Death was supposed to be the end.
Instead, it felt like being dumped into a gutter.
Katsu Joro woke up gasping, lungs aching for air that no longer held any warmth. Dirt coated his tongue. Cold bit at his fingers. His body — thin, frail, and foreign — trembled with every shallow breath.
He was alive.
Sort of.
Where the hell am I?
He sat up slowly, trying to ignore the way his bones groaned like rusted metal. All around him was dust. Shattered homes, leaning fences, cracked stone paths. Filthy spirits milled about, too hollow-eyed to care about the stranger on the ground.
This wasn't Earth. And it sure as hell wasn't Heaven.
Then the voice hit him.
[SYSTEM INITIALIZING…]Welcome, Katsu Joro. You have entered the Soul Society.Activating Soul Forging Protocol.You are currently in South Rukongai, District 78 – Inuzuri.Main Quest: Enroll in Shin'ō Academy (Yearly Enrollment Begins in 360 Days)
Daily Quests Unlocked. Weekly Quest Available.Opening Stat Page…
A blue window blinked to life in front of his face, slightly transparent.
[SOUL FORGING SYSTEM – STATUS SCREEN]Name: Katsu JoroRace: Soul (Human Origin)Spiritual Power: FReiryoku Control: FZanjutsu: FHakuda: FHohō: FKidō: FStat Points: 0
Katsu stared, unblinking.
A system. In Soul Society.
He tilted his head back and laughed. It was sharp, humorless — the kind you let out when you were standing in a grave and someone handed you a shovel.
"I got Isekai'd into Bleach."
He didn't remember dying. Didn't remember much of anything, really — just the vague sense of collapse, of something cold pulling him away from his old world.
Still, he knew this place. He'd seen it on a screen, in panels. He knew how dangerous it was — how many monsters wore black robes and smiled as they killed.
And he? He was a nobody in District 78. No family. No name worth remembering. No strength.
Yet.
[New Daily Quests Received]Soul FoundationMeditate (1 hour) — Reward: +1 Stat PointPhysical Training (Push-ups x200) — Reward: +1 Stat PointSprint (3 km) — Reward: +1 Stat PointReiryoku Manipulation Practice — Reward: +1 Stat PointDaily Completion Bonus: +2 Stat Points
[Weekly Quest: Blade's Beginning]Complete All Daily Quests for 7 DaysReward: +10 Stat Points + 1 System Skill Unlock(Penalty: None. But weaklings die forgotten.)
Katsu's breath evened out.
So that was it. He had a year. One year to claw his way up from the gutter and make it into the Shin'ō Academy. And judging by the status screen, he was starting at the bottom of the food chain.
He looked around again — at the dead eyes of the souls around him, at the broken homes and ash-coated streets. No one was coming to save him.
If he wanted power, he'd have to earn it. Bleed for it.
"I can work with this."
He stood — legs weak, arms trembling — and stumbled toward the alley behind a half-collapsed building. Quiet. Secluded. Safer than out in the open. He knelt in the dirt and closed his eyes.
Step one: meditate. Let's see what soul power feels like.
The ground beneath him was cold. The air smelled of rot. But inside, something stirred.
He focused.
Minutes passed. His breath steadied.
[Quest Complete: Meditation]+1 Stat Point[Reiryoku Detected – Awakening Process Beginning]
He opened his eyes. The world seemed… sharper. Just slightly. He could feel the weight of the air, the spiritual residue in the stones.
"Not bad."
His stomach growled, but he ignored it. Hunger was secondary. Strength came first.
Push-ups next.
He hit the ground, hands shaking with effort. One. Two. Ten. Fifty. Every rep sent fire up his arms. By seventy, his body screamed. By a hundred and fifty, he was coughing blood.
But he kept going.
[Daily Quest Progress: 2/4]