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Fate Transference (Bonus)
Soul Society Hell.
Lynn was the first to step through the dimensional gate, entering the new Hell.
Enma Ai and the others followed close behind, surveying the unfamiliar realm.
Once everyoneincluding even the Inu-yokai tribehad crossed over... Saito peeked her head out cautiously, clearly hesitant. After a moment's pause, she gritted her teeth and stepped through.
She took a deep breath, blinking a few times and realized something.
There was no ominous pressure. No sensation of Hell targeting her.
So, Lynn was telling the truth?
This Hell is under his control?
Then what the hell did it mean when she "sold herself" to him earlier?
Saito felt scammed. She shot a resentful look in Lynn's direction.
Not that anyone noticedor cared.
"Ugh, this air is disgusting." Hone Onna pinched her nose, clearly displeased.
"It's the miasma," Yoruichi explained, sounding rather used to it. "That's just how the air in Hell works."
After getting a feel for the place, Enma Ai and her team quickly got to work on drafting a development plan.
With the main world's Hell as a blueprint, the process was a breeze.
Soon enough, Enma Ai handed a finalized version to Lynn for review.
As he read it, she stood by and explained in her signature monotonelike a student giving a dull presentation in class.
Lynn listened and nodded, clearly pleased with how comprehensive the plan was.
But then, Enma Ai paused and added, "For Hell to develop, we need souls."
In other words, they couldn't rely on the old passive system of waiting for evil souls or whatever Soul Society decided to dump down here.
If they really wanted to grow Hell into something proper, they had to be proactive.
A constant, massive influx of soulsthat's what made a functional, thriving Hell.
So basically it was time to start recruiting souls.
The problem was that it meant running into a direct conflict with the local powers.
Shinigami, Soul Society.
Their whole job was to guide souls to the afterlifetheirs, not Hell's.
If Lynn's group started pulling souls to Hell instead, then yeah a confrontation was inevitable.
"..."
"Just follow the plan," Lynn said calmly.
Soul Society?
Lynn didn't care. With his current strength, they weren't even worth worrying about.
Even Yamamoto, hailed as the strongest Shinigami in a thousand yearsLynn didn't see him as a threat anymore.
With his approval, Enma Ai felt free to move forward confidently.
Then Lynn sent a simplified version of the proposal to Hell's consciousness itself.
Not long after, Hell's consciousness got a little too excited.
It was like a sheltered girl being shown the world for the first timecompletely dazzled and swept up by Lynn's ideas.
Before he knew it, it had handed over full authority to him without hesitation.
Total trust, full support.
Lynn couldn't help but chuckle.
He'd never seen a consciousness this naive.
Then again, this was his first time dealing with one, wasn't it?
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
Something told him this wouldn't be the last time he'd run into a "world" or "system" with a will of its own.
If Hell had a consciousness, then surely entire worlds could too.
And if they were all this easy to persuade that'd be great.
Of course, it's not like Lynn had lied. He did plan to develop Hell, after all.
While the Inu-yokai began tearing into renovations with enthusiasm, a group of uninvited guests suddenly arrived.
"Well, well~" a tall figure floated in the sky, arms crossed as he looked down, amused. "Since when did Hell get so lively?"
Saito looked up and frowned. "Shuren. What do you want this time?"
His arrival didn't shock anyone.
After all, they had sensed his Reiatsu long before he showed up.
Shuren blinked when he saw her. That was unexpected.
So the monstrous Reiatsu from earlierthe one that made waveswas tied to her?
Now that he thought about it, it made sense.
Hell had been quiet for ages. If someone this powerful was hiding here, there's no way he wouldn't have noticed unless they were really good at staying off the radar.
"Relax, I'm not here for you," Shuren said dismissively. "I've lost interest."
"Tch."
Saito clicked her tongue. Everyone in Hell knew what Shuren was like.
But she quickly pieced it together.
This idiot must've sensed Lynn's Reiatsu earlier and thought some kind of opportunity had come knocking.
Well, if only he knew the guy he was looking for was already running Hell.
Saito's lips curled into a smirk.
Actually, this might be a good chance to test her new powers.
Grinning, she hoisted her zanpakut and growled, "Don't care why you're here."
"But you did send people after me for ages..."
"Time to settle that score!"
Saito vanished.
Her Shunpo, combined with her new class skillGodspeedcatapulted her speed into a whole new realm!
Shuren's eyes widened. He barely had time to react beforeBOOM!
He was slammed out of the sky and sent crashing into the ground.
"Sh-Shuren-sama!!"
His followers, including Taikon, were stunned. Even Gunjo's heart skipped a beat.
Wait had this woman been holding back the whole time?
Actuallyyes.
Saito hadn't even bothered to release her zanpakut when fighting someone like Gunjo.
Still, the fact that Shuren couldn't even react said a lot about her power boost.
Without Godspeed, that level of movement wouldn't be possible.
From the crater, Shuren sprang to his feet, ignoring the dust on him. His eyes locked on Saito, his brow furrowed deeply.
When had she gotten this strong?
That speed?
He exhaled sharply, trying to calm himself.
He didn't come here to fight.
He came to negotiate.
He opened his mouth to say somethingbut Saito vanished again.
"!!!"
His body tensed.
"This crazy woman!"
Shuren didn't hesitate this time. He unleashed his Reiatsu at full force.
Whoosh
Flames erupted around him like living serpents, each one radiating searing heat.
As he felt her movement through the air, the fire snakes lunged toward her instinctively.
He smirked. "Saito, don't forgetI've been in Hell way longer than you."
BOOM!
The fire slammed straight into her!
But To his shock, she didn't dodge.
She charged into it, grinning like a lunatic!
The heat instantly charred her skin black, but she was still smiling?
Shuren felt a chill.
Sure, you couldn't die in Hell, but pain? Pain was very real.
What kind of psycho is she?!
Smack!
Suddenly, a charred hand burst from the flames and slapped itself onto Shuren's shoulder.
"Fate Transference~"
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Absolute Psycho?!
"Fate Transference"
The low, eerie voice of Furofushi Saito echoed in Shuren's ears, making his entire body freeze.
Before he could react, a searing pain suddenly erupted all over his body!
Hshhhh
Thin wisps of smoke rose from his skin, and a roasted meat smell hit his nose.
"What is this, a BBQ in hell?"
Then agonizing pain exploded throughout his body! His skin began to burn and blister like it was being scorched alive!
"H-Haaah!!"
Shuren's body was trembling in pain, eyes filled with confusion and disbelief.
What the hell is going on?!
Fighting through the agony, he glanced overonly to see Saito's hand resting casually on his shoulder.
His expression twisted in pure shock. Saito's skinburned and scorched just moments agowas healing? It looked smooth, brand new, like nothing had ever happened?!
No way.
Shuren's pupils narrowed, a chilling thought creeping into his mind.
Without hesitation, he yanked himself away from Saito. But the pain didn't stop!
The burning sensation still clinging to him like a curse.
Never in his wildest dreams did he think this would happenhe, a master of flame, getting roasted alive by fire.
What kind of twisted reversal is this?
Right now, it was like he was the one standing in the middle of an inferno.
That damned Furofushi Saito, Did she
Just as he was trying to piece it all together, Saito's lively voice came floating out from within the flames.
"Heyyy, Little Shu~"
Little Shu?
Shuren's eye twitched violently.
Saito's voice continued, totally unfazed. "It's kinda warm. You should go train with old man Yamamoto or something?"
She sounded genuinely disappointed.
This level of heat wasn't enough to push the limits of [Fate Transference] at all.
What she really wanted was to see if she could transfer something fatalsomething that would normally kill her.
But this guy? Shuren?
Completely useless.
Train with Yamamoto? Genryusai Shigekuni Yamamoto?
Shuren's mouth twitched so hard it was a miracle his jaw didn't fall off.
Seriously? Did she even realize what she was saying?
She's comparing him to the head captain of the Soul Society?
What an overestimation.
Butwait.
Looking at her again, something didn't sit right.
Was this woman enjoying his flames like a hot spring soak?
Sure, he wasn't Yamamoto-level, but come on! He couldn't possibly be that far off! Right?
With that thought, Shuren immediately dispersed the flames.
And as the flames faded, the burning pain in his own body finally began to ease.
He blinked.
So he'd been feeling the pain because he had somehow taken the damage for her?
After a bit of mental math, it all clicked.
So that's her power
She can transfer damage to someone else?
As he stood there quietly absorbing it all, Saito rested her zanpakut lazily on her shoulder, grinning like a schoolyard bully.
"Hey! Got anything better than that? If you're holding back, now's the time to show off!"
Shuren didn't answer.
If his theory was correct Attacking her was basically attacking himself.
What kind of broken, overpowered cheat skill is that?!
He glanced at her smug, taunting expression.
Yeah. No doubt about it. She was cheating.
So, Shuren decided to go the diplomatic route.
"Furofushi Saito, listenI'm here for peace. I'm here because"
Too bad for him, he was talking to Saito. And she didn't give a damn about conversation.
She vanished in a blur of movement. In the blink of an eye, she was right in front of himblade swinging down without hesitation!
Shuren raised his arms to block.
Because of what he'd just figured out, he didn't dare fight back!
From the sidelines, Taikon and the others watched as the usually proud and composed Shuren flailed around, ducking and dodging like a headless chicken.
They looked at each other in disbelief.
Was this really the same Shuren they had always respected? The one who used to radiate confidence and power.
Now looked like a scared child getting smacked around.
Their faith in him visibly wavered.
Could Shuren really lead them out of hell?
They were starting to have serious doubts.
On the other side, Saito kept swinging lazily, clearly enjoying herself as she chased him around.
"You? Escape hell? Such a joke~" she scoffed.
Shuren, of course, didn't respond. He just kept dodging.
Saito smirked.
Yeah, he definitely figured it out. But so what?
Now that she'd made a connection with him through [Fate Transference], she could pass off any injury she took straight to him.
And if she really wanted to go nuts, she could injure herself on purpose, and he'd be the one to suffer for it.
"Hmm"
Her eyes suddenly sparkled.
Wait a sec. Why not do just that?
This could be the perfect use of the skill!
First, tag the target, thenKekeke~
Her grin widened.
Her blade paused mid-swing.
"???"
Shuren blinked, confusedbut a break in the assault was a relief either way.
Until he saw what she was doing.
"Wait Wait Wait...!!"
"Please WAIT!!!"
He raised a hand, voice trembling. "What the hell are you doing?!"
Saito paused, gave him a kind little smile
And stabbed herself in the chest with brutal precision.
SHUNK!
"GaaaaaaAAAHHH!!!"
Shuren's knees buckled.
A fresh, gaping hole opened up in the middle of his chest, right where the heart should be.
The pain was blinding.
Blood poured out of him like a fountain as he clutched his chest, eyes wide in horror, staring at Saito.
She wasn't hurt at all.
So it was true!! Every bit of damage went straight to him!
This this was insanity!
What kind of broken, disgusting power even was this?!
Saito, meanwhile, looked him over with a glint of amusement in her eyeslike a child who had just discovered a new toy.
She started sizing up her own body, like she was picking the next spot to "experiment" on.
Shuren's survival instincts screamed.
No hesitation.
He compressed his Reiatsu on the spot.
This woman's a goddamn psycho! I'm out!
BOOM!
He self-destructed.
After all, this was hell. He'd just respawn.
Better to blow himself up than stick around for more of her twisted fun.
Taikon: "???"
Wait what about us?!
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The Hands-Off Boss
Taikon and the others immediately straightened up when Saito turned her eyes on them, forcing out awkward smiles.
They looked terrifiedlike she might give them the same treatment she'd just unleashed on Shuren.
She actually forced Lord Shuren to self-destruct!
Just thinking about it made them break into a cold sweat.
Saito glanced at them, then casually looked awayclearly not even interested.
—
Meanwhile
Enma Ai, the new Ceo of Hell, had just received a soul's resurrection request.
Enma Ai: "..."
Yeah, this kind of resurrection system? Totally annoying.
With a stern look in her eyes, she rejected the request.
But that soul was unusually strong.
One of the few in Hell who could actually be considered a powerhouse.
"Hmm..."
After a moment of thought, Enma Ai decided to bring the soul up for evaluation.
—
Some time later
Shuren opened his eyes, blinking like someone waking up from a deep sleep.
He muttered to himself, "I'm alive again?"
Then
He noticed a bunch of people gathered around him, watching him like he was part of some weird science show.
"...???"
He looked up, confused.
Was this a different resurrection site?
He didn't dwell on ituntil he tried to move. And instantly froze.
Wait. He couldn't move.
What the hell?
Hone Onna gave him a quick once-over and asked, "So, what do we do with him?"
