Shiraishi cupped some lake water in his hands and took a sip.
His handsome features were reflected in the lake, and he began to tidy his messy hair with his wet hands.
With a soft moan, Nemu Kurotsuchi, leaning against a large tree, slowly opened her eyes, her deep green eyes gazing blankly around her.
The clear lake surface shimmered in the sunlight, and lush green lawns covered the hillside on the right. This was clearly not a basement room.
Her eyes were fixed on the Shiraishi crouching by the lake. "Where is this?"
Shiraishi stood up, beckoned to her, and deliberately kept her in suspense, saying, "Come and see for yourself."
Nemu Kurotsuchi rubbed the back of her head, got up from under the tree, and followed him up the hillside on the right, where the view suddenly opened up.
Countless houses sit on the earth, unlike the thatched huts of Rukongai. The houses there are covered with golden tiles, which, when illuminated by the sunlight, seem like countless golden streams flowing in the air, exuding an air of luxury.
Located in the central area, a large cluster of white spires surrounds the tallest tower like guards.
That tower is called the Senzaikyū. Looking from here, it seems to support the entire sky, a true wonder of human creation.
In comparison, the majestic Sōkyoku Hill are a masterpiece of nature.
" Junrinan." Nemu Kurotsuchi immediately understood where she was. Only in the West District One could she see the entire Seireitei, including the Senzaikyū and the Sōkyoku Hill.
"I must say, the grandeur of Seireitei far exceeded my expectations; I had previously thought it would be a rather small place."
Shiraishi's impression of Seireitei comes entirely from anime.
However, computers and mobile phones ultimately have limited screens, which are clearly far from sufficient to showcase the vastness of Seireitei.
Nemu Kurotsuchi's eyes swept across Seireitei, and she pointed to a certain place, saying, "That's the Research and Development Institute."
Shiraishi stared intently, unable to see clearly, and casually asked, "You want to go back?"
"Yes, I've never been away from Mayuri for this long."
Nemu Kurotsuchi remained expressionless, but her tone revealed a clear sense of loss; this longing made her less inclined to continue pursuing her own value.
So what if it's as light as a feather?
She will always choose to stay by Mayuri- sama's side.
"Respecting one's father is a good thing, but one shouldn't lack one's own opinions on everything."
Shiraishi patted her shoulder and said with a big smile, "Let's go to the West District One and have some fun."
Nemu Kurotsuchi tilted her head and asked, "Aren't you afraid of getting arrested?"
"Haha, hopefully they'll come later."
Shiraishi shrugged.
This place is closest to the Seireitei and is the most bustling area of Rukongai, practically under the emperor's nose. The surveillance by the Projection Hall ) must be much stricter than that of the West District Ten.
Knowing this, he still strolled through the streets of West District One, not to test whether the idea of "blind spots" was correct, but to help Oda Nobunaga and Kichō in West District Ten share some of the pressure.
Since the two sides had some prior relationship, he felt he should help out if he could.
Nemu Kurotsuchi didn't say anything more and asked directly, "Which of Junrinan's South District and North District do you want to go to?"
Shiraishi wasn't very familiar with West District One; this was his first time here. He humbly asked, "What's the difference between South District and North District?"
Nemu Kurotsuchi explained, " The South District leans towards entertainment, while the North District leans towards food and drink."
"Then let's go to North District."
Shiraishi wanted to try the food and drinks in North District, but when he reached into his pocket, his heart sank. He immediately changed his mind and said, "Let's go to South District instead."
"Um."
Nemu Kurotsuchi nodded and acted as a guide for the West District One.
South District is located three kilometers south of Hakutōmon. The reason it is so far away is that the residents of Rukongai generally hate or fear the Shinigami.
They were reluctant to gather at the Hakutōmon, where the Shinigami frequently passed through, which is why they opened their shops on the north and south sides.
Over time, this led to the formation of the two towns, north and south, where the most densely packed shops in Junrinan were located.
Shiraishi followed Nemu Kurotsuchi the streets. The dense crowds and noisy sounds reminded him of the rural gatherings before he traveled back in time.
The crowd surged forward, and the shouts and cheers stirred the hearts of the people.
There's a street sumo wrestling match here, a puppet show over there, courtesans playing the shamisen in the arcade, and people and monkeys performing acrobatics...
Shiraishi wished he had more eyes to see everything, and exclaimed excitedly, "I've been in Soul Society for so long, and this is the first time I've seen such a lively scene! No wonder you're called Junrinan!"
Are these interesting?
Nemu Kurotsuchi couldn't understand why Shiraishi was happy. The surrounding sounds only seemed noisy to her. If she were in the lab, she would definitely get a severe scolding from Mayuri -sama if she dared to be that loud.
"Of course it's interesting! Look, that monkey can juggle and catch balls, and it can even juggle seven at once! How clever!"
Nemu Kurotsuchi examined the monkey's entire body with a professional eye and said, "If I were to modify it, I'm confident I could give it several more arms and eyes, and make it able to spin at least thirty balls."
"..." Shiraishi's expression was somewhat complicated. He thought about modifying the monkey's appearance to have three heads and six arms. No, if he only added arms and eyes, it would still only have one head.
The scene shifted abruptly from childhood memories to a horror movie, sending a chill down his spine. "Don't casually mention such terrifying things, okay?"
"Is this scary?" Nemu Kurotsuchi asked with some doubt. In her eyes, this was a very normal procedure.
If we're talking about truly terrifying things, the only one she remembers is a failed bio-engineering experiment.
She helped Mayuri- sama perform mollusc modification, forcibly adding hundreds of tentacles to the legless mollusc, each tentacle oozing a green liquid that corrodes clothing.
Compared to that creature, a monkey with a few extra arms and eyes is actually quite cute.
"Who in their right mind would add those things to a monkey's diet?"
Shiraishi rolled her eyes and said irritably, "You, stop thinking about those reform things, isn't it better to enjoy life in front of you?"
"I can't understand it."
Nemu Kurotsuchi shook her head. She felt that experimenting and modifying were part of her life, but Shiraishi said they weren't, so she must have misunderstood.
After all, she was a soul created by Mayuri using Gigai Technology and Artificial Soul Technology. Her thinking was different from that of a normal soul, which was something that couldn't be helped.
"Uh, it's my fault. I shouldn't have gone to South District. Let's go to North District instead."
Shiraishi isn't someone who only cares about having fun himself. Nemu Kurotsuchi doesn't like South District, then let's go to North District.
You can't possibly hate delicious food, right?
As for the money, he could only rely on sponsors from wealthy individuals.
Shiraishi scanned the people on the street, intending to choose a suitable target, when he unexpectedly spotted a tall figure whose back looked somewhat familiar.
He looked at it carefully and quickly waved his hand, saying, " Isane, what a coincidence!"
Hearing someone call her name, Isane Kotetsu turned around and glanced back. Her height gave her an advantage, allowing her to see Shiraishi behind her. Her face immediately tensed up, and she hurriedly turned her head away, quickening her pace to leave.