This chapter is about Ikari and the truth behind him.

Chapter 24: A Survivor of the Tengu clan

After encountering Ikari in the sixth stage, Yume became bewilderment when he knew her for some reasons.

"Show me. Your true power as the Ally of the Byakugan, Yume Yukisaki." said Ikari, taking his katana with his right hand from the waist and preparing himself to fight Yume.

She felt something strange with the man, who looked like a samurai because of his appearances and his attire.

"This person... It feels like... he's somehow human, but different to me." thought Yume. She began to draw her katana with her left hand, realizing that she needs to find out about Ikari. "I have to find out about Ikari. Something's not right just now."

"I'm in the hurry, but I have no choice although you're my opponent." she replied.

"Very well then, shall we begin?"

Meanwhile, somewhere, Yoji and the two Inyo kunoichi were still looking for Yume and the others were separated from the whirlwind when they came to the Akumu no Kuni. He used Ifrit to sniff Yume or the other Inyo shinobi. The flame demon tried to find Yume's scent or the others, and turned to Yoji as it shook its head.

"I see," said Yoji. "You did best, Ifrit. You can take a rest."

Ifrit nodded and returned back into the chakrams and Yoji caught them and put them around his waist.

"No luck just now. I'm sure we'll find them, so don't worry," he exclaimed.

Pana understood and Rika was somehow shivered herself, trying to warm up with her both hands.

"What's wrong, Rika? You okay?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'm just... a little cold." Rika replied.

"Cold?" Yoji implied.

He noticed the mist already appeared around him with Rika and Pana. He prepared himself after noticing the mist.

"Come on out! I know you're there somewhere!" he shouted at the mist.

A silhouette came out from the mist, laughing. "Well, if it isn't Ryoji. I didn't know you're there with those two girls."

It was none other than Yoku who once again summoned the mist after he somehow survived from the blast, while fighting against Kazekiri.

"Yoku..." Yoji growled at him.

"Ryoji?" Pana replied.

"Yoji-san... you know him?" Rika implied.

Yoji knew that his secret as the puppet leader and the eighth nightmare was revealed to the unaware Inyo kunoichi because of Yoku.

"Pana, take Rika with you and get back."

Pana became confused, but took Rika with her to the bamboo trees. Yoji prepared himself with his chakrams.

"Well, fighting against me huh? Talk about an ice and flame battle," Yoku commented.

"How about you just shut up!" He threw his chakrams, only the ice release user dodged them. Yoji caught them after he missed.

"Whoa, aren't you my puppet leader? Well, I believe those two kunoichi are outsiders. In that case," He began to make a hand seal of tiger. "Hyoton: Aisu Keiji!"

A mist became an ice cage imprisoned Rika and Pana from above. Yoji noticed with shock, seeing that Yoku used them as hostages.

"Let them go!" he yelled.

"Sorry, I can't do that, but I'll let them watch our battle," Yoku stated.

"This cage. It's so cold..." Rika complied as she became more cold. She began to pass out while she was a cold cage.

Pana caught her as she became shocked. "Rika!" she yelled.

Yoji noticed that the frozen cage caused Rika became cold and became enraged at Yoku.

"Hey, easy there, Leader-san. Why an angry face? I don't know why you're with those two, but I believe neither of the two is not the challenger."

Yoji noticed that Yoku was looking for Yume and knew that he can't let him find her if he had to fight him. "Yume..."

Later, on the other side of the bamboo forest, the battle already began after Yume encountered Ikari. They clashed with their katana, blocking their attacks. His kenjutsu was very malevolent as he swung hastily. Yume tried to block his attacks from her katana.

"Kazekiri!" She slashes with her katana at Ikari, only noticed that Ikari destroyed her kenjutsu with one cut.

"Your nature element is wind, I see. A same element as I am," he stated.

"Same? You mean..." she replied with shock. "Your element is wind."

"Correct, with my katana and my nature element, I can destroy your Kazekiri with one slash."

Yume became hesitated, wondering with confusion. "What are you? You looked human, but you're not somehow."

"Not human? Well, unlike my partner and the other four you somehow defeated them, I'm actually a yokai from the extinct clan, the Tengu clan." he stated.

Much to Yume's shocking surprise from him, Ikari was the yokai of the clan called Tengu.

"The Tengu clan? You're a yokai?" she implied.

"It all happened when we invaded Inyogakure and I'm survivor of the Tengu clan. The Tengu were yokai such as the karasu tengu. I'm the last karasu tengu of the yokai clan."

He began to transform himself to his yokai form of the Karasu Tengu. He summoned his black wings behind his back, showing Yume his true form.

"Black wings!" shocked Yume.

"As your opponent, it's best to show you my true form, despite showing my partner, the Ice Release user, and the other four."

Yume never knew that her opponent was a karasu tengu because of his crow-like wings. She knew that she had to do this if she needs to find Yoji and her two comrades Rika and Pana.

"If I have to defeat Ikari, then I have to defeat him. I can't lose to a yokai like him."

She began to use her Kazekiri once again at Ikari, only he flew up. Yume used her autumn leaves genjutsu, supporting and enabling her to fly and go after Ikari.

"Well, you used genjutsu with autumn leaves to support you," the black-winged yokai complied to her.

"I won't lose to a yokai like you even you're one of the seven nightmares," she replied.

"I see, but I'm afraid you can't defeat me. As a member of the Seven Shinobi, I'm the strongest. I was once chosen because of Orochimaru and my former master Yokami after my clan was destroyed," he explained. "Even I was the first one who joined Megami-sama."

Yume became shocked when Ikari mentioned Yokami, the deceased Sannin and a missing-nin whom she killed from destroying Inyogakure.

"You know him?" she inquired.

"Yes, until I heard about his death by your hands. Consider this a battle of fate, Yume Yukisaki."

"Then you knew Megami? If so, she's the leader of the Seven Shinobi of Nightmares?"

"That's correct until she chose Ryoji, the puppet leader and the eighth nightmare. Despite him as leader, he never talk with us."

"Yoji-san..." she realized.

"At least, he wasn't with you by any chance," Ikari mentioned.

Her eyes became more shocked when Ikari knew that Yoji wasn't with her due to the separation. "How did you know?" she asked.

"Netami and Taidana told me after you and Ryoji disappeared." he answered. "I never knew that Ryoji is protecting you. And also, no wonder Kabuto Yakushi requested him as a special mission at the beginning of the Seven Stages of Nightmares."

Yume heard that Ikari was talking about Kabuto, whom she would never trust. She became distraught and began to say something to Ikari.

"I dare you. Say that name in front of me," She activated her Byakugan to show him with killing intent and especially using her former hatred towards him. "I'll kill you."

"Her eyes. Hatred? No. What could that be then?" Ikari noticed. "It seems that you hate him. I don't know what kind of hatred you have just now, but you can't defeat me as a yokai."

"I will if I can! Even I won't give up on fighting against you!"

She went towards Ikari, using her katana while Ikari blocked her attack with his. They clashed with their katana once again.

"Kaze no Mai!"

She danced along with her autumn leaves genjutsu. Autumn leaves began to attack Ikari, only he dodged and repelled them with just one slash.

"Like I told you, you can't defeat me."

Yume noticed the dark aura within the yokai with sudden shock. "What is this?"

"Tengu Ichizoku Ougi, Shin-fu Senjin!"

Using his katana combining with his black wings, thousand of winds he summoned that were dead came towards Yume and wounded her a thousand times. She resisted Ikari's kenjutsu, but with these dead winds, she began to fall from the air and came inside the bamboo trees. The autumn maple leaves went to save her from landing on the ground and caught her just in time. Yume was now wounded from the thousand slashes and began to slowly pass out. Ikari flapped his wings and stood victory.

Later, somewhere in the autumn trees of Yume no Kuni, Kaito, also known as Kai, sat on the bench, noticing the autumn leaves had somehow fade away all the sudden. He wore a usual outfit from three years ago before his death, except there were textures of white camellias on the jacket and martial artist shoes. He had a silver cane with a small crystal orb inside the glass along with him, laying near by him.

He sensed that his student was wounded by Ikari and began to whisper to himself. "Yume..."

With Yume defeated by Ikari, will she can defeat with her remaining strength? Kai's whisper caused him worried after sensing something had happened to Yume.