Light [Murasaki, Open to 1]

A garganta opened within the Seireitei. After only a moment, a single figure stepped through it, but it was no Arrancar. The portal had been opened courtesy of one of the many members of the newly-christened Wahrender; it had been opened as a gesture of diplomacy for a woman who had no other immediate way to return home. A woman who had simply ceased to exist for the past few weeks, and whose gaze now moved over the ruined Seireitei with an unreadable firmness.

Kagayaku no Murasaki had returned to the Soul Society, but she had no interest in rushing to her office. Her steps were measured; her attention on everything that she had missed in her absence. There was, after all, nothing else to be done now, but to understand what had occurred in that very absence.

The dissolution of the Gotei was something she hadn't been prepared to hear. But it seemed that it wasn't on account of just a loss. So what had it been? She wondered, as she walked among the ruined buildings toward what had once been her own headquarters, what it was that had actually happened here.

Hard at work at rebuilding the Sixth Division Barracks, Sajin almost missed the sudden appearance of a stranger within the Seireitei. He had come to recognize the hearts of many people in the city since returning to it, but this one was...different. Difficult to read, as if its owner wasn't entirely sure what to feel either. The Spiritual Pressure that accompanied it wasn't familiar either, but it stood out for other reasons too. Curious, as well as wary given the recent events in Soul Society, Sajin decided to approach the presence himself, not knowing what could happen if anyone else did.

Though not the fastest Shinigami around, Sajin quickly made his way from the Jieitei headquarters and through the Seireitei streets by Flash Stepping to the best of his ability. He could sense no others had beaten him to the area, and chose to approach cautiously, and directly. After all, since when do people just appear in the middle of the Seireitei?

Appearing in front of the green-haired woman, whom Sajin sensed was a Shinigami, he spoke without hostility in his voice, though not without some amount of assertiveness. "Greetings, my name is Sajin Komamura. Forgive me, but I have to ask how you came here. I am sure you can imagine right now we must be wary of people entering Soul Society unexpectedly."

Murasaki simply moved her gaze to meet the eyes of the man who had come to greet her. That was certainly surprising, but her expression, and even her very heart, gave away nothing. She looked up into his gaze with a look at sharp as any blade, and when she spoke, there was no degree of fear or defensiveness in response to his tone. If she were a more confrontational woman, she probably would have continued walking.

"I got help from the Vandenreich. Not that they're called that anymore, apparently, but it's not important."

She knew the name, of course. Any self-respecting captain would have, even before she took over as Captain Commander. Murasaki's voice gave away little beyond the simple fact that she was fully centered at the moment, a woman who could not and would not be put off.

"I heard the Gotei's done. What happened while I was gone?"

There was only one woman whose story of what happened there could ever be considered wholly trustworthy, as far as Murasaki was concerned. But she wanted to know what other people would tell her.

Did he know this woman? Surely if he did he would have recognized her with Reikaku, but Sajin couldn't place why she seemed so familiar to him. That is, until she revealed she did not know what happened here in Soul Society, and that apparently she was returning from a temporary absence of some kind.

A stern look overcame Sajin as he eyed the woman in front of him, but it was not adversarial in nature "Captain Commander Murasaki!" Dropping to a knee and ducking his head down as a sign of respect, Sajin was confident in her identity now. He had heard her description multiple times already, from people who held her in the highest esteem. Then, after a short moment, he stood back up to his full height and answered her question.

"Ichigo Kurosaki and his allies assaulted Soul Society. They attacked both the Rukongai and the Seireitei, and we are still working to rebuild. I, along with Captain Ōtoribashi, fell in battle against him. It is my understanding Kisuke Urahara also played a part by nearly killing Captain Ōtoribashi, but I am still learning what happened that day. Within 24 hours after, Central 46 convened and voted to make Byakuya Kuchiki the next Captain Commander. I spoke with Erika Masamune, who had served temporarily as Captain Commander, who explained she did not want to sully your Gotei United's name by handing it over to self-serving Nobles. Hence it's dissolution."

Not wanting to pile on top of what would surely be shocking enough to start, Sajin gave Murasaki an opportunity to digest this news before continuing.

A less composed woman might have scowled at the explanation of what had happened while she was gone. Murasaki would have been disgusted by Central 46 even if they'd only just made the decision after the few weeks she'd been lost; to hear it had happened so quickly only made it that more pathetic. She might have even been insulted, if the opinion of anyone in Central 46 meant anything to her.

"It's an honor to meet you, Komamura-san. Wish it was under better circumstances. Thank you for helping defend the people here."

Now that she understood what had happened, though, she'd need consider what to do next. It was fortunate, if nothing else, that Murasaki was a woman with a profound sense of clarity, centered and focused at all times. It wouldn't do her any good to get emotional about this just yet. She could wait for when everything was more settled. When she was among friends, in a better place.

"Erika did the right thing. I wouldn't have wanted her, or anyone else, wasting their time trying to work under that. I imagine some people probably went right along with it, though."

Murasaki had long been a trusting woman. But that trust, time and again, had been her own undoing. Now, with Soul Society in this state, she wasn't going to pretend that simply maintaining that trust yet again was the right answer.

Nodding his head, Sajin agreed with Murasaki. "Under better circumstances and at a better time, though I am sorry for not meeting you before the attack. I was...unsure how to approach the Gotei given my absence. Regardless, many people will be glad at your return, especially those of us who did not stop looking for you."

Sajin had told the truth, there were many details he was still unaware of. His primary focus had been on building the Jieitei up, knowing Soul Society could not continue on in this post-invasion purgatory. It needed to be protected, and the Balance tended to. Luckily Tento's ability to open Garganta had begun making this easier for them.

"It is my understanding Byakuya has already made some allies, one of whom served under you as Fifth Division Captain. Your aunt, Lady Koizumi, pledged aid to my cause in your absence, and informed me of her intention to work with the Shihoin to restore the Senkaimon, which was destroyed in the invasion." He did not know what Murasaki wanted to hear right now, but a woman who held the position she did deserved to know everything. "I am sorry to report your Sixth Division Captain, Hakuyou Shiba I believe, perished in the battle. My people have been operating out of his squad's Barracks as a result."

It seemed like she owed Kyoraku an apology. It was one thing for the average shinigami to go to a voice of authority, one who had backing and leverage. But Murasaki supposed it was simply one more overestimation of character on her part. She knew where things stood now, at least, and she wasn't quite in the business of putting more faith into anyone anymore.

"Hakuyou was a good man. And what cause are you pursuing, that Lady Koizumi is supporting, and that you've built support for?"

There was a faint degree of cutting in Murasaki's voice as she asked that question. She didn't doubt her own honor, her own standing. Talk of people abandoning her own principles was inconsequential, when she could simply speak for herself, act in ways that reflected her beyond what people might say. But the dead couldn't defend themselves, couldn't correct slights against them.

She cared much more about the honor of a man who'd died in her service than she did about the notion of people abandoning her. It was only natural that she want to know what work was being done in the place he'd once commanded.

It didn't surprise Sajin for there to be a bit of bite in Murasaki's question. After all, the Nobles may have waited less than a day but Sajin himself did not wait long before beginning his work either. Unlike the Nobles though, he did not relish the opportunity or responsibility, and had only reluctantly assumed the mantle of leadership at the behest of Rangiku, Tento, and Ranma.

"I hope you do not think ill of me, but I have secured aid and assembled Shinigami to form a Jieitei, a...replacement of sorts for the Gotei United you led. I could not stand idly by while Nobles and others used this destruction and your absence to grasp and claw for power, without a thought spared for what Soul Society actually needs. I do not claim to be a savior or hero or one deserving power. I will never stop owing my life to the Gotei, so I must do my duty, the duty of Shinigami, to protect the realm and maintain the Balance. Without being beholden to the every whim of the Central 46."

Having heard enough first and second hand accounts of the woman who stood before him, who's absence alone was enough to make Soul Society's enemies brave, Sajin had no reservations whatsoever about what he said next. "The Jieitei is yours to command, Captain Commander Murasaki."

Murasaki thought for a moment about what it was Komamura had said to her. It was selfless, that much she could discern even without a need for words. But it was his last statement which made her all the more resolute in her decision, one that she had already been considering as soon as the situation had been explained.

"I think your leadership is for the best, Komamura-san. I won't be staying here in Soul Society."

There was nothing left for her here, apart from reminders of a failure. To ruminate on that kind of thing was antithetical to progress, antithetical to growing. Murasaki would never stop pursuing greater heights until the day she died.

"There are things on Earth that are going to need more attention now. Urahara and Kurosaki won't be coming back here, I don't imagine. And despite what people have always seemed to think, the balance is upset by the things humans do just as much as anything else. I'll be protecting the balance there, with the people who want to come with me. I don't think we'll be coming back to Soul Society, so I wouldn't want to pretend I can be your leader."

She had been a blade sheathed for too long. Kept away from battle, hung upon the katanakake like nothing more than a piece for display. Murasaki had desperately wanted to prove that she could be the Captain Commander, and in the end, she'd proven it. But the role wasn't what she wished to do with her life. It hadn't been what she wanted.

At first Sajin was taken aback. He did not expect this woman to so quickly and easily relinquish power, not because of anything he knew about her in particular but simply because she had been the Captain Commander. Not for a short time like Erika, but for years. Did she have that much faith in him or was she just tired of the responsibility? No, he guessed there was a different reason for her decision. He thought he could understand how she felt as well, seeing something she had built or been part of crumble in the way it had.

"Very well, though you will always have a place here, even if not in an official capacity, should you want it."

Problematic as it could be to leave an open offer on the table for Murasaki to come back and take over at any point, Sajin figured with how respected she is among the general Shinigami population they could resolve it anyway. From the sound of things she planned on setting up for the long-term in the Living World so it likely wouldn't rise as a problem, though that led him to other questions as well.

"I would of course be interested in maintaining some form of relationship with your group in the Living World then. It is more important than ever for Soul Society and the Living World to work in synchronicity, conflict with the Vandenreich or other Shinigami there is the last thing the Cycle needs right now. As well, I understand your motivations though it is difficult to know what those two may be up to. Urahara was always an enigma, but he appeared to want the best for the greater good. Kurosaki...I do not believe he can be brought from darkness he resides in. As I fought him, I vowed to kill him; I failed. But I believed, and still believe, he needed to die."