On a completely unrelated note, the day after the last chapter was posted Sekirei: Fear of the Dark broke 20,000 views. I don't know if that's significant, but it's definitely a number.
Sincerely,
The Author
Uzume grimaced as the voice on the other end of the phone calmly chewed her out.
"I get it: they're both targets," she seethed, angrily pressing a palm to her forehead. "But look at it from my position: if I move on them here, his other Sekirei will get involved". She paused to hear the caller's response. "You forced me to ditch the rules when I became Higa's personal thug. You really think Numbers Nine and Three would stick to them?"
Disregarding Kazehana's knowledge of Uzume's alter-ego, that last bit was sort of a lie. She honestly had no idea how Tsukiumi would react to the news of her being the assassin. Though from their only encounter, Uzume's feeling of dread was probably justified. She paused again, listening. "Yes… I know he takes care of Chiho, and I'm grateful for that. But that doesn't make this any easier."
Pause, after which Uzume let out a frustrated growl. "Fine, I'll see what I can do. Just tell me the next target."
After getting a solid description of the unfortunate Sekirei that was to be The Veiled One's victim, Uzume heard someone approaching down the hall. Quickly she hung up the phone.
"Uzume? I didn't know you were in."
"Oh! Hey, Kazehana!" Uzume beamed at her inn-mate-turned-secret-rival, who was standing in the doorway. "What's up?"
"Miya said I couldn't wear this for the party," The Wind Sekirei sulked, tugging at her apron. She trotted over to Uzume's closet. "Mind if I borrow something?"
Kazehana knelt down and began sifting through the costumes.
"Now, what could I wear to make Minato one happy hubby?"
Looking at the elder Sekirei, Uzume noted she her back was completely uncovered, along with-
Her Sekirei symbol. If I touch it, and say the incantation…
Uzume's mounting concern for her Ashikabi compelled her hand forward, drifting nearer and nearer to Kazehana's crest. Her hand was close, so very close, to her Ashikabi's continued survival.
"Oh, by the way…"
Uzume stopped and quickly pulled back as Kazehana turned to address her.
"Kagedansu's downstairs looking for you."
Uzume's eyes widened ever so slightly.
"He's here?"
Kazehana chuckled at her friend's sudden anxiety. "And chewing on the furniture in anticipation. Maybe you'd like to wear something for him," Kazehana teased, pulling at the shoulder strap of her apron. "I know he'd liiike iiit…"
"Really, we're not… like that," Uzume said, getting ahold of herself. "I already have someone, and Kagedansu has his own Ashikabi."
"That's true," Kazehana conceded, finally finding an outfit she liked and beginning to disrobe. "Except he doesn't swing that way."
"Well, he'll have to make due with someone else, then. It's not that I don't like him, it's just… Well…"
"Don't wanna betray that special someone?"
"In a nutshell," Uzume said, scratching the back of her head.
"The way I see it, if Minato can make time for all five of us, and I know he'll find a way even with Nine here, you've got nothing to worry about, hun."
"Except we're Sekirei. We only have one person to be with. That's it."
"Sekirei were meant to fall in love," The Wind Sekirei sighed, clasping her hands together. "And I know both of us have plenty to spare. Besides, I'm sure Kagedansu wouldn't object."
"But what if he knew about, you know, my 'job'?"
Kazehana paused at this, her decorative corset about halfway to being tied. She shook her head.
"I can't say. I don't hold it against you, but I have a feeling that he and Tsukiumi are sticklers for the whole 'give your name and number' part of the rules. I don't mind as much since you always keep the fights to single matches, but still…"
Uzume nodded in agreement.
"He's an honorable fighter, even if his ability is to turn invisible and sucker-punch his opponent."
"And you're the voice of experience on that?"
Uzume felt the left side of her ribcage groan a little. They remembered him, or rather, they remembered his foot. And she remembered the subsequent tussle, Kagedansu managing to turn aside most of her bladed clothes with his hands and get away with only a few scratches, though he was left completely on the defensive. That is, until she'd latched on to his wrist and stuck him in the arm, at which point he'd grasped the blade, locked it in place to stopper the blood flow, and lashed out high with his foot. She'd blocked it with her veils, but this had turned out to be a ruse; he'd used the first kick to raise her guard high. He had quickly planted his other foot on her abdomen and sent her flying back.
"I'd say more than most folks," replied Number 10.
"Well, I'm sure he'd understand," Kazehana said, standing up and close to her friend, "if you would just tell him why."
Uzume knew her friend enough to guess that Kazehana had someone else in mind to shoulder her confession. And it wasn't Minato, either.
"It's not something I'd like to talk about," Uzume said.
"Alright. But don't let it get too out of hand. I don't want to embarrass you any more than that first fight."
"Thanks, Kazehana," Uzume said sarcastically, though she was joking, too.
"Well, what are friends for?" Kazehana said sweetly.
Uzume's eyes trailed to the side and she became lost in thought. Kazehana decided to leave her friend to her musings and went into the upstairs bathroom. She twirled her perfect hourglass figure around in the mirror, marveling at the treasure she'd discovered. It was a showgirl outfit, complete with a plume of peacock feathers, that covered up only as much as it needed to. Her flat stomach and sexy legs were still free to flaunt themselves (as Tsukiumi would no doubt call it), while her bust was bound by a half-corset that left as little to the imagination as her usual purple dress.
Minato's going to love this, she thought.
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Tsukiumi sat on the rooftop, away from all the hubbub below. Musubi had explained to her that they were preparing for a party to celebrate the successful escape of Number 95 and her equally spineless Ashikabi, hence the inclusion of Number 67 and his counterpart.
But the party? Hmph, Tsukiumi scoffed at the idea. Never mind a Sekirei who wished not to fight, but celebrating the flagrant violation of the rules? What was her husband thinking? Twas something she found irritating at best, so why…
She clenched her trembling fist. "Why doth my fury rise to the fore at thoughts of such cravens?"
"I think I might know," the landlady said from below. Tsukiumi was impressed by her hearing. She'd been speaking to herself, and anyone who watched would think that Miya had been occupied with taking the laundry off the line.
"Landlady-sama?" Tsukiumi inquired. The purple-haired woman about-faced to gaze up at her newest tenant.
"'It's not fair that she gets to live happily-ever-after with her Ashikabi while you, a stronger Sekirei, remain behind'," Miya disserted. "Could that be what's bothering you?"
Tsukiumi pondered on this a bit, then spoke up.
"To be frank, such matters were of no concern before I wed Minato. My goal was to become more powerful, that I may prove no need for an Ashikabi."
"And now?" Miya asked.
"My course remains unchanged: to be the strongest, that I may remain by Minato's side forever," Tsukiumi declared.
"Well, if that's the case," Miya said, turning back to her work and finishing with the laundry, "would you like my help?"
"With respect, Asama-dono," Tsukiumi said, vaulting off the roof and landing in the yard, "how couldst thou be of help to one such as I?"
"Take care of this," Miya said, handing the Water Sekirei the basket she carried, "and I'll show you."
Tsukiumi naturally wanted to object to being forced to perform chores, but three things stopped her. The first was that bearing something as light as clothing from the outdoors to the indoors was trivial at best, made more so by her being a Sekirei and thus far more physically gifted than a lowly human. The second was that Tsukiumi knew if she objected, Miya would no doubt rear her hanyo mask, and Number 9 would end up doing what she wanted anyway. The third, and the most compelling of all, was the fleeting hope that maybe, just maybe, the Landlady might be telling the truth. Obviously she knew what Sekirei were, and Tsukiumi had already displayed the amazing strength of her legs, so Miya-sama couldn't possibly be ignorant of her power. Really, what did Tsukiumi have to lose? At worst, a few minutes of precious time, time otherwise spent stewing in her own juices.
Miya, meanwhile, had returned inside and found Musubi lying on top of Minato in the kitchen, Musubi's breasts blinding her Ashikabi, Minato's assurance that Musubi had merely slipped and fallen reaching deaf ears. A mild thrashing had ensued, as it always did, with Miya getting the chance to break in her new spatula. After she'd washed it off, to the sound of Minato and Musubi's sorrowful groans, Miya had asked Musubi to keep an eye on the stove and rice cookers while she attended to Tsukiumi. Kazehana had appeared, wearing an outfit that was just as revealing as the last, and Miya had tossed her an apron and asked her to help. Kazehana had objected, of course, having just changed out of an apron and wanting, no doubt, to sneak away to violate Miya's second male tenant. But Miya knew Kazehana could cook; she delighted in making Ms. Public Obscenity run circles for her vulgar displays.
And so Miya had returned to the outdoors, sword-in-sheath, sheath-in-hand. Tsukiumi's arms were impatiently folded beneath The Water Sekirei's cleavage.
"Now let's see how strong you really are," Miya said, sliding her sword out and adopting a neutral stance: her sword firmly grasped, the blade at a diagonal out in front of her. The only unorthodox thing was that her sheath remained clenched in her left hand.
"Very well! Water Celebration!"
Tsukiumi's go-to attack snaked around behind her and rushed at the Landlady, who remained completely unfazed by it. To Tsukiumi's surprise, her response was to point her scabbard at the oncoming geyser and jab it forward. The water exploded as it neared her, breaking against an invisible sphere of force and spraying all over the yard, saving Miya the trouble of watering her plants.
Tsukiumi stood gawking at the unassuming landlady as she flipped her sheath around and snapped it at a downwards diagonal. A massive crater appeared in the ground, the residual force buffeting Tsukiumi with the gale that it conjured. Suddenly, Miya was beside her, in the middle of a full-tilt sprint.
"Never take your eyes off an opponent," she chided condescendingly.
The blade, neglected until now, flashed, and Tsukiumi felt something tickle her skin all over.
Miya came to a full stop in an instant, standing behind the Water Sekirei.
"You have power, but you're too focused on your offensive capabilities. It also seems that you lack close-range training, so if a strong enough Sekirei can get close to you, you'll probably find yourself in trouble," the Landlady said, sliding her sword back into its sheath. "It seems I have a lot to teach you."
The hilt clinked against the scabbard's throat and Tsukiumi's clothes suddenly exploded off of her body, leaving only her panties and nylon leggings.
Landlady, she thought, awestruck, who art thou?
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It seemed Uzume had really been upstairs the whole time, avoiding everyone for some reason. It was Kagari who'd managed to bring her down, because if he was going to suffer through a wild party, then Uzume would suffer with him.
It also seemed there had been a slight error in communication, because Kagedansu hadn't brought any CDs or players with him. Instead, he and his Ashikabi had brought a pair of electric guitars and two 25 Watt amps.
Izanagi had issued a disclaimer before he started to play: "If I suck, feel free to shout it on the rooftops. Wouldn't be the first time."
However, much to everyone's surprise, sans the boy's one and only Sekirei, Izanagi had some pretty solid guitar-playing skills. No one except Kagedansu and Uzume (who was a metal aficionado herself, it seemed) knew what the songs were, but judging by how Musashibo-san's fingers were dancing over the fretboard, these were not easy licks to play.
And not only did Izanagi not suck at guitar work, but Kagedansu wasn't a half-bad singer, either. He could hit some pretty high notes despite having a resonant baritone. It almost didn't seem natural, hearing a high, youthful voice coming from such a large frame. Yet there he was, going a full two-octaves above his normal speaking voice without the lightest bit of strain on his vocal chords.
All the while, Minato's Sekirei were enjoying themselves immensely. Minato himself spent the majority of the party caught in the middle of a tug-of-war between Musubi and Kazehana. Matsu had gotten hopelessly drunk after challenging Kazehana to a friendly competition, and had started to get a little too friendly with Kagari. The bishounen had simply placed a hand on her forehead and tipped her backwards, Matsu falling back into Minato's lap. She'd made herself comfortable quickly enough, which made Ku steam and demand her big brother play the drinking game with her. Minato had tried to explain to Ku that she was too young to be drinking sake, but he'd required help from Miya to convince her. It wasn't that the hanyo mask was needed, just a second voice of reason to assure Kusano that Minato wasn't favoring anyone.
"But I wanna play, too…" Ku pouted, crossing her arms in a huff and sitting on a cushion.
"Ku, take it from me, sake is no joke," Kagedansu said, having taken a break to rest his vocals, his fingers, and his posterior while devouring some of Miya's extraordinary cooking.
"I dunno, Kagedansu," Matsu said jokingly. "From what Minato tells me, seeing you fighting while hammered is hilarious."
"Lies! All of it! I never touched… I never drank a drop of it!"
"I can vouch for him on that," Uzume said playfully. "Kagedansu doesn't get drunk. He gives 'drunk' a pass and goes straight to 'out cold'."
Kagedansu hunched over. "Say it a little louder, why don't you…" he grumbled before downing a shot and hiccupping.
"Well, if you want me to apologize, I will…" Uzume held up another sake cup. "If you can beat me in a drinking contest."
"A smart fighter picks his own battlefield!" Kagedansu declared, leaping on to her and spilling sake all over himself. The two tussled about the floor to the cheers of the party-goers, sans Minato and Kagari (and Izanagi, who seemed incapable of it, though a glance in his direction, at the right time, would reveal him quietly coaching his larger foster brother). Despite Izanagi's assistance, Uzume managed to come out literally on top, pinning Kagedansu beneath her legs and twisting an arm behind his back.
"Had enough yet? The night's still young," Uzume teased.
"Not at all. Feel free to apologize at any time," the Shadow Sekirei replied.
"That wasn't part of the deal, you."
"Are you absolutely sure about that?"
KONK!
A wooden spoon smacked Uzume on the head, leaving a lump.
"Rough-housing is a lesser offense, but it's still violent behavior," Miya said. With that, she turned and went to get more food.
"Hey! What about me?" Kagedansu called, still on the floor.
Miya turned back and eyed the sight of Number 10 sitting on top of Number 67's waist.
"I think you've learned your lesson already," Miya said, smiling.
"Well, maybe I'm feeling left out! Ever think of that?!"
A wooden spoon flew from the kitchen and caught him right between the eyes.
"Now what would you go and do that for?" he sulked. He'd somehow acquired his Ashikabi's ability to sound insincere and yet totally sincere in the same breath. He pushed himself to his feet, Uzume back-rolling off of him.
"I don't have to put up with this!" he declared; had that not been his first shot, coupled with Uzume's account of his lack of tolerance, one might have assumed him already wasted. He made his way to the hallway door and slid it open. "I can just take my business, and my guitar, and my brother if there's still daylight, and go right out the door, and-"
"Except the party's not over yet," Izanagi said blandly.
"Oh yeah!" the Shadow Sekirei realized. He spun around and came back inside. "I just wish Nine would join us. She knows what a good time is!"
Tsukiumi? Minato thought. Guided by instinct, he went over to the sliding door and peeked out into the hallway. She was standing alone, approaching him, her eyes covered in shadow and her mood looking very sullen.
"Tsukiumi?" Minato asked, sliding out of the door before closing it behind him. "Why don't you come in with us? It'll be a lot of fun."
"Nonsense," Tsukiumi said. "I've no need to celebrate spineless cravens."
Still bent out of shape over Kuno and Shigi's escape, it seemed. As she stepped into the light, Minato noticed that she was covered in scrapes. Not only that, but her black dress was dirty, and her white underdress had been torn about the bust, leaving her left breast exposed if not for the hand that covered it.
"Tsukiumi, you're hurt!"
"Tis of no concern," Tsukiumi said. "A scratch, nothing more. Rejoin thy other Sekirei. Tis clear thine interest lies with them, not I."
"I would, it's just that…" She stopped, waiting to hear what he had to say. He could sense her growing more distant, her outsider attitude unmended by her winging. Minato hoped to fix that, because Tsukiumi wasn't exactly someone who was easy to make friends with. He wanted her to open up and get along with everyone else, just like he did.
"You're my Sekirei, too."
She perked up a little, ever so slightly, before sinking back down.
"Minato, thy revelry hath been planned for some time…"
She paused before continuing.
"But tonight, by loathsome jest of fate, is also our wedding night."
Minato didn't quite know where she was going with this as she finally turned to face him.
"Tell me…"
Tsukiumi took her hand off of her exposed breast, giving Minato a full view of it. Or rather, she would have, if he wasn't standing there gawking at her as she guided his hand with her own on to her breast, centering the palm over the nipple. Minato couldn't believe how soft it was, like a silk cushion filled with light, fluffy feathers. He tensed up and unintentionally gave it a little squeeze, causing a blush to appear on Tsukiumi's face as she met his gaze with her beautiful, sea-blue eyes.
"Dost thou wish to make love to thy wife?"