The Shinigami began as a Japanese importation of the western Grim Reaper and took off in various odd directions in Japanese pop culture since then. Sometimes Shinigami are fearsome monsters, sometimes they’re basically superheroes. There’s an urban legend that the Shirogane Tunnel in Tokyo is a gateway for Shinigami. Some have seen screaming faces in its pillars and spectral figures that can be seen only for a moment.

Also: I got the idea for this story when I saw that the Wikipedia article for “Bangsian fantasy” mentioned Bleach as an example.

Mmm. This story could benefit from a ‘Tomato’, Mind if I give it a try?

Interesting concept, could have been written with more emotion…

I wanted to go for a kind of noirish tone, so I had the emotion be understated.