Because her physical body had been stripped away in a dizzying haze, her spiritual body had only just finished taking shape, leaving no time to form even the simplest of garments.
Right now, aside from the faint protective film formed by Asuka's Spiritual Pressure, she was practically completely naked.
The direct skin-to-skin contact with the opposite sex caused the usually unflappable Insect Hashira's brain to instantly go blank for a brief moment.
She instinctively tried to struggle, wanting to reach out and push the young man away.
However, she quickly realized that her hands were completely limp and devoid of strength. It felt like trying to walk through deep water.
The surrounding [Restrictive Current] was constantly compressing her spiritual body.
This was the Dangai, a space formed by several overlapping dimensions of space and time, completely surrounded by a raging torrent of time.
It was the rift between life and death, the gap between the World of the Living and the Soul Society.
The so-called Restrictive Current was a special airflow that permeated the Dangai. It could impede the movement of souls, creating an entangling and binding effect on any spirit attempting to cross through.
But Asuka's situation was far too unique. The Dangai he was crossing had already interfered with the power of other dimensions, causing the Restrictive Current to run wild due to his very presence. It was incredibly dangerous.
His calm eyes looked straight at her without revealing any inappropriate expressions; there was not even the slightest ripple in his gaze.
In his eyes, the current Shinobu Kocho was simply a fragile soul that he needed to protect with everything he had.
"Don't move," Asuka said, looking around warily, his voice exceptionally steady. "Your spiritual body hasn't stabilized yet. If you don't hold on tight to me, you'll disappear."
"But, this..." Shinobu muttered, her pretty face flushing so red it looked as if it might bleed.
She never imagined that her first trial after death would be such an embarrassing situation.
The mixture of shame and indignation made her temporarily forget the fact that she was already dead.
Asuka seemed to notice something as well.
He looked down and finally realized Shinobu's peculiar predicament.
He didn't think it was a big deal. In his logic, staying alive was always the most important thing.
Still, he reached out and tried to drape his Spiritual Pressure over her.
With Asuka's help, her body quickly stabilized. A plain white kimono made of Reishi, completely devoid of any patterns, wove itself into shape over Shinobu's figure.
Although it was the simplest of styles, with even the obi looking a bit rough, it was enough to make the thoroughly mortified girl feel as though she had been granted a royal pardon.
"Make do with this for now," Asuka said, releasing his embrace but keeping a firm grip on her hand to prevent her from being swept away by the dark purple quicksand around them. "This is the Dangai. It's not a place for conversation."
"...I'm sorry, Asuka. I was too agitated just now."
"It's fine. I understand."
Shinobu tightly clutched the collar of the plain white kimono. Feeling the residual warmth of Asuka's Spiritual Pressure lingering on it, her face burned crimson.
She took a deep breath, feigning composure as she examined her current state.
"What is... this?"
Shinobu looked down, her fingertips brushing against a slender chain with a metallic texture.
The chain was about the thickness of a thumb, extending directly from the center of her chest.
Without the obstruction of a physical body, the chain looked exceptionally glaring.
It seemed deeply rooted in the very depths of her soul, while the other end was broken off in the void, emitting faint clinking sounds with her movements.
"Asuka, there's a chain on my chest... Is this some sort of mark of death?" she asked, raising her head, her gaze full of inquiry.
Asuka, walking ahead, did not stop. He glanced back and fell silent for a moment before answering, "It's called the Chain of Fate."
In truth, he didn't actually know; it was Nugata answering for him in his mind.
'When a person's soul leaves their physical body, one end embeds itself into the chest of the soul, while the other end remains connected to the flesh.'
'Once it breaks, that person's soul can no longer return to their body. That is what we call—death.'
'If a deceased soul does not receive a Soul Burial ritual, and the chain corrodes away completely or is forcibly torn off... then that soul will undergo a terrifying mutation, turning into a monster known as a [Hollow].'
Hearing Nugata's explanation, Asuka couldn't help but feel that Shinobu's situation was rather precarious.
At that moment, a cold snort echoed from the depths of his soul, as if someone were saying—
'I told you so.'
"The Chain of Fate..." Shinobu murmured, gently stroking the cold iron links, a faint trace of bewilderment in her eyes. "I thought that once a person died, they would be completely free. I didn't expect to still be bound by something."
"I'm not too clear on the exact mechanics either," Asuka said, shaking his head honestly.
His knowledge of the Soul Society was limited to his vague memories of struggling to survive on the fringes of the Rukongai.
As for things like spiritual power and Zanpakuto, he mostly relied on instinct, using them haphazardly.
"Not even you know? Then it seems our current situation isn't much easier than facing Muzan."
A wry smile touched the corners of her lips as she tried to lighten the mood. "You always like taking girls to dangerous places, Asuka. That kind of personality isn't endearing at all, you know."
Asuka didn't reply. His expression suddenly turned extremely grave.
Having detached from his physical body, his five senses were sharper than ever before.
In the silent Dangai, he heard a sound.
It was a heavy, ancient... massive noise accompanied by a mechanical roar.
It sounded like some sort of gigantic steamroller speeding down this narrow spatial tunnel.
'Anyway, run!'
'That thing is incredibly fast!'
Nugata's voice exploded in his mind.
"Run!"
Asuka didn't even have time to explain another word. He violently grabbed Shinobu's wrist, continuously swinging his Zanpakuto to forcibly carve a path through the viscous Restrictive Current!
"Eh? What's wrong?!"
Before Shinobu could react, she was pulled by his immense strength, nearly flying off the ground.
But a second later, she didn't need Asuka to explain; she understood exactly what was happening.
Behind them, the originally grayish space was forcibly torn apart by an intense light!
It was a behemoth that defied accurate description.
It looked like a giant train made of countless massive wooden stakes and gears, yet it possessed bizarre, biological-looking appendages.
Wherever it passed, the Restrictive Current—which was enough to make ordinary spirits struggle to take a single step—was instantly displaced, immediately blasting open a vacuum zone.
It had no eyes and no consciousness. Its sole purpose was to eradicate any impurities that entered the Dangai.
And right now, Asuka and Shinobu were the most conspicuous impurities of all.
"What is that... monster?" Shinobu asked, looking back in astonishment.
She had never seen an existence that so thoroughly defied common sense. The aura radiating from the entity wasn't the evil, murderous intent of a demon, but rather an unshakable, absolute order.
"Don't look back!" Asuka shouted in a low voice.
'I told you, you're asking for trouble,' the black-haired youth's voice echoed once more. 'The Dangai you are crossing is already special, equivalent to a unique existence formed by several overlapping Dangai... How dare you be so arrogant!'
Normally, the opening of a Boundary Gate would certainly not cause the kind of anomalies seen with Asuka.
But the problem was that he wasn't normal.
Under those nearly stagnant laws of time, it felt as though he were fighting against the gravity of the entire space. Every step he took consumed a massive amount of stamina.
Meanwhile, the Kototsu was like a heavy truck speeding down a highway. It was simply too fast.
As the distance closed, the suffocating crushing sensation caused Shinobu's spiritual body to show signs of dissipating.
The newly formed white kimono fluttered wildly in the fierce wind, looking as if it would shatter at any moment.
"Asuka, let me go."
Shinobu's voice sounded incredibly faint amidst the roaring, yet it was very firm. "You won't be able to escape if you carry me! I've already died once; I'm not afraid of disappearing..."
"Shut up!"
Asuka didn't look back, continuing his mad dash, his face written with sheer stubbornness.
"I went through so much trouble to bring you out! Don't give up so easily!"
He abruptly skidded to a halt and turned around.
Under Shinobu's horrified gaze, he actually drew his sword against the Kototsu that was bearing down on them like a collapsing mountain!
"Roar! Nugata!"
A red and black slash tore through the Restrictive Current, ripping through the air!
This power, which had once made even the Demon King tremble, crashed against the Kototsu's grayish-brown shell, yet it only delayed it for a few seconds. It couldn't stop its advance at all!
But those brief few seconds had bought Asuka a chance at survival.
Using the recoil of the slash, he forcibly changed direction within the Restrictive Current.
Ahead of them, an exit faintly radiating white light was now vaguely visible.
"Go—!"
With all his might, he hurled Shinobu's entire body toward that exit.
"Asuka!!"
Shinobu let out a cry of alarm.
She reached out, her fingertips brushing across Asuka's palm. However, due to the massive air currents generated by the Kototsu, she could only watch helplessly as the young man's figure was sucked into a distorted purple vortex.
The Kototsu's colossal body ground past Asuka's side, triggering a violent tremor.
In that instant, the timeline of the Dangai warped.
Asuka felt as if his soul had been thrown into a giant blender.
Excruciating pain radiated from every inch of his spiritual body, and his consciousness began to rapidly fade.
In his hazy state, he saw that white figure pass through the light.
As for himself, he was completely ejected from the Dangai by a violent, irresistible centrifugal force.
That was the last muttering he heard from Nugata before his consciousness sank into darkness.
When Asuka felt the cold again, he found himself lying on a freezing concrete floor.
This kind of cold was different from the snowy days in Hayama.
It carried a faint industrial scent, tinged with the smell of rubber and exhaust fumes.
He struggled to prop himself up, his entire body exhausted beyond measure.
Raising his head, what appeared before his eyes was a world he had never imagined.
Massive reinforced concrete buildings rose from the ground like a forest, and colorful neon signs flashed with blinding light in the night.
On the flat, wide black roads, countless cars with glowing headlights sped past. The air was filled with a noisy, bustling rhythm known as modernity.
He looked at the utility pole next to him, which had a somewhat old advertisement flyer pasted on it.
Beneath the complex characters, he barely managed to recognize a few kanji.
—Naruki City.