is. Why are you doing this?"
She didn't answer me, but a voice coming from behind me spoke instead.
"There is more than enough darkness in this area. A little light wouldn't do any harm, as long as we don't start acting like messiahs."
I turned around and met eyes with a man.
He was lean and looked weary, the kind of tired that seemed to have settled into his bones. His clothes were worn and patched in several places, while his dark hair was slightly unkempt. Despite his appearance, he carried himself with as much grace as surviving required, his movements slow but deliberate.
"Mm," I said, looking past him and toward the sky outside the room.
The sky above was pale and washed out, almost colourless. There were no bright clouds or clear blue skies, just a dull expanse stretching endlessly above the worn-down buildings.
The dreary outlook was something I had never been used to. After all, from the memories my aching brain had been gracious enough to let me access, even the clothes they wore... I wore... were something I had never seen in person.
So I made an assumption.
I was somewhere similar to Earth, if not the same Earth.
And how wrong I was.
Seeing me looking out, the man turned around and looked toward the sky as well before speaking.
"Out here isn't safe for you now, so get better and start learning how to survive. This here isn't a place where the weak can stay."
"Where is here?" I asked.
"This is Rukongai District 78, Inuzuri ."
Rukongai.
I remembered Rukongai.
I remembered Inuzuri.
It was where Rukia and Renji grew up.
The reason I remembered, I had no idea, when I could barely remember my name. It was as if I was only allowed to remember this place, the Bleach world, for whatever reason.
I sighed and laid down. It wasn't a sigh of relief or of tiredness, but of resignation.
I wasn't a protagonist or any of the other characters who somehow made a name for themselves, even as they were from the outer districts.
I closed my eyes, this time determined to drown out the thoughts and rest... actually rest.
Hopefully, when I woke up, I would have a direction or a motive, but for now...
Soul Society.
Seireitei.
The Gotei 13.
The words revolved around my thoughts as I dozed off.
A peaceful or violent thought, I had no idea, but I knew...
I had to survive.
Author's Note:
Hey Guys,
Khaos here,
So here it is... the first of the new age chapters.
I originally planned for 40 chapters, but even that was cutting it close 💀. Squeezing a lifetime of over 200 years into 10 chapters is gonna be hard, probably borderline insane, but hey... I'm gonna do it.
Why?
Because apparently I enjoy making things difficult for myself.
Anyway, enjoy the chapter, and PLEASE...
Powah stones! 🙏
Feed the stones to the poor author.
The author is hungry.
The author has not eaten since the last chapter.
The author may perish.
Do the right thing.
Give. Me. POWAH. STONES.
I promise I will use them responsibly.
...Probably.