Harvest Moon

, Kurimeshi District. Evening.

Sprawling and enormous, Rukongai composed the bulk of the. However, so far away from the bright shine of its heart, the majestic, it was no Paradise for sure. Innumerable poor s led their miserable lives there in their dilapidated huts, ignorant and ignored. Faceless masses of insignificant people, minuscule cogs of the immense machine that was existence. But they were not completely forgotten. Among the few people who possessed the power to influence the world, there were fewer still who nonetheless were willing to spare a thought for them. Acknowledge them, include them, whatever was their mysterious purpose.

"People of the Rukongai", spoke a mellifluous voice, fairly low but soft and feminine.

Indeed, there was a gathering in one of the ramshackle villages that fought with a thick forest for every scrap of land. Numerous Souls of various ages populated a central square of sorts. There was no podium nor stage, though. The speaker was walking among them. Despite their diminutive stature and an evident attempt not to distance themselves from the lowborn, the speaker stood out rather obviously. Clad in a regal onyx  with a in their asymmetrically cut hair, a curiously monochromatic person of white, grey, and black. Solely their cerise eyes possessed of a subdued internal glow contrasted with the colourlessness of their body and garments. Undeniably young, but of no clear heritage or even gender, the person addressed the people.

"What have you done to deserve this grim fate?", asked Muto, the gaze of their slightly narrowed, slanted eyes scanning every single commoner as they were passing them by. "Those who were sinful suffer eternal perdition in the bowels of . Those who were consumed by despair travel the deserts of as vicious beasts. Then why you, innocent Souls, suffer an existence not far removed from their anguish? Why are you abandoned and ignored, left to rot in the slums?"

Some of the villagers were pensive. Some of them confused. Or melancholic. There were even some eyebrows furrowed, teeth bared, fists clenched in indignation.

"You do not deserve this", continued Muto as they gently tousled the hair of a boy, their touch as light as a feather. "You do not deserve to be treated like dirt. You do not deserve to be used as guinea pigs in the experiments of . You do not deserve to be ."

Muto was walking among them with a kind of measured grace that created the impression of them floating in the air, so swift was their movement. They looked at the people, established eye contact, nodded, smiled.

"You are people. You have got your own worldviews, dreams, and goals. Bonds to be cherished. You are given no power, but is it just? Is it fair? You are the citizen of Soul Society, an integral part of the cycle of existence. You are entitled to shape the world you live in."

The villagers, more and more of them, appeared to be convinced. There was chatter, nodding, raised fists, enthusiastic shouts in affirmation. The smile upon Muto's pale face became wider, although it was a sombre expression.

"But the world has to change first. You can do it. No, we can do it. Are you ready to shape the world... together?", there was a hint of some arcane tension in their tone.

The commoners were zealous. A blaze was kindled. Awoken from the morosity of idleness, they once again felt like they mattered. That they were people. So of course, they agreed, vehemently. They wanted to fulfil their dreams, to live exciting lives, to have a say. They wanted to rise against the arrogant nobility of the Seireitei, who valued them as much as the dirt beneath their bare feet. They wanted to act.

Meanwhile, Muto reached into the trailing sleeve of their elegant kimono. From within a special pocket they drew a . All the while they were observing the crowd attentively, with a faint smile, they unsheathed the dagger.

"Free of prejudice and persecution", they said, their soft voice somehow perfectly audible despite the surrounding clamour. "We shall shape a new, united world, a veritable Paradise... together."

With those words, they lifted the kaiken above their head, parted their thin lips, opened their mouth, and... dropped the dagger to swallow it whole, blade first.

There was a flash of light. A royal purple glimmer which illuminated the square and the people who had gathered there. Soon, the clamour was no more. The light subsided to reveal the place was empty. Only a single petite figure remained in its centre; Muto, the Harbinger of a New Era. Wistful, they sheathed their Zanpakutō, then put it inside its concealed compartment. The deed was done. Those people were truly worthy of witnessing the birth of a new, better world.

And they would certainly do so, through the eyes of Muto.