The Okami Hero: Amaterasu

Arc 1: Origins

Chapter 8: The First Tales of the Past

[Monday 4th September 2271]

[Konohana Manor, Hero Commission Branch, Darufu Ward, Musutafu]

After a few hours of blessed rest following her ordeal in fighting Akuma-Yomi and the Possessed Ryuko Torikago, Izumi awoke to find herself in her new futon in Lady Sakuya's Manor. The cuts and scratches she'd gotten from dodging the Demon's Iron Rods in the Astral Plain had all been bandaged carefully, and Izumi could feel her strength returning quickly. She was alone in her new room, and based on the level of light, it was sometime in the late afternoon to early evening.

Izumi's stomach grumbled; she'd missed lunch!

As she pouted at that thought, remembering how delicious Mrs Nazo's food was, she suddenly remembered Keigo and Torikago. Izumi has fallen asleep shortly after beating Akuma-Yomi, so she didn't know what became of them!

Izumi immediately hopped out of bed, noticing she'd had her clothes changed to a simple light blue sleeping yukata, and made for the door. She slid it open and immediately found one of the maids; the middle daughter Himori, waiting beside her door.

Himori's eyes lit up when she saw the little girl; "Young Lady Izumi! I'm so glad to see you awake and well! We were all very worried after what happened to you." she said, kneeling down and checking Izumi over, ensuring everything was fine.

Izumi smiled bashfully; "I'm okay, Himori. Sorry for worrying you."

"Please don't be sorry, Lady Izumi. We should have known better then to send you off alone while you weren't aware of your powers." the maid said. "If you're feeling rested enough, we should go to meet the rest of the Household. Lady Konohana and Young Master Takami have been awaiting your awakening; they and the rest of the household are in the meeting room."

"Okay, we should go see th-" Izumi's words were cut off by her stomach loudly growling. Izumi was mortified and promptly blushed crimson, but Himori just smiled kindly.

"Mrs Nazo has already prepared you a snack. It's waiting for you in the meeting room." the Maid said, purposely stopping herself from laughing so as not to embarrass Izumi. The Little Girl appreciated that and simply nodded, still red in the face. She and Himori walked to the meeting room, with Izumi trying not to seem too eager.

When the pair arrived, Izumi found the room to be absolutely chock full of people! Not only was the entire Konohana Household present, but so was Keigo, Torikago, a doctor Izumi hadn't seen before and a few very important looking people in business suits, all of whom were wearing sakura tie pins or broaches, signifying they knew of Izumi's true identity.

The moment Keigo saw her, his tense expression completely relaxed; "Finally! Jeez Lil Pup, I was beginning to think you'd never wake up." he said, getting to his feet and greeting Izumi with a hug.

Izumi enjoyed the embrace, then got a good look at the boy; Keigo's feathers had begun to regrow, so he had small wings on his back, though nothing close to the large wings he'd had when they first met. Besides his reduced wing size, Keigo looked completely fine; not a scratch on him! He'd been faster than Izumi, and had managed to avoid any direct injuries to his body… To Izumi, that showed the difference between the two; Keigo was older and a well-trained genius, while Izumi was still only a little girl and barely understood her power.

"Keigo! I'm glad you're okay! Sorry I fell asleep like that… using so much of my power all at once really wore me out!" Izumi said with a smile.

"Are you truly alright, Lady Izumi?" Sakuya asked. She was in her Spirit Form, something that only Keigo seemed to think was odd. Sakuya's question was echoed by everyone in the room, including Torikago, who was currently sat in a wheelchair and being seen to by the doctor. The woman's legs were bandaged and she looked weak and sickly, but more than anything, she looked at Izumi with unmistakeable guilt.

Izumi bowed to everyone; "I'm okay, I promise. I'm not in pain and I feel rested, just hungry." she said.

Mrs Nazo nodded; "I have just the thing for your hunger! Come, take a seat!" the plump woman said, bustling over and urging Izumi to her seat at the head of the table. Once Izumi was sat down, Mrs Nazo produced a small white linen bag with a ceremonial rope tying it shut, and placed it in Izumi's hands.

Izumi looked at it strangely, then carefully opened it to find that it contained some strange white treats. They looked a little like mochi, but were hard and had an unmistakeable aroma of spiced meat. The smell was intoxicating and Izumi couldn't resist taking one and popping it in her mouth. She bit down, crunching the thin white shell and immediately, her mouth smiled by itself. It was delicious! They were spiced meat treats of the kind Izumi had never had; the outside was crunchy, the inside was chewy and the very core melted in her mouth. Izumi would almost have been willing to say they were as good as her Mom's Katsudon!

"Delicious! These are delicious! What are they?" Izumi asked, barely able to keep her manners and restrain herself from devouring the whole bag in seconds.

Mrs Nazo grinned proudly; "My secret recipe! Holy Bone Bites!"

"Bone?" Keigo asked, looking a little green. The treats were white like bones, and did make a hell of crunch when Izumi bit into them…

"In her past life, Izumi's favourite snack was Holy Bones; the bone of a cow or pig that had died naturally after living a good life, then blessed and washed with holy water, spiced with sacred herbs and tied up with a ceremonial rope." Mrs Nazo explained; "I adapted that to work better with Izumi's new human body. I use the same ingredients, but instead purée the bone marrow with some of the meat and the sacred spices, then coat it in a shell made from holy water, bone meal and spun sugar. It makes for a crunchy treat that even a five year old's teeth can get through."

"I love them!" Izumi gushed, "Imagine using these as a topping for Katsudon..." she began to drool a little. "Here, try one Keigo!" Izumi said, offering one of the white bites to the winged boy. Keigo looked at it with some trepidation, before shrugging and eating it.

It actually wasn't too bad; nowhere near as good to him as Izumi seemed to think, but not bad.

Once Izumi had eaten, she felt a lot happier and more energetic. Seeing this, Sakuya drew her attention to the important looking people at the other end of the table.

"Lady Izumi, allow me to introduce you to seven of the thirteen members of the Hero Commission's Board of Executives. Myself and Vice-President Torikago make the total number of board members on your side; nine. Only four do not know about your true identity, as they lack the Spiritual Power to see Spirits and Demons." Sakuya explained.

The people in suits nodded politely. A woman with orange hair sat in the middle of the group and acted as their spokesperson; "It is good to have you with us, Lady Izumi. As Lady Sakuya has said, myself and my fellows here are aware of your identity. We will ensure the Hero Commission and the Government do not interfere with your work against the Demons. However, we should confess that unlike Lady Sakuya and her household, we are not followers or worshippers." the Woman looked a tad nervous as she continued; "We believe in your work, and understand how crucial you are against the Demons, but we aren't comfortable with Gods and Demons fighting each other in our world. Humans have enough trouble with other humans. Please do not be offended, but while we will be your allies, we will not be your servants."

Izumi smiled; "That's okay."

The Spokesperson blinked, while the rest of the Board Members began whispering and muttering to each other; "That's… okay?"

"Uh huh!" Izumi nodded.

"You aren't offended?"

The little girl shook her head; "I actually prefer it. I'm kind of uncomfortable with the idea of being worshipped. If it helps, don't think of me as a God, but as a Hero in Training! I've always wanted to be a Hero, and I'm gonna train really hard to become one!"

The Board of Executives all sighed and relaxed, slumping against each other with relief. "I thought we'd be punished...Gods in legends don't tend to be the forgiving type." one of them said.

Izumi and the Konohana Household chuckled at that. Once the Executives knew they wouldn't be punished for not worshipping Izumi, they began to treat her more casually; basically acting as if she was just a normal little girl, the way they'd treat a friend of their own kids or grand-kids.

"Now that the Big Shots are feeling better..." Keigo said, a bit of resentment in his voice, "Can I finally hear what all this is about? From the stuff I've heard from you all, what Izumi said and what that crazy Demon Dragon said, I figure that Izumi is the reincarnation of Amaterasu the Sun Goddess, who is somehow real, and is here to fight demons, which are also somehow real."

Sakuya nodded; "Of course. I will tell you everything I told Lady Izumi."

The Tree Spirit retold the story she'd told Izumi earlier that same day, almost word for word. Keigo listened expressionlessly, taking in every detail that Sakuya told him. The Executives and Torikago listened too, only knowing the short version and not the full story. When Sakuya was done, Keigo sat in silence for a few seconds, then frowned.

"Okay, considering everything I saw today, I can't really help but believe you, but pardon me for saying this; are you all completely nuts!?" he yelled.

Grandpa Citrus bristled at this; "Now see here, Boy! You have no right to be speaking to Lady Sakuya like that!"

"No right!? After the Commission basically forced me to do whatever it wanted for the last five years, I think I have the right to say what I please! And what right did you all have to send a five year old girl into the meat grinder of the Hero World!?" Keigo looked at Sakuya with anger; "You didn't even tell her about what she could do! If Izumi wasn't so smart, she'd be dead, Ol' Torikago would be in prison for her murder and I'd be a puppet! You didn't explain her weird ink techniques, their relationship with the Brush Gods or even that she could come back to life! Not to mention that you didn't actually get the Heroes to help us like you said!" Keigo yelled.

Izumi blinked; "Huh? The Heroes weren't on their way?"

"No! Not even the Police! Prez ignored my warning and sent her bodyguards after us, but they were too slow and we were already in the Astral Plain when they arrived." Keigo said.

Aokiji and Akainu looked down in shame, clearly disappointed in their inability to help Izumi.

Sakuya was ashamed too, but felt she had to at least explain her actions; "I couldn't allow normal Heroes or Law Enforcement to learn of the incident. I didn't know Miss Torikago was possessed, and thought we could handle it ourselves. If the Police learned about the attack, they'd have you taken from my custody for failing to protect you on your first day here. I locked down the building under the pretence of a security test and sent the Onikawa Brothers to your location. I am sorry I lied to you, Takami, but I did not expect you to return to Lady Izumi's side after I told you to return to your rooms."

"It's a good thing I did, or Izumi would be dead! Hell, she died once right in front of me!" Keigo yelled. He knew he was being a little unfair, seeing as no one could have predicted the day's events, but after the stress of watching Izumi die, nearly being possessed and having to fight a literal goddamn Demon Dragon, he felt entitled to throw a bit of a tantrum.

Everyone in the room looked at Keigo with shock; he had refused to tell them what happened until he knew Izumi was fine, so they hadn't known Izumi had died. They'd not properly registered his comment about Izumi's Resurrection ability at the beginning of his rant, and hadn't guessed that they'd discovered it through it actually being used… Torikago especially looked deeply upset, and was doing her best not to begin sobbing; she didn't feel like she had the right to cry after what she'd done, possessed or not.

Granny Citrus was the first to regain her voice; "D-Died? Lady Izumi… you really died?"

Izumi frowned, not liking how upset everyone looked; "Yeah… I didn't know I could resurrect and I still don't know how it works, but I was stabbed in the heart by one of Akuma-Yomi's Iron Rods. I woke up in the Astral Plain and… kind of had a meltdown. I was snapped out of it by some memories of things Issun said to me in my past life, and then I came back to life. My wounds were fully healed too; all these came after." she said, pointing at her bandaged injuries.

"Oh my poor dear!" Granny Citrus cried, hobbling over to Izumi and embracing her gently. Izumi enjoyed the hug, then smiled brightly to everyone at the table.

Sakuya looked at Izumi with a miserable expression; "My Lady… I am so sorry. I should have told you everything you could do, I was just worried about overburdening you with everything all at once. I thought we'd have time to gradually teach you all you needed to know… I never dreamed you'd be attacked before we had even started your training."

"It's alright; it's nobody's fault but Akuma-Yomi, and I defeated him and turned him back to his original Brush God Form; Yomigami!" Izumi said, trying to smile reassuringly, "Thanks to Keigo, I'm still alive. Akuma-Yomi has been purified, Yomigami's back with me and Miss Torikago is free now! Sure it was really scary, and it hurt a lot, but everything will be okay! Please, I don't want anyone to feel sad because of me!"

Torikago couldn't hold her silence any more; "But after all I did..."

Izumi tilted her head; "I don't know what you supposedly did, but I'm sure its nothing I can't forgive." she said, not really understanding what Torikago had done. Akuma-Yomi had been behind her actions; why would she feel guilty?"

"How can you forgive what I've done!?" the woman yelled, the beginnings of tears forming in her eyes; "I hurt you! I killed you! I killed the last Vice-President so I could take his position! I bought Takami from his family like a common house pet, then murdered them so they couldn't take him back! And then I trained him as a tool! How can you look at me and say you don't know what I've done!?"

Izumi flinched back; "B-But I don't understand… you were being controlled! Akuma-Yomi said so himself! He said that he controlled you directly most of the time, but then influenced you the rest of the time! You didn't actually do any of that stuff on your own, right?" she asked.

Torikago looked at Izumi with wide, tearful eyes; "How can you say that with such certainty? I killed you… I shoved a spike of iron through your heart!"

"No, Akuma-Yomi did that. He was mean and bragged that you struggled really hard to stop him too." Izumi pointed out.

"I did… these last five years have been a nightmare; watching myself do things without my control, listening to my own voice saying horrible things. When I was made to kill the old Vice-President, I tried so hard to stop it, but I was completely out of control. Then I was made to kill you… I wasn't in control, but I felt all of it; the heavy iron in my hand, the resistance of flesh as I pushed it in… That evil monster's constant mockery and whispering!" Torikago began to rub her arms, as if suddenly feeling a deep chill.

"I'm sorry you feel guilty over it. I really don't blame you though. Akuma-Yomi was really strong." Izumi said, trying to sound comforting.

"I… I don't feel like I deserve your forgiveness, but thank you." Torikago said, wiping a tear from her eyes. She looked to Keigo; "Mr Takami, you suffered from my actions too. I am deeply sorry; I wish I could take back what I'd done."

Keigo frowned. He was still coming to terms mentally with the knowledge his parents were dead… he felt like he should feel sad about that, but then again, they'd sold him like a commodity and he'd spent almost as much time away from them as he had with them. Try as he might, Keigo couldn't bring himself to feel anything but surprise; he wasn't sad about their deaths, nor was he happy… it was like hearing about the deaths of a random couple on the news. Torikago was a problem for him too… he wasn't sure he could say he suffered because of her; life in the Commission hadn't been easy, but it hadn't been bad or abusive exactly, and Izumi did have a point in that Torikago hadn't been in control of her actions, but was that enough to make Keigo forgive her?

"Tell me what happened." he demanded after some moment's of thought; "I want to know exactly what you did while under Akuma-Yomi's control, and how you came to be possessed. Tell me it all, and I'll decide if I trust you."

Sakuya nodded; "That's a good idea. Miss Torikago, we haven't involved the police yet for the reasons I mentioned before, but we will if we have to. Tell us everything you can about Akuma-Yomi, his master and his plans."

"Yes Ma'am. It all started just over five years ago..." Torikago began, closing her eyes as she remembered how it all began; "I was a mid-level office worker in the Commission HQ in Tokyo. I originally wanted to be a Hero, but my quirk was weak and when I was a teenager, over 30 years ago, the big Hero Courses didn't take students without flashy combat quirks. I decided to join the Hero Commission instead, and aimed to reach the highest position possible. Unfortunately, I never managed to get very far… it took me most of my career to reach the mid-level position I had. The only way to jump the ranks quickly was to get noticed by the higher ups, and to do that you needed to discover a hero and help push them to success; usually by mentoring and helping a Sidekick until they go independent. That was my plan… then I remember going home one night after drinking with some colleagues at a local bar. It was after the High-Speed Car Accident that got you noticed, Takami." Torikago explained.

The woman frowned as she tried her best to remember the next part; "This part's hazy, but I took a wrong turn down a dark alley… I was attacked by a group of odd green apes with paper tags on their faces and holding flutes… I was drunk and my quirk was weak, but I managed to smack one of them unconscious, slurring about why the weird monkey creatures were attacking me. That surprised them, and they acted like I wasn't supposed to be able to see them."

Izumi's eyes narrowed; that sounded very familiar! Those creatures must have been Green Imps intending to steal Torikago's soul, not expecting her to be able to see them. It proved Torikago had some Spiritual Power, though Izumi did wonder why they targeted her… it was rude and she felt bad to think it, but Izumi wouldn't have considered Torikago to be young and pretty, which were the targets of the imps in Musutafu. Maybe the imps in Tokyo had a different criteria for their victims? Or Torikago aged really badly in the last five years.

"What happened next?" Sakuya asked.

"I'm not sure… I remember seeing red eyes, and then I woke up the next day in my apartment." the formerly possessed woman said. "I figured it was all a dream, but when I went to work the next day, my boss said that we had a flight to Fukuoka to catch. He said that I'd called him late the previous night and told him about Takami… I was sure I'd never heard the name before, but when I opened my mouth to deny making the call and deny knowing who Takami was, my voice instead confirmed what he'd said. I heard my own voice say, out of my command, that Keigo Takami had a powerful quirk and could be a great Hero, and that I recommended we sponsor him to become a Hero. It was terrifying, but I was completely out of control; my body said and did what it wanted without my say so. We went to Fukuoka and met with your parents, Takami. My boss got sick on the flight and couldn't make the meeting, so I went without him, along with a few interns."

Keigo frowned; "I remember the next part. You showed up at our house and asked me to use my quirk for a few things, then you offered to foster me. My parents refused, and you flashed some money and promised them a weekly cheque. You handed over some papers, they signed and I was dragged off without a word."

Torikago nodded sadly; "Yes, but the thing is; I had no idea where I got the money or the papers. They were just there in my briefcase. That was when I first became aware of the thing inside my head… I didn't know what it was, but it was really insistent on taking you with us; saying you'd "make a good ally for the war with the Mutt!" I didn't understand and tried to talk to this other presence in my head, but either it couldn't hear me or it ignored me. After I took you, I told my boss that I'd fostered you with the intent of having you trained by the Commission to become an amazing Hero, while the voice in my head said it would get me promoted up the ranks."

"That Demon was clever, and correct." one of the Board Members said; "You were a genius, Takami; a real prodigy. Torikago's reputation within the Commission grew massively, and even Lady Sakuya agreed to Torikago's plan."

"I did. Torikago told me that you'd been abandoned by your parents and as I knew your lineage, I didn't want to leave you to fall under the influence of the demons, though that failed." Sakuya said.

"What lineage are you talking about? My family was nothing special, but that demon went on and on about how Izumi somehow destroyed my chance at a happy life, even though this happened before she was born." Keigo asked.

Sakuya winced; "It's kind of a long story… we should at least let Miss Torikago finish her own tale first."

"Honestly, the rest is mostly the same. I'd have moments when I was in control, but then as soon as I tried to do something, I would suddenly not be in command. I stopped trying and just let the demon do what it wanted; even when I was trying my best, I couldn't even nudge the thing's control, so I gave up. After I fostered Takami, I moved to Fukuoka to stay close, and was forced to watch as I attacked and killed his parents. The Demon used that weird red ink of his to corrode them, making them look like they'd died weeks ago and had just not been discovered. The Coroners never worked out the cause of death. After that, I used Takami's growing fame within the Commission to go up the ranks, while being forced to subtly sabotage the efforts of others… dozens of people quit and close to fifty promising Heroes left the industry because I sabotaged their support, ensuring they wouldn't bring power to their supporters and overtake me. When the next position up was Vice-President, I was made to use the Demon's Corrosive Power on the shutters of his garage door as he went under it, causing it to rust and fall on him, killing him. It was ruled an accident and I became the new Vice-President of the Commission. Then Izumi Midoriya appeared." Torikago smiled at the little girl, the first genuine and happy smile Izumi had seen on her face.

"It was marvellous. The Demon was afraid! The moment we heard you being called Amaterasu by Sakuya via the bug in her office, it became terrified! It began plotting how to get rid of you, when only a little while later, you came to the Dojo where I was watching Takami's training… you know the rest." Torikago finished.

Izumi and Keigo both exchanged sad looks. Keigo was still conflicted over what he should feel, but Izumi was watching him with puppy dog eyes, silently beseeching him to forgive the woman. Keigo took a deep breath, sighed, and leaned back; "Okay… I understand now."

"I'm so sorry." Torikago repeated, not meeting the boy's eyes.

"Don't worry about it. I'd feel like a jerk if I treated you bad for what someone else did. Let me live my life the way I want and I'll forgive you." he said, giving the woman one of his signature lazy smiles.

Torikago's eyes began to overflow with tears; "O-Okay… Thank you… thank you both for forgiving me."

Both children smiled at her, willing to let this dark chapter of their lives come to an end. Izumi, Keigo and Torikago had all been victims of the Demon Akuma-Yomi, and there was no need for them to continue prying open old wounds. Better to let it heal.

It was decided by Sakuya and the Board Members that Torikago wouldn't be handed over to the police. The days events would be covered up; forgotten by all those who didn't know the truth of Amaterasu and the Demons, and the tragic deaths of those harmed by Akuma-Yomi would be mourned as best they could be. It was unfair to punish Torikago for things out of her control, and they couldn't punish Akuma-Yomi either as Izumi had essentially destroyed him by returning him to his original form, so there was nothing that could be done. It was horrible for those whose lives had been effected, but having more innocent people suffer wouldn't fix things. Instead, Torikago would remain Vice-President of the Commission and Keigo's foster mother, though both positions were largely going to just involve obeying the orders from someone else; Sakuya in the former and Keigo in the latter. Torikago accepted this, knowing she was being given a second chance she didn't feel she deserved. She swore to do her best in both positions, and Sakuya would support her when it came to being Keigo's Foster Mother.

Once that had been decided, Izumi and Keigo told everyone how the fight with Akuma-Yomi had gone. By the time they were done, it was getting on for dinner, so Mrs Nazo and the maids excused themselves to cook while everyone else reacted to what they'd been told.

"I'm impressed with your tactics! To think you were able to work out how to use Sunrise by yourself, as well as how to use it to regain some control of the Astral Plain and purify Yomigami… the two of you make a skilled team." Sakuya praised.

Master Onigiri grunted; "I'd give it a C grade. You both fumbled and wasted time and resources, as well as staked your lives on a single plan with no guarantee of success… but you managed to survive and win. Considering one of you has no means to permanently harm demons and the other is five years old without training, I think you did an acceptable job."

"Harsh, but fair. Is this old timer your trainer, Lil Pup?" Keigo asked with a smirk.

"Yup! He's Master Onigiri! He'll be teaching me how to fight!" Izumi said excitedly; "Then I'll be able to beat all the Demons and get my Mommy's soul back! It's gonna be tough though..." Izumi suddenly frowned; "My mirror was destroyed..."

"Have no fear, Lady Izumi." Sakuya smiled, "Your mirror is actually a type of weapon known as a Divine Instrument. We tend to call it a Reflector rather than a mirror though. It's name is "Divine Retribution." Divine Instruments can't be permanently destroyed, and will begin to regenerate in time. Your mirror should be fixed by tomorrow morning, and your Astral Pouch will be full again."

"Astral Pouch? What's that?" Keigo asked, "Is the Lil Pup actually a kangaroo now or something?" he teased.

Sakuya chuckled; "No no, nothing like that. The Astral Pouch is a special spiritual organ that Amaterasu, and thus Izumi, possesses. It fills with Astral Energy and when its full, you can use that energy to perform an Astral Resurrection, returning to life after death. At the peak of your power, in your previous life, you were able to do this four times in one day! However, with your weakened state, the pouch takes a full day to fill up again, so while you can cheat death once per day, you need to wait 24 hours before doing it again. It's a good thing the tour took so long..."

"Huh?" Izumi blinked; "Why would it matter that the tour took so long?"

"Well otherwise, you wouldn't have regained enough Astral Energy, after your resurrection yesterday." Sakuya said.

The little girl's eyes widened; "W-Wait… are you saying that when I hit my head in the park, I died!?"

Sakuya paled; "Oh dear… my apologies; I thought you had already worked it out."

"Okay… that's scary to think about. Oshigaki actually killed me… I'm just gonna pretend I didn't know that and forget about it." Izumi said, shaking the thoughts from her head. She had quite enough to be thinking about without that cluttering her mind!

"Well, how about I explain why Mr Takami is so important? That'll take your mind off it!" Sakuya offered nervously.

"Yes, let's do that. I want to know what makes me so special." Keigo said.

Sakuya smiled and looked to Izumi; "Well, it all began a short time into your second incarnation's life, when you and Issun had a run in with the Sparrow Clan..."

Next Chapter: Sparrows, Poncles, and Bakugous

To be Released: TOMORROW!

Next chapter will be the last one of the Origins Story Arc! It's already been a week since the story started, so I want to say thank you to everyone who read this! Especially those who took time out of their day to comment! Thank you all!