"Chihiro!" a voice snapped. Footsteps rushed towards her room, slamming the door open. Lin stood at the door, panting heavily. Glaring at the sleeping girl, she growled, "You may be back in the bathhouse, but you're still a worker! Tonight's the last day of the festival, and I don't want to miss it-" Her mouth froze as she realized who was next to Chihiro. Chihiro's head slept on Haku, who leaned against the balcony door.
Scratching her head speechlessly, Lin blinked. "What're you doing here?" The dragon spirit warmly smiled. "What does it look like?" Snorting, Lin raised her finger at him with a glare. "Don't you break her heart," Lin demanded, immediately leaving afterwards. Haku gave a sigh.
The sleeping girl opened one eye, seeing if Lin was still there. "Did she leave?" the human whispered. Haku patted her shoulder. "Yeah," Haku replied, standing up and stretching in the warm breeze. Doing the same, Chihiro sat up, yawning. "I better go downstairs before Lin comes back," she mumbled. She took her clothes from the closet and began to leave. But just before she took a step, Haku grabbed her wrist. Turning around, Chihiro blinked curiously. "Something the matter?" she asked.
Hesitantly, the spirit slowly released her. "It's nothing," he murmured. "I'll… I'll see you later." Confused, Chihiro silently nodded and left the room, hugging her kimono to her chest. Alone, Haku sat back down on her futon, brushing his hair from his eyes. "How can I tell her," he thought.
As she raced down the steps, she slipped her arms into the kimono. Fastening it with a blue datejime, she finally reached the back field. "Ah, Chihiro! You're here!" a voice exclaimed. Turning to the direction of the wind, a frog leaped towards her. "It's been a while, Aogaeru," she greeted. Respectfully nodding, he led her to a training site. "Because of the upcoming war, we have to train to prepare for any attack." War? she frowned. Staring at the young faces, she questioned, "What war?"
"It seems Yubaba hasn't told you," he replied. Hopping away, Chihiro followed him. "A dark spirit created something called the Dark Fear using thousands of spirit energy for the use of future wars. Although it was his creation, the spirit disobeyed and destroyed his village. It went on to other villages, causing anger and no supplies. There were some of the surviving villagers who created it, but they did not stop the Dark Fear."
"Why not?" the girl asked. "The rumors say they thought it was a masterpiece and would lead them to peace." Chihiro narrowed her eyes. "That's not a masterpiece, it's more like a piece of destruction!" Aogaeru nodded in agreement. "We are intending to go to war with the villagers. The strongest will go and stop the Dark Fear."
"But aren't there few villagers surviving? And what about the other villages? Won't they help?" Chihiro wanted to ask him so many questions, but needed to be patient. The frog cleared his throat. "The villages are too frightened to join us. They've experienced the horrors of the dark spirit, knowing that the villagers have somehow controlled it. The survivors found other villages to join forces and take over the Spirit World."
The girl silently nodded. But what did it have to do with Akira? "Never mind about that," Aogaeru tried to change the subject. "How's your target practice?" Blinking, she realized they were standing beside a bow and arrow. "Try it," he offered. "It'll be better with one more spirit- I mean human," he corrected himself.
Smirking, Chihiro picked the bow up. Remember target practice at school, Chihiro, she told herself. You got an A in that class right? Taking an arrow, she positioned herself. The frog mumbled to himself, noticing her position and aim. Aiming at the center of the target, she released her grip on the bow. The arrow flew, whizzing through the wind and hitting the red dot. The arrow pierced the target, barely touching the white.
Impressed, the frog clapped. "Good job!" he congratulated. The other spirits practicing stared at her in disbelief. The two left, roaming around the training site and trying out new things. Finally, Chihiro stopped at the katana arena. A human-looking spirit swiftly dodged the frogs' attacks. When it aimed for the middle, the spirit leaped in the air, stepping on its katana and flipping to the frog's backside. "That's Ryuu," Aogaeru introduced. "He's our best swordsman."
"Ryuu," she thought. "Doesn't that mean dragon?" The frog answered, "Yes, he's a dragon." Nodding, the girl continued to watch the match. He had bright brown hair, with tints of red in the sunlight. His sharp ruby eyes gleamed in excitement as he fought with the spirit.
It's like he's playing with the spirit, she thought. Noticing her watching him, Ryuu gave her a wink before grabbing the spirit's katana midair. Surprisingly, he flipped the spirit over using its katana, pinning him down with two blades pointing at it.
The surrounding spirits cheered, especially the girls standing beside the refreshments. "Ryuu, you've worked so hard! Ryuu won, like always! Who could win against him?" The human girl let out a chuckle. "Would you like to try?" the frog offered. Stepping up for the chance, Chihiro gripped her katana.
"Hey, Ryuu!" the frog called out. However, he was too busy flirting with eh spirits at the refreshments table. Fired up, Chihiro called out, "Hey Kaida!" Aogaeru's eyes widened, startled by Chihiro's call. "K-Kaida?!" he stuttered. "Little dragon?! Chihiro, you shouldn't call him-"
A cup slammed against the table. Turning around, Ryuu stared at the silent crowd. "Who's my next victim?" he slyly smiled. Chihiro smiled. "Victim?" she narrowed her eyes. Standing out from the crowd, she relaxed her hand on her katana. "I'm up for it, Kaida."