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Hizamaru never thought he would regret wearing black this much in his entire life.The color swallowed up the stream of fresh blood gushing unrestrained from his brother's mouth, from the various injuries upon his body that rendered him barely able to function, lying limp and helpless in Hizamaru's arms. The dark garment hid the color of blood as though trying to mask Hizamaru's pain.Higekiri's breath grew ever more strained."Brother, you can't die like this." he said to Higekiri, "I have gone this far to protect you. Everyone has gone this far to protect you. Don't leave me alone. I don't know how I'll carry on without you." he could bite back his tears no longer, and freely they flowed, falling upon his brother's fair face, falling upon Hizamaru's own jacket, becoming one with the blood that soon turned invisible on the black fabric.Higekiri smiled, the familiar smile gracing his features as though he was sipping tea by the garden pond despite the incredible pain. Letting his sword form slip from his fingers, he reached up to gently cup his brother's cheek."No need to worry about me. Don't protect me. Protect Yorimitsu-sama." Higekiri gasped out, "What is the point of keeping me alive if history as well as the fate of all other swords are in danger? As long as Yorimitsu-sama and his powers don't fall into enemy hands and every touken danshi don't get wiped out of existence, I'm fine with not being able to return from this mission. That's what we're here for." he laughed weakly, "Leave me and keep fighting. Make me happy."Hizamaru wasn't given a chance to respond, because Yaobikuni and Kagura approached him, with Kohaku in its full form following suit. "We need to take Higekiri-san to safety." Yaobikuni told him, and he had no choice but to let go of his brother, letting her and Kagura help him onto the back of the giant fox."Will he live?" Hizamaru asked as soon as Kohaku left carrying his brother on its back."There is hope." she said, those three words finally offering Hizamaru a spark of solace, "But we have more urgent matters. More enemies are approaching, and Seimei-san's spells won't be able to hold them back for long." she continued, all while charging up her own energy, making her staff emit a light blue glow.Higekiri's words echoed in his ears. Make me happy.At that, Hizamaru stood up, sword form firmly in hand, a determined spark in his eyes. This is what we're here for, he thought. I will keep fighting. For Yorimitsu-sama. For history. For everyone. For you.
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"Is that what you think? I understand."All alone in the room, surrounded by nothing but scrolls and star maps, the boy sat by himself, softly talking to the armored warrior doll in his palms, carrying on a conversation even though there came no answer. The boy, Monjumaru, knew no one wanted to be near him because of this, not even his family's retainers, not even his brothers, not even his mother and stepmother who both called him "wicked little demon". Nobody but his father Mitsunaka and his friend Dōji believed him when he said his doll and whatever inanimate objects he talked to did answer him, that they had living, breathing souls within them that he could communicate with. To them, he was just a deranged boy talking to himself. To Mitsunaka, he had a gift. Monjumaru's father was nothing short of openly favored him, teaching him the arts of onmyōdō and granting him a room full of books, the very room he was sitting in and chatting with his doll. One too many times, the family's servants found the boy too carried away in conversation with bird eggs or rocks he forgot his meals. One too many times, he was found sleeping upon a bed of open scrolls. His father's reaction to everything, as expected, was hearty laughter and patting his back, while everyone else had all the more reasons to look at him with disgust every time they saw him.On the one hand, Monjumaru appreciated his father's granting him love and being by his side. On the other, he felt sorry that Mitsunaka too was soon labeled "freak" along with him. But, it couldn't be helped.Monjumaru was in the midst of telling a lengthy story to his doll when he was interrupted by the door to his study being rudely slid open. Feet stomped towards him, and a warrior doll – more accurately, two parts of a warrior doll, the head completely severed from the body – was unceremoniously dropped to the floor right before his eyes."Kabutomaru! I was looking for you! How did you become like this?" Monjumaru cried before looking up at the person dropping the dismembered doll – his younger half-brother, "Fugenmaru! How dare you…""You're gonna cry over a piece of wood? Seriously, you still haven't changed at all, have you, ani-ue?" Fugenmaru chuckled contemptuously, fingers pressing his brother's forehead in a mocking gesture that made Monjumaru's blood boil."Keep your hand and your nonsense to yourself." Monjumaru breathed through clenched teeth, "Do you think you can just kill my best general and get away with it? I'll make sure you'll pay for what you've done to Kabutomaru!""And how exactly?" Fugenmaru said, showing no signs of backing down, "You're not as good with the way of the sword as I am. You've never won a single duel against me. You think you can make me pay for what I've done to that little piece of wood? Don't make me laugh." he reached for a scroll upon one of the many stacks of them, all while taunting, "I have the skills of a warrior, and what do you have? Just a bunch of scribbled paper and drawings!" he unwound the scroll and, with the dagger he used to behead his brother's doll, stabbed and cut a long line along the paper, "Why do I have to live under the same roof as a freak? Why do I have to live with this utter disgrace to the Minamoto clan?""Fugenmaru, you insolent bastard!" that was the last straw for Monjumaru, and he raised his voice, "That is chichi-ue's most treasured encyclopedia! You just wait, Fugenmaru. Soon, you will regret committing such reprehensible actions! I will take revenge!""Like, welcome to Fujinomiya, I guess." Nansen gave what could be called the indifferent greeting to end all indifferent greetings to the blond sword in a white suit before him. Said sword, Higekiri, neither minded the chilly reception nor his limbs' being weighed down by Hizamaru clinging to him (finally anija came home I miss you so much) and Imanotsurugi also clinging to him (finally the Genji family is all together let's play). "Y'see, this is your new home. We got all kinds of stuff – horse stables, outdoor bath, garden and fields. You'll share room with your little brother. Your mission is heading to the past to fight the bad guys trying to screw up history. Now, all three of you follow me to our master's room, we have urgent business.""What kind of welcoming is that?" Hizamaru complained, still not letting go of his brother, "You're not gonna show my brother around? You're not letting him spend a few minutes with me at least? How rude!""Yeah, why don't you at least let Higekiri-san play with us for a bit?" Imanotsurugi chimed in, "Is it really that urgent?""Master requested that I summon all Minamoto swords ASAP. They say that it's a serious mission involving the Minamoto clan." Nansen explained before leaning in extra close to whisper to Higekiri, "Fun fact, our current master is a distant descendant of the Minamoto clan. Even if they seem to favor you guys this time, keep in mind that I am their second-in-command. You'll never rise above me."With that, Nansen dragged the trio away.Awaiting the four of them in the darkness-filled saniwa's room were the other two Minamoto swords, Iwatōshi and Shishiō. Before them, facing the six of them with their back, there their master was, who began in a hoarse voice, "Ah, Higekiri-kun. It's a pleasure to finally have you here with us.""You're welcome. It's a pleasure to meet you." Higekiri answered, sitting down along with the others. He couldn't help but feel somewhat distrustful towards Nansen's earlier words upon seeing the enigmatic figure whom he called their master. Is this person really related to the family I served all those years?"I have summoned you all here today to make an important announcement." the saniwa went on, "The government has asked me to have a look at suspicious activity taking place in the mid-Heian period. It seems, this time, our enemies are targeting the Minamoto clan, specifically the famed onmyōji Minamoto no Yorimitsu.""So all we have to do is not let them lay a finger upon Yorimitsu, right? That should be a piece of cake!" Iwatōshi said, his loud voice reverbrating throughout the narrow room."Do not interrupt me, Iwatōshi-kun." the saniwa raised their voice, "This time, it's not as simple as that. Because," they paused for a short while before continuing, "not only is the outcome of history dependent on its success, so is the existence of all of you, of the touken danshi. Fail and you all shall vanish from all planes of existence."It was as if lightning struck down on the swords the moment their master finished."We will all disappear?" Imanotsurugi said, clinging to Iwatōshi's arm."It's a little known secret, but Yorimitsu is the first in history to ever bring the closest to a touken danshi into this world. It's safe to say that he was the first saniwa, and I, a distant descendant of the Minamoto, have inherited the power. Because of this, it's speculated that the Revisionists plan to convert Yorimitsu to their side, therefore gaining a powerful ally and rendering anyone having inherited the power throughout the span of history ones of theirs. I too will turn evil if they're left to do as they please. Since Yorimitsu is such a valuable target to them, they will very likely go all-out on this. This will not be an easy mission. I wanted to break the news to the Minamoto swords first, but just the five of you will not cut it. I'll send three teams of the most powerful fighters in the Citadel – whose list I'll give you right now." that said, Konnosuke hopped out, holding a folded sheet of paper in its mouth.Nansen took the sheet of paper and spread it out on the floor. He took out a tiny flashlight he kept in his pocket and turned it on, allowing everyone else to have a look at the list.
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"I'm sorry, haha-ue." Monjumaru apologized between pants, his short silver hair and his kimono a complete mess. The room he and his mother were in was no better – the little raccoon demon in his arms had thoroughly trashed the place before the boy could take hold of it, leaving fallen curtains, torn wallscrolls and toppled lamp stands in its wake, among other things. Unfortunately, it seemed no amount of apologetic attitude would please his mother, who was only short of going on a full-on rampage."You vile, twisted little monster!" his mother yelled, "Where did you get that disgusting creature? Why did you have to unleash that evil being on me? You horrible scum from hell!""This is my shikigami. I haven't quite trained it properly. I will make sure it behaves, I promise!" Monjumaru's said, but his words were drowned out by his mother's screaming. He was too paralyzed in fear, he couldn't move even as she grabbed him by the collar and was about to slap him. That was, until a servant arrived just in time to stop her and he used the opportunity to sneak away.Monjumaru was glad that he finally summoned his first shikigami, small and unimpressive though the raccoon demon might be. But again, it also opened a whole new realm of problems for the young onmyōji in training. As he reached a painful conclusion after several more succesful summoning attempts that brought him even more annoying creatures that landed him in hot water ever more frequently, at one point even getting him locked up inside an empty room and not getting any food for a whole day, his shikigami didn't like him. No matter whether he tried acting more commanding towards his summons, like his father advised, or more friendly, like Dōji suggested, he just couldn't get them to listen to a single word he said, let alone have them swear eternal service the moment they appeared before him like either of them did. Was it because he lacked charisma? Was it because he didn't look good enough? Whatever the cause, soon once again Monjumaru was down in the dumps.They weren't like the dolls, the eggs and the rocks he talked to alone in his study – the souls that actually befriended him, stayed by his side and never caused trouble. If only he had a shikigami that could walk and run, yet possessing the kind souls of the various inanimate objects he had…"What have we here?" he heard the all too familiar mocking voice of his younger half-brother coming from behind him when the tiny frog demon he summoned in the garden spat at his feet as soon as it materialized and hopped away, "Even demon freaks supposedly serving the demon freak hate his guts. Ani-ue really is a helpless case.""Shut your mouth, Fugenmaru!" Monjumaru growled."Get out of my way, bastards!" Hiromasa shouted, cursing his luck for making him take care of yet another band of waylaying strangers instead of just letting him go hunt in peace. Halting his horse, he swiftly drew an arrow and fired directly at one of the strangers' throat, what he hoped would be a brutally quick death within milliseconds of the musical twang of the bowstring that taught the rest to not mess with Minamoto no Hiromasa and back down if they valued their lives. Unfortunately, these strangers, these ominous monstrous creatures engulfed in green and purple flames, were no ordinary strangers, be it human robbers or man-eating yōkai. The poor arrow soon found itself firmly caught in the large, bulky hand of its target and snapped in two within the blink of an eye."Damn it!" Hiromasa cursed, realizing his arrows had become useless as the creatures got closer. He had no choice but to reach for his sword… and he found a yari pointed at his face quicker than he could touch the hilt. Curses under his breath, he could do nothing but glare at the creature pointing its weapon at him, shiver at the dark aura emanating from its body, from the blade just a hair's breadth away from penetrating his skull."Are you not one of the Minamoto family? An onmyōji, no less." it said, "I can sense the power from you. Too bad it's not powerful enough." it then glared at one of the fellow creatures, "This is not the one we're looking for! You useless garbage!""But isn't he a Minamoto? See, he even has the power!" the other one said, cowering from the glare."I do not want to hear anything else from you, good-for-nothing scum!" the leader growled, and with one quick gesture of its head, the other one's head immediately tumbled from its shoulder under another creature's blade. A second later, both the head and the dismembered body vanished, leaving a blade with its tip broken off in their place. "We will continue our search again, but" the leader turned to Hiromasa and said to him, "that doesn't mean we'll let you go."At that, a cold and brutal pain struck Hiromasa's shoulder from behind – a purple-flame-covered naginata blade drove a particularly deep cut into his flesh that made Hiromasa draw blood from his lower lip biting it to keep from shouting. He felt as though his brain fried and his veins burned from the strike. The wound didn't bleed; all that came out from the fresh gash upon his shoulder was purple smoke, much like the ones enveloping the band of monstrous creatures that instantly vanished from his sight without a trace.
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That day, one year before Monjumaru reached fifteen years of age, Mitsunaka took him into one of the clan's armories. It was as though a different world rested behind the closely-guarded gate, an impressive collection of armors and weapons that at once fascinated and intimidated the boy. Mitsunaka couldn't help but notice that his son was uncharacteristically giddy that day, though he didn't ask any questions. The boy was constantly toying with the metal plates of the armors and plucking at the bowstrings, at one point hiding so well, making Mitsunaka think he had disappeared, only to jump out from behind a chest wearing a clearly oversized helmet. "Do not play around in a place like this. Surely you don't want to get yourself killed, do you?" Mitsunaka said, clearly unamused from his son's prank. He took the helmet off of a still grinning Monjumaru before showing him the swords.Few words could describe the utter awe that hit Monjumaru the second he laid his eyes upon the multitude of blades, short and long, that dominated a large corner of the armory. It was not just because of the look of the metal or the patterns at the edges. It was not just because of his father's going on to say that he would soon be able to wield one of them. Monjumaru could feel that distinct sensation that his finely-tuned senses were too familiar with. Souls. Yet, this time, he couldn't just feel the spirit within every blade. These spirits were especially powerful, he swore he saw them dancing before his eyes, he heard them calling out for him. One of them in particular, the one residing within the wakizashi blade that his father was holding."Deadly weapons, yet also beautiful works of art. The smiths have poured their hearts and souls into every single blade they have created." Mitsunaka continued, oblivious to what his son was experiencing.Tempted, Monjumaru reached out his hand towards the blade in his father's hands, towards the beckoning spirit.The spirit took it.You are the one, he heard its voice. Do whatever it takes, bring me to life."Monjumaru! Where are you going?" Mitsunaka raised his voice as his son instantly grabbed the blade in his hand and made a beeline for the gate.That night, one of the servants first saw an eerie blue glow emanating from inside Monjumaru's study, then the boy's voice chanting in a strange language, and finally a burst of red that filled the entire corridor with a bloody hue. The servant was too terrified from the sight to tell anyone else the following day."Quit your inelegant scowling. This is a captain's order." Kasen nagged again, at which Izuminokami groaned. "The famed onmyōji Abe no Seimei is kind enough to let us stay at his home, so couldn't you at least show gratitude? Friendly reminder, I have about a dozen onions in my arsenal that can and will be down your throat any moment now if this behavior continues.""Yeah, whatever the hell you say, Captain." Izuminokami spat, partly because of his brother's at that point flat-out boring threats and partly because of the constant itches his Heian clothes were giving him. Shishiō sitting opposite them burst into laughter at that.Fuck my shitty luck. Fuck this mission. Fuck this period. Those were the thoughts boiling in Izuminokami's mind along with barely apparent rage. He wondered whether his master was deliberately screwing with him when they chose him of all swords to be part of the mission, despite his and his brother's making it very clear that he wanted nothing to do with this period ever again. If that wasn't bad enough, his team was assigned to station outside of the capital city, where anyone can get lost at any time, despite Izuminokami's embarrassing history of doing just that, getting his ass kicked around by a ton of yōkai along the way. As if to complete the shitty luck parade, the team encountered pouring rain as soon as their feet touched the ground, and naturally everyone ended up drenched and shivering. Luckily, they managed to find refuge, but even that ended with Izuminokami, as well as the whole team, having to dress in ridiculously hard-to-wear Heian clothing which he deemed "sack-like" in place of their wet clothes. He had no choice but to groan inwardly as Kiyomitsu and Yasusada giggled about their "cute" new clothes behind him, his brother kept nagging next to him and Shishiō barely hid his amusement in front of him.Little did he know, there was a crisis in Seimei's household deliberately hidden from his team in order not to trouble them any more than necessary. Even as Seimei welcomed the party to temporarily stay at his home, he didn't mention that a grievously injured Hiromasa was still struggling with a strange purple-smoke-emanating wound that refused to heal no matter how potent or how much medication Yaobikuni had applied to relieve it.This unrecognizable energy is beyond anyone's power to cleanse, even Seimei-san's, even mine. She thought, as yet another bandage over the cut was reduced to ashes again. No, this can't be hopeless. There must be a way to heal.The treatment continued and failed in secret, away from the knowledge of the travelers. That was, until the secrecy was immediately and brutally shattered to pieces when Yagen walked into the room by mistake, getting both Hiromasa and Yaobikuni in surprise."Brat, get out." Hiromasa said, his voice then interrupted with a low groan from his flesh still pulsing with pain, "You have no business here.""Hiromasa-san." Yaobikuni gently reminded him to keep quiet. She then said to Yagen, "What is it that you need? Do you need me to help you with anything?""You look like you need help, though." Yagen replied seeing the gaping wound upon Hiromasa's shoulder, forgetting what he was originally doing. "That injury looks like serious stuff."Realizing they could no longer keep this a secret, Yaobikuni sighed, "I'm afraid there's nothing you can do to help us. This is not an ordinary injury. He has been infected with a strange kind of malicious energy beyond my knowledge, that no medicine or healing technique I have learned in my entire life seems to be able to heal. I appreciate your concern, but…"Yagen was speechless. That purple smoke. No mistake, this is the scent of the enemy, he thought. But how did they? I've never seen them inflicting this kind of injury before.
But why?
"Looks like this really is beyond my capabilities." Yagen said, "But since you have been kind to us, I think we should do whatever we can to help you."Yaobikuni sighed again."If you insist, I suppose there is something you can do to help. However, it is highly risky." she said, "It may compromise Hiromasa-san's safety, but in order to make any progress, I have no other choice. Since none of my known methods work, I will have to try and discover a new one. I will have to experiment on Hiromasa-san. But in order to do that," she paused, handing Yagen a sheet of paper before continuing, "I would appreciate if you could find these ingredients."
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"You know, ani-ue." Fugenmaru whispered low in an attempt to be intimidating, standing closer to his half-brother than necessary, "I can put up with freaks. I've been living under the roof as one. However, people have limits. There is also a limit as to how much I can stand an utter freak in my house."Monjumaru only gave him a blank look."Don't give me that face, damn it!" the intimidation attempt was promptly tossed away as he started yelling and trying to grab Monjumaru by the collar to no avail. His taller and more sturdy build refused to budge. "Stop pretending the entire disaster last night wasn't your fault! Come on, wasn't it you who casted your wicked spells on me in my sleep, making me wander around the courtyard wearing nothing but my loincloth? It was your doing, I know it!""The world of dreams is beyond my capabilities." Monjumaru calmly explained, "I can't make dreams happen. I can't make people do things in their sleep. Whatever happened last night was the fault of the gods. Don't blame me.""Just shut the hell up!" Fugenmaru yelled even louder, his older brother's words having gone into one ear and out the other, "You think I'll believe your lies? Aren't you so hell-bent on getting 'revenge' on me all because of your stupid dolls? If you weren't the one trying to embarrass me, then who else? You and your wicked spells!" that said, he drew his dagger from within his kimono, "Why am I the servants' laughingstock while it was your doing? Why did chichi-ue reprimand me for 'reckless and shameful behavior' when it was your doing? Why do I have to have a monster for a brother? Why does chichi-ue treat a monster like he's a gift from the gods? Why?" he cried and charged at his brother, "Die!"An action that Fugenmaru soon deeply regretted.The one injured wasn't Monjumaru, much to his utter pain. A sudden, sharp coldness struck him in the stomach before he could cry out, leaving him with such excruciating pain he couldn't stand on his feet. He collapsed to his knees, blood soaking a large patch on the side of his garment.It was then that he realized Monjumaru was no longer the only one standing before him. Between them stood a seemingly half-human, half-raccoon creature looking enraged, brandishing a wakizashi stained with fresh blood gleaming under the daylight.Fugenmaru gasped. Within one of the creature's eyes glowed none other than the crest of the Minamoto."I believe I already made myself clear that I can't manipulate dreams. I'll show you what I can do." Monjumaru said, utter calmness in the face of the horrific assault that took place right before his eyes, "I can bring out the spirit within inanimate objects and place them inside living bodies, granting them life. It is the spirit of that wakizashi that is now residing within the body of my racoon shikigami, whose memories I have sealed away. Now, since I have brought the sword to life, it will be loyal to me and protect me. This is my revenge." he stepped forward, still speaking in an eerily calm tone, "So, if you should ever decide to murder my generals, blame me for things I didn't do or spit on our father, you know what to expect."None of the three noticed that they weren't the only one hearing the conversation. Away from their scuffle, Mitsunaka witnessed everything, and the closest to accurate word one could use to describe his expression then was horrified.If Hasebe had a coin for every time he had to yell at his team that they had to remain stealthy in order to not betray their identity, he would have enough to buy two luxury apartments in downtown Tokyo. Eventually, he gave up; Heian-kyō was a rediscovered long-lost childhood memory to Iwatōshi and Imanotsurugi, and a big theme park to everyone else. He already had to keep from exploding explaining to Namazuo that no, there were no shaved ice stalls anywhere, that the city wasn't a festival and that they were on a mission, not a field trip. That was, until he felt Ishikirimaru's hand upon his shoulder."Let them enjoy themselves." he said, watching Namazuo and Honebami run off into the bustling street after his two fellow Sanjō, "Why not let them have a moment of fun or two before the battles to come? I suppose you too need a little fun once in a while. You've never seen what the Heian period is like, have you? Why not use the opportunity to explore to your heart's content before we inevitably face the enemy?""You shut up!" Hasebe shouted, which only earned a laugh from Ishikirimaru.The latter didn't mention that he too would have joined their merry teammates had his heightened senses not noticed a strong current of malicious energy swirling about the place, among the crowded street, between the lanterns and the occasional bushes, seeping into the air from the gaps between stone tiles, dancing right before the eyes of his companions without their being able to notice.
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"That was the extent of Yorimitsu's power." the saniwa explained to a clearly amazed Konnosuke, "He could communicate with and bring out spirits within inanimate objects. However, his powers were incomplete." they continued, "He couldn't manifest corporeal bodies for the spirits, so he had to implant them into living hosts. For this, he sealed away the host's memory and fused the object's spirit with their own, a technique called the 'blood pact'." as they went on, seemingly forgetting that they were neither giving a presentation at Shizuoka University nor discussing with their research team, they took some documents from one of the shelves and laid them out on the floor, all of them filled with such confusing handwriting and equally confusing diagrams Konnosuke wondered to itself how the saniwa could read them, "The host would retain their personality, but not their memory; they would end up believing they were the personification of the object from the beginning. If the host dies, the spirit will leave the body and return to its initial state. If the pact spell is severed, the host will also die. By successfully using this technique to create 'personifications' of weapons, Yorimitsu essentially became the first ever saniwa in history. His powers were passed down the Minamoto line and evolved over time into the power that I hold now.""Oh, so that's how it is. I know about Yorimitsu, but never knew any of this." Konnosuke nodded, commenting, "Now that's our Professor Shiraha; you really are an expert in this sort of thing!""I said, stop calling me Professor. I'm not at university." was the only reply, voice obviously flattered despite their words.A moment of silence disrupted by quiet rustling of paper as Konnosuke examined the documents more closely despite not being able to decipher a single thing. Then it suddenly turned to say to its master, "I have a question.""What is it?""What if the memory seal is broken but the pact isn't? What will happen?"At this, Shiraha scratched their chin for a while before coming to the inevitable answer, "I have no idea.""Leave right this instant." the words coming from the mouth of the Minamoto clansman hit the six swords like a barrage of punches to the face. "Yorimitsu is no longer part of the Minamoto estate. Wherever he is, he's dead to us. Now it is I, Yorichika, who is the head of the Minamoto clan. Don't remind me of my brother anymore."Hizamaru never thought the day would come when he had to resist the urge to slap a member of the clan he was proud to have served across the face. He nearly did just that until Mikazuki and Nikkari restrained him. "Oi, calm down, Captain." Nikkari whispered into his ear, "Friendly reminder, he's one of the people we're supposed to protect."At that, Hizamaru had to back down, though not without much grumbling under his breath. "We have been sent to protect his safety." Higekiri said, unfazed by Yorichika's harsh words, which prompted a series of damn it anija don't betray our identity between Hizamaru's grumbles, "If he has gone missing, it is our mission to find him. Let us help you.""And who exactly ordered you to do so? The Emperor? Kami? I don't even know who you are. I don't even know what you have to do with us. Take another step and you'll all be in the deepest layer of Hell…"A sword was pointed at his face before he could take another breath."Too slow." said the one holding said sword – Hizamaru. He was truly enraged, Mikazuki and Nikkari knew, and one shouldn't try to hold him back anymore if they valued their life, "Listen up. You won't stand a chance against us, so shut up, cooperate with us and grow some responsibility towards your own family, then we will spare you."Yorichika didn't answer. That was, until Hizamaru gestured with his eyes and five swords had been drawn – Higekiri didn't join in – and pointed at him from every direction, Hizamaru opposite him, Mikazuki and Nikkari on either sides and Tsurumaru and Juzumaru behind him."Now, are you going to help us or not?"Yorichika finally caved in.
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Even if he were to be eternally damned to the most wretched corner of hell, never would Onigiri forget what that vile human had done to him.
I, shackled to the soul of a piece of steel!
He couldn't stand the thought that that evil monster of a man was still alive despite their bloody encounter. He was determined to hunt down the Minamoto bastard to the end of the world. He was determined to kill him, sever his head and drink his blood, no matter how many times. The longer that bastard was alive, the stronger his thirst for revenge.At first, that was."There's no use seeking revenge anymore. Just give up." Ibaraki-dōji told him, "Lest you forget, it's thanks to that man and his power that you're still alive. One wrong move and he'll end the spell, and you'll revert to no more than a strip of metal before your blade can even touch his skin. And don't think my arm can save your ass again – it only works once. Besides, what more do you want? That man has gone missing without a trace. No one will remember him. He'll die alone without anyone to carry on his powers. That alone is the sweetest revenge we could ever have."Ibaraki-dōji's words alone weren't what swayed Onigiri's resolve. Despicable though that man was, there was no denying that Onigiri really was precious to him. There was no way to erase memories of his love and pride for the Genji treasure, etched deeper in his heart than the Genji crest was in his eye.Painful as it was, he made his decision – to accept permanently bearing the spirit of the treasure sword as long as he was alive. To treat their past together as no more than a long, turbulent nightmare. To forgive Yorimitsu.That was why these monstrous creatures in green and purple flames ambushing him with their demanding him to tell where Yorimitsu was irritated him to no end. "I already told you, do not bring up my old master again! This is your last warning!" he cried, flicking away the dark blood upon his blade as one of the creatures fell in two cleanly-sliced halves, "Who are you, and what do you want from me?""No need to worry. We plan to neither hurt you nor your beloved former lord." said the leader of the band of strangers, "We only wish to have him as an ally of sorts. Just give us a clue as to where your lord is, and we'll not bother you any longer.""I neither know who you are or what you plan to do with him, but that man's whereabouts are no longer any of my concern. I don't have the information you need. Leave me right this instant." replied Onigiri, tightening his grip upon his sword, "Or do you wish me to tell you that the hard way?""Such a shame." said the leader before the entire band of monstrous creatures all vanished into thin air right before Onigiri's eyes, "We're only trying to help you."Izuminokami could never understand why he needed to come along on the ingredient-gathering.Yagen couldn't decipher a word on the ingredient list because it was both written in full kanji, uncommon for women of the time, as well as in an incredibly unreadable handwriting, making Kasen, well-versed in old language, have to tag along to translate. That he could understand. Bringing him on this nearly torturous walk through the mountain area, subjecting him to insect bites after scratches and all-around exhaustion while he had neither medical nor linguistic knowledge to be of any help, he could not."Are you going to hurry up, or do I have to give you the onion treatment?" Kasen called, making him groan."Whatever!" he spat, quietly nursing the spot on his cheek where a tree branch had hit him once again.It eventually get to the point where he could no longer catch sight of the other two. "Oh isn't this just fucking great. Nosada! Tōshirō! Where the hell are you? Have you forgotten me already?" he yelled only to be replied with echoes of his own voice. He cursed again; there he was, stranded in the middle of nowhere with no possible way to escape except being eaten by a wild predator.Then he heard strange noises from behind him."Well well well, what have we here? Is that a human I'm seeing?" a breathy whispering voice nearly made Izuminokami call out until he realized it sounded neither like Kasen's or Yagen's."That's no human. That man's energy is different. It's neither human nor us demons." another voice chimed in, "What on earth is this man? I'm curious.""Have you forgotten our goal already? Why is what that man is any of our concern? We should only concern ourselves with humans and how to wipe those despicable bastards off the face of this world."That was the only extent of the conversation that Izuminokami managed to hear before Kasen and Yagen came back for him and the voices vanished. "Thank gods you're alright." Yagen said, "We've found the last ingredient. It's time to head back."Alright my ass. "Guys, I heard something." said Izuminokami, "Some guys were saying they want to kill all humans…"His voice was immediately muffled by a large onion shoved into his mouth."That should put an end to your hallucinations." Kasen said dryly, and the three set off on their way back to Seimei's household.
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"You cannot do this. I forbid you." said Hōōka, despite knowing nothing she did would change Aoandon's mind, "I will not let you leave this forest. Take one more step and I'll…"It didn't take even a second before she was struck down by a blue blast of energy, the kind she had never known Aoandon was able to produce. It was just one flash of burning heat, but what a flash it was – within that split second, surrounded by blue flames, she felt as though trapped within blazing hellfire without hope of getting out, as the raging heat seared every inch of her flesh. Utter disbelief didn't even begin to describe what was going through her mind. It was just fire. What she, the phoenix fire, should be immune to. And yet…"I'm sorry." Aoandon said, maneuvering her cane so she faced away from Hōōka, "I didn't mean to hurt you, but be warned that my powers have greatly increased thanks to the Dark Heralds. If you insist on stopping me, I have no choice."
Dark Heralds? Are they the monsters wrapped in ominous flames that I encountered in this forest not so long ago? The ones who insisted they wanted to help me?
"You are insane." Hōōka responded as she tried to stand up again, "What is the purpose of this? Why are you allying yourself with those dark creatures? Is it just because they granted you more power? Why do you believe them so easily?"At this, Aoandon turned around once again and floated closer so she could look Hōōka straight in the eyes. "I thought you already know why. It is for the good of our kind, the demons." she slowed, "We are always living with the fear of humans killing us, using us and finally wiping us out of existence. I want this to go on no more. I will wipe out humans."Hōōka couldn't believe her ears anymore."Why?" was all she could let out."Have you forgotten how I came to be the way I am in the first place? Humans have no compassion towards their own kind, let alone other kinds. I have always longed to make them pay for their sins upon me as well as others. Now is the perfect chance."With that, she flew away, leaving behind a bewildered Hōōka.Hasebe was pretty sure his team had become the talk of the city, and not in a good way.Looking for a mere roof over their heads had never been so hard, with already five inns refusing them service. That alone was infuriating enough, but what really made Hasebe inches away from completely exploding was the reason – Ishikirimaru's refusing to stop insisting to the owners that their inns were infested with dark energy. In return, the owners stayed firm in their belief that the Yamata-no-orochi was defeated and dark energy was no more. It went without saying that it resulted in five heated arguments followed by the team's being shown the door five times in succession. "Great job, now pretty much the entire city thinks us some sort of freaks." Hasebe grumbles to Ishikirimaru as he lifted the noren to what he would describe as more a wooden box than an inn."The malicious energy here is stronger than the last five combined." Ishikirimaru said, which annoyed Hasebe even more."I don't care. What about our energy that is better spent battling enemies than concerning ourselves with these matters? You better keep your mouth shut this time if you don't want to sleep on the streets.""This is the enemy. The current of malicious energy of demonic origin is laced with a strong presence of no one other than our enemy. I'm telling you, there must be something very off." Ishikirimaru argued even as the six of them were already inside and within earshot of the inn's owner.But much to their surprise, the owner had no comment about Ishikirimaru's words and welcomed them to stay in the only room there was. "Forgive me for the inconvenience, this is all I have." said the owner, a stick of a person draped in rags for clothes, "But I'll make sure to make up for it as much as I can."To the swords, the owner was just desperate for guests in order to make ends meet. Little did they know that what Ishikirimaru said didn't escape the owner's ears and that there was a surprise awaiting them in the tiny room in the back.
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Knowing Susabi, Miketsu still couldn't help but notice his acting unusually restless that day.Marrying him and living with him for all that time, she was no stranger to the nightmares he had of his painful past. This time however, he was restless from the moment he rose to the hour the moon casted its silvery light upon all creation, yet he still didn't let her in on what was going through his mind, replying to every single of his wife's concerns with everything is normal, do not worry about me. So much so, Miketsu had no choice but to gently cup his face and look into his eyes, saying to him in the softest voice."Susabi-sama, I apologize, but please tell me the truth." she said, "Something tells me everything is not normal. Please don't be afraid and let me know everything. I will do everything in my power to help you."The sincere look in her ruby eyes told him that there was no way he could back out anymore. Gently prying her hand off of his face, he sighed, "The great serpent may have met his downfall, but this is still not the end. Other, greater forces of evil are threatening to once again throw the world into chaos, and humanity will once again need my aid to defeat them.""If that's the case, then I too will aid you. I'll do whatever it takes to defeat evil." Miketsu replied, determination clear in her voice, in her eyes, causing her husband to sigh once again."But that's not what I'm concerned about." he interrupted her, "There will be a great act of disrupting the laws of nature – and it will be committed by me.""Lecture me about the importance of being responsible towards my own family all you want, but I still refuse to call that man my brother. No one in the entire clan wants anything to do with him anymore. He is a disgrace to the Genji." Yorichika said loudly even as he lead the party into the Minamoto estate – at swordpoint by a scowling Hizamaru. "That freak and all his showing off his onmyōji powers only to be stabbed by his own puny shikigami! It's only fair that he disappears without a trace. May he die alone without anyone to tend to his grave. I will restore our glory that he had singlehandedly thrown down the drain!"That was the last straw for Hizamaru. He decided to abandon all subtlety, thrust forward and stab Yorichika outright… until he was stopped by Higekiri, who acted quicker than he could blink, pointing his own sword form at Yorichika's neck, the tip millimeters away from touching his skin, earning from him an audible gulp."Nobody angers my brother twice and gets away with it, Genji or no." said Higekiri menacingly, "You promised to cooperate with us. Don't worry, you don't have to provide the details. Just give us a clue as to where your brother is. Otherwise…"Yorichika could do nothing other than stare at the blade poised at his neck. This blade… could it be? No mistake, this is the sword that slays all monsters. But how did it…? And this guy doesn't even look the same as that shikigami! But whatever happened, there is no messing around with this blade. I'm damned, am I?
But I've already promised the Dark Heralds… Looks like I need to think of another strategy.
"I don't even remember the last time I saw him." Yorichika said weakly, eyes darting back and forth, "But I think it is best if you stayed in the estate while I try to find clues as to his whereabouts."A moment of tense silence followed before Hizamaru and Higekiri sheathed their swords form at last, allowing Yorichika to heave an inward sigh.
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Yorimitsu had brought this on himself, and he full well knew it.Demonkind loathed him. Humankind despised him. His clan wanted nothing to do with him. His shikigami wanted to kill him. He had become the most hated man in the whole of Kinki, if not the entire Japan, and he had no one to blame but himself.But the truth remained that no human but him were aware of the new danger looming over humanity, a danger far greater than what Yamata-no-orochi posed. And yet, he was alone without a single soul at his aid, unable to raise an army against this threat. He knew no one would listen to him after all that he'd done. And so, deep inside a mountain cave hidden from the sight of the usual traveler, inside an impenetrable kekkai that granted him invisibility from outsiders, Yorimitsu trained himself, strengthened his powers for one single purpose.To face the threat alone.Hizamaru knew that missions should always come first, especially ones that determined the fate of his kind. Yet, he couldn't help feeling bummed at the amount of time he and his brother were allowed to have to spend with one another before both of them were sent on this mission. Anija barely spent five minutes at the Citadel, and yet…Nobody angers my brother twice and gets away with it.Surprise would be too light a word to describe Hizamaru's reaction at that one gesture, at the words Higekiri said. He was left speechless, unable to say, to do anything but inwardly utter one word.
Anija…
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The Kanesada brothers and Yagen returned to Seimei's household to an unexpected sight, and not a welcoming one.Immediately Izuminokami was greeted by an arrow narrowly missing his face the second he stepped into the courtyard. He never had time to gasp, the other two never had time to ask what was going on before a rain of arrows in their direction followed, planting themselves on the ground all around them, landing several tears on their clothes, severing several strands of Izuminokami's long hair. "What the hell are you doing standing there?" Kiyomitsu's scream coming from inside the house made their hair stand on its end, and before any of them could react, their three teammates barged at them, swords out, and immediately dragged them to behind a nearby tree where they hid and survived yet another barrage of arrows."Sheesh, calm the fuck down!" Izuminokami whined as soon as everyone was given a chance to breathe, "What's going on?""It's Hiromasa-sama." Shishiō said, cautiously peeking from behind the tree before gesturing to everyone that it was safe enough to step out, "He's acting… strange."At that, Yagen dropped the bag of medicine ingredients he had been carrying."Wh… what do you mean?" he asked, "Does it have to do with his injury?"Shishiō never answered, for right then Yaobikuni ran out to join them, Kagura following suit. "The restrain magic broke!" was all Kagura managed to gasp out between heavy breaths."While three of you were away, Hiromasa-san's wound quickly festered." Yaobikuni explained, "He is now under the control of the dark energy. Not even all our powers combined can keep him at bay."Not letting her finish, a cloud of ominous aura materialized in the courtyard, at the center of which stood a creature so wretched, dark energy seeping out from every inch of his skin, a deadly spark in his eyes, no one could have told it was Hiromasa if not for the tuft of red hair over his forehead. A glowing blue paper tag flew towards him at a blinding speed, clearly a last-ditch effort from an exhausted Seimei behind him, only to dissolve into ashes before it could even touch his skin."Puny creatures. Do you think you can stop me?" Hiromasa rasped, "Don't worry, I don't have much to ask. All I want from you is…"He performed a strange gesture with his finger, and instantly Shishiō grasped his neck as if choked. He fell to the ground, strangling from an invisible hand, letting out bouts of excruciating noises. "Shishiō! Are you okay?" Yasusada cried and rushed to his side, only to find out it was too late. Before him, looking up at him was no longer Shishiō. A chilling spark in his eyes, ominous aura in his breath, a feral grin upon his face, he placed his own blade dangerously close to slitting Yasusada's neck and ending his life.He growled, "Back down if you treasure your life. I will serve my master, and no one will stand in my way.""Now that's my good minion." Hiromasa cackled, "Let's not waste our time here. We have more important business to attend to."With that, both he and Shishiō vanished."Oi, here's your lunch." tray of food in hand, Nansen announced as he reached for the shōji leading to his master's room.Loud noises from inside, as though a fight was taking place, stopped him dead in his track."Er, you okay there?" he asked, sliding the door open a fraction. Less than a second later, he was greeted by Konnosuke darting out and colliding with his chest, nearly knocking him over and sending the food flying all over the face.Nansen never had time to swear at the sudden greeting before Konnosuke said to him, "Don't enter! The professor… they're acting strange. All of a sudden, they're thrashing and laughing and saying they want 'total annihilation'. I don't know what happened to them anymore. Just… just don't approach them now."Nansen was shocked. "Did the mission fail? Did they turn evil?" he asked, forcibly tearing the fox from his shirt and placing it down on the floor."Don't be silly. You won't still be standing here if it did." said Konnosuke, "My best guess is that Yorimitsu himself isn't converted, but another Minamoto to whom our master is also related."
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This is bad.
Five monstrous creatures collapsed into a bloody mess, a torrent of dark blood gushed forth under the blade of Kuzunoha's naginata, but she wasn't triumphant. There were much, much more of them than she could swing her blade at, she soon realized, and the tiny number of deaths she managed to deal against them did nothing to stop the monsters from closing in on her.Capture the onmyōji, they repeatedly chanted, brandishing their blades that reeked of a special kind of malicious energy that overloaded Kuzunoha's heightened senses, nearly driving her to a splitting headache.She neither knew what they were nor what they wanted to do to her, but she knew that there was no way she could win. They just brushed off the shikigami she summoned and the spells she dished out at them earlier as though they were no more than dust sticking to their clothes. Dropping her naginata, she transformed into her original form of a white fox and hid her now tiny body among the tall grass stalks, hoping she could escape sneaking her way between the enemies."Get her." came an ominous voice from behind her just as she thought she had escaped, and she briefly turned her head to find a host of bony snake-like creatures with knives between their fangs hot on her tail. She panicked and tried to speed up as much as her small legs allowed, but it seemingly all proved futile as she felt their dark aura closer and closer to her, and she swore she felt the tip of one of the knives touching her paw. She was sure she wouldn't get out of this alive…That was, until she nearly bumped into three men standing in her way."Little fox, is there anything wrong? You look panicked." one of the men said, crouching down to gently pet her head. Then he looked up and saw the band of monsters after her, and no more needed to be said."Foul creatures, you shall not harm this helpless animal!" he cried and drew his sword. The other two looked at him, then at one another, but eventually decided to follow suit. That drew the monsters' attention, and Kuzunoha quickly seized the opportunity to sprint away.Yet, she didn't run far before coming to a pause, looking back at the brawl that ensued between them and the three men, at how the latter was quickly overpowered as enemy blades rained upon them. Something had to be done. And so, she turned in another direction, making for the spot where she dropped her weapon."Damn it." cursed the man who challenged the monsters. He clenched his teeth trying to stave off the fresh pain on his upper arm, an addition to the barrage of slashes and nicks and cuts he had already sustained. A stream of blood flowing from his mouth, he exerted every ounce of strength to remain upright. He didn't expect to stay alive, but he would continue to fight until his last breathing moment…And then, as if miracles were involved, the monsters started to drop to their painful deaths, their bodies splitting and falling like grass stalks before they could even turn around. The three men looked on in awe as it turned out to be a woman sending the monsters to their untimely and brutal demise from behind with each and every powerful swing of her naginata, down to the last one whom she sliced cleanly in a vertical strike right before the men's eyes.It was then that one of the men, the one who drew the enemies' attention away from Kuzunoha, letting her strike back and score a glorious victory, allowed himself to collapse to his knees from the wound. Kuzunoha rushed to his side, saying, "Are you alright?""Don't worry about me anymore. You saved our lives. I can take care of these wounds." he said."Please, allow me to help you get home and heal you. These injuries are serious." she said, slinging his arm around her shoulders and helped him stand up. "Would you be so kind as to let me know your name?""Abe no Yasuna." he replied, "May I know your name too?""Onmyōji, Kuzunoha." was all she said, and the two started to leave the place, making Yasuna's two companions have to carry their weapons, her naginata and his sword, that they left on the ground.None of them noticed Kuzunoha's slightly torn sock and the tiny purple wound on her toe."Would you just stop pacing already, Ishikirimaru-san? I'm trying to sleep." Namazuo whined loudly, which woke up everyone else before Ishikirimaru's restless walking about the small room could. Groaning, Honebami rolled over on the hard floor due to the lack of futon and blocked his ears with his hands, wishing he had pillows to do so like he could do at home."Guys, we're trapped in this room. I'm serious." Ishikirimaru said, "I sense an energy barrier, a kekkai preventing the doors from being slid open and knocked down as well as the shōji from being torn.""Oh come on, are you trying to scare us? You saying even I can't tear this paper down?" shouted Iwatōshi, which immediately jolted everyone, even Honebami, out of grogginess. He threw a punch at the paper screen only to jump back yelling from the pain like a child, while the shōji remained intact."You see what I mean?" said Ishikirimaru as Imanotsurugi went over to comfort his friend, "I already informed you before that there's definitely something suspicious with this inn. We're right in the trap of the enemy.""I know, we're sorry, we should have listened to you. Is that okay?" Hasebe dished out what had to be the half-hearted apology among half-hearted apologies, "Now that we know you were right all along, can you be helpful and, I don't know, dispel the barrier so we can get out of here?""I can't do it. It can only be done by a trained onmyōji." Ishikirimaru said, sinking to his knees, "I can sense the kekkai, but can't do anything about it. I can only dispel diseases and misfortune, not spells. I'm a Shinto priest, not an onmyōji. Forgive me."Barely a second later, the sound of someone teleporting into the room caught everyone's attention. The inn owner. "Well well well, stuck are we? I truly am amazed at how gullible people can be at times. I guess all you have to do is look poor and helpless so people will extend that pathetic emotion known as sympathy to you. Now you know what sympathy will get you." as they continued, their eyes started glowing brighter and brighter. Their clothed turned to ashes as their entire body morphed into a mass of blue flame. They had reverted to their true form, a ghost.The touken danshi drew their blades.The ghost laughed, "Do you think your swords can stand a chance against my demonic fire? My masters, the Dark Heralds, ordered me to keep watch for little rats trying to meddle with the great plan, and now you shall meddle no more. Prepare to die…""Useless garbage! I want them alive!" came a sudden voice from behind the ghost, and immediately they vanished into thin air as soon as a blade wreathed in dark flames split them in two. In place of the ghost was now a monster covered in the same dark flames as its weapon, no one other than the touken danshi's usual enemy, who pointed at Iwatōshi and Imanotsurugi and said, "You are definitely swords of the Genji. I can sense it. You will be an important clue to the whereabouts of Yorimitsu!""So you're the 'Dark Herald', huh?" Namazuo threw his composure to hell and charged at the enemy despite Honebami and Hasebe's trying to hold him back. He cried, "Like hell I'll let you touch my friends!"Instead of a response or a counter-attack, the enemy just disappeared in front of him and reappeared behind Iwatōshi and Imanotsurugi, placing its blade at the former's neck and lifting the latter up by grabbing his chin. "One more move and they won't see the light of day."Namazuo grumbled.Imanotsurugi looked at Iwatōshi, then at everyone else. The hand under his chin, squeezing his cheeks would soon be strangling him, the blade at his friend's neck would slit his throat if the others committed just one wrong move."Don't worry, we won't hurt them." said the enemy one last time before disappearing along with the two Genji swords.
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That day, like any other day, the shrine that Yasuna frequented saw him stepping through its gate again, but this time, he wasn't there to pray to the gods for blessings upon the Abe family. Frantic, he rushed into the courtyard, his unconscious wife in his arms, drawing the attention of the head priestess. "Somebody, help my wife! Please…" he nearly sobbed between heavy breathing from running up the long stairs leading to the shrine."Yasuna-sama, please stay calm." said the priestess, "Is there anything wrong?""Please, help Kuzunoha!" said Yasuna, no longer able to stop the tears running down his face as he placed his wife down on the ground, "She's… she's suddenly not herself anymore. Ever since she's struck with this mysterious illness, she's been cackling and going on about how she wanted to slay me and destroy everything I hold dear. It's as though she's possessed by a malicious force. Please do something, please dispel this influence from her." he then lowered his voice, "I'm begging you, she's with child."The miko said nothing. She quietly took Kuzunoha's hand, feeling the energy running through her, then gasped. Indeed, an unrecognizable force is within her, but not enough to completely alter her. "It seems I will have to call upon the goddess for help." she said and stood up, moving a few steps away for space to perform a ritual.Several rings of her suzu later, Miketsu materialized in a brilliant stream of divine light. Yasuna was surprised; he had visited the shrine and prayed to the goddess many times, but this was the first time she saw her in person. So glorious, so regal was her long silver hair, her crown, her flowing robes, as brilliant as the sun itself, it struck fear into Yasuna's heart. Struggling to form a coherent word, he bowed so low his forehead nearly bashed the flagstone, prompting Miketsu to tell him, "It's alright, you can stand up now."With that, Yasuna immediately got up on his feet and scurried back while Miketsu approached his unconscious wife. "I see." she said. She crouched down next to Kuzunoha, and with one short incantation and gesture of her palm, channelled some kind of energy into her."The influence of the dark energy in her has been stopped, but…" she said, only to find, much to her surprise, both Yasuna and Kuzunoha nowhere in sight. He was so overjoyed he sprinted out of the shrine carrying his wife without letting her finish."Miketsu-sama? Is there anything left you want to say?" her miko asked, and Miketsu stood up, sighing."The dark energy has merely been blocked, not dispelled." she said, "It is impossible to dispel it. I could stop it from taking control of her, but cannot prevent it from spreading to the young life within her. Should anything happen to her child, I cannot…" she paused, as though on the verge of tears, "The seed of darkness has already been planted. The damage is permanent. There's no way to eradicate it, at least without breaking the laws of nature."At this point, Nikkari was less concerned about how suspicious Yorichika had been than how utterly large and complicated the Minamoto estate was. That puzzling maze of a house effectively had him separated from the rest of the team. Damn it, if I encounter enemies now, what am I gonna do? he thought, trying to remember which hallway lead to which."Is there anything wrong?" a female voice called out to him."Who's that?" he asked, hand upon the hilt of his sword form. He gasped; the lamps along the hallway at once went out, leaving him surrounded by darkness. That was, until it was soon ignited by glowing balls of eerie blue flames dancing in the air."Looks like you're in great distress." the voice continued, "No need to be in such a rush. Let's play a game, shall we? You see, there are one-hundred flames floating around you. We will take turns telling stories. Once a story concludes, a flame will go out."Hyakumonogatari now, are we? Nikkari thought, But I thought this activity first appeared in the Edo period? "Oh, charming lady, whoever you are, this game happens to be my favorite pastime." he said, "However, it's a shame that I really don't have time for this. I need to find my friends. Maybe we'll do this in a more appropriate time.""Do you really need to find them that much?" said the voice again, this time much closer to his ears, "Then let's have a deal. I happen to know where they have headed. Tell me one story and I'll lead you to them.""Deal." Nikkari agreed, "Let me tell you the story of the man who slew ghosts. The heads of two ghost women that never ceased laughing fell under his blade. The man later found, much to his surprise, that the ghosts were in fact two stone lanterns whose tops were severed by the very sword he wielded. Amazed by its ability to slice both ghosts and stone, he named it after the giggling ghosts. Nikkari." he paused and drew his sword form, whose blade shone eerily in the blue light. He continued, "That blade happens to be me. I am Nikkari. Now that you know you're talking with the sword that cut ghosts and stone, so, charming lady, you better beware."At that, all the flames went out but one, and the lanterns along the hallway were once again ignited. It was then that Nikkari got to see the owner of the mysterious voice, a woman with long silver hair reclining upon a floating cane. "That was a very interesting story and self-introduction. I'm impressed. Nikkari, aren't you? Now, as promised," she directed the remaining flame to fly closer to him and told him, "follow this flame. It will guide you."And so Nikkari left, and the woman never told him that she had taken interest in his story as well as him. Neither did she tell him that, since he was a ghost slayer, she ought to view him as enemy. That, and the reason why she was there in the first place.The Minamoto estate had become the base of operation of the Dark Heralds and their followers.
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Late one night, Ichigo found himself disturbed out of his cozy sleep despite supposedly being the only one occupying the room that night, as would every night as long as eighteen swords were still on the great mission. Are Namazuo and Honebami home already? he thought, as he felt two heads rubbing against him and four hands clutching to his clothes. The darkness made it impossible to tell who those two were, until he heard a tiny, shivering voice."Ichi-nī, help me. I'm scared. I don't wanna die." the voice said, followed by sobbing into his sleeping clothes. Hōchō's."We were sleeping when master came into our room trying to kill us." said the other one clinging to him. Mōri. "They said they want to 'destroy whomever has wronged them' and 'take everything they deserve'." he paused as an ominous silhouette appeared upon the shōji, which made he and Hōchō cling even tighter to their brother and Ichigo switch into battle-ready cautious mode, as though expecting an enemy raid.This wasn't the first time Ichigo heard of his master's sudden odd behavior. Professor Shiraha, then jokingly dubbed "Professor Kuroha" by the likes of Nansen, had been displaying such unexpected bouts of insanity inbetween their usual authoritative calmness ever since that encounter between Nansen and Konnosuke at the door to their room. One moment, they were discussing the finer points of Akutagawa Ryūnosuke's works and another, they were trashing their own study and trying to strangle their conversation partner. The mission hadn't failed, Konnosuke assured everyone, but even with that knowledge in mind, these frequent night terrors among other insanity attacks of "Kuroha" had placed the rest of the Citadel into constant fear and caution.When the shōji to the room was rudely slid open, revealing the saniwa with crazed eyes and a deranged grin, Ichigo found it hard to believe that this was the same professor who took him as a honored guest speaker to a ShizuDai seminar about swordsmithing that very morning. He found it hard to believe that this was the same caring master who let Hōchō eat all their snacks after lunch. He found it hard to believe that this was the saniwa Shiraha Yadachi at all. Still, he maintained his cool for the sake of his scared brothers and said, "Master, I believe there's a misunderstanding. Please don't hurt my brothers. If you insist on harming them, I have no other choice but…"No more was said as, to the three's utter shock, their master suddenly collapsed to their knees."What am I doing? Why am I here?" they mumbled, a trace of grogginess in their voice, "Oh, is that you, Ichigo-kun? What happened?""You know what happened, master, I'm sure of it… ow!" said Hōchō before Ichigo pinched his arm as an unspoken warning."I remember." the saniwa said and stood up. "Sorry I disturbed you. Good night."With that, they left, but even then, Hōchō and Mōri were too paralyzed from fear to return to their room, and Ichigo decided to let them sleep in his room for that night.
The mission better not fail.
"I sincerely apologize. Please forgive me." said Kohaku, nearly breaking into a hysterical fit of tears as Kiyomitsu and Izuminokami towered over it, killing intent radiating from them, ready to trounce the poor animal into a pulp if Seimei and Kasen weren't holding them back. "I tried to stop them from facing such powerful enemies by themselves, but Kagura-sama insisted she wanted to bring Hiromasa-sama back, and Yasusada-sama… he held his blade at my neck threatening to turn me into chopped fox meat if I didn't tell him where Shishiō-sama is. I had no other choice. Please, forgive me…""This stupid fucking dog…" Izuminokami growled, even though Kohaku was little more than a shaking mess of fur then, "It's all your fault if anything happens to our friend, you ten-thousand-times damned fucking dog bastard!""Izuminokami-sama, I said I couldn't do anything! Besides, I'm not a dog, I'm a fox!"A few steps away from the scuffle, Kiyomitsu muttered under his breath and clenched his teeth over Yasusada's recklessness, while Yaobikuni was clearly concerned about Kagura's safety.Stroking Kohaku's fur to calm it down, Seimei gently asked, "Where did you tell them to head to?""The nauseating scent of unrecognizable malicious energy," it whimpered, still cowering from Izuminokami's glare, "it leads towards the direction of the Genji estate where an even higher amount is concentrated. It seems there's an army there. That's where the two headed."At that, Seimei let go of the animal and stood up. "The Genji estate it is. Kohaku, Yaobikuni, let's go." he said."But didn't you say we shouldn't be acting recklessly?" Yaobikuni said, "These enemies are dangerous and unpredictable. At this rate, we won't stand a chance against them.""When it's come down to this, when two of us have already headed out to face them, there's no use sitting here leaving them at the mercy of the enemies any longer. Dangerous and unpredictable though they are, we must come to Kagura and Yasusada's aid.""Only the three of us? I wonder whether this will work.""Not just the three of you." Kasen stepped up and declared, "They are our enemies, and we won't sit by as they hurt our friends and continue their reign of terror. All of us will come along with you."Yagen, Kiyomitsu and Izuminokami at once followed, with Izuminokami exclaiming, "Well, what are you waiting for?"Seimei sighed in place of a response, and the journey towards the Minamoto estate commenced.
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"For the last time, I neither care about Yorimitsu nor do I know where he is. Badger me one more time and I'll…""Calm down. It's us." Ibaraki-dōji interrupted Onigiri, whose back was facing him and Shuten-dōji, before his insanely fast battōjutsu that logically no sword that large should be able to accomplish could claim both their lives. "Let me guess, is it those mysterious beings calling themselves 'Dark Heralds' that are bothering you?""Who else could it be?" Onigiri said, turning around to face his fellow demons, "I neither know who they are nor where they came from, but those creatures are getting on my nerves. Why are they insisting they're trying to 'help' me?""Whatever their goal is, they're not to be taken lightly." said Ibaraki-dōji, "Already half of the demons inhabiting this mountain have sworn allegiance to them. They really are a suspicious lot. We have to be extra careful.""Suspicious? Extra careful? What are you talking about?" Shuten-dōji interrupted, getting both Ibaraki-dōji and Onigiri's attention. "How stupid must you two be? Revenge for all the wrongs that humans have heaped upon us, that's what they mean by 'helping' you! Seeking Yorimitsu and putting him to hell where he belongs, that's what they mean by 'helping' you! It's that obvious, and you're telling me you're sitting here suspecting them? Don't make me laugh."A brief moment of shocking silence followed."Shuten-dōji." Ibaraki-dōji gasped out, "Don't tell me you have…""Yes, I've sworn allegiance to them. Not that hard to understand." his friend said, much to both his and Onigiri's utter horror, "I only saw this as an opportunity to get payback for all that I and the rest of demonkind have suffered. Don't you want those human bastards to get what they deserve?"Then realization."You're already following a band of ominous beings that appeared out of nowhere and practically took over the place without at least questioning whether maybe they're tricking you? Do you even know what you're doing?" said Onigiri."Now, now, out of the three of us, you must be the one who suffered the most." Shuten-dōji went on, "What's your reason for not seizing this opportunity for revenge? Don't you want that Minamoto bastard to pay for his crimes? Or is it because…" he lowered his voice, stopping short of whispering, "… you truly don't hate him as much as you claim to be? You still have lingering feelings for your master, don't you? Can it be that you're in l…"That was the last straw for Onigiri, and he immediately drew his blade before Shuten-dōji could finish. Yet, one second later, he was taken aback; the hit should have severed his body in half, and yet he remained unscathed. As if to add insult to injury, Shuten-dōji started laughing."Go ahead, slash at me if you dare." he taunted, "I'm much more powerful than before, thanks to the 'suspicious beings'. The sword that slays all demons? Oh please, now you're no more than a harmless rabbit. I don't have time to waste with the two of you. I have more important things to do.""Traitor…" Onigiri breathed through his teeth and attempted to sever the head of a retreating Shuten-dōji until Ibaraki-dōji stopped him."Now, the promise. Your half-brother's whereabouts." a raspy voice came from behind Yorichika, making him shake even more. He nearly froze with fear from standing in a closed study full of Dark Heralds, and their pressing him only exarcebated matters."So far, there has been no information." he stuttered audibly, "But worry not, all the clan's onmyōji are giving their best investigating ani-ue's whereabouts, and I had them lock a band of strangers looking to find him before we do in the estate with a kekkai that they can't break."Having the entire Genji ally themselves with the monstrous beings that brought promises of reviving the clan's glory that Yorimitsu destroyed, Yorichika ended up sacrificing more than he expected – namely, having to acknowledge and employ onmyōji despite his deep hatred of them – and under constant pressure from the Heralds to bring them his half-brother at all costs. He himself couldn't get behind why they wanted to have Yorimitsu that much, but as long as the promise of his clan's former glory was before his eyes, not even cutting down Mount Fuji would deter him."How long are you going to keep stalling? Are you expecting us to keep putting up with the infuriating pace things are going?" the monster behind him roared, "Also, why are you merely trapping those meddling rats instead of killing them? Are you that much of a coward?""I'd rather those 'meddling rats' were kept alive." another monster chimed in "Two of them have a distinctly Genji air to them. They can provide us with clues to Yorimitsu."
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The two were doomed, and they knew it.Even with miracles involved, there was no way Kagura's umbrella and Yasusada's blade could last. Still, with their backs together, they tried to fend off as many as they could, as long as they were still on their feet.Even as dark monsters fell from Kagura's magic bullets, as their heads dropped under Yasusada's blade, it was a battle they couldn't win. Especially so, when all of a sudden, their limbs refused to cooperate and froze, as though having turned to stone while their minds remained conscious.Make way for the new onmyōji, the monsters said at once and ceased their attack. Said new onmyōji making his way through the crowd, the one casting the restrain magic on the two's limbs, was a greater shock than either of them ever expected."Hiromasa." Kagura gasped.Next to him, there his new "shikigami" was, eyes full of bloodlust under a curtain of blond hair."You have got to be kidding me." Yasusada muttered."You said you can't dispel barriers, now it's gone along with the ghost." said Hasebe, "Now don't tell me you can't sense where that bastard took those two to.""Be patient, would you? I'm trying." Ishikirimaru grumbled and squeezed his eyes close, a signal that he should not be disturbed as he concentrated. Then, discovering something, his eyes flew open and he said, "The trail of the enemy's aura leads to the north of the city. It's likely…""Are you saying they're now in the Minamoto estate, where Hizamaru's team is stationed?" Honebami interrupted, "But why are they…"A moment of confused silence."It will take days to make it, but now that we know exactly where our friends are…" Ishikirimaru started."Then what are we waiting for?" Namazuo chimed in.
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"Don't drink too much, what's-your-name." Higekiri slurred between hiccups, his cheeks red as apples, his clothes, his hair, his everything reeked of alcohol. "You're gonna end up climbing a tree and drinking milk with soy sauce.""You are the one drinking too much. Practice what you preach please, anija!" his brother loudly corrected, "Besides, my name is Hizamaru!"Higekiri only giggled. Further away from their little brotherly scuffle, outside the room on the engawa, Mikazuki and Juzumaru were discussing food as always – this time, the best way to make hamburg patties – before their exchange was cut off by Tsurumaru jumping out of seemingly nowhere to startle them, all while Nikkari sitting nearby continued to practice the èrhú, aware of neither the commotion within his earshot nor how grating his playing was.One could be forgiven for thinking they were having just another normal day at the Citadel, in Motoshiro district, Fujinomiya city, Shizuoka prefecture in 2205, instead of still on a mission at the Minamoto estate in the Heian period.The kekkai barring them from leaving the premise, as it turned out, fooled their minds as much as it physically blocked them from exiting the place. Their memory of the confrontation with Yorichika faded away to complete nothingness the longer they stayed inside the estate, Nikkari's initial cautiousness being lost in the hallways also disappeared. As far as they were concerned, there was no historical figure to save, no threat of disappearance was present, nothing was wrong in the world.Hizamaru was in the middle of struggling with his drunk brother when Nansen, or rather who their eyes saw as Nansen, showed up. "Oi, Genji brothers. Master requested your presence." said the one who was in fact the enemy. After putting up a minor display of discomfort, Hizamaru willingly slung his brother's arm around his shoulder and helped him up, not noticing the danger awaiting him, awaiting his brother, awaiting all their friends."God damn it, Shishiō! What is the reason for this?" Yasusada screamed the moment he and Kagura was thrown into a tiny, dark room by the "new onmyōji" and his "shikigami". "Are you really going to be our enemies' underling? Wake up already! You can't do this!""It's useless." Hiromasa cackled, "Even if he were your friend, he won't listen to you. His memory is lost."Shishiō inched closer towards Yasusada, and he took a step back. His foot hit something behind him that at first he didn't see in the dark, and it was then that he finally knew he and Kagura weren't the only ones held prisoner – Imanotsurugi and Iwatōshi were as captive and helpless as they, right behind them in the small room."Imanotsurugi! What happened? Is there anything going on with your team?" Yasusada asked, utterly shocked, crouching down to grip his shoulders tight in order to convince Imanotsurugi really was there and not just his imagination."We'll explain later. There's no time for greetings." Iwatōshi chimed in, as Hiromasa and Shishiō still loomed intimidatingly over the four of them."Well well, are you done with your happy little reunion already?" Hiromasa continued, "You better be grateful you weren't made our allies right away, because you'll lose your memory then, and clues to Yorimitsu's whereabouts are crucial to us. My trusted subordinate over here will make sure you spit out whatever you know. Once we're done with that, then you'll…"Shishiō grinned, pure bloodthirst in his expression."I'll leave you here to have a little fun with these captives." Hiromasa said to Shishiō, "There are six other captives I need to take care of, namely two siblings in weird black-and-white clothes, a guy in blue with long green hair over his eye, another guy with hair so long it mops the floor, a guy with indigo hair and a guy in white. I wish I could stick around to watch your little performance, but I still have much business to attend to. After all, we have to prepare for the great rebellion that is to come. You four over there, don't even think of trying to break out. This room is blocked by a kekkai. Even if you refuse to spit out any information, you'll die a miserable death trapped within the barrier." he then teleported out of the room, but not before leaving behind an unsettling cackling fit.Iwatōshi and Imanotsurugi gasped at the all too familiar description Hiromasa gave of the six other captives, while Yasusada thought, what rebellion? but eventually all their attention focused on their corrupted comrade before them, with his sword out and now gleaming a malicious purple sheen.Meanwhile Kagura sat in a corner of the room concentrating her energy. Hiromasa said this is a kekkai. I may be able to dispel it.Little did any of them know, what went down in the room didn't escape the overhearing ears of a certain yōkai woman with a levitating cane.
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"You're still not going to wake up, are you?" Yasusada cried as he and his three companions were left alone in the room with Shishiō and no way to escape, still refusing to draw his blade even as Shishiō approached with his sword form now emitting an unholy purple aura, "You can't be serious. You can't do this to us. We're friends, and you're supposed to fight the enemies, not side with them!""Yasusada, it's hopeless." Imanotsurugi said in a voice weighed down by despair, something Yasusada rarely ever heard before, "He's lost his memory. He's lost his mind. He won't listen to you, no matter how much you try to talk sense into him. We have no choice…"Before he could finish, Shishiō's blade came at a blinding speed in the direction of his head, clearly intended to slice him in two vertical halves right before a perfectly timed parry from Yasusada stopped it from reaching even a strand of Imanotsurugi's hair."I've had it with you." Yasusada rasped, seemingly no longer the person he was before. His blue eyes sparked rage and bloodthirst from behind his and Shishiō's crossed blades, "I don't care if you were our friend. I don't care if we have to return from the mission without you. The second you dare try to kill any of us, you're as good as dead. You are my enemy now. I will kill you."Their clash didn't go any further than that, because right then Kagura jumped in, announcing between heavy breaths as though after strenuous labor – clearly having greatly exerted her spiritual power – that the kekkai around the room had been dispelled. A strong hand firmly grasped Yasusada's shoulder, and not even a blink later, he found himself clasped between Iwatōshi's arm and torso as he, Imanotsurugi and Kagura sprinted at top speed out of the room."What the?… Hey!" there was not much Yasusada could do beside gasp out as he, feet no longer in contact with the floor, was being unceremoniously carried by a running naginata."We're getting out of here." Imanotsurugi interrupted, "With just the four of us, we won't survive for more than fifteen minutes. Let's not waste our time here and find the exit.""But Hiromasa…" Kagura uttered as she paused in hesitation."Kid, we have no time for that." Iwatōshi said and wasted no time scooping Kagura up and carried her the same way he did Yasusada, "Whomever you're looking for, there's no use. That person may already be part of the enemy already. Let's…"Instantly, enemies after enemies materialized from the walls and rose from the floor, Dark Heralds and yōkai alike, quickly filling the hallway, appearing from before and closing in from behind the four of them. Get them, came a collective chant. Finding a way out of the Minamoto estate had become much easier said than done as the four found out, much to their horror, that they had been surrounded. "Looks like there's nothing else we can do." Imanotsurugi said and drew his sword form, and immediately an enemy tantō fell to its untimely demise. Iwatōshi had to place Kagura and Yasusada back down, and the four fended off as many monstrous creatures as they could, clearing a path out of the crowd of enemy as they continued to run ahead.They didn't even know whether it was morning already. They didn't know how much time they spent running from the enemies that continued to spring up like mushrooms and block their way no matter how many they'd struck down, hallways after courtyards. The task seemed closer and closer to impossible; the four kept running and running between futilely fighting enemies while their limited energy was running out and their feet wouldn't be able to carry them on for much longer. In the end, they had no choice but to hide in a room to catch their breaths, hidden away from the enemies' sight.Even if we make it out of here, no one is here to save us, Kagura thought. Besides, there seems to be some kind of spiritual energy filling the entire place. I'm afraid something bad will happen if we remain in here any longer.It was only inevitable that the four had no other choice but to hide inside a tiny room to catch their breaths, hoping they were out of the enemies' sight. Worried by even their own breathing sounds, everyone desperately hoped the tiny empty shelves and dirty clothing racks placed inside the room concealed their bodies enough. Fifteen minutes, not a single sign that they had been discovered. Kagura took this as a chance to finally heave a relieved sigh and tell everyone else, "Good thing they didn't find out. Now let's go find a way out of here before…"She stopped dead in her track as the three men showed no signs of having heard her or even being aware she existed. Scowling, Yasusada said to Iwatōshi while pulling his arm as much as their huge disparity in build and physical strength allowed, "Come on, Imanotsurugi says he wants to watch the fireworks with you. It's about to start soon. How many okonomiyaki have you eaten already?""Okay okay, I'll come with you two as soon as I finish this one. Damn, you gotta admit these okonomiyaki are too good to stop eating." Iwatōshi answered, unaware that he was chewing on a worn garment rather than the incredibly delicious food he thought he was eating."Aww, I'm dying to watch the fireworks with you since morning." Imanotsurugi whined, then asked Yasusada, "When will it start? Do you supposed we can try a few rounds at the shooting stall while we wait?"What… what are they talking about? Kagura stared on slack-jawed at the exchange that unfolded, at the three men now going to a festival that never took place. What happened? They don't seem to even see me… But we still have to find a way to escape! She sunk to her knees, helplessly watching her companions having fun as though the fact they had been in danger moments before never once crossed their minds. No. No. What am I going to do? No!Hizamaru didn't recall the Citadel's having that many hallways and courtyards, and he was very sure there was supposed to be an elevator. Nevertheless, he followed "Nansen" anyway, though weighed down greatly by his drunk brother. However, it was not long before the sheer weight of said drunk brother proved to be an absolute pain as the two eventually ended up separated from "Nansen" and stranded in the middle of the vast estate. I really love you, anija, but sometimes I really do want to kick you to the deepest level of Hell. Hizamaru thought. Knowing they could neither reach the saniwa's room nor return to their friends, Hizamaru could do nothing but stare at the annoying grin plastered upon Higekiri's tomato-red face as he let out curses after curses in a language so old that would confound Murasaki Shikibu.Then suddenly, the sound of footsteps put a screeching halt to his barrage of curses."Who's there?" he asked, cautious. In place of an answer, the sight of two men, one with sleek black hair donning bulky kimono and the other with an impressive white mane wearing even bulkier armor and sporting, much to Hizamaru's puzzlement, horns upon his forehead, was more than enough. However, there soon were more questions that begged to be answered. Who are these people, and why are they in the Citadel? Who invited them here?He was never given time to voice those questions, as the black-haired man noticed the pin on Higekiri's vest and started first, "Listen up, Minamoto. You tell me every knowledge you have about the red-haired oni known as Shuten-dōji and what he's planning to do. I'll stop him whether he wants to or not. If you refuse to tell me anything or show the faintest sign of siding with those Dark Heralds bastards, I'll off you the same way I did your kin so many years ago.""Cut it out, Onigiri. That's not going to work." the white-haired man interrupted, "I know you're very annoyed, but this is going nowhere. I suppose we shouldn't stay in this Dark Herald-infested place on our own any longer."Hizamaru only became ever more confused – why the hell is he threatening anija, and what is all this "Dark Heralds" talk? – while the two strangers retreated, unaware that one of them had just had an encounter of a lifetime.
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Aoandon hadn't given up on her goal to see humans pay for the sufferings they had inflicted on her and her kind, thank you very much. It was that since she had taken interest in that man named Nikkari and wanted to hear more stories from him, she figured it wouldn't hurt to spare just one person from her quest for retribution. And so, without letting it slip to any of the Dark Heralds as to her intention, she quietly went to inform that particular man among the six captives of what was about to happen.Which, much to her chagrin, resulted in the man saying to her, "Who are you, and what brought you here to our Citadel?"But haven't we met? What kind of spells is inflicted on you now? she thought. "Nikkari, this is urgent matters. You are in danger." she said, ignoring the cold words lobbed at her, "The Dark Heralds are about to take your life. You have to escape. Allow me to help you…""Hey, what's going on? What's this girl doing here?" Tsurumaru paused his continuous attempts to startle the tenka goken duo and interrupted. Mikazuki and Juzumaru too forgot their discussion as their attention went to the strange woman. Tsurumaru giggled, "Hey, Nikkari, don't tell me you got something going on with her."At this point, Aoandon abandoned all attempts to persuade Nikkari with words and threw a scorching ball of blue fire at him, knocking him back and leaving a burn mark upon his cheek."Hey, what are you doing, woman?" Tsurumaru cried at the sight of the sudden attack, "You show up in our home all of a sudden and start attacking us. So what the hell is your business here?" he instantly drew his sword form.That's it. Chase me. I'll lead you out of here. Aoandon thought, throwing several more flames that barely touched the four men's clothes as she backed away from the engawa, into the room, towards the shōji. She immediately slid the door open only to be greeted with horror – a Dark Herald, the one having lead Higekiri and Hizamaru away, right outside the door."Oi, Nansen, help us out." Tsurumaru called, "She just attacked us for no reason.""Nansen" didn't heed his words. Instead, it gave Aoandon a glare that could drill holes in her skull. "Traitor." it rasped."Oh no." she uttered, sinking to her knees in despair.Then something happened.For the touken danshi, the surprise and joy of reuniting with the other team didn't last long before everyone remembered the reason they arrived just outside the Minamoto estate – to rescue their captive friends. "We got no time for a reunion party. Let's get going, kick some asses and break them out." Izuminokami shouted and nearly charged head-first towards the gate before he was held back by Ishikirimaru."Let's not act recklessly." said Ishikirimaru, "There is a kekkai around the premise. We shouldn't enter without dispelling it first." he then turned to Seimei, "Correct me if I've mistaken, but are you not the genius onmyōji Abe no Seimei? I believe you have the ability to break the barrier."All at once, all eyes were on Seimei, with Hasebe shooting him a glare that could fry Hell itself."I apologize for disappointing everyone." Seimei sighed, "but this is the Minamoto clan we are facing. Everyone considers me the genius onmyōji, but it is the Minamoto onmyōji who possess secret techniques that even I never expect. This is no ordinary kekkai. One can enter, but not exit; it's at once a physical barrier and a mind-control field, and much stronger than my powers can match.""If that is so, allow me to assist you with my powers." Yaobikuni stepped forward and held his hand."Two people are still not enough. It seems this kekkai is set up and maintained by multiple people. We are still no match for this.""Then shall I assist you with divine powers instead?" came a female voice from behind the party which, to everyone's surprise, belonged to someone clearly never with them before, a woman with silver hair donning a red hakama sitting on the back of an oversized fox. She wasn't alone; alongside her was a man in dark robes accompanied by several floating orbs."Save the self-introduction for later. We are here to help." the man said, "Miketsu, proceed.""Yes, Susabi-sama. Allow me." the woman answered and drew an arrow, an unspoken signal to everyone else to step back and give her space. A clean, sharp twang later, the gold arrow tore the air flying towards the gate like a spark of divine light, like a golden phoenix. It didn't fly through the gate, didn't embed itself in the wood; instead, it disappeared the moment it touched the invisible barrier into a mid-air ripple as though it was a stone cast into still water."The kekkai has been dispelled." Miketsu announced."I suppose it's safe to enter now." Ishikirimaru said, "Let's go."
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The moment that everyone was waiting for, the confrontation that would decide the fate of history, had finally arrived.The rescue party storming the largest courtyard was greeted by an army of no less than dozens of Dark Heralds as well as their yōkai and Minamoto onmyōji cohorts surrounding them on all sides, pouring out from the hallways, standing on top of the roofs. The concentrated malicious aura was stronger than ever, ominous flames of green and purple and red seemingly reaching the high heavens, causing Kohaku to nearly faint from the overloading assault on its finely tuned senses and even Yaobikuni's breath to become slightly ragged. "Nē-san, are you okay?" Namazuo said, rushing to her side, until she reassured him that the energy couldn't kill her no matter how strong it was.What did they turn the Minamoto estate into? thought Seimei."Don't think you pieces of shit can take our friends away and get away with it." Izuminokami cried, "We're here to take them back, and anyone standing in our way will get your ass hacked off before you can run crying for your mommy!"Much to his oblivion, everything his taunt garnered from the enemies was a round of mocking laughter and his companions sighs, shaking heads and faces buried in palms, especially Honebami and Yagen – until Kasen shoved an onion into his mouth in short order before he could say anything else."In fact, we're not just here to take our friends back." Kasen said, "We have learned of your plan to capture the onmyōji Minamoto no Yorimitsu for your nefarious use. By the gods, we will die before we let that happen. Now, prepare to die a thousand deaths and see your evil scheme go down in flames, because we are going to kill you all!"Seimei, Yaobikuni and Kohaku as well as the two gods were taken aback by Kasen's announcing the evil plan, while already the collective sound of eight blades drawn from their scabbards resonated throughout the courtyard.Then, came two chillingly familiar voices that got everyone shocked as though having never been shocked before."Is that all you think we're going to do?"It was exactly who everyone expected; upon one of the roofs, it was no doubt their two corrupted allies standing there, clothes flying intimidatingly in the wind, crazed glinting eyes staring down at them like the flames of hell."Hiromasa." said Seimei."Shishiō." said Kasen."I have seen this man before." Susabi said upon seeing Hiromasa, "But why is he suddenly…?"At that, Miketsu gasped; realization struck her, and she couldn't help but stare at the duo. "Make no mistake, this is the same dark energy I have once encountered, running in the veins of a mother with a young life within her." she said, "The energy that I cannot erase and had no choice but to merely suppress.""We really do plan to bring Yorimitsu to our side, but that's not the only thing we aim for." Shishiō continued, "If we really are going to just convert one puny little human, why the need for us to go all out and dispatch this many of us? I wonder if any of you pathetic lot has a brain.""You are the one without a brain!" a loud shout that didn't belong to anyone among the rescue party – Yasusada's – instantly drew the attention of every being present. Sure enough, there he was, along with no one other than Kagura, Imanotsurugi and Iwatōshi by his side. All four was brandishing their weapons as they cautiously exited the hallway and moved towards the open courtyard, careful to not let any enemy attack them first."Hiromasa." Kagura uttered at the sight of her brother upon the roof."Shishiō, listen to us!" Imanotsurugi half-cried, half-pled, "You're going to cease to exist if you convert Yorimitsu-sama to evil! Are you still going through with the plan even if it ends with you wiped from every plane of existence?"His words were met with Shishiō's turning a deaf ear, while Hiromasa started, "Our true, ultimate goal is to assist the yōkai in their struggle against the true evil that is humans. It pains our hearts to see the age of the yōkai eventually come to an end at the hands of the human bastards. That is why we are planning an uprising, a rebellion to wipe humans of the face of this world and establish an eternal age of the demons."A collective gasp was drawn."Too bad, as expected, many of the demons won't side with us right away and our conversion magic is a highly complicated skill that we can't use liberally, so that is precisely the reason why we want to bring the powerful onmyōji Minamoto no Yorimitsu to our side. His power and skills will make absolutely any and every demon in the whole of Japan our followers whether they want to or not. He may only be second place compared to the more powerful onmyōji Kuzunoha, but one attempt by us on her backfired spectacularly." at the mention of his mother, Seimei gasped. Hiromasa carried on, "Once our goal of uniting all demons is accomplished, we'll have no further need for the onmyōji. He will die for all we care. Now that the dawn of demonkind is approaching, we don't have time to mess around with you meddling rats. Prepare to die a miserable death!""Say no more!" yet another shout, this time coming from no one other than Tsurumaru. Sure enough, he appeared, accompanied by Nikkari, Mikazuki and Juzumaru. Aoandon was floating way closer to Nikkari than necessary while protectively levitating orbs of blue flames in front of him, causing Namazuo and Izuminokami to raise their eyebrows at the sight (with the latter even whispering to the former, "Damn, I don't know who that floating chick is, but Aoe sure is lucky."), "Surprised, aren't you? Well guess what, you are the ones who will be dying a miserable death. Do you think we will sit by watching you corrupt the onmyōji Yorimitsu and exterminate mankind? You'll not get away with this!"Aoandon only stared at Tsurumaru in response to his words. I'm not siding with you for the sake of humanity. I'm only doing this for Nikkari.The surprise hardly wore off when there came the pounding sound of running footsteps and a frantic cry, "What the hell is going on here? What happened to the kekkai? How come it's broken? What is happening?"The moment the person, Yorichika, showed himself, he was met by one of the monstrous creatures he had been serving raising its blade about to strike him, roaring, "You useless garbage!" at the top of its lungs, making him even more frantic than ever… until a man in white stood between him and the Dark Herald, sword out, flashing a bloodthirsty grin made even more intimidating by his fangs."What use is there still trying to act all mighty and scary? You're pretty much dead now." the man – Higekiri – said to the monstrous creature. Still not recovered from his panic, Yorichika looked to the side and discovered another man, who was clad in black.Said man, Hizamaru, was pretty sure his brother was drunk moments ago. Still, he asked, "Why are you protecting this bastard? Isn't it clear he works for our enemy?""This man is history. Let him die and we'll be no better than the enemies we fight." said Higekiri, "Have we forgotten what we're here for, Somethingsomethingmaru? To protect Yorimitsu-sama. To protect history."Hizamaru was about to correct his brother again, when a booming voice from above stopped him dead in his track and took everyone's attention. "Do not say anything else, foul creatures!"Upon the roof opposite the one Hiromasa and Shishiō was on, casting his magnificent shadow upon the crowd below, was no one other than Minamoto no Yorimitsu, coveted treasure of the Revisionists, mortal enemy of the yōkai, shame of the Minamoto clan and object of the touken danshi's protection."I have heard everything. Your nefarious plan to use me to enslave demonkind and wipe out humanity. Do not expect me to sit with that." he carried on as his hair flew around him like an intimidating mane, "I have committed wrongs in the past, and now I shall do what I can to own up to it. I will destroy your plan with all my power. On my own.""On your own, you say?" Ibaraki-dōji's voice took him aback somewhat. The one-armed oni, now by his side, declared, "You may be my greatest enemy, but against a threat like this, I simply cannot ignore. Allow me to assist you.""Hey, don't leave me out of the fun too!" this time, it was Shuten-dōji, cracking his fist and said, "Me, being in the same league as, much less in servitude of this guy? Don't make me laugh."Still, the greatest surprise for Yorimitsu came in the form of a certain dark-haired swordsman joining him on the roof, with blades already drawn and standing before him protectively, looking as if about to tear someone to shreds at the slightest provocation. "Do not say anything, goshujin-sama." he said, menace dripping from his voice, "I am the blade of my master."With that, the great battle commenced.
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The Minamoto estate was consumed by the heat of battle, a storm of brutal attacks, a non-stop rain of blood from both sides, red mixed with black, cries of victory mixed with howls of defeat. The moment swords couldn't slice down enemy heads, spells disintegrated enemy bodies. The moment spellcasters were overwhelmed, swordsmen came to their aid. Never had the estate been engulfed in greater chaos and bloodshed; it was a violent dance of steel and magic that had yet to have anyone emerging victorious.Holding a deep wound upon his upper arm, Hizamaru slowly backed until he was side-by-side with his fellow Minamoto swords, Iwatōshi and Imanotsurugi on one side and his brother on the other. For Yorimitsu-sama.Even with forests of cuts and slashes upon their bodies and rivers of blood, both the enemies' and their own, upon their clothes, the rest of the swords stood together, determined not to let anything stop them even if they all lost their lives. For history and the sake of our kind.On the brink of exhaustion from constantly working their powers only to still be surrounded by enemies, yet still having no intention of giving up, there Seimei and his companions were, with Kohaku having already grown to its full size, aided by the two deities with their magic arrows and celestial power. For peace and order.Smirking in the face of great danger heading his way, Yorimitsu seemed as though paying no mind to the fact he was a walking treasure to the horde of dark creatures. For humanity.High on excitement and catharsis from having torn apart enemies with their bare hands, Ibaraki-dōji and Shuten-dōji grinned to each other. For the freedom of demonkind.Flicking dark blood off his blade, Onigiri licked his lips, a crazed bloodthirsty look in his eyes, made even more frightening by the Minamoto crest in one of them. For my master.Even though she wasn't among the touken danshi, Aoandon decided to stick with them to protect Nikkari until the last of her breath. For you.Meanwhile, still on the roof, Hiromasa and Shishiō looked at the chaos unfolding around them, below them. The battle was not yet over.Blinded by battle excitement, by the sound and sight of his own blade tearing flesh and letting blood freely gush, Hizamaru momentarily forgot his own wound and didn't realize that his brother was overwhelmed until it was too late – when Iwatōshi and Imanotsurugi finally noticed and mowed down the enemies for Higekiri, his legs could no longer support his body and he collapsed into Hizamaru's arms, streams of red staining his white clothes and his fair features.Hizamaru never thought he would regret wearing black this much in his entire life.He knew it was selfish of him to let such thoughts creep into his mind, even after his brother told him not to worry about him and Yaobikuni assured him there was hope, but he didn't know how he would cope if he lost his brother before they got to ever spend proper time with one another. Even as he solemnly promised to carry on fighting, his heart couldn't help but be weighed down as he saw not just his brother, but Tsurumaru unable to stand anymore, supporting his weight with his sword form as he forced a smile and proclaimed the red blood upon his white robes was what he needed, and Kasen whose Heian clothing was reduced to no more than bloody shreds of fabric and who had already fallen unconscious, having no choice but to lie limp upon his brother's back as he continued to fight despite Kasen's body weighing him down.Seimei was unable to set up any more energy barriers. Yaobikuni was clearly exhausted and on the verge of passing out from over-exerting her powers, but didn't show any reaction other than I cannot die no matter how much I try to. Even the deities didn't fare much better; Miketsu was running low on arrows and could no longer afford not to meticulously time and aim her shots.As if to make matters worse, Onigiri, the only one sticking by Yorimitsu's side, had sunken to his knees from a deep stab to the back. Seizing the opportunity, the last of the dark creatures at once jumped up high above the battlefield, aiming for the onmyōji on the roof.Right then, Kagura shouted, "Higekiri is gone!"Sure enough, the touken danshi whom everyone was sure was draped over Kohaku's back had disappeared – but it was not long before Hasebe spotted him on a roof sprinting towards an open Yorimitsu despite the incredible pain from his grievous wounds. "What the hell is he doing?" Hasebe screamed, "Is he trying to die?"Letting out a roar as befitting of his former status as the Lion Cub, Higekiri immediately sliced three enemies in halves before they could even think of getting any closer to Yorimitsu. He was no longer just Higekiri; standing tall and proud despite his wounds, blade gleaming and eyes burning with an almost monstrous glare, he was a force to reckon with. "What use is there trying anymore? There are not many of you standing alive. Attack me if you dare. I'll destroy you all." he declared, "This wound is nothing. You can't defeat me. I am the treasure of the Genji, Higekiri, and I shall send all of you to hell where you belong!"At that, both Onigiri and Yorimitsu looked at him in surprise.The enemies looked around at their own severely depleted number, then at the warriors ready to strike them down. Knowing there was nothing they could do, they vanished into thin air, but not before one of them said, "This is not yet over!"It was then that Higekiri allowed himself to fall to his knees from his wounds.Terrified from being left behind not knowing where the Dark Heralds had headed to, Hiromasa and Shishiō quietly jumped off the roof in an attempt to run away… before they found themselves blocked by Ibaraki-dōji and Shuten-dōji."Where do you think you're going?" Shuten-dōji hissed, baring his teeth."Haven't we met you before?" Ibaraki-dōji said to Hiromasa, "And now you're siding with those bastard to wreck horror upon us all… You really have changed a lot, have you?""Wait, no! Don't hurt them!" cried Kagura as she tried to stand between the four of them until she was stopped by Miketsu."Talking to them will not undo the effect of the dark corruption energy in their veins. It needs to be properly dispelled." she said, her voice falling, "But removing it will result in breaking the laws of nature, and my powers are not strong enough to perform such a feat."Kagura's eyes teared up at her words."Are you saying it's impossible to cure them?" she asked, "Are you saying they will be evil forever?""They won't." Susabi interrupted, gesturing for everyone to step back so he could walk over to Hiromasa and Shishiō, "Miketsu's powers aren't enough to purify them, but mine are. Allow me to help.""But Susabi-sama, it's an act of breaking the laws of nature, for which dire consequences will follow. Are you sure you want to go through with it?" Miketsu asked."I have already informed you about this before, have I? There will be a great act of disrupting the laws of nature, and it will be committed by me. This is the fate that has been set out for me, and I have to fulfill it. In order to help these people, I have to do whatever I can, no matter what consequences I'll face. I will take responsibility for them all."At this, his wife said nothing else, though she remained in disbelief."Restrain them." Susabi ordered Seimei, and the latter complied, casting a web of glowing energy over Hiromasa and Shishiō in one quick movement of his fingers and one short incantation."Hey, what the hell are you…" Hiromasa grumbled, but not long before Susabi applied his palms to their foreheads, and then a burst of light so bright, everyone else had to cover their eyes. Slowly but steadily, Susabi pulled his palms away from the two's foreheads, drawing out two streams of dark, ominous energy. Once it was all pulled out and concentrated in two dark blobs hovering near his palms, he promptly squeezed his hands closed, making the blobs vanish into thin air.Right then, he fell to the ground."Susabi-sama!" Miketsu cried, rushing to her husband's side.Celebrating finally having Hiromasa and Shishiō return to normal didn't last long before everyone else noticed a crying Miketsu kneeling next to Susabi. "I'm alright." he breathed weakly, reaching up a shaking hand to cup his wife's face. "Though my powers have greatly diminished, I'm still alive. No need to worry about…""We're sorry he's gotten into such a predicament." Yaobikuni said, approaching Miketsu from behind, "After all, it was our fault that Hiromasa-san was infected with malicious energy and he had to remove it."Much to her and everyone else's surprise, Miketsu stood up and turned around with a smile on her face despite the tears still in the corners of her eyes. "As long as we could be of help to you, it's fine. There's no need to apologize. I'm happy that everything is normal now.""Now that the mission is accomplished, why linger around any longer?" Izuminokami, with his brother still on his back, said loudly, and was about to leave until Yagen stopped him, pointing to Hizamaru now on the roof to retrieve his unconscious brother.When Hizamaru, his brother slung over his shoulder, returned, that was when the eighteen swords truly departed. Unbeknownst to them, on the roof that Higekiri was on moments ago, the gaze of both Yorimitsu and Onigiri was still following the unconscious blond man. If what he said is serious, does that mean he is… me? the thought ran through the latter's mind. But how in the three-thousand worlds is this possible?Meanwhile, Nikkari was briefly stopped by a tiny ball of blue flames that flew towards his face only to dissipate, revealing a piece of paper which then fell into his palms. On it was a message that read: I look forward to seeing you again and hear more of your stories.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
The night was quiet, too quiet, with only the occasional chirping of crickets and rustling of leaves in the wind to break the silence. Sighing in contentment, Hizamaru quietly appreciated the perfect opportunity to relax on the engawa and unwind after the intense battle he was put through… until Higekiri said to him, "Oh, it's so quiet I'm afraid an oni will jump out of a bush to scare us.""Anija, the age of yōkai is over. No such things will happen…" Hizamaru replied, annoyed, until a white-clad creature wearing an oni mask did jump out of the bush below them, knocking them both back with sheer shock."Oh man, I've never seen a better surprised face since forever." Tsurumaru laughed as he took off his mask, "Friendly reminder, we are yōkai, and even in this day and age, you should still be aware of their jumping out to scare you, otherwise… well, you see what just happened.""Shut the hell up!" Hizamaru shouted until he noticed his brother giggling right next to him.Right then, as if with contrivances from the powers above, Mikazuki and Nikkari decided then was a perfect time to join them on the engawa and practice their instruments, biwa and èrhú respectively, and thus Hizamaru's eardrums were instantly treated to a musical abomination courtesy of the two musicians' going on to practice their instruments on their own, at totally different pitches and paces, rather than forming any sort of duet. As if to add insult to injury, they clearly couldn't hear anything over the music they were playing, so all of Hizamaru's shouting at them to quiet down was in vain.The quiet night on the engawa was completely ruined.Still, Hizamaru did not appreciate it any less, for the look of clear enjoyment on Higekiri's face was all he needed. After being sent on a long and excruciating adventure right after Higekiri's manifestation, finally getting the chance to let him spend time with his brother after his injuries were treated was the best Hizamaru hoped to have. How he wished happy moments like this would continue to come to the Shiraha-no-Yashiki Citadel…"Oi, I got news from master to you." Nansen appeared, effectively putting a stop to the noises, "The five of you and I will depart for a mission early next morning, so you better go to sleep early. We're going to…""Well, here we go again." Higekiri said, while Hizamaru sighed.
The End.