The door opened. Water poured into the cask. From the flaming fires of the center of the prison, long, dark shadows crept along the walls. Shadows pressed inward.

"Be careful of him. Even with Mui's seal, he's a wild one," the guard remarked, looking into the cage.

The boy sat motionless in the corner of the room. The green eyes opened.

"Yeah, I know. But that's to be expected of a jinchūriki, right?" The guard smirked.

"They say he's killed many guards in this section."

"They say." The guard snorted. "Without sand, the only thing he can use is sealed off."

Gaara's eyes widened, taking in the faint light from above.

"Especially here, the deepest section of the Blood Prison." The guard clapped his hands together. "Okay, everybody! Curfew."

The iron-barred doors slammed shut. Prisoners screamed.

Gaara looked outward, his voice silent. His hands rubbed together as the iron bars pressed inward, pushed by the single impetus of the hands.

The screams echoed through the dungeon.

"Something like this is definitely needed to contain a jinchūriki." The first guard turned to the second. "But ultimately, at the moment he's an defanged tiger. We shouldn't need to be afraid of a raccoon dog with no teeth or fangs."

"That, combined with Mui's seal, will make sure that he never escapes." The second guard nodded in agreement.

Gaara folded his hands together.

Rebirth

The ancient office glimmered. Wood inscriptions depicted the images of various monks engaged in ascetic practice, from walking through flames to absorbed in study. On the corner of the desk rested a small photograph, depicting a vibrant youth with a glowing smile.

A tall, imperious man dipped his quill into the ink. He scrawled distantly along the page. His lips pursed momentarily.

The doors burst open. Splinters drove into the desk.

Raising an eyebrow, the man glanced upward.

The man in the black cloak walked inward. He rubbed his chin, his expression sour. One piece of his jaw hung slack. The dark green tongue lolled outward, blood seeping from the edge of the jaw. "Mui, I presume," he declared in a slurred voice. His hand fell to one side.

Mui's eyes narrowed. "Akatsuki?"

"You could say that. It doesn't particularly matter what you choose to believe about my allegiances. The more important thing is that you heed what I say." Mizuki stepped forward, his hand extended. "I've come to discuss the release of a certain prisoner. I believe his name was Gaara? If you don't mind, we'd like to see him freed. It's a formal request on our part."

"You have no authority here." Mui frowned.

"That is true. I do have authority over your life, though." Mizuki's arm lifted. His iron sword swung downward. A wave of pressure drove into the surface of the table.

Mui's eyes widened slightly.

Crashing waves of pressure drove into the ground. The table split into two pieces, the parchment splitting as the sword descended.

"My thanks to you, for meeting me in person." Mizuki smirked faintly. "No. To be thoroughly frank, I must thank you for something else, and that would be your attention to detail and not your meeting me. You see, if you were not so obsessed with that matter of keeping paperwork in order, I could never have caught you." Roughly, he seated himself in the chair of audience, his eyes momentarily downcast.

"That's incorrect. Rather than you thanking me, I should thank you." Mui's arm extended. "Heavenly Flame Prison!" A wave of flame energy blasted into Mizuki's body.

Mizuki snorted. "For what? Invading this place? That kind of attack may hurt, but it certainly won't kill me."

A latticework of lines opened along the skin.

Mizuki's eyes widened. "Hm?"

Waves of pressure spread from Mui's body. "I am the only one appointed to keep this dungeon free of riff-raff at Kage rank. All guards are jōnin level at best. Can you perhaps guess why this is?"

Mizuki's eyes narrowed. "You alone are capable of administrating this prison."

"That is correct. Using this Heavenly Fire Prison, I can command the chakra of all the prisoners that have been affected by my technique." Mui spread his arms wide. "Heavenly Fire Sword." Flames gathered around the hand. The sword rose in the air. "My power is of this level. I can command the power of all prisoners under this technique. In other words, an intruder such as yourself can be eliminated instantly!"

Mizuki's eyes narrowed.

The flame sword cut forward.

The iron sword rose in the air. A wave of sparks flew from the edge of the blade as the flame sword flew away.

Mui's eyes widened.

"In that case, your power and mine have similar types." Mizuki rose from his seat. His eyes narrowed. "The difference is in their origin. Presently I can't use any portion of your power. I imagine that will soon change."

"What kind of devil are you?!" Mui demanded, his eyes wide.

"God of death, shinigami." Mizuki bowed deeply, mocking. "At your service. As I said earlier, I hold authority over your life."

"I see." Mui lifted the flaming sword. His face grew serene and peaceful. He studied Mizuki with a distant, emotionless eye. "In that case, I am thankful. For I've wished to see something for a long time."

Mizuki's eyes narrowed. "Oh? And what would that be?"

"Whether or not it is possible for a shinigami, themselves, to die." Mui lifted the flaming sword, his eyes narrowing. "Under the blade of a heavenly enforcer."

Water poured downward through the roof.

"Interesting!" Mizuki grinned broadly. "Though you look so officious, in truth your nature is closer to that bastard fox!" He rushed forward rapidly.

Mui's eyes narrowed. "I'm hardly the same as any beast, thank you."

The pair lunged together, swords clashing.

Rebirth

Wind blew upward across the ground of the prison. The iron doors opened. Two guards lay in a pool of blood. Their eyes were wide and staring, and a cut rested around their necks.

The figure slipped through the bars, hands extended.

Gaara's eyes narrowed.

The air glimmered.

"I don't want to leave. You should go talk to someone else." Gaara's dark eyes grew redder.

The woman blinked. The black cloak blew in the wind. "Why's that, exactly?"

"The demon is presently contained. I've driven that spirit of sand into destruction. It can no longer kill people." Gaara closed his eyes. "But part of that relies on my meditation, and I need to stay focused. The world of this place depends on sadness. I need to keep it contained. Leave me be."

The woman's fingers extended. Inky black shadows twined around the pattern of marks across Gaara's chest.

Gaara's eyes widened in shock.

Shadow Puppeteer Technique! The woman smirked. Her fingers lifted.

Gaara spun in a circle, arms extended.

"If you won't call it out, then I've no objection." The woman smirked. Her black hair draped across the surface of her skin. "I merely need to force you to call upon the beast that dwells within you. Granted, even that we shouldn't need for much longer. At the least, your participation in it." Her hand rose.

Gaara's hand lifted, his eyes wide. Sand rushed up across the ground.

"Let's begin here, shall we?"

Gaara's arm shot forward. Waves of energy spread upward. Sand rushed upward through the sky.

The doors of the prison ripped open.

Gaara's eyes widened. What the hell is this technique?

"My partner and I are rather concerned by the circumstances." The woman lowered her fingers. "We have a time limit of about fifteen minutes, maybe less, to complete the mission we were assigned by those two. So under the circumstances, I cannot afford to have you lollygagging around killing again. We're going to need help."

The prisoners strode out of the cells.

"Ah, that's right." The woman spread her arms wide. Her voice rose in a bellow. "Prisoners of the Allied Nations! My name is Nara Shikamōto. I'm sure a few of you know that name. I'm offering all of you a chance to escape, and gain status again. My boss can offer all of you a second chance, escaping the life laid before you!"

The figures stumbled forward.

"Oi! Woman!" Frowning, Shikamōto stared to the very bottom layer of the cells. Her eyes narrowed. "Aren't you going to join us?"

A faint smile crossed the woman's delicate lips. "I'll stay here, thanks."

Shikamōto scowled. She studied the face steadily. She looks familiar, but she definitely wasn't one of the S-rank criminals the boss mentioned. Because of that, I'll leave her be for now. She turned her gaze to the rest. "At the moment, we've got a brief passage through the whirlpools. Fifteen, no, fourteen minutes at most. In that time-frame, I want everybody who's going across the bridge!"

The criminals rushed forward rapidly.

Rebirth

The office now lay in ruins. Smashed pieces of driftwood lay motionless on the ground.

The swords crashed together.

Water blasted through the cracks in the ceiling, spraying against a newly formed shield of earth in the shape of the dome of heaven.

This bastard. Mizuki's eyes narrowed. Why doesn't he just collapse? I'm running out of time to kill him!

That strength in his limbs. It isn't natural to a human being. Mui's eyes narrowed. I have clashed swords with many types of prisoners. His hand lifted. Balls of flame surrounded the hand. But this man is different. Perhaps he truly is a shinigami. If this is the case, I will need to be careful. Wind blew up across the ground. A more important question is how he reached the island.

The swords drove together again.

As well as that inexplicable ability to block the use of the Heavenly Fire Sword. Mui's eyes narrowed. Whatever his power comes from, it won't last forever. As well, whatever method was used likely won't last forever.

Mizuki's eyes narrowed. I remembered it. The Heavenly Fire Prison can only be destroyed by sea water. While this sword can't be damaged by anything lacking reiatsu either, it's still something I'll need to consider. In that case— The iron sword swung sideways.

The side of the wood wall cracked.

Mizuki gritted his teeth. However long it takes, eventually it must fall away! The iron sword lifted. Crash! Break! Destroy! Burn! Burn up in the sun and vanish away, hiding your face beneath the earth! The iron sword slashed downward.

Flames rose in the sky.

The flaming sword lifted.

Sea spray slammed against the wall. The wood grew damper.

What the hell? Mizuki gritted his teeth. It's so close! If it went a bit further, I could win!

"Your time is running out. However you reached this island, it is unlikely that you can escape it." Mui's eyes air glowed. Flames rose through the air. "A few drops of salt water won't stop me. Even if you managed to drench me, you would only prevent me from using Heavenly Fire Prison. Do you really think I could become a warden of Blood Prison with only the tools of my imprisonment technique available to me? Shinigami or no, your strength isn't in the same weight class even if we ignore the issue of that limitation."

Water poured downward from the ceiling.

"…" Mizuki's eyes narrowed.

"To be sure, the boat to the mainland has been cut off. The prisoners cannot escape. The world is now sealed. We have, in short, entered my territory, a space where I possess absolute mastery." Mui scowled. "You made a mistake in coming here."

"I need only defeat you to leave here." Mizuki panted. His injured body now accompanied the smashed jaw with the bloodied lines of the sword and the cut flesh of the hand.

The waves crashed against the rocks. Jagged drops of water drove into the ground.