Kagamino City's night has never been so lively
Suzuko was squatting on the roof of the street. There were more people on the street than she had ever seen since coming to World of the Living. People were wearing dark haori, women were wearing brightly colored kimonos, children were running around with snacks in their hands, and old people were standing on the roadside chatting.
The shop doors on the street are decorated with red and white decorations, and straw ropes are hung on the door frames, with white paper hanging from the ropes. People wearing strange costumes are parading on the street, and the sound of taiko drums comes from far away, with a frequency similar to the heartbeat.
Ukitake stood next to her. He had read the information given by Lieutenant. Kagamino City's New Year celebration is held at this time of year and lasts for several days.
There will be parades, taiko drums, and dances on the street, and there will be a flow of people worshiping in the shrine. He looked down at the little girl wearing a red and white kimono on the street. She was holding a windmill in her hand, and the windmill whirred in the night wind.
"It is said that today is the day when World of the Living celebrates the New Year."
Suzuko turned his head and looked at him, his eyes bright under the street lights. "New Year?"
"Well, World of the Living humans will celebrate the end of the past year and the beginning of the new year at this time of year. They will reunite with their families, visit shrines, and eat special food."
Suzuko said "Oh". She had never seen World of the Living's New Year. Rukongai's New Year had no celebrations, no taiko drums, and no red and white decorations.
The sound of taiko drums in the distance is getting closer and closer, and the parade is coming from the other end of the street.
The person walking at the front was wearing a red kimono, a black hat on his head, and holding a lantern in his hand. On the lantern was written the word "Kameno", followed by a group of people wearing uniforms. Some were playing taiko drums, some were playing flutes, and some were doing nothing but walking.
In the middle of the procession was a golden mikoshi, which was carried on the shoulders of several strong men and bounced up and down to the rhythm of taiko drums. The crowd around them cheered, some applauded, some shouted slogans, and some just watched with a smile.
Suzuko changed from squatting to standing, and his eyes followed the mikoshi. "Is that... a god?"
Ukitake thought for a while, "Not really, it's human's imagination of gods. They invite gods into palanquins and parade them on the streets, praying for good weather in the new year."
Suzuko said "Oh" again. She watched the mikoshi moving slowly surrounded by the crowd, and watched the faces of those humans filled with excitement and joy. They couldn't see Soul Reaper, and they didn't know that a girl wearing black Shihakushō was standing on the roof looking at them. If they knew, would they be afraid? Suzuko didn't know.
The parade passed by, the sound of taiko drums gradually faded away, and the flow of people on the street began to disperse slowly. Some people were cleaning up stalls, some were saying goodbye, and some were still standing on the roadside, as if waiting for something. Suzuko sat down from the roof, hung his feet under the eaves, and swayed twice.
"Ukitake, did you celebrate the New Year when you were at Rukongai?" Ukitake also sat down, side by side with her, but separated by a person's distance. He looked at the moving lantern at the end of the street and thought for a while.
"However, Rukongai has no New Year, no difference between days, today is tomorrow and tomorrow is the day after tomorrow, there is no calendar, no festivals, nothing worth celebrating."
He paused. "But sometimes, when winter passes, some people will do something spontaneously, clean the house, cook a heartier meal than usual, and put clean clothes on their children. It is not a New Year, but a 'celebration of finally surviving the year.'"
Suzuko didn't speak. She thought of her days at Rukongai, sitting on the stone steps looking at the sky, the clouds, and the people passing by.
"World of the Living's New Year is quite interesting" Suzuko said, Ukitake did not answer the call
As the sound of taiko drums fades away
Suzuko sensed the virtual one when the taiko drum sound of the parade came from a distance for the second time. Her Reiatsu perception was not as sensitive as Ukitake, but the virtual one Reiatsu was like a drop of ink dripping into clear water in the Kagamino City night sky. It spread so fast that she knew something was coming from the direction of the suburbs without consciously sensing it.
"Ukitake"
Ukitake also felt it. His hand was already on the handle of the knife. He looked past the pedestrians at the end of the street who were still cleaning up their stalls and looked towards the suburbs. "One, not strong."
Xu appeared in a farmland in the suburbs
The fish head is weak and the body is slightly larger than that of an adult man. The fish head mask is worn crookedly on the head, and the scales glow green-gray in the moonlight.
It stood on the ridge of the field, looking down at the water in the field, as if it was looking for something, or just passing by. Suzuko and Ukitake walked out of the shadow of the alley.
Shunpo
Two black figures silently passed over roofs, walls, and telephone poles in the night, and landed on the edge of the farmland. They raised their heads and pointed their empty eyes in their direction. The fish's mouth opened, revealing two rows of fine teeth, and a roar was squeezed out of the throat, hoarse, with a watery sound.
Suzuko Raise your hand
"Hado #4! Byakurai!"
Blue lightning shot out from the palm, hit Xu's chest, and penetrated directly. The lethality was not enough, but it was enough to make his body tilt back, the balance was broken, and the fish head mask raised towards the sky, revealing the scales on the lower jaw.
Ukitake's knife cuts in from the side, the blade cuts in from the side of Xu's neck, and comes out from the other side
After two months of stationing and cooperation, they have become very proficient at killing Zao Yuxu, and can basically complete the task in seconds by raising their hands.
After the two of them had finished dealing with Xu, they squeezed into the crowd again.
No one saw them, no one made way for them, no one noticed that two men in black clothes passed through them.
Suzuko's shoulder was bumped by a man carrying a child. The man didn't feel it and continued walking. Suzuko turned sideways to let the man pass, and then continued walking forward. Her eyes were bright under the street lights, looking at the food on the stalls, grilled squid, apple candy, and takoyaki. She didn't know the names of those things, but she could smell them, sweet, salty, and burnt. Her nose twitched.
Ukitake walked in front of her, without looking back, but her pace slowed down
He knew that Suzuko was following behind. There was a stall at the corner of the street, selling masks. Fox, tengu, cat, various colors were hung in front of the stall, swaying gently in the wind.
Suzuko stopped in front of the stall and looked at the masks. Ukitake also stopped and stood next to her. The stall owner was a middle-aged man who was trying on a fox mask on a child. He did not notice that there were two Soul Reaper standing in front of his stall.
Suzuko stretched out her hand, and her fingers were about to touch the fox mask. Ukitake stretched out her hand to stop her. "It will scare people." Suzuko retracted her hand.
She looked at the fox mask, its outline with red stripes on a white background, and its slender eyes for a long time, then turned around and continued walking.
The two people walked out from the edge of the crowd and walked into a less crowded alley. The sound of the taiko drum was still there, but it was far away. The light of the street lamp shone in from the alley entrance, making the shadows of the two people very long.
"World of the Living humans, do they make wishes during the New Year?"
Ukitake thought for a while, "Some people will go to the shrine to pay homage, throw money into the offering box, clap their hands twice, and make a wish. The content of the wish varies from person to person."
Suzuko said "oh"
The new year is coming. For Soul Reaper, the new year is just a new day.
Not far away
A child stretched out his right hand, pointed his little finger in the direction of Suzuko, and then pulled the corner of his mother's clothes with his left hand. The sound was not loud, but Suzuko could hear it clearly on the noisy street.
"Look, there is a samurai-sama!"
Suzuko and Ukitake both heard it. Which child did they look at?
The child's mother bent down and looked in the direction of the child's finger. What she saw was air.
It's the light of the street lamps, the backs of the crowd, and the parade of taiko drums in the distance. There are no samurai.
She straightened up, touched her son's head, smiled and said something