Chapter 1: A New Soul, A New World

Asta's eyes snapped open. He gasped, sitting up quickly, his heart pounding in his chest—or at least, it should have been. But something felt... off.

"Wait... where am I?!" he blurted out, looking around.

Instead of the Clover Kingdom, he was in a dusty alley, surrounded by worn-down buildings. The air felt strange, lighter than he was used to. He patted his chest—no heartbeat. No warmth. Just a strange sense of existence.

"This isn't right… Did I die?!"

A shadow passed overhead. A boy, barely older than him, stood at the entrance of the alley, eyes wide. "You're new here, huh?"

Asta blinked. "Huh? What do you mean 'new'?!"

The boy smirked. "Welcome to Rukongai, dude. You're in the Soul Society now."

Asta tilted his head. "Soul Society...? What kinda weird name is that?"

The boy raised an eyebrow. "You really don't know anything, huh? Guess you just got here."

Asta stood up, dusting himself off. His body felt different—lighter, stronger. He flexed his arms and grinned. "Well, whatever! If this is some new place, I'll just figure things out!"

The boy chuckled. "You're weird. Name's Kaien. You?"

"Asta!" he said proudly, flashing his usual grin.

Kaien laughed. "Well, Asta, if you're gonna survive here, you better learn fast. Rukongai ain't exactly peaceful."

Asta cracked his knuckles, his grin widening. "Sounds like fun!"