Disclaimer: I don't own Blue Seed or the characters…

Hey everyone! I apologize for taking so long to get this up ^_^;; But the good news is that the story is almost over! I swear, this is becoming a novel lol. Anyway, I hope you like it and please review! Enjoy!

Chapter Eleven

A tear rolled down Momiji's face. She stood there, watching Murakumo cover Akima in leaves and dirt. She couldn't believe that Akima dying was the result of a petty quarrel against two sides of warfare. She didn't want to believe it, anyway. It was all too complex for her to even begin to understand what had been going through Susana-oh and Kaede's minds when they decided to start a war on Japan. And what about the Arigami? They have their own reasons, too. Reasons that were unknown to her. She didn't know what reasons were morally correct. Maybe neither are correct. Maybe they're both correct in their own ways… She didn't know. But what she did know is that in war, no matter what you're fighting for, it's wrong.

She turned to Kusanagi, who looked as if he was in outer space. She slowly slipped her hand into his and leaned on his shoulder. "Kusanagi, I don't want to stay here any longer. I don't want to see anymore death. Please take me back. Please, I beg you."

Kusanagi snapped out of his daze and looked down at her, since she was shorter than him. "I can not do that. It would be for the best interest of the Arigami if you stayed."

Once those words sunk into her mind, she decided something for herself. For the first time since she has known him, she hated him. Not because he was evil. It was because he didn't love her enough to break from his curse. She let go of his hand and stepped away from him. He looked back at her in shock. She took no notice of his expression and began to walk away into the forest.

"Momiji!" he called after her. "Come back!"

She kept running in the same direction, never looking back. She wanted to get out of there as fast as possible. She couldn't take it anymore. So much pain, so much hurt, so much devastation. It was all because of war; a war that shouldn't have took place. And she couldn't help to think that it all started because of her. "It's my fault!" she cried to herself. "So much death has happened all because of me!" She wanted to die right there. She lost her friends, her hope, and her lover. According to her, she has nothing left. Nothing left to fight for, nothing to believe in, nothing to live for. So why exist at all?

By now, her tears have swelled in her eyes, causing them to look puffy and red. She didn't care, though. She only cared about getting out of the forest and warn everyone about the impending danger coming their way.

"Momiji!" a voice called out.

She stopped in her tracks. It wasn't Kusanagi's voice. She knew that for sure. She turned around to see a group of figures coming her way. She squinted her eyes to make the group out. When she finally did, she realized who it was. It was the…TAC!

A big smile grew on her face. They would never know how happy she was to see them. She ran towards them, her tears rolling from her eyes. She could feel a warm feeling inside of her. She know knew that her friends aren't dead, but a part of her still felt awful. She didn't think she would ever be able to get rid of it as long as Kusanagi is the way he is.

Then suddenly, she stopped. She crashed into an invisible barrier. She fell to the ground, landing on her back, hard. The TAC noticed this and ran even faster.

"Momiji! What happened?" Kunikida shouted as he ran.

She sat up, feeling all the pain rush to her back. It was as if someone was smothering her with ache, taking the place of a warm blanket. She didn't know what had just happened. All she did was run and then suddenly crashed into an invisible wall. Although she knew and felt it happen, she couldn't understand it. How could she just abruptly be stopped like that?

She stood up on her shaky legs and started to walk. She only got so far until she was stopped. "What?" she questioned.

Kome reached out and said, "Come on, Momiji. We have to get out of here."

Momiji looked up and shook her head. She put out her hand. Her palm stopped as soon as it touched the transparent wall. "I can't get out, guys," she said, rubbing her hand up and down. "I'm… trapped."

Kunikida quickly pressed himself against the wall, trying with all his might to break it free, But it was no use. The wall stood still, not budging a single inch. No matter how badly he wanted to move it to its annihilation, it wasn't enough to relocate it.

Takeuchi knelt down and felt the ground. "I don't know how it got here, Kunikida. It seems as if it just appeared out of nowhere."

As they stood there, trying to find a way to get her out of there, there were footsteps behind them. Yaegashi was the only one that turned around, since he was the first one to hear it. He saw Kusanagi, just staring at him with his eyes so intense. All he could do was step back and stare back at him.

Momiji looked up once she felt Kusanagi's presence. She had nothing to say to him. If it was up to her, she'd rather become mute than to speak a single word to him.

"Momiji…" Kusanagi whispered, and then walked closer to her. "It's… me."

She narrowed her eyes. "I know it's you, moron. I'm not stupid. And anyway, I don't want to talk to you anymore. Please leave," she said, and turned her head.

He took no hesitance to her words. He only walked closer to her. "I'm back…to my original self."

And with that remark, she looked up at him with a gaping look on her face. "Kusanagi?"

--

Murakumo felt his fingertips burn in rage as he put the last leaf over Akima's grave. His whole body wanted to rip away from him and go stalking down Kaede. He wanted to tear her apart so she could resemble his shattered heart. He wanted her to feel the same pain he feels. And even that won't be enough. Nothing could make up for her death or bring her back, not even the sweetest, ruthless revenge. Nothing.

He believed her death was all his fault. He's the one who came up with the idea of them splitting up. He allowed her to be all by herself, vulnerable to any enemy. He let her give Kusanagi her mitama when he was unconscious. That was the biggest mistake. Without that mitama, her powers and defense shields were drastically decreased. Basically, she was like a defenseless rabbit faced in front of a strong wolf. She had no chance.

Wrath weaved in and out of his veins. He didn't feel like himself. He felt stronger and more powerful than ever. It was an instant jump from mild to boiling hot. A surge of overwhelming energy gushed through his body like a river of vivacity.

His fist pounded the ground, hitting it with the force of a hundred men. The soil beneath him broke into tiny cracks, stretching out in all directions. A globe of fog circulated around him frenziedly like a whirlwind of sand.

He felt his body begin to expand to a huge length and height. Seven tiny buds made a row across his shoulders, which were growing at an alarming rate. He was turning into a creature. A creature who was trapped inside of his human-like body.

His whole body screamed out in pain as he felt every inch of his skin stretch. And soon enough, his flesh was transformed into reptilian scales. His head became like a serpent's, along with the other buds which became heads as well.

He became the feared eight-headed monster from long ago. The eight-headed Orochi-no-orichi.

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To Be Continued…

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