Edo Period (1603-1868)

A little girl was sitting beside a dead tree; she's tightly hugging her knees covering her face with it. She's wearing a short kimono that reaches her upper thigh and her clothes seem torn apart. Her body is covered in mud, bruises and injuries.

'Who is that child?' a woman asked her friend.

'Don't go near her! They say she's an ayakashi…' another answered pulling the woman away from the girl. The people kept talking about her and some even kick or punch her as they pleased.

'Oi, you…' a deep-voiced man called her but she didn't look up. 'You're not an ayakashi affiliated with us eh?' he asked but she didn't answer or move.

'Oi, I'm talking to you!' he lost his patience and unsheathed his sword and poised it to swing at her but when about to deliver the blow he couldn't move his arms as he stared at her hidden face.

'Wh-what the hell? I can't move!' he thought. 'Is that her "fear"?' The girl looked up and stared at him with sharp angry purple eyes and stood up. The once dead tree now became a cherry tree with its petals falling numerously. As the girl raised her hand, the wind began to pick up and the petals that touched the man injured him. He became scared not being able to move and the wind became violent blowing against the man the girl stopped making the petals slash through his body until his body fell to pieces.

'Wh-what kind of ayakashi is she?' another said as he pulled out his sword and lunged for an attack but she turned to him and the petals flew to him but before she's able to kill him, he slashed her neck and she fell on the ground as the wind stopped blowing. There she lay on the ground bleeding profusely until she's lying on a pool of her own blood. 'Damn you, you monster!'

'That's enough!' another man said.

'Rihan-sama!' the man said.

'That girl…she's part of the clan.' Rihan said walking toward the girl who immediately turned pale. 'She lost too much blood at a short time.' He thought and kneeled beside her. 'I finally found you, little Kagura…' he took a blade and wounded his own arm letting the blood flow. He took her and placed his wounded arm next to her open neck. After a while, her wound closed up and so did his arm—to his surprise. He smiled and lifted her as she fell asleep in his arms. 'The ayakashi that dances with the wind, Kagura…' he thought looking at her.

風と踊る妖、神楽

That morning, she woke up in a room. She sat up and looked around, she tried to remember what happened that night and all she could remember is the one where her neck was slashed open. She touched her neck and felt the scar that was left there. She looked at the window wondering what went on and faintly remembered a black haired man kneeling beside her.

'Oh, you're awake already?' the same man who saved her said standing by the door. 'How do you feel?' he asked but she just stared at him. 'Well you don't have to answer, after what you went through you must be exhausted.' He said but she still didn't say a word.

'Do you have a name?' he asked but she shook her head. 'At least she responded.' He thought. 'Do you know how you got there?' he asked again and she shook her head again. 'I guess you couldn't remember anything.'

'Who are you?' she finally asked as he looked at her.

'My name's Nura Rihan, the Nura Clan's Nidaime.' He answered after a while.

'Why did you save me? I am an ayakashi…' she said and he didn't let her finish.

'I'm an ayakashi too,' he answered making her look at him. 'Half of me is.'

'A hanyou?' she asked with her eyes widening. 'How can I believe that?'

'If you want you can go ask my old man, or even my mother at that.' He answered as she stopped asking questions. 'That mark on you face…what is that?' he asked as she placed her hand on the left side of her face where a small distinctive mark of a cherry blossom is.

'I don't know.'

'You must be a new breed of flower youkai, a sakura youkai perhaps?' he said as he urged her to take a look at the weeping cherry blossom just outside the window. 'That tree hasn't been blooming for years, but since I brought you here last night it blossomed as you can see now.'

'Sa…kura…' she murmured looking at the tree.

'I saw you that night…' he said surprising her. 'The night after the Hanami festival, a young girl danced with the wind along with the fleeting sakura petals.' She looked down and saw his injured arm.

'Your arm…'

'Oh this? That was something you showed me back there, I was planning on healing your wounds alone but you did the same to me, I guess I have to thank you too.' He said as she felt something throbbing inside her as it stopped she looked at him.

'Did you…did you do something?' she asked.

'Oh, you mean that? You were losing too much blood so I gave you some of mine.' He answered. 'I could've taken you back here and let my mother do her thing but there's not much time.'

'You mean…that was your blood?' she asked.

'Yeah, so that'll mean I shouldn't be surprised if you could heal injuries and diseases just like I can…' he said smirking at her. 'That's it, I've finally thought of a name for you.'

'A name?'

'Don't you think it's really difficult not having a name? And since you don't have one I'll give you one.' He answered. 'Your name will be…Nura Kagura!'

'Nu-Nura…? Isn't that your family name?'

'Since my blood is now in you, that technically makes you my kin…though I'm too young to be a father. Alright, you'll be my little sister, is that alright?' he answered scruffing her already messy hair.

'Your…little sister? Wait a minute…' she said standing up suddenly but she felt dizzy and fell but he caught her before she hit the ground.

'Don't overdo it, you're still too weak. You should rest some more.' He said and she fell unconscious again in his arms. 'Really reckless, you know.'

A few years later, Kagura, the new member of the Nura Clan just came back from the night patrol in the streets of Edo. She went to her room to change and when she's half-way putting her clothes on the door slid open as she instinctively covered herself and fell on her knees.

'Kagura…' Rihan said as a towel hit his face rendering him unable to finish what he's trying to say.

'KNOCK FIRST BEFORE YOU COME IN, BAKA NIISAMA!' Kagura shouted.

'But I haven't seen you in a while, aren't you glad your niichan came to you?' Rihan asked teasingly running from Kagura's room.

'That wasn't what I had in mind, pervert!' Kagura angrily answered chasing after him, now clad in her plain red kimono, as she spun to kick Rihan in the face and he blocked it with his arm and jumped backward to avoid her rampage.

'Eh? But Kagura-chan looks so cute!' Rihan answered jumping from the second floor, bypassing the stairs, and down on the first floor.

'Stop kidding me!' Kagura answered doing the same as she threw a plate from a youkai who's bringing the dishes to the kitchen and to her brother who got hit by it and fell but he immediately got up and ran running over the smaller youkai that blocked his way. 'Come back here!'

'Dear, oh dear…they're at it again.' A long haired woman said standing beside Kubinashi.

Meanwhile, Nurarihyon and Youhime are sitting on the porch viewing the weeping cherry tree at dawn drinking tea as their quiet time was broken by Kagura and Rihan running about the mansion shouting and arguing.

'It's so peaceful, isn't it?' Nurarihyon said after having a sip from his cup.

'It is, Ayakashi-sama.' His wife answered smiling peacefully as they heard glasses breaking and things being thrown and hitting the walls.

'Ah, that's Edo for you～' her husband answered.

'Now we have three sets of fools…' a woman said sighing while hanging the laundry. She's wearing a white furisode with butterfly designs at the hem and at the ends of her sleeves and her hair is black and white with a shade of blue.

'Recently, it's been lively hasn't it, Setsura?' a youkai, wearing a traditional Noh actor's clothes, said.

'Two idiots from an idiot father…' Setsura answered sarcastically ignoring the commotion and continued hanging the laundry.

'Aren't there someone who'd stop them?' a crow asked flapping its wings beside Setsura. 'At this rate, they'll destroy the house.'

'Let the fool of a father handle those two dimwits.' She answered not caring about what'll happen.

'Some extreme memory we've got…' Kagura said as Rihan sat besides her taking as sake cup as the female Nura poured the liquor into it.

'That's maybe because I haven't got anyone to play with back then…?' he answered laughing.

'Anyone to play with? Are you saying you took me in because you want someone to "play" with you?' Kagura asked with her veins popping.

'Partly, but I already told you my real reason for bringing you into the family right?' he answered looking at her who's pouting. 'Stop pouting, it makes me want to tease you more. So, is there something wrong? It's unlike you to drink by yourself.'

'Yeah, something has been bothering me these days.' Kagura answered as she poured sake in her cup, Rihan rolled his eyes to her and messed with her hair.

'Awww, look at you sulking…' Rihan said scruffing her hair. 'Kagura-chan is so gullible!'

'Stop it, and I'm not sulking! And why would I be bothered with that? Even I'm being a bit too overprotective of Rikuo at times…' Kagura answered as Rihan looked at her smirking.

'I didn't say it's about Rikuo now, did I?' Rihan answered as Kagura sighed defeated. 'You know I'm really thankful to have you as my sister, and I'm at ease thinking that you, Wakana, that old man of ours and the others are looking after my son. But that doesn't mean we're bypassing you as a part of the family.'

'I know that, I know that but still…' Kagura answered as Rihan stopped scruffing her hair.

'You're my sister, Kagura, and I love you…' he suddenly said making Kagura look at him. 'Do you believe me?' Kagura just stared at him as he gently pats her head.

'Really, you…' Kagura said hiding her face. '…you always say unexpected things. Baka niisama...' was all Kagura could say, but to her surprise her brother pulled her to his shoulder as he's still petting her.

'Unfortunately for you...this baka niisama of yours is the only one you open your heart with.'

'Give me a break, you're already dead...' she answered rolling her eyes away from him, as he went rough with her again. 'Stop that already! I'm not a cat!'

'Just remember this, Kagura, you're not alone...you have everyone in this clan beside you.' He said.

'Usual oniisama...you're just used to come and go just like that.' Kagura answered sighing heavily and continued to drink by herself. She raised her sake cup to the moon as her brother's presence passed leaving no trace like the sakura the dances with the wind.