Within Muken, the darkness was boundless.
Sora attempted to walk toward the depths of the darkness, but he couldn't get any closer.
He had anticipated this.
Those who are without sin cannot reach the dark depths of Muken.
"I've snuck into Muken now, so can I still be considered a sinless person..." Sora scratched his cheek.
He didn't actually need to enter the depths of Muken. To meet a prisoner confined here, he only needed to call their name.
"Saitō Furōfushi."
Following his call, Sora heard the sound of something dragging on the ground, coming from the depths of the darkness.
A human figure slowly walked out of the gloom.
The person who appeared was a petite, girl with purple hair, standing only about one and a half meters tall.
Her long purple hair was tied into twin tails with black ribbons. A black eyepatch covered her left eye, and she wore a simple white kimono.
A pair of fair, small bare feet stepped on the ground. Her ankles were bound by a chain and shackle.
The sound Sora had just heard was the chain dragging across the floor.
Her neck, wrists, and waist were also bound by chains and shackles.
"How rare, for someone to come looking for me in 'Muken'. Could it be that the Tsunayashiro clan has been annihilated, and the Seireitei has finally remembered to let me out?" The purple-haired girl's right eye narrowed slightly as she tried to make out the visitor's appearance.
But it was pitch black within Muken; one could only observe another through spiritual perception.
And Katori Sora was covered by his shadow space, so her spiritual perception could not see through to the person.
"Regrettably, the Tsunayashiro clan remains a great noble family of the Soul Society," Sora said with a smile.
"That's a real shame. Looks like I'll have to stay here a while longer," Saitō Furōfushi clicked her tongue and said nonchalantly.
She began to toy with her twin tails with her fingers.
With a slight thought from Sora, the shadow space instantly expanded, pulling Saitō Furōfushi into it.
Saitō Furōfushi was startled, but she was completely unable to evade the shadow space.
"My apologies. Just to be cautious, speaking in here will prevent others from hearing us," Sora said with a smile.
He wasn't sure if the other prisoners in Muken could hear their conversation, so he pulled Saitō Furōfushi into his shadow space.
"Who are you? Hiding your face and tail, it's really annoying!" Saitō Furōfushi pouted. Given her temper, if she didn't lack a sword, she would have definitely cut him down first and asked questions later.
However, there weren't many criminals imprisoned in Muken. Saitō Furōfushi hadn't seen a new face in a very long time and was quite eager to chat.
"I heard that Miss Saitō is a good friend of Batsu'unsai, so I came especially to visit," a faint light glowed at Sora's fingertips.
"Batsu'unsai?" Saitō Furōfushi suddenly became very angry. "Is that woman still alive? I've been locked in here for over three hundred years, and she hasn't come to see me once!"
"Even a captain cannot casually enter 'Muken'. To enter this place, one requires the permission of the Central 46," Sora explained with a smile.
Saitō Furōfushi frowned as she saw Katori Sora's appearance.
"Your face looks a bit familiar... Have we met somewhere before?" Saitō Furōfushi circled around Katori Sora, examining him closely.
"I am Katori Sora," Sora said with a smile.
"Katori Sora... Why do you have the same surname as Batsu'unsai..."
Saitō Furōfushi was slightly taken aback. She soon recalled where she had seen a similar face, and her eyes widened in disbelief.
"What is your relationship with Batsu'unsai!!!"
"It can't be..." Saitō Furōfushi's cheeks flushed red as if a thought had occurred to her. "With that half-dead body of hers, can she still bear a child?"
"It's not what you think. I'm actually Batsu'unsai's younger brother," Sora explained.
"Impossible, where would she get a younger brother!" Saitō Furōfushi didn't believe him. "I've known her for hundreds of years and never knew she had a brother!"
"Our appearances are similar, so Batsu'unsai acknowledged me as her younger brother and taught me the Katori-ryū swordsmanship," Sora explained with a smile.
Sora did not mention the matter of the Reigai. He had only just met Saitō Furōfushi, so there was no need to say so much.
He brought up Batsu'unsai to build a rapport with Saitō Furōfushi, to facilitate their conversation later.
"That nose... those eyes... Are you sure you're not mother and son?" Saitō Furōfushi stroked her chin, studying Katori Sora's features. The more she looked, the more she thought they resembled each other. "Right, you said you know Katori-ryū swordsmanship?"
"Of course. And the Katori dōjō has reopened to new students. I am the instructor of the Katori dōjō," Sora materialized a black shadow blade in his hand.
Sora raised the black blade, curling the index and middle fingers of his left hand to tightly grip the blade.
He released his fingers, and the blade instantly swung up.
A flash of light streaked across the shadow space.
"That's the Katori-ryū's secret technique—the Blade Sealing Method! You've truly mastered Katori-ryū swordsmanship! And you still say you're not her son!" Saitō Furōfushi exclaimed in shock.
"You can think of me as her successor... her disciple... but we really are not mother and son," Sora said, feeling a bit helpless.
He had intended to prove his close relationship with Batsu'unsai to build a connection with Saitō Furōfushi, but he hadn't expected her to have such a misunderstanding.
"A disciple... I've never seen her teach a disciple before..." Saitō Furōfushi was still somewhat skeptical, but since Katori Sora had learned the secret technique of Katori-ryū, it proved he was someone recognized by Katori Batsu'unsai.
"How did you get into Muken? This isn't a place one can just enter at will, is it?" Saitō Furōfushi asked.
"I recently encountered some things in the Rukongai and unexpectedly saw a 'Gate of Hell' appear in the Soul Society. Although the opening of the 'Gate of Hell' was ultimately interrupted, there must be a great conspiracy hidden within this."
Sora didn't beat around the bush and continued:
"Miss Saitō, I heard from Batsu'unsai that you have an item called the 'Voice of Hell,' which can be used to communicate with the evil people in Hell."
"Therefore, I wanted to ask Miss Saitō for some information about the 'Voice of Hell' and about Hell itself."
"'Voice of Hell'? That thing was taken away by the prison squad long ago!" Saitō Furōfushi rolled her eyes. "Right now, I have nothing but these chains and shackles."
"I know that. I also looked into it and found that the Shinigami who took the 'Voice of Hell' either died or went missing decades ago, so I now have to suspect..." Sora speculated, "that someone used your 'Voice of Hell,' Miss Saitō, to conspire with the people of Hell in an attempt to open a 'Gate of Hell' in the Soul Society."
"And what does that have to do with me, a person locked up in Muken? If you want to get information from me, unless..." Saitō Furōfushi crossed her arms and said proudly, "you bring me some snacks and something to pass the time!"
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