Chapter 11: Happy

"Sorry, Aominecchi, but your opponent is me."

Aomine lets out a harsh bark of laughter and raises his blade, meeting his challenge. "You? So you think you can beat me now that you've made a little human friend? Fine, I'll get you out of my way then I'll take care of Tetsu and the rest of them."

Kise swallows hard, trying not to let memories of defeat weigh him down. "Don't you look down on me! I've been practicing hard for this, Aominecchi! Even after you sent me away, I've been preparing! I'll win because I have to—because it's the purpose you gave me. I'll win even if it kills me!"

"Go ahead and try."

Their swords meet for a moment. He parries to the right and leaps into the air to dodge a low sweep. Turning around, he raises his sword to block another blow from behind. Something akin to excitement pricks at his mind. He hasn't felt such a thrill since their last spar, which was so, so many years ago.

"Not bad," Aomine admits. "Never thought you could pull it off."

He scoffs and leaps up, using gravity to add more strength to his attack. "Who do you think sparred with you every day—and lost every day? I'm the one who knows you best."

"Oh? Then you know I've only just warmed up. Besides, have you considered the opposite?" Cracking his neck, Aomine rushes forward again, even faster this time. "I know you can't even copy me."

Relying on his instincts, he raises his sword to block, but nothing comes. He shoulders relax for a moment before Aomine suddenly speeds up again and connects the attack. The sheer strength of the blow sends him flying back into a tree.

Kise rubs the back of his head with a slight pout. "Damn, he's still so cool…" he mutters. "How unfair."

Aomine lands in front of him and frowns. "Is that all you've got?"

"How unfair," he says again. "You've left me no choice, Aominecchi. I've known all along why I couldn't copy you. I admired you so much that I kept wishing I'd never have to see you lose." Standing up, he sheaths his sword. "You're the one who gave me a new purpose and I wanted to be just like you. But maybe it's time I grow out of that.

"That's why I'll quit admiring you."

Sensing a change in the atmosphere, Aomine tenses up and tightens his grip on his sword.

"This sword that you gave me that day," Kise lightly brushes the blue tassel, "it's too heavy for me, and my reaction time and attack power suffered because of it. You knew that, didn't you? That's why you had this one made for me. Let's test it out, shall we?" He unsheathes his other sword and takes his stance. "Aominecchi, here I come."

Aomine's eyes widen when a flash of yellow suddenly appears in front of him. Parrying the blow, he reaches around the blocks another attack. He grits his teeth and swings down only to be parried. Doing a back flip, he puts a little distance between them before rushing forward.

Eyes glowing, Kise deflects the attack and swings upwards, managing to land a cut on the other's upper torso. The blood surprises him. Even though he should've known better, he never expected someone as great as Aomine to bleed. Suddenly, there's a kick to his stomach, sending him to the ground. Coughing, he leaps back onto his feet and scowls.

"Oi, Kise, don't think you've won just because you got one little cut in. If you've got time to worry, use it to attack," Aomine snaps.

He grins and wipes the sweat off his brow. "I would've been disappointed if you went down so easily."

The two of them lunge at each other again.

The feint catches him off guard and he loses his balance for a moment.

There's a sudden pain his side. Kise looks down to find his robes stained red. Another blur of black and blue appears to his other side. There's a sharp kick to his ankle that sends him falling. Leaping back up, he twists around towards the other swinging his blade in a wide arc.

Aomine leaps back, easily avoiding the attack, his expression indifferent. But even so, Kise's ears prick up when he catches the other muttering, "This is why I sent you away, Kise."

His chest tightens at the words, but he gives a weary smile and raises his sword. "Then let's end this, Aominecchi."

From afar, he senses Kagami's powers flare and Momoi's disappear and wonders how the others are faring. Using their temporary distance, he takes the opportunity and rushes Aomine, taking their battle to the sky.

Unfazed by the height, Aomine continues exchanging blows with him.

Below them, he can't see past Kuroko's smoke, but he can sense them running around.

"Where do you think you're looking?" he hears next to his ear.

His eyes widen as he blocks another attack from above. But instead of pulling back, Aomine continues pushing down. They go crashing back down to the ground, each struggling to pin the other down.

A hand reaches out and grabs him by the shoulder, twisting them around in midair.

The next thing he knows, the wind is knocked out of him as he hits the ground, sandwiched between the dirt and Aomine. Pain shoots up his spine and his side. Coughing, he gropes around for his sword only to have it knocked out of his hand.

The cloud of dust clears and there's a sword at his throat.

"Still weak," Aomine says with contempt.

"Then finish it," he challenges.

Narrowing his eyes, in a cold voice, Aomine tells him, "It's not like I wanted to be your master anyway."

"If that's the case then release me already, Aominecchi," Kise bites back, eyes never leaving the other's.

Aomine pauses, suddenly unsure.

Fists balled up, he shouts, "I said release me!"

Grip tightening on his sword, Aomine raises it slowly. "…Ryouta, I…"

Suddenly, the weight disappears off of him as Kagami goes crashing into the Shoumen Kongou. Caught off guard, Aomine goes flying to the ground where a barrier forms around him.

Sitting up, eyes wide in disbelief, Kise stares at the onmyouji. "Kagamicchi?"

"Are you completely stupid, Kise!?" Kagami snaps back. "What were you thinking!? What would you've done if he really tried to release you!?"

"I just thought—" Pulling the other back, he leaps to his feet unsteadily and unsheathes his other sword to block another attack. It's only under the strength of the attack that he notices his ankle throbbing. "Never mind that, Kagamicchi, we need to finish this first."

Kagami nods and takes out more of his talismans.

Aomine frowns, eyes travelling from one to the other. With the sweep of his sword, he destroys to barrier around him. "Looks like you saved me the trouble of going back to kill you."

"Maybe I should be the distraction this time since he seems really set on killing me," Kagami mutters.

Retrieving his sword from the ground, Kise laughs. "Maybe I should be jealous that Aominecchi sees you as a bigger threat than me. Let's end this quickly, the bleeding doesn't seem to be stopping," he says, glancing down his side where a streak of red is running down the length of his robes.

"Right. I'll try trapping him again, but if it doesn't work, I need you to find a way to keep him still, got it?" Kagami asks.

"Understood," Kise tells him, charging towards Aomine.

Aomine raises his sword to counter, but he feints and attacks from the side. Twisting around, Aomine manages to use the hilt to mitigate the damage done. Around them, walls of light begin to form and shrink, trapping them inside.

Dropping his sword, Kise swoops around behind Aomine and locks his arms around the other, trying to keep him still.

Not wasting any time, Kagami begins his chant.

Struggling to get out of Kise's grasp, Aomine twists and jams his elbow into the inugami's injured side. "You think something like this is enough to stop me? Let go of me, you stupid dog."

"I can't," Kise grits out.

"Then I'll just have to make you."

There's a burst of power fused with darkness, forcing Kagami to stop and put up a shield around him. Once it clears, he sees that his barrier's been completely destroyed and Kise's on the ground, clutching at his wound.

Aomine grins ferally as their eyes meet. "It's time to end this."

Kagami gulps and readies his staff for battle, his mind racing to come up with a way to win this battle without exorcising the other. Then, from up above, something catches his eyes.

The youkai leans forward, prepared to lunge, when his eyes suddenly widen. He looks down only to find his feet frozen to the ground. "Satsuki, what are you doing!?" he shouts as snow begins to fall around them, melting upon contact with the ground.

Taking the opportunity, Kagami quickly begins the chant again, purifying the area before focusing on the youkai.

Aomine tugs at his feet, trying to break them free, but, deeply rooted to the ground, the ice doesn't even budge.

"Momocchi," Kise mutters, slowly picking himself up off the ground. Worn out and tired, he limps his way over to Aomine and sits down. "It's over, Aominecchi."

"The only one who can win against me is me," Aomine growls.

Kise chuckles humourlessly. "That may be so on a one-on-one basis, but not even you can beat a whole team of people on your own. I remember I was…scared when I had to go through this in Kaijou, but Kurokocchi was there and that made it easier; so I'll be right here, Aominecchi, until it's finally over. And when you wake up, I'll be here still, just like you were that time you saved me."

Eyes softening, Aomine opens his mouth to say something only to wince. He clutches his head and grits his teeth. "Weak. So weak! How dare they act so high and mighty when we could so easily crush them? I'll become even stronger and make them pay for what they've done!"

The ice around the youkai's feet disappear and he falls to his knees.

"Satsuki…Ryouta…"

"We're still here, Aominecchi," Kise says softly.

"Weak. Every single one of them. The more effort I put in, the more boring it becomes. What's the point? The rival I keep looking for…I'll never find him! So weak…" The glow fades from his eyes. "The only one who can win against me…is me."

The pressure in the atmosphere suddenly disappears as Aomine falls unconscious. Finishing his spell, Kagami's knees give out and he falls back onto the ground. "Well, that's finally done." Pushing himself back up, he makes his way over to Kise. "Are you alright?"

Kise pulls out the charm that was made for him to repel the darkness, now tainted black and falling apart. "The darkness was really strong around Aominecchi. I think that's why my side wouldn't stop bleeding."

"Hold still, I'll widen this barrier." Adjusting his wards, he purifies the darkness around Kise and pulls a talisman out of his sleeve to quickly create another charm from it.

"Thank you, Kagamicchi. Go back and help the others. It looks like I've become stuck again," the inugami says ruefully. "And maybe when you're done, get Midorimacchi to come over to help?"

Kagami nods. "I'll be right back then." He pauses mid-step and looks back. "Oh, and Kise?"

"Yes?"

"You did good—though we're still having that talk later, and the others will probably want to yell at you too."

Kise grins. "Understood."

With the rest of the tengu taken care of and the shrine mostly purified, they reconvene in the forest where Kise and the still unconscious Aomine are. Midorima quickly sets about dressing their wounds, all while lecturing the inugami on being so reckless.

"What were you thinking telling him to release you?" Kagami asks, joining in with Kuroko.

"Decided to join in the fun, hmm?" Kise asks with a tired smile. "I had no intention of dying, Kagamicchi. If anything, I've never wanted to live more. I just thought if he couldn't give me orders then he probably couldn't release me either. Was I wrong?"

He shrugs. "I couldn't say for sure."

"But what would you've done if it worked, Kise-kun," Kuroko asks, his voice full of disapproval.

Kise shakes his head. "I didn't think that far ahead. I guess I just wanted to know if he'd really do it. I didn't mean to make you guys worried."

"Tetsu-kun?" a voice interrupts. "We brought you food. It'll be night time soon."

"Thank you. We're over here, Momoi-san," Kuroko calls back.

Momoi appears with the tengu behind her. "Ki-chan!"

Tail wagging, Kise smiles. "Momocchi, it's been a while. You really saved us back there!"

"I've been meaning to ask, how'd you know where we were?" Kagami asks.

"It started snowing, right? It's kind of like Kurokocchi's smoke where she can see everything the snow touches without having to be there. Momocchi's actually really strong," Kise explains. "Oh, are those offerings from the shrine?"

"Yes," Momoi replies. "Ever since you went to Kaijou, we've had more food than we knew what to do with so we started feeding strays and wild animals—but they all left when this darkness came in."

Kagami arches a brow and Kuroko shrugs. "Where did you think the all food offerings went, Kagami-kun?"

"The people who take care of the shrine?" he suggests.

"Under normal circumstances, maybe," Momoi says. "But Touou Shrine hasn't had a human keeper since…well, it's been a very long time now. Usually, Dai-chan or I go to greet the people."

Crossing his arms in thought, Kagami nods. "At least that explains why Aomine was so good at disguising himself as a human."

He reaches out to help one of the tengu with their load only to have the youkai shrink back fearfully with an, "I'm sorry!"

Kagami blinks. "Huh!? Why are you apologizing?"

From Midorima's side, Takao begins laughing. "He apologized the whole time we were fighting as well, didn't he, Shin-chan?"

Another tengu chuckles and shakes his head. "Sakurai, you're gonna scare them if you act like this. These guys are clearly on an epic journey to rid the land of evil."

He doesn't even bother trying to deny it anymore.

"That's not what I meant to…I'm really sorry for being alive!"

"No, that's—you're sorry for being alive!?"

Momoi quickly interrupts them. "We haven't done introductions yet, have we? This is Imayoshi-san and Sakurai-kun, and Wakamatsu-kun is just bringing over some firewood in case Dai-chan doesn't wake up by nightfall. They help run Touou Shrine."

Kuroko studies the tengu closely. "Could it be that these three are the rumours monkeys that follow the Shoumen Kongou around?"

Sakurai nearly drops the food onto the ground in horror. "Monkeys?"

This gets a laugh out of Momoi. "Oh, Tetsu-kun, you're still so funny!"

Something clicks in Kagami's brain as he watches the two interact and he turns to Kise, a half-eaten rice ball in his hand. "When you said he was her greatest weakness…"

"You finally figured it out, hmm? Momoicchi's totally in love with Kurokocchi," Kise answers.

"Oh, I thought she just had a really weird sense of humour—wait, what!?" he blurts.

"She actually likes him?" Midorima asks seriously.

Kise stares at the two in disbelief. "Kagamicchi I can kind of understand, but Midorimacchi, you seriously had no idea even after all this time?"

"It's because Shin-chan's no good at picking up on these things," Takao chimes in.

Face flushing, Midorima stands up. "Be quiet, you two! I had more important things to worry about! I-I'm going to go look for herbs and firewood before the sun sets!"

"Wait for me, Shin-chan! I'll come with you!"

Laughing as the two run off, Kise licks the rice off his fingers and reaches for another. "You know, you guys don't have to stay out here tonight. I can wait for Aominecchi to wake up on my own; I don't mind. It gets pretty chilly here at night with so little to block the wind."

Kagami shrugs. "I don't really mind. We have a pretty good fire going here."

"Yes, but you should take advantage of being at a shrine. It can't be good for a human like you to stay out in this kind of weather every night. Besides," Kise says with a sniff, "you could really use a bath, Kagamicchi."

"Kise-kun is right, Kagami-kun," Kuroko says, suddenly appearing.

The two of them give a start. "Don't sneak up like that, Kuroko!"

"I've been here for a while now. I was going to get a bite to eat, but it seems like you and Kise-kun have finished everything off already."

Confused, he looks down at the empty tray. "Oh, when did that happen?"

"I have some food I made if you'd like, Tetsu-kun," Momoi offers.

Everyone around them seems to freeze for moment. Kagami looks around and blinks, not understanding why the offer of more food would elicit such a reaction. "More food? Why not?" he says before anyone can stop him.

He quickly realizes his mistake when the 'food' is brought out.

Walking back towards the shrine with their supplies gathered in their arms, Kagami can't help but ask, "Was it a good idea leaving them there? Do you think those they'll be alright?"

"I'm sure they'll be fine," Kuroko reassures him, sweat dripping down his face as he makes his way up the stairs, "because they're both idiots."

"It's probably better that you're not there, onmyouji-sama," Imayoshi says lightly with an unreadable smile on his face.

He arches a brow. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"No, it's nothing against you, Kagami-kun, or I don't think so at least," Momoi says.

"That's not very reassuring. He did try pretty hard to kill me today."

"It's probably because of that thing you did to Kise," Midorima suggests.

"You did something to Ki-chan? That could be it," Momoi says. "But even if that wasn't the case, Dai-chan just doesn't like people very much."

Wakamatsu scoffs. "Does like people very much? It's more like he outright hates them. He's the one who chased the priests and monks away from the shrine in the first place, isn't he? I like you just fine, Momoi, but Aomine gets on my nerves! He just showed up on Imayoshi-san's mountain one day and started acting like he owned the place; then he kicked the humans out made Sakurai cook for him and his dog."

"Huh? I'm sorry!" Sakurai immediately blurts, snapping to attention.

Imayoshi shrugs. "I personally didn't mind since I heard about his arrival beforehand. He's certainly kept this shrine safe since his arrival."

"But his attitude!" Wakamatsu argues. "He may be strong, but he didn't have to takes things so far!"

Momoi frowns. "It may be true that Dai-chan's no good at doing things tactfully, but he did do it for a reason. If it's about getting a new human keeper after all this is over, I'll talk to him again when he and Ki-chan come back. I hope they don't rough each other up too much though. I mean, they're both still injured and all."

Furrowing his brow, Kagami asks again, "Are you sure they'll be okay on their own?"

Looming over the mountains, the moon glows brightly in the sky, lighting up bits of the forest floor. His ears twitch and he opens his eyes when a rustle wakes him. He looks around for anything amiss before turning his attention to the youkai next to him who shifts and slowly opens his eyes, groggy and half-asleep still.

In a daze, Aomine sits up and turns his head. "Kise…?"

"Aominecchi, you're up," Kise says, tail thumping slowly.

"Kise, you…" Completely awake now, Aomine reaches out slowly, "idiot!"

"Ow!" he yelps, clutching his head. "What was that for!?"

"For everything today! Do you have a death wish!? What would you have done if, by some ridiculous and pretty much impossible miracle, you'd won!?"

"Hey!"

Aomine smacks him on the head again. "And even worse! What was with you telling me to release you!? Have you come to hate being mine so much that you'd rather die!?"

Reaching out and pulling at Aomine's hair, Kise retorts, "I don't hate it at all! Aren't you the one who hates being my master!?"

"What are you talking about!?" he snaps, starting a fist fight with the inugami.

"Before that, take back your order and let me move again!"

"No way! Just stay there and let me hit you for your stupidity! When did I say I hated being your master!?" Aomine demands.

"I overheard you talking to Momocchi before you sent me to Kaijou! And you said it again today!"

"That's not what I meant!" Aomine yells in frustration. "The reason I said that to Satsuki was because I was a threat to your life! Like today, do you know how hard I had to fight to not let myself say those words back there?"

Kise frowns. "But you said you never wanted to be my master—"

Letting out an exasperated sigh, Aomine runs a hand through his hair. "Only because I never planned on it, but I don't regret it. If anything, you made things fun for me. I only became this strong because of you—to keep you from beating me, at least until I could think of a better purpose to give you. If I didn't want to be your master, I would've told you a long time ago, Kise."

"I don't understand," Kise says softly. "Is that why you sent me to Kaijou then? Because you were afraid you'd release me?"

"Yeah, by then, I could already feel the darkness growing and getting closer to Touou. But even more than that, Kaijou's by the sea, isn't it?"

He blinks. "What does the sea have to do with anything?"

Aomine shrugs. "You were always going on about seeing the ocean, so when Akashi said I could choose another region on top of Touou, I picked Kaijou. Strong youkai to fight, the ocean nearby, and good food…I thought it would make you happy."

Tears pricking at his eyes, Kise clenches his fists in his lap. "Aominecchi, you idiot. Why are you always so stupid!? Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!" he shouts. "I won't understand unless you tell me these things! I wasn't born a human or youkai, and I haven't been one long enough for these kinds of thoughts to come naturally to me. I just…I wanted to see the ocean with you."

"Yeah, I get that now," Aomine says gently. "I made you lonely, didn't I? Sorry."

Kise shakes his head, wiping his tears away with his sleeve. "No, I wasn't lonely. Even though I couldn't see you, I wasn't lonely because I had Kasamatsu-senpai and everyone at the shrine. They taught me lots of new things and made every day fun for me. Don't you know? I'm known as the Kaijou Inugami now. They gave me a home to go back to, but…but I still missed you every single day, Aominecchi."

"Ryouta."

"Huh?" He looks up to see Aomine with his arms spread.

"Come here."

With tears running down his cheeks, he wraps his arms around Aomine's neck. "All this time, I thought you didn't want me around anymore…I missed you, Aominecchi."

Wrapping his arms tightly around the inugami's waist, he chuckles. "Idiot. I've never once thought that, so don't go around trying to get yourself killed again, okay?"

Ears flattening, Kise sighs, "But I wasn't trying to—yeah, okay."

"Promise me."

"I promise."

Satisfied, Aomine nods to himself. "Good, now what was that about not admiring me anymore?"

"I know you're my master but I want to be your equal from now on," Kise tells him, determination alight in his eyes, "like how you are with Momocchi. I don't need you to protect me from the world anymore, Aominecchi, and from now on, don't hold back when we spar!"

Aomine blinks before snorting. "Stupid. Satsuki doesn't even fight. And when have I ever held back against you? I just kept getting stronger 'cause I couldn't let you beat me."

Kise pouts. "But I'll beat you one day for sure, right?"

"You're still at least a hundred years too early to be saying that," Aomine teases. "But let me give you a new purpose so I won't have to worry when that day comes. Ryouta, I want you to do what makes you happy, and if that means trying to beat me, then you can keep trying; that's your new purpose."

"That's it?" he asks. "Do what makes me happy? But what if I don't know what makes me happy?"

"Then I guess it's your job to find something that does. And when you find it, and things don't go your way, you'll just have to pick yourself up and try again, alright?" Reaching out, Aomine grins and ruffles his hair. "Now, since you don't want me to go easy on you, does that mean you don't want a ride back up to the shrine?"

"I do!" Kise immediately protests. "My foot's hurt, Aomineecchi! Carry me!"

Aomine sighs in mock-exasperation. "Fine, but on the way, you're gonna tell me about this human you've been travelling with."

A/N: I'm quite proud of myself for not taking a month to get this up. I don't think there are any notes to write for this chapter but look! An omake!

Omake: Monkeys

"So Tetsu-kun's heard of all the rumours about Dai-chan then?" Momoi asks.

Kuroko nods. "Yes, we were all surprised to hear how famous he's become around these parts."

"Yes, but I can't imagine where they got the idea of monkey companions. Maybe it's because of the ones that live in this area? They're rarely seen around the shrine though," Momoi mutters in thought.

"I think I can see it though," he says. "If they were monkey youkai, Imayoshi-san would be the one that sees no evil—even if it's only because he looks like the type who'd turn a blind eye on a lot of things."

Imayoshi turns away with his usual smile. "I'm going to pretend that didn't happen."

"Sakurai-kun would be the one that speaks no evil," Kuroko continues.

"I'm sorry!" Sakurai immediately yells. "I'm really sorry!"

"And Wakamatsu-kun would hear no evil?" Momoi finishes for him.

Wakamatsu frowns. "What did you say!?"

Letting out a laugh, Momoi says, "You know, I can kind of see it now that you put it this way. Just make sure you don't tell Dai-chan or he'll never let them hear the end of it."

"Doesn't that makes Aomine-kun the ultimate monkey who sees, hears, and speaks evil then?"