Thanks to: tefuya61 (Thanks for your well wishes. Also, yes, the king cursed Yuya similar to the manga. It was too good of a plot-point to let go.), Itherion (Thank you so much. I'm glad you liked it. I am always a bit worried that I've lost my touch when I go back to writing after a long break.), darklover (I appreciate the well-wishes. =) I love writing but it's also something I don't have a choice in either. My stories won't leave me until I get them out. There literally isn't a day that goes go by that I don't think about these characters and what I want to do with them. Also, yes, the king did take control of Yuya's heart. Not sure if you read the manga but towards the end, the king becomes convinced that Yuya is also a seer and links her heart to his, the same as he did to Sakuya. It makes it so that if he dies, the person he is linked to dies as well. He's very controlling like that.), Nemurase Hime (Yup, Yuya is now cursed and there is more angst to follow. :D),
Kurenai Kioku
Chapter Fifty-Nine
Fickle Gods and Changing Winds
"Why?" the word left her mouth on a trembling breath before her lips snapped closed, quivering with fear and a myriad of other emotions.
'Why, indeed,' Mibu Kyoichirou thought to himself.
Kyo's wife stared at him - vivid green eyes cloudy for the first time since she had met him. Her fingers involuntarily curled over the mark he'd left between her breasts and her racing heartbeat echoed in his own empty chest, a side-effect of the connection he had forged between them.
Open and shut.
Open and shut.
Slender digits scraped and scratched at the puckered skin as if she could rid herself of it if she just kept fiddling with it.
"You will hurt yourself doing that," he informed her.
Anger hardened her eyes into emerald gems and she temporarily forgot her anxiety as she spat out angrily, "Don't!"
He cocked a warning brow at her tone and the blonde paused, licking her lips and reining in her temper. Screwing her brilliant irises shut, she forced her hands into her lap and took a deep breath.
'One…two…three…,' the king listened as Yuya mentally counted to ten before opening her eyes once more.
Her voice was more restrained and she avoided his gaze as she spoke again, "Please, don't pretend that you care about my well-being. I know what this is. Kyoshiro told me what you did to Sakuya. And I know first-hand that you Mibu are overly fond of your curses."
"I didn't kill you," he replied, opting to take the high road and overlook her anger. He was not unaware that she had cause to be upset but felt the need to remind her nonetheless that he could have done worse.
"How magnanimous of you," she said in a dry voice and he felt a minute prick of irritation that she still refused to look at him, a subtle act of defiance even in her vulnerable state.
Amongst the Mibu, it was forbidden for most to lay eyes upon him, with a few exceptions. However, he hadn't set that rule down for Yuya and his curiosity got the better of him. Her thoughts were all over the place, but her eyes didn't lie. He could easily tell what she was thinking if only she would look at him.
Mibu Kyoichirou wanted, no, needed to know what was going through her mind - the deep parts, not the surface thoughts that shifted and changed like the sands of the sea. He had given her a blow and now he needed her to give him the tools to pick her apart further, squeeze her harder.
Would she give him what he wanted now? Would she understand that both she and Kyo were in over their heads?
He walked over to stand before her and bent down, reaching out to gently grip her jaw. Yuya flinched but still kept her eyes averted from him and he could feel her resisting his subtle urging for her to meet his gaze.
She wasn't allowed to ignore him - to create her own reality detached from his wishes. He was god here and she had a role to play.
"Look at me, Yuya Shiina."
His fingers tightened, letting her know that he would not ask a second time.
She let out a shallow breath that carried the memory of a sob on it and allowed him to tilt her head back just enough so that they were facing each other. Her eyelids were half-closed and he squeezed her skin slightly, prompting those gold-tipped lashes to flutter upwards to reveal her striking eyes, bright with unshed tears.
As he had done twice before, he asked her again, "I own your heart now. If I die, then you die. Do you still believe that Kyo can come out on top?"
"You can't take what I've already given away."
Even though her anguish was plain to see, her voice was strong as she continued, "If you truly believe that Kyo is no match for you then you wouldn't feel the need to use me to insure victory. I can't give you the reassurance that you seek because I know that he is going to win. He said he's going to become the strongest and he always keeps his word."
Her faith shone bright and warm and, in his consternation at being thwarted yet again by her belief in Kyo, he tightened his grip on the sides of her cheeks. She flinched again, letting out a tiny mewl of pain.
"Such sentimental nonsense," he murmured darkly as he released her.
He had to let go or risk breaking her jaw. As it was, he knew that her skin was going to bruise even though he'd barely touched her. It was important to remember that she was a human and therefore frail.
'No, not quite so frail,' he thought to himself.
It was his turn to move away and he wondered if she could sense his agitation.
The Former King disliked humans in general. They were messy and warlike and as apt to destroy each other over petty differences as they were to create things of exquisite beauty. However, they were also resilient, as evidenced by the bad news Chinmei had brought to him about Akira's victory over his youngest Taishirou and his as yet unsuccessful attempts to change Yuya's mind.
That even Tokito, the most violent of his Four Elders, had been defeated by a man who was the weakest of Kyo's companions only contributed to his irritation. By all metrics, Akira should not have stood a chance against Tokito - who was not a regular Mibu clan member but the niece of Muramasa himself and therefore an heiress to his powerful bloodline. However, prevail he had in a fight that should have been impossible for him to win.
And now he had Kyo's wife, who refused to give him what he desired. She was a nobody in every sense of the word. Yet, she had tamed Kyo, the last of the wicked True Mibu and she did not back down even though her situation had gone from bad to worse.
Looking at it objectively, it was clear that because of their association with Kyo, his human companions were growing stronger. The impossible was becoming possible.
Indeed, turning fantasy into reality and altering fate at a whim was one of the things that had made his creators so dangerous and so successful. The footing that he had been so certain of even a few hours prior was starting to get shakier.
He heard the rustle of clothing and turned to see that Yuya had arisen and was attempting to put her outfit back in order. Although her back was now towards him, he watched the way her delicate fingers moved, fixing her collar and smoothing them along her arms as if she could brush away the memory of his touch.
Oh no, he wouldn't allow her to do that.
If he couldn't get what he wanted from her, then the reverse also held true. The more she insisted on believing in his nemesis, the more he wanted to dominate her - prove her wrong. She wasn't allowed to start distancing herself from him now, not after she had piqued his interest. It was perverse of him, he knew, but he was a god - Kyoichirou was permitted his little caprices.
In truth, the frivolous side of him wondered if he could steal some of her power as well if he left a strong enough impression on her? She'd made Kyo stronger, after all, and why should he be the only one to benefit from her light? However, intimidation didn't seem to work on her, so perhaps he could sway her loyalties another way.
Those slender hands reached behind to fix her obi and he stepped forward into her personal space and said, "Allow me. Never let it be said that I don't know how to treat a lady."
She stiffened and turned just enough so that she could watch him with a single disbelieving eye as he bent forward and shifted her hair out of the way and over her shoulder. He deliberately ghosted the pad of his thumb over the back of her neck as he moved the golden strands, causing the fine hairs there to raise in apprehension.
It was a subtle reminder that no matter how much bravado she put forth, she was still dependent on his mercy and patience.
Yes, he could snap her neck.
He simply chose not to.
Yes, she could feel his breath on the side of her throat as he adjusted the sash with deliberately slow movements.
He had no need to respect her boundaries because he was the strongest here.
Kyoichirou could control her, if only a little, by unnerving her. Bit by bit he would chip away at her – he was a patient man. Eventually, he would find out what the price of her loyalty to Kyo was and make an offer to her. And when that happened, he would get what he wanted from her and change the future she was so certain of.
Once he was done, he let his hand rest lightly on the small of her back and met her gaze with his own as he said, "Only time will tell if your prophecy built on hopes and dreams will come to pass. But in the meantime, do give thought to your position if your faith in Kyo comes to naught."
"If that comes to pass, I assume you'll get rid of me since I will be of no more use to you," she responded honestly and he favored her with a slight smile designed to unsettle her.
"Perhaps I will…," he let the words linger a moment.
"…or perhaps not," he said in the next breath.
His enigmatic statement hung in the air as he turned to stride away towards his throne, leaving her to wonder what he could possibly want from her aside from her usefulness as bait for Kyo.
In truth, he had no particular plans for her, but that was neither here nor there. What mattered was to get her thinking about him and fearful of what he might do to her. He had snatched her heart, so logically, her mind was next.
It was her fault for catching his attention even though she was a mere human.
Confusion and uncertainty colored her thoughts as he retook his seat on the throne and it pleased him.
He was in her head now and the king knew that was the last thing she wanted.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Antera didn't wake up as peacefully and Shindara had. Instead, her eyes flew open the moment her tube finished draining and those dark orbs darted about, panic flashing as she realized she was in a confined space and being started at by three men, two-thirds of whom weren't her friends the last time they saw each other.
Her ki rose and she slammed her fist into the glass, shattering it with a blow that sent the shards hurtling towards them. Yukimura was gratified when Sasuke stepped in front of him and deflected the bits of glass with his sword.
As much as he tried to play it off, he was still adjusting to the fact that his young companion had grown up and into his own person without him. Puberty was a difficult time for young boys and for a little while, he wasn't sure they were even still friends – Sasuke had been so cold. But his young servant was slowly warming up to him again and he hoped he had found a measure of forgiveness for disappearing for so long.
The youngest member of the Juunishinshou stumbled clumsily out of the tube - long, curly hair weighed down by fluid and plastered to her shoulders. He winced as her bare feet crunched in the glass on the floor and she let out a squeak of pain as they cut her. He never enjoyed seeing a woman get hurt, enemy or not, and he had to stifle his immediate urge to step forward and offer her a hand like the gentleman he was.
He might not have meant her harm, but she didn't know him except as someone who had once been and enemy and he didn't fancy having her tear his arm off in self-defense. Unlike Shindara, her hands were just as deadly even without her twin hammers – especially now that she had greater reach with her grown-up arms - and it was unwise to provoke someone who was feeling as cornered as she obviously was.
Her chest heaved up and down and he coughed delicately, trying to avoid noticing that her skin-tight garb left nothing to the imagination. She had been a little girl just four years prior and now that she was upright, he could see that she was much older than that now. This wasn't a teenager like Sasuke, this was a grown woman and he wondered what was up with that.
Perhaps he shouldn't have skimmed over the passages Hishigi had written about Antera in particular. One did not simply go from a girl that looked younger than Sasuke to a grown woman in such a short amount of time. It stank of the same nasty business that Hishigi had used to unnaturally age Aiko into her adult body.
Catching Shindara's eye, he tilted his head towards the girl, indicating that it was his turn to make a move. His former friend had been the one who wanted to wake her up, so it was up to him to help her understand that they weren't there to do her an injury.
"Calm yourself, Antera," Shindara's mellow voice broke the silence of the room and she stared at him, shock lighting up her gaze.
"Shin…dara? Why? I don't….," she looked from her companion to Yukimura and Sasuke and back again. Blinking, she glanced down at her body and squeaked, crossing her arms over her chest and squatting down.
"What happened to me?!" she cried, lips quivering and eyes wide and pupils dilated as she tried to process how she had gone to sleep a child and woken up a woman.
Pity welled up in Yukimura and, as if he could sense him softening, Sasuke partially turned so that he could fix him with a stern, golden eye. His Sanada Ten were always fussing at him for thinking with the wrong parts of his body - be it his heart or his genitals - whenever he saw a woman. It was a weakness he shared with Bontenmaru although he didn't completely freeze up like his giant friend did at the very thought of fighting a member of the fairer sex.
"Let him handle this," the young man whispered under his breath and Yukimura conceded that it was for the best as he watched Shindara pick his way through the glass and walk over to the young lady.
Bending down, the other man reached a hand out to her and she placed her shaky fingers in his, allowing him to draw her up once more.
"It's alright, Antera," he said, his voice soothing as he nudged her behind his body to allow her a bit of modesty from the eyes of the nobleman and the ninja.
"It's been four years since we fought them and they aren't enemies right now," the dark man turned his head to look at them and Yukimura clearly saw a warning in that bottomless gaze that his ex-servant would make them sorry if they proved to be untrustworthy.
The young woman peeked out from behind Shindara and stared at them, uncertainty slowly giving way to curiosity. Her brown eyes moved over the two of them and the Sanada heir gave her his most charming smile, raising his hand and giving his fingers a wiggle in greeting. Though he couldn't see her mouth from behind the other man's shoulder, he could tell by the way her eyes creased at the corners that he had managed to elicit a smile.
Her view drifted over to Sasuke and her brow wrinkled a little as she said in a sulky voice, "I remember you. You're that mean boy who beat me last time."
"You were trying to bash my skull in," Sasuke replied wryly.
"Only because you were the bad guys," she responded, as if that were explanation enough. To someone with the mind of a child, it probably was. And, to be fair, they were at odds with the Mibu clan.
"What do you want with us anyways?" she asked in suspicious tones.
"We are looking for help to stop the Former Crimson King from killing off the current Mibu clan and replacing them with new members," Yukimura answered and Shindara's eyes widened almost imperceptibly in surprise.
"But…I don't understand. What about Nobunaga-Sama? We were supposed to help him become the new king over humans so that they could finally get along with the Mibu."
The nobleman didn't have the heart to explain to her that Nobunaga had been just another pawn so that the Mibu clan could ultimately control the entire world. It had nothing to do with helping and everything to doing with insuring that the Former King would have complete dominion over the course of human history.
"A word if you please, Yukimura," Shindara said, his expression contemplative.
He nodded his acquiescence and nudged Sasuke forward, saying, "Would you mind helping the little miss find some decent clothes for herself and Shindara, Sasuke-Kun?"
The silver-haired young man faced him fully, brow raised as he said irritably, "You want me to babysit the brat while you and Shindara swap secrets?"
"No, I want you to help the poor child cover up so I can concentrate. You know how I get when pretty ladies are around."
He wasn't fooling Sasuke in the slightest, but the young man decided not to call him on it and instead, with a sigh, he sheathed his sword and padded over the duo. Shindara nudged Antera forward and she stepped out grudgingly, thin arms crossed over her modest bust.
She glared at him and said with a pout, "I don't like you calling me a brat when we're almost the same age. At least, I think we are. Besides, if I'm a brat then you're a shorty."
It was true, Sasuke was just a hair shorter than her and even though he still had plenty of time to grow, Yukimura could tell by the way his shoulders stiffened that his slightly-below-average height was a sore point.
He had to stifle a laugh and nearly guffawed out loud when she continued, "Plus, I don't want you looking at me. Indara used to tell me that all men are beasts, 'specially teenage boys."
The young ninja snorted in derision and folded his arms as he replied sharply, "No worries there. I'm not that desperate. You could be naked and I still wouldn't touch you. I actually have standards. You really are still a kid inside, aren't you?"
"Now, now, children," Yukimura chided before their bickering could escalate, "This isn't the time or place to flirt. Besides, Antera-Chan, Sasuke is really partial to blondes so I'm sure you can get him to help you find some clothes if you ask nicely."
He knew his words would prick at his young servant's pride, but he felt it was good for him to step outside his comfort zone sometimes. Besides, the swordsman was secretly happy to see Sasuke acting more his age instead of the grim and brooding boy caught up in his transition into manhood that he had portrayed thus far. For all his grumbling, the ninja was actually pretty empathetic and insightful even though he usually kept his own counsel.
The room feel silent and Antera looked down, twiddling her fingers a moment before heaving a long-suffering sigh and saying grudgingly, "I guess I can be the bigger woman and be nice. Would you mind helping me find clothes for myself and Shindara-San, Sasuke-Kun?"
Sasuke tensed a bit at her deliberate emphasis on the word "bigger" but he let it pass as he muttered, "Fine."
After making sure that they were occupied looking through the containers that lined the opposite wall, Yukimura inclined her ear towards Shindara and said, "There's something you want to tell me that you don't want Antera to hear?"
His old friend nodded and replied, "Before I say anything, is that the absolute truth? What you said about the king getting rid of the old Mibu clan members?"
"Most definitely. We've had confirmation from someone who was once highly placed in the clan. I originally planned to come here once the king was dead. I'd heard the remaining members of the Juunishinshou were sealed away in Hishigi's lab and decided that now was the time to save you from yourself since we were passing through. Even though we didn't part on the best of terms, I don't want to lose yet another friend. You deciding to run off to join the Mibu was entirely one-sided, you know," he scolded.
Shindara chuckled and said, "You only know half the story. I actually came here to save your life."
Yukimura started in surprise and his old friend's expression turn self-mocking, "The reason why I left was that I was approached by a member of the Taishirou who foretold that you would die if you kept on going with your ambitions. Not sure if you've met him yet, he's a smug, pretty-boy bastard by the name of Tokito."
"Oh, I'm quite familiar with him. Or should I say her?"
That got Shindara to simultaneously raise both of his eyebrows and his former master grinned and said, "Yes, that there me for a loop as well when I heard it."
"As I was saying, she's a nasty piece of work and she isn't above lying to get her way."
"Well, she was sufficiently convincing to get me to agree to support them in resurrecting Nobunaga and helping him to block any plans you might scheme up to rule the country."
"However, I'll have to go into that at greater detail. What I wanted to tell you was that Antera in particular is herself quite special. I don't know all the details, but she is an actual Mibu clan member - not just one of the residents of Aokigahara or an exceptional human that Hishigi picked out like the rest of us. You know me Yukimura, I can blend in and find out the things people don't want me to know."
"Even though we Juunishinshou weren't expected to know the bigger plans or even think much further than our role of serving Nobunaga, I found her to be unusual. If the Mibu haven't been producing offspring since Demon Eyes Kyo showed up, then she shouldn't exist. And now that I've seen the way Hishigi has aged her, I've been wondering if we aren't actually seeing the real Antera."
"That's just…," the aristocrat paused, turning the information over in his head. If Antera were really an adult, then what sense was there in reverting her to a child only to make her grow up again?
There was a piece of the puzzle they were all missing, but he was floored yet again by the next tidbit of information Shindara imparted.
"I also found out from Hishigi shortly before he put me under that there are actually four more members of the Juunishinshou that we didn't know about. The ones who were either killed or defected: Indara, Kubira, Haira, and Mekira were apparently only intended to be substitutes for the real thing. The real members who bear those names are basically demons and a cut above the rest, but unruly and hard to control. According to Hishigi, he only let me know of their existence because I was expected to take them in han. He specifically altered me to be immortal and, though it went unsaid, apparently he needed someone who could take an extreme amount of damage and keep going long enough to subdue them should the need arise."
Former friend or not, Yukimura was uncomfortable with him being treated in such a disposable manner and Shindara gave him a knowing smile as he replied, "I signed up for it with my eyes wide open. And, even before I allowed myself to be changed into something other than human, I had a high pain threshold."
Of course, he knew that. The original Sarutobi Sasuke had been a legendary ninja once upon a time but the two of them had butted heads more times than he could count over the fact that he didn't seem to value his own life. Yes, his job had been dangerous but Yukimura hated the way he spoke as if no one would miss him if he were gone.
'It's my job to lay my life down for my master. You're just too soft, Yukimura,' the assassin had often replied matter-of-factly when he confronted him about it.
"I know and Kosuke would nearly have a heart attack whenever you came home limping and bloody from a mission. I got an earful plenty of times because she didn't want me sending you to your death."
There was a noticeable shift in the air around Shindara at the mention of his female kagemusha. The corners of his lips twitched into a fond almost-smile and he let out an exasperated sigh as he said, "She never could come to grips with the fact that my job was to put my life on the line and get my hands dirty so you wouldn't have to. You haven't run her off with your antics yet, have you?"
"I'm sure I don't know what you mean, I'm almost always a good boy. Still…she misses you to this day. I've only ever seen her cry once and that was when you left to join the Mibu."
"Kousuke always did worry too much. I thought she would be stronger than that."
Yukimura sucked his teeth disapprovingly, "She is plenty strong. I wouldn't have employed her as my double if she couldn't handle herself and her sword-work has improved immensely since you left. Per her, one of my strongest bodyguards decided to shirk his duties and head off somewhere so she had to make sure she was up to the challenge. However, a strong woman is still a woman. Just because she's also a warrior, that doesn't mean you should be inconsiderate of a lady's feelings."
Shindara shook his head despairingly as he replied, "You're still the same after all this time. One day, some woman is going to slip a knife between your ribs because of that chivalry of yours."
"And what a way to go," the other man replied jokingly before he became serious once more and brought them back on subject.
"So, what are we supposed to do with the knowledge about these four "demons" of the Twelve God Shoguns, Shindara?"
"I think we should remove them from the picture. If what you are saying is true about a war coming, I don't think Hishigi will leave them dormant. I also want to protect Antera. You've seen her. Even though she's strong, she's mostly harmless. No matter what her real form is, she trusts and depends on the Juunishinshou because it's all she has. However, the Juunishinshou that she was a part of no longer exists aside from me. I don't want her near these demons and, per Hishigi, she was to be kept as far apart as possible from Kubira in particular - for her safety."
"And you would trust Hishigi on that?"
"I don't trust him in general, but he was definite about that."
"There, I finally found it," a high-pitched feminine voice shouted jubilantly, and Yukimura looked across the room to see the young lady in question holding up an overly frilly pink dress with gleaming eyes.
"You sure that works now that you're a big girl now?" Sasuke quipped.
She wagged a finger at him, ignoring his snark as she tsk-ed and replied, "Hishigi-Sama told me a long time ago that he made it so I could grow into it because he knew how much I would love it. He said it was dreamed up by someone who admired me and saw that I adored cute things. I kind of wish I could have met whoever it was though," she said.
"Maybe they just knew you'd still be a brat even as an adult," the young ninja responded and grunted as her elbow met his ribs with a solid thunk.
"Oops," she said sweetly, "I must have slipped."
Shindara and Yukimura exchanged a look and the latter grinned, tapping his cheek with a long finger as he said, "She's cute. I don't mind helping you seek out and destroy these monsters of yours if it'll make things easier. We should probably get you dressed first and meet up with Kyo again, though."
The other man only hesitated a moment at his desire to bring the Thousand Killer on board before nodding his agreement.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Yuan was coming to meet them.
Hotaru broke stride and paused, golden eyes moving from one side of the corridor they were traversing to the other. After leaving Tokito's turf, they had backtracked to Yuan's territory and had managed to convince a reluctant Tokito that she should guide them or else they would dump her off someplace to fend for herself and she would never get a chance to pump Muramasa for information again.
Her blue-green eyes had flashed in irritation for a moment before they drifted over to Akira for the hundredth time and she begrudgingly acquiesced. Even Hotaru could tell that she was fixated on the youngest member of Shiseiten, but he hadn't a clue if she wanted to kill him or kiss him. He assumed it was probably the former because she'd been beaten by the blind man, but women were weird. Trying to figure out what they were thinking usually just left him wanting to kill something because that, at least, was something he could understand. It was much easier to simply divide women into two groups – those who wanted to kill him and those who didn't.
"Is there a reason you are just staring off into space and expecting the rest of us to step around you?" Shinrei's annoying voice broke him out of his train of thought, snapping him back to the present.
He blinked and saw that his companions had all stopped and were staring at him with that look he'd come to recognize as frustration. It was one of the few expressions he could read really well because he got it so frequently.
Still, he supposed they probably didn't feel what he did. None of them had spent as much time with Yun-Yun as he had, so they weren't as sensitive to his presence as he was.
"Well," Shinrei was being demanding again and Hotaru merely started at him, wondering if he should bother to warn him when he was being so stuffy again.
However, he had already decided that he didn't want his brother dead just yet - not until the Former King was handled at least. So, he mentally sighed and walked over he his brother who was situated near the wall on his left.
"Watch…," he said, lifting his right hand and summoning his flame easily, drawing the other man's attention to the fire as it danced on his palm.
"I don't get….," Shinrei's voice trailed off on a groan as Hotaru took advantage of his distraction to punch him in the stomach hard enough to send him staggering back a few feet.
"Don't interfere, Stupid Shinrei," Hotaru intoned sternly at the exact moment that a wide blast of flame tore through the wall between them, right where his brother had been.
"What the?!" Bontenmaru exclaimed, backpedaling quickly while Tokito fussed at him for jostling her while she fought to maintain her perch on his broad back.
Benitora and Akira similarly moved back, leaving only Hotaru who stayed where he was so that he could see his mentor when he emerged.
"I knew you were coming, Yun-Yun," he said, drawing his sword and watching as the tall figure of the man who had raised him and taught him to fight emerged through the smoke that followed in the wake of his attack.
'Not an attack. A warning,' Hotaru thought.
Yun-Yun was slippery like that. He made you think one thing while he did another.
Shinrei got on him all the time for being wishy-washy but he had learned from the best. The difference was that Yun-Yun was always one step ahead of everyone, even him.
"I never expected you to come back here voluntarily after hearing that you had defected to Kyo for real this time," his former master said, hand tucked casually into his pant pockets and mouth stretched into a wide grin.
He panned his white-haired head from Bon all the way to Shinrei and, even though his eyes were covered by a long red sash, Hotaru knew he was taking their measure all the same. Like Akira, he was blind. Unlike Akira, he had been born that way and was thus far more aware of his surroundings than anyone save the king himself. Hotaru had asked him once how far he could 'see' and the cryptic response he had gotten in turn was 'far enough to know this place stinks to high heaven of secrets.'
Whatever Yun-Yun was seeing, it seemed to please him because his grin stretched even wider and he glided his long tongue along his lips, letting them see just a hint of the character tattooed on the muscle.
The symbol for 'soul.'
A fitting mark for a man who literally could devour the souls of his opponents.
"I should probably ask you why you're here but, seeing as how you've apparently charmed that self-important brat over there," he jerked his head towards Tokito who glared back at him, "I don't think I need to know."
"Also," he slowly withdrew his hands from his pockets and cracked his knuckles, and Hotaru tensed, seeing the other tattoo he had on the back of his left hand, "seeing as how you've managed to take out one Taishirou, albeit the weakest one of us, I think I should get serious from the get-go. I've been watching you train ever since you got back four years ago Keikoku and even now, I can tell that you're much stronger. Someone's been to see little Anthony."
The air around him grew steadily hotter but Hotaru was used to it and held his ground while Shinrei stepped back, swords at the ready.
His brother needn't have bothered, really. This fight had been years in the making and Yun-Yun had already told him that he would have to go through him the next time he thought he had the balls to challenge the king again.
Well, he'd always had the balls and now he was sure he had the power to back his bravado up.
"Tell me, Keikoku, did you think you could drop by my house without me finding out?"
No, he hadn't. Yun-Yun always kept tabs on his family and, after hearing from Anthony about their status as hostages, he now knew why. In hindsight, he probably should have told his companions that he knew there was no way they would be able to avoid fighting Yuan after hanging out in his house like they lived there.
But, he just wasn't that nice of a person.
He wanted to fight his master. Needed to fight him in fact and it was easier to draw him to their group instead of seeking him out.
Hotaru's blood boiled inside of him and his unruly red-blonde hair waved with the invisible currents of his ki as it rose from within in preparation for the fight to come.
He took his stance, flames dancing along the edge of his sword and Yuan chuckled.
"Still as single-minded and self-centered as ever. You're a horrible friend."
He could live with that.
However, he wasn't entirely sure if he would live past this fight as Yuan simply disappeared. In less than a second, a leg connected with his stomach in a sweeping side and he went flying across the corridor, through the wall, and into the room beyond.
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Thanks for reading. More action coming. Hotaru vs Yuan is one of my favorite battles and I just love Yuan aka Yun-Yun (such a cute nickname ^_^) in general. I actually had fun writing Antera and Shindara as well since they are two characters that are rarely mentioned in SDK fanfiction. As always, please let me know what you think.
