Dimensional Kaguya Ōtsutsuki

The interior of Cochlea was already deserted, completely empty without a single trace of life. Within the prison, the eerie silence was overwhelming, and not even the faintest echo of movement could be heard. The abandoned cells and corridors exuded an oppressive stillness, as though the place itself was dead. Kaguya couldn't help but feel that even the air carried a stifling heaviness.

This kind of place, while Kaguya had previously said she wanted to claim it as her territory, left her with second thoughts after seeing its current state. She absolutely had no intention of sleeping in a place surrounded by the dead—a space that was both ghastly and steeped in a suffocating stench of blood. Such an environment was simply far too macabre, even for her.

However, her goal in driving away the human forces wasn't to take control of this grim prison. Cochlea, at best, was just a massive detention facility with nothing particularly noteworthy to offer. Her true focus lay elsewhere—deep within Cochlea, where a meteorite from beyond the stars resided. That was the real prize, and the primary reason she had come to this forsaken place.

Still, she hadn't anticipated the sheer size of Cochlea. Upon exploring it, she realized that the prison's vastness was truly overwhelming. The complex was a labyrinth of interconnected corridors, towering ridges, and winding paths. There were numerous checkpoints, heavy gates, countless rooms, and hidden chambers scattered throughout. After wandering aimlessly through its twists and turns for what felt like forever, Kaguya was starting to feel dizzy.

Frustrated by the maze-like layout of the prison, Kaguya raised her elegant arm and aimed her palm at the wall in front of her.

"Shinra Tensei."

Boom!

With a deafening explosion, the wall crumbled to pieces. Shards of stone and debris flew in all directions, sending up a massive cloud of dust.

When the dust settled, the wall before her had completely vanished, leaving behind a gaping, pitch-black hole.

Kaguya nodded in satisfaction. As expected, violence could solve everything. Katarina hadn't lied to her about that.

Using such methods, her pace of progress indeed sped up significantly. Any obstacle that dared to block her path was mercilessly obliterated. After all, she had no plans to live here, nor did she believe anyone would dare return to this place in the future.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

In the silence of the night, the thunderous explosions echoed far and wide, startling flocks of birds from the forest. If this were the real world, such reckless behavior would undoubtedly have drawn complaints from neighbors.

Fortunately, within a radius of dozens of kilometers, there wasn't a single soul to be found.

Of course, even if there were, Kaguya wouldn't care in the slightest.

While this method of demolition made progress much faster, it also came with its downsides. Thanks to Kaguya's unrestrained destruction, Cochlea was now riddled with massive holes, resembling a building infested by termites. Many of the load-bearing walls had been completely obliterated, reducing the once-imposing prison to a crumbling mess of broken walls and collapsing ruins.

The only question now was whether she could find the meteorite before Cochlea collapsed entirely.

Kaguya could have used her Star Pupil ability to search for it, but under the gaze of her Star Pupil, the entire Cochlea complex appeared to be shrouded in a thick, swirling mist. This strange phenomenon greatly hindered her vision. While she hadn't determined the exact cause, Kaguya could guess that it likely had something to do with the meteorite. The meteorite's peculiar energy must have been interfering with her abilities.

This only made Kaguya more eager to find it.

Although her "demolition crew" approach had sped things up considerably, even so, combing through a structure as massive as Cochlea—which spanned an area equivalent to twenty or thirty football fields—was still quite exhausting.

Finally, just as Kaguya was growing impatient and was about to obliterate the entirety of Cochlea in one fell swoop, she discovered an inconspicuous corner hiding a large iron door forged from solid steel. The door's surface gleamed with a smooth, polished finish and was impressively massive, standing ten meters tall and ten meters wide.

Kaguya extended a single finger and lightly tapped on the door, producing a deep, resonant sound. It was incredibly sturdy.

However, a door of this size was only capable of blocking ordinary humans. Against someone like Kaguya, it was utterly useless. Such a door, no matter how solid, was no more than a fragile screen in her eyes.

Kaguya extended her palm, and suddenly, a small white orb appeared in the center of her hand. The orb rapidly grew in size as if responding to the wind, and in the blink of an eye, it expanded to the size of a basketball. It spun furiously, emitting a sharp, high-pitched whine.

This was the Rasengan.

But unlike Naruto's Rasengan, Kaguya's version was far more refined due to the sheer magnitude of her spiritual energy. Under her control, the Rasengan was much more condensed, brimming with an immense amount of energy, and spun at a terrifying speed. Naruto's Rasengan couldn't even begin to compare to hers. Even his most powerful Six Paths Ultra-Big Ball Rasenshuriken was no match for Kaguya's Rasengan.

While Naruto, as a member of the Uzumaki Clan, possessed an extraordinary amount of chakra, his control over it was relatively weak. This was also the reason he wasted an enormous amount of chakra during his techniques.

With a casual flick of her wrist, Kaguya hurled the Rasengan. It sliced through the air like a bolt of lightning, tearing through the atmosphere before slamming violently into the massive steel door.

Boom!

A deafening explosion reverberated through the room, and the iron door was blown apart, leaving a perfectly circular hole at its center.

When Kaguya stepped through, she realized just how thick the door was—over twenty meters. Conventional methods truly wouldn't have been enough to open it. If she had used a Tailed Beast Ball, she could have destroyed the door entirely, but the more likely outcome would have been Cochlea collapsing around her, burying her alive in the rubble.

The beauty of the Rasengan lay in its precision. Its energy was concentrated, with minimal dispersion, making it less likely to cause an explosion. It was incredibly sharp and precise. Unlike the Tailed Beast Bomb, which would explode like a small nuclear weapon and reduce the surrounding area to ruins, the Rasengan caused no such collateral damage.

As Kaguya followed the hole she had created into the depths beyond, she paused, slightly stunned. It was only then that she understood why the steel door had been so massive.

Before her was an enormous, spherical meteorite. It was nearly eight or nine meters in diameter, its surface covered in scorch marks and pitted scars—likely the result of being burned by high temperatures when entering the atmosphere.

What surprised Kaguya most, however, was the faint red glow the meteorite emitted. Its surface appeared crystalline and translucent, as smooth and lustrous as fine jade. It resembled nothing less than an enormous luminous pearl glowing softly in the darkness.

As she approached the meteorite, an inexplicable sense of familiarity suddenly arose in her heart. She couldn't shake the feeling that she had seen this meteorite somewhere before, though Kaguya was certain she had never encountered anything like it in the past.

Where could this sense of familiarity be coming from?

This puzzled Kaguya deeply.

She walked closer, reaching out to gently touch the surface of the meteorite. To her surprise, its exterior was remarkably smooth, almost slippery to the touch. Furthermore, it was icy cold, like an enormous block of ice.

It occurred to Kaguya that hugging it in the summer might make for a very refreshing experience.

The ever-lazy Kaguya mused to herself.

But just then, an unexpected change occurred.

The meteorite suddenly erupted with a blinding light, illuminating the entire room as though it were daytime. The radiance was so intense that it forced Kaguya to shut her eyes against the glare. At the same time, a tremendous force surged outward from the meteorite, like a raging tsunami. The overwhelming energy engulfed Kaguya, who was caught off guard and momentarily stunned.

This surge of energy carried an extreme chill, the biting cold so intense that Kaguya couldn't help but shiver. It felt as though her entire body was on the verge of freezing solid. Even her cheeks and eyebrows were coated in fine white frost, and the breath she exhaled transformed into swirling clouds of icy mist.

Frost spread along the walls of the room, forming a thick layer of hoarfrost that shimmered faintly in the dim light.

What is going on?

Kaguya was stunned. She had never encountered anything like this before. Not even during past battles against Ice Release techniques had she experienced anything similar. Even Esdeath's Imperial Arms, with its mastery of cold, had never left her feeling this way. It wasn't just her physical strength being suppressed—she felt as though her very spirit was frozen, incapable of being roused.

How could such a primitive world possess something this bizarre?

Could this be some kind of hidden dungeon?

As Kaguya stood in bewilderment, the icy energy continued to flow, winding around her body like silken threads. She instinctively tried to resist, but to her shock, she found herself utterly immobilized, her body frozen stiff and unable to move.

Am I really going to fail in such an absurd way?

A fleeting thought crossed Kaguya's mind, and then her vision went black as she lost consciousness.

At the same time, on the other side of the city.

After a long, dark night, dawn was breaking. On the far horizon, the sky gradually lightened, the faint pale glow of morning spreading outward. In just a short moment, the first ray of sunlight pierced through the edge of the earth, and the rising sun slowly ascended into the sky. The warm, golden light spilled across the world, banishing the chill and shadows of the night.

The city stirred awake, the streets gradually coming alive with the usual hustle and bustle of urban life. Everywhere, people hurried to and fro, some rushing toward overcrowded subway stations on their way to work.

Just then, a large screen in the city square flickered to life, and a breaking news bulletin interrupted the usual programming.

"Major news! Breaking news!"

The loud announcement and the news anchor's grave tone caused many passersby to slow their steps, raising their heads to look at the screen. Such interruptions were rare, reserved only for significant events. The atmosphere grew tense as people stopped to watch.

"Last night, an unprecedented attack occurred in the Cochlea prison located in the Third District. The assault resulted in hundreds of casualties, including the deaths of Cochlea's warden and hundreds of investigators. Additionally, this attack led to the escape of hundreds of highly dangerous individuals. Headquarters has already dispatched elite forces to the site, and a large number of investigators will also be stationed within the city. We urge citizens not to panic. It is advised to stay indoors during this period and to securely lock doors and windows as a precaution."

Meanwhile, on top of one of the city's towering skyscrapers, two shadowy figures stood in silence.

"You're saying she possesses extraordinary, almost inconceivable abilities, correct?" The white-haired man with a red mask asked. His tone was calm but carried a hint of curiosity. "Is that right, Eto?"

The speaker was none other than Tatara, a high-ranking officer of Aogiri Tree.

"Yes, that's correct, Tatara," replied the girl wrapped entirely in bandages, her face hidden beneath a hood. Her voice was cold and even, tinged with the faintest trace of unease. "She seems to possess abilities far beyond what is natural, though the specifics of her power remain unclear."

The girl was none other than the One-Eyed Owl, who had been present at Cochlea the previous night. Despite her high status and power, she carried a rare tone of uncertainty, her words reflecting the bewilderment she had experienced.

"Is that so?" Tatara gazed out at the bustling cityscape in the distance, his crimson eyes narrowing slightly.

"Tatara, was Rize found yesterday?" The One-Eyed Owl asked quietly after a pause, her tone carrying a faint but palpable edge of concern.

"No," Tatara replied, his voice calm yet firm. "There was no trace of her within Cochlea. However, it seems likely she was here at some point. It's highly possible she was rescued by someone else."

"'Other people,' huh?" the bandage-wrapped girl asked softly.

"We'll know eventually," Tatara said as he turned around. "By the way, what do you think of her as a person?"

"Well…" The girl tilted her head slightly, then replied thoughtfully, "I think she's someone with a strong personality. She doesn't seem like the type who would willingly obey others, let alone someone who would easily accept authority. I don't think she's the kind of person who cares much about right or wrong either. From what I saw, her demeanor exudes a genuine arrogance."

Hearing this, Tatara's eyes narrowed slightly. He turned back to face her and asked, "If Aogiri Tree were to attempt recruiting her, how successful do you think we'd be?"

"Hmm…" The girl considered for a moment, then said, "I'd say it's highly unlikely."

"Oh?" Tatara raised an eyebrow in curiosity. "And why do you think that?"

"She's incredibly strong and seems to prefer working alone. People like her typically aren't interested in joining any organization," the girl replied calmly. "That's just my impression."

"But?" Tatara prompted.

"Well…" The girl hesitated, then continued, "Unless this place has something she desires, or something that genuinely interests her. In that case, maybe—just maybe—she might agree."

"Something she's interested in, huh?" Tatara murmured, his gaze drifting toward the bustling city in the distance. A peculiar glint flickered in his eyes, as though he were already calculating something.

It was unclear how much time had passed, but Kaguya, lying on the ground, fluttered her eyelashes faintly before slowly opening her hazy eyes. At first, she looked disoriented, but within moments, her clarity returned. She leapt to her feet with ease, her movements fluid and swift, and immediately surveyed her surroundings with a wary gaze.

All around her was darkness. There wasn't a single source of light, and the atmosphere was cold and foreboding.

For most people, such a pitch-black room would be terrifying, but for Kaguya, it was as bright as day.

When her eyes adjusted and she took a closer look at the room, she froze for a moment. The space was entirely empty. The spot where the meteorite had been was now vacant, as if it had never been there at all.

What's going on here?

The events from earlier were still fresh in her memory. She distinctly recalled the meteorite undergoing a transformation, turning into something fluid-like and enveloping her completely. After that, she had blacked out.

Could this be… some kind of paranormal phenomenon?

Kaguya was utterly baffled. What had just happened felt like a dream, surreal and inexplicable.

At that moment, her gaze unintentionally caught something out of the corner of her eye. Her expression shifted, and she turned her head to look toward the far side of the room.

There, not far away, was a stone pedestal. Its surface was rough and weathered with age, its mottled texture bearing the marks of time. Intricate, complex patterns were carved into its surface, though Kaguya couldn't discern their meaning.

But none of that was what truly captured her attention. What drew her focus was the object embedded in the pedestal—a long sword.

The sword was about one and a half meters in length. Its hilt was a striking crimson, adorned with a golden guard. The blade itself was sheathed, and its streamlined, minimalist design exuded a sharp, modern aesthetic that clashed starkly with the ancient, weathered stone pedestal.

The stark contrast between the sleek, futuristic sword and the archaic pedestal was striking, almost surreal.

When Kaguya's gaze fell upon the weapon, a single thought flashed through her mind:

This is mine.

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