It would be an extravagant hope for humans to always maintain their rationality.
This was a truth, but it was also nonsense. Or, at least, it was nonsense that was close to the truth.
What was different about all of this?
Of course there was. The most commonly acknowledged truths were basically common sense to everyone. For example, there was a difference between men and women, people would die if they were killed, the sun would rise in the east and set in the west … These were all truths, but they were also nonsense because everyone understood them. There was no need to say it out loud.
Was it an extravagant hope for humans to always maintain their rationality? Of course it was.
Anyone with emotions or emotions wouldn't dare to say that they would always be able to maintain their rationality.
But, it would be rather subtle if they were serious about it.
What did "rationality" mean?
Basically, rationality was the combination of reason and wisdom. It was the ability to discern things and make wise decisions. However, different people understood it differently.
And, the most authoritative way to determine whether a person was rational or not wasn't determined by another person, nor was it determined by a group of people or everyone. Rather, it was determined by the facts, or more accurately, the reality of the future.
That was the problem.
In many situations, it was impossible to predict the future with 100% accuracy. That was why it was impossible to determine whether a person was rational or not in the present. It was also impossible to determine whether a person's decision was rational or not.
All authoritative judgments about rationality or not would be made in the present by looking back at the past!
People in the present could lament how foolish and irrational people in the past were. But, no matter how much people learned from the past, it was impossible to determine whether people in the present were rational or not. That was because nobody could predict the future with 100% accuracy.
Humans couldn't always maintain their rationality. This was indeed a truth. But, depending on the time, place, and situation, this truth would become pure nonsense or even nonsense.
At any rate, rationality was precious. However, it was often difficult to determine whether humans were rational or not, just like Soul Society's current decision.
Sacrificing several thousand people in order to lock onto the Realm of Cherry Blossoms' current location … was it rational?
Just based on the number of people sacrificed, it could be said that it wasn't rational. But, considering that it could avoid even greater damage, it was indeed "rational".
Yui hated this type of "rationality", but she was unable to resist.
That was because she had to admit that this decision was "correct".
Sacrificing a few to protect the majority. This was how human order worked. Soul Society's decision was correct.
Being in a bad mood was a personal problem. She could only seal her emotions and do what she needed to do.
However …
"Is this true?" Seiji asked in a serious tone after telling Kamitani the information he obtained.
Yui found it difficult to answer.
He could only respond with silence.
His silence was a tacit agreement.
Seiji clearly understood and fell silent for a moment.
"Is there really no other way?" he asked again. "A way that won't kill anyone."
Yes.
If he didn't care about the price, he could sacrifice no one, but he couldn't.
Sometimes, the price was even heavier than sacrificing thousands of lives, because it could mean tens of thousands or even more lives in the future!
Yui didn't want to answer. But when she saw her younger brother's expression, she still spoke up.
"Yes, but it's not used."
As she spoke, she tried not to show any emotion.
"Because it will lead to greater losses, right?" Seiji's eyes flashed as he said.
"Yes," Yui answered. At the same time, a subtle feeling appeared in her heart.
She did not know where this subtle feeling came from. It was like déjà vu or something else.
"Let me guess what this' greater losses' are." Seiji looked directly at her. "It's something that Soul Society has determined that they can't afford to lose right now, such as a powerful divine artifact, right?"
Yui's eyes instantly widened in surprise.
"Kamitani told you that?" she asked.
"He didn't," Seiji stated calmly. "I have other information channels and some intuition, so I guessed it."
Other information channels? Could it be …
A certain national idol appeared in Yui's mind.
"Soul Society used this divine artifact to seal off the Realm of Cherry Blossoms, right? Rather than using this divine artifact excessively and damaging it or making it unusable for a long period of time, wouldn't it be 'cheaper' to sacrifice several thousand lives? "Seiji continued asking.
Although he was asking a question, he hit the nail on the head.
Yui nodded. "That's right."
"Which divine artifact is this powerful divine artifact?" Seiji asked.
"It's the Yasakani no Magatama," Yui answered directly.
Sakura Island's three powerful divine artifacts were known to all ordinary people. They were the Sword of Heavenly Darkness, the Yata no Kagami, and the Yasakani no Magatama. It went without saying that these three artifacts appeared frequently in all sorts of anime and manga.
In the spiritual world, these three artifacts were top-level spiritual artifacts. Currently, they were jointly guarded by the seven major families. This was one of the reasons why the seven major families were so powerful. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that these three divine artifacts were the crowns of Sakura Island's spiritual world! They were both symbolically and practically significant.
Whoever controlled these three divine artifacts would be able to rule the world … well, that wasn't to the extent of it.
But, if anyone truly had the ability to control all three divine artifacts that were jointly guarded by the seven major families, that person's power level would probably be at the level of the strongest in Sakura Island.
One divine artifact or several thousand ordinary people's lives. Which was more important? Many spiritual ability users would feel that this was a question that didn't even need to consider.
Soul Society's decision was "correct".
At least, that was how it seemed on the surface.
"If sacrificing several thousand lives can protect the Yasakani no Magatama, then perhaps it's worth it," Seiji continued speaking with a calm tone. "But, is that really the case?"
Yui blinked upon hearing this.
"What do you mean?"
"Are you certain that Soul Society's plan won't be stopped at all? Will the Messengers do nothing? "
"We've already made our preparations."
"Are you certain that your preparations are complete?"
"There's nothing that can be completely guaranteed."
"I know. I just want to know if Soul Society is confident in being able to stop the Messengers if they want to do something. Is there any guarantee that they can prevent the situation from becoming too terrible?" Seiji looked directly at Yui's face.
Yui had a subtle feeling that caused her to avert her gaze.
"You don't need to worry about such things."
"I don't want to meddle in other people's business either, but I have an ominous premonition." Seiji's tone became much deeper.
"Why exactly did Kamitani tell me such information? Is he indicating something, or is he trying to lure me into doing something?
I feel like he's plotting something. I might be a part of it, or I might just be a pointless distraction.
No matter what, I have an ominous premonition. "
"Sister Yui, are you certain that Soul Society didn't miss out on anything in their preparations? For example, something that they haven't thought of yet, or someone that they haven't thought of yet … "
Yui speedily reevaluated Soul Society's plan as she listened to Kamitani's words. All the relevant information, items, and people …
While it couldn't be said that Soul Society's plan was perfect, they should have done everything they could.
Unless …
The image of a boy with short orange-red hair, a pale face, red eyes, and dark circles under his eyes appeared in Yui's mind.
If it was him … If he was liberated …
Yui felt uneasy when she thought of this possibility.
It was quite unlikely, but … Kamitani … perhaps …
The more she thought about it, the more uneasy she felt.
Seiji quietly looked at Yui's face as a deep light flashed in his eyes.
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