Darkness. Endless, suffocating darkness.
Ren stirred. His body felt heavy, like he had been asleep for an eternity. His mind was hazy, but instinct jolted him awake. The moment he opened his eyes, there was nothing—only pitch-bck void stretching in every direction.
He tensed, his breath hitching. His fingers twitched toward his Tamashkii cube, but then—
“Ahhh, senpai’s awake.”
The voice slithered through the darkness, smooth, teasing, but ced with something unsettling. From the shadows, a figure emerged—Ryuko, standing zily, arms crossed, his eyes glinting with amusement.
Ren didn’t hesitate. He lunged up, ready for a fight. His body still ached, but he forced himself to stand, gring at the shadow-wrapped figure before him.
“Where the hell are we?!”
Ryuko chuckled, tilting his head. “Oh? That’s the first thing you ask? Not ‘Oh wow, thanks for saving me, Ryuko-sama’?” His grin widened. “Tsk, so ungrateful.”
Ren’s gaze flicked to the side—and his blood ran cold.
Akira y still, completely enveloped in shadow, his face barely visible beneath the dark tendrils wrapping around his unconscious body.
Ren’s body moved before he could think. “You bastard—”
“Rex, rex,” Ryuko sighed, shaking his head. “If I wanted to kill you, you’d be dead already. If I wanted to kill him, I would’ve left you both on that battlefield. You know, let whoever sent Shigure clean up the mess.”
Ren gritted his teeth. His mind was still reeling, trying to process everything, but Ryuko had a point.
“Fine.” He straightened up, fists still clenched. “Then why didn’t you leave us?”
Ryuko exhaled, then cracked his neck, his grin fading slightly.
“Man… y’know, I’ve been thinking about that myself. And I guess the answer is simple—”
He spread his arms, the shadows shifting like living things around him.
“I’m just pying a game, Ren. That’s all this ever was to me.”
The casual tone of his voice sent a chill down Ren’s spine.
“A game?”
Ryuko shrugged. “Yeah. I like fighting. I like strong people. The Musabori? They were supposed to be the strongest of the strong. So I fought my way up to them.”
His smirk faltered slightly, just for a second.
“And then? It was boring. Most of them are okay at best. Mori and Yasuke? Sure, they’re the real deal. But the rest?” He scoffed. “Highly disappointing.”
Ren narrowed his eyes. “You talk about it like it’s a joke.”
Ryuko looked at him, his grin returning, sharper this time.
“Because it is. You think all this is some noble war? Some righteous battle between good and evil?” He stepped forward, his shadow curling around Ren’s feet. “It’s just people fighting to see who wins. That’s it. And I always pn to win.”
Silence.
Ren studied him, trying to understand. But there was no deeper meaning, no hidden agenda. Ryuko was just… chaos.
“So what’s your next move?” Ren asked.
Ryuko tilted his head. “Easy. I don’t want any Tamashkii phonies around.”
Ren’s eyes narrowed. “You mean the Kuroda Cores?”
Ryuko scoffed. “Tch. I’m not saying that man’s name when referring to a core. Ever.”
And then, his expression shifted slightly. He exhaled through his nose, gaze flickering into the void.
“I don’t get that guy,” he muttered.
Ren frowned. “Kuroda?”
Ryuko let out a low chuckle. “Yeah. That freak. The guy who wants to turn the whole world into ghosts.”
“What?”
Ryuko’s shadow twisted around them, curling like smoke.
“Tch. You don’t even know, do you?” He gnced at Ren. “No one told you what all this is really about?”
Ren didn’t speak.
Ryuko sighed, stretching his arms behind his head. “Mori told me the story a while back. Thought it was a joke at first. But nah… Kuroda really is just insane.”
He shifted, and the shadows around them rippled, forming distorted images.
“So, here’s the story, since you’re gonna hear it eventually.”
A faint, ghostly figure formed from the darkness. Ancient.
“It all starts with him,” Ryuko said. “Ancient, the old hero. The strongest of the strong. The one who stopped the end of the world.”
Ren’s breath stilled as he stared at the shadowy figure of Ancient.
“Ancient was the first person to actually y eyes on the Chūkan Yūrei,” Ryuko continued. “The pce between life and death. He got to see it while being 100% alive. The real afterlife. Not heaven. Not hell. Just something else. And apparently, he’d just pop in and out of there like it was a vacation spot.”
The shadow flickered. Then, another figure appeared—a man, smaller, unassuming. Kuroda.
“That’s when he told Kuroda about it.”
Ren stiffened.
Ryuko chuckled. “And Kuroda? He believed every word of it. Didn’t even hesitate. He heard about a pce beyond life, and it broke him.”
The shadowy Kuroda reached toward the image of Chūkan Yūrei—but it disappeared.
“See, here’s the problem.” Ryuko’s grin sharpened. “Kuroda’s a normal human. No Tamashkii. No power. No ability to ever reach the Chūkan Yūrei himself.” He tilted his head. “But he decided he’d change that. And not just for himself. For everyone.”
The shadows surged, forming the shape of a Tamashkii Core.
“That’s why he made the Kuroda Cores,” Ryuko murmured. “He thinks everyone should be able to reach Chūkan Yūrei. Even if it kills them.”
The shadows warped, shifting into the image of people—too many people—screaming as their bodies broke apart.
Ren’s jaw tightened.
“That’s the world he wants. That’s what Mori’s helping him build.”
Ryuko’s smirk faded slightly.
“Tch. Not that I care. But I do care about one thing—”
He turned to Ren, eyes gleaming.
“I don’t want any fake Tamashkii users walking around.”
Ren swallowed. “You want to stop the Kuroda Cores?”
Ryuko scoffed. “Damn right I do. I’ll decide who’s strong. Not that bastard Kuroda.”
Ren let the weight of the words sink in. He gnced at Akira.
Then, for the first time since waking up—he truly understood.
He wasn’t strong enough.
Not yet.
Raising his head, he met Ryuko’s gaze.
“Let’s train. Like the old days.”
Ryuko blinked. Then, after a brief pause—
A slow, wicked grin spread across his face.
“Heh. Oh, I like that.”
