The corridor in the Second Division barracks was quiet.
The wooden floor had been polished smooth, reflecting the afternoon light filtering through the paper windows.
A faint scent of incense lingered in the air, mingling with the smell of old wood and paper.
As Yan Si reached the corner outside the captain's room, the light at the end of the corridor dimmed.
Whoosh—
A dark figure shot through the air, so fast it seemed to tear a slit across his vision.
At the leading edge of that shadow, a speck of golden light flickered, tracing a straight line through the dim corridor.
Yan Si tapped his left foot to the side and leaned backward with the movement.
The golden light skimmed the Shinigami uniform over his chest, drawing a faint ripping sound from the fabric.
Using the momentum of his backward lean, he flipped away and landed in the courtyard outside the corridor.
His feet touched the gravel with a soft crunch.
"Hachi Saaya." Yan Si straightened and looked toward the corridor.
"Going straight for Sting All Enemies to Death? Isn't that a little much?"
Hachi Saaya stepped out of the corridor's shadows.
She wore the Punishment Force's tight black outfit, her right hand raised before her, a sharp golden finger sheath fitted over her middle finger.
Its point gleamed coldly in the light, its edges so thin they were almost invisible.
"Hmph."
She snorted, resting her left hand on her right wrist and lowering her body slightly into a thrusting stance.
"A man like you, going out drinking with women, deserves to be stabbed to death!"
Yan Si raised an eyebrow.
Drinking with women? How did she hear about Yoshiwara?
The tavern in Runlin An was perfectly respectable, and that place in Yoshiwara hardly counted as drinking with women.