Chapter 3: Sibling Rivalry
"Hello, big brother," Kiyoko said, narrowing her eyes, her usually gentle voice now laced with resentment.
"So, how about that sparring match?" Nushi asked with a confident smile on his face.
"Oh, you are so on!" A competitive fire had been sparked between them, and I doubt anyone could have put that fire out. I looked at Issun bouncing on my nose, wondering if this was a normal occurrence.
"Man, those two are always fighting!" he said. "They fight each other all the time to try and see who's the better warrior. The both of them definitely have their father's spirit!" How does Issun do that? He always knows what I'm thinking! My mind drifting again, Issun brought me back to the matter at hand.
The two siblings circled each other, both poised for battle. The sparks flying between them charged the very air with tension. I got nervous as they drew their swords, worried that someone was going to get hurt.
"Do not worry, ma chérie. They never actually hurt themselves. It's just a little sparring." I turned around to see that Waka had come in out of nowhere.
"Where have you been, pretty boy?" Issun asked, his tone making it apparent that he didn't actually care about the answer.
"Oh, nowhere. Let me guess. Those two are at it again?" Waka pointed out the scene before them.
"What else is new?" Our attentions suddenly turned to the persons in question as the fight started.
The clinking sound of metal on metal filled the air as brother and sister clashed swords. Their movements were perfectly in sync, neither missing a step. Like Waka said, no one was being harmed. Only their swords made contact as they danced their elaborate dance of swords, moving with grace and precision that almost seemed rehearsed. Of course, Nushi and Kiyoko have been practicing since they knew how to hold a sword.
The swordfight dragged on, and most likely would not be over for a while. Both had extraordinary stamina, and this fight would never end until one of them gave in. Taking into consideration their extreme competitiveness, that was not likely to happen.
Next thing I knew, their swords caught in deadlock, both equally matched in power. One fought against the other in a struggle to knock the other back and take control of the fight.
"You've gotten pretty good, Kiki," Nushi said. "But not good enough!" He deflected Kiyoko's sword, breaking the deadlock. She slashed at him to counter, only for her attack to be parried. Nushi then lunged at her, but she quickly dodged in one fluid movement.
Still, they fought, but the long battle was wearing on them. Both were out of breath, but neither was about to surrender. In spite of their exhaustion, the two siblings continued fighting. After a few more minutes, though, there was finally an end in sight.
Nushi knocked Kiyoko's sword out of her hand, and it was all over. He held her at sword point, and that was it. Nushi was victorious.
"Sorry, little sis, maybe next time!" he smirked.
"Believe me, I will defeat you next time!" Kiyoko replied with a sneer.
"How about right now, then?"
Sigh. At the rate these two were going, we were about to have yet another fight on our hands. Do they ever stop fighting? Somehow, I seriously doubted that.
"Cut it out, you two!" Issun snapped, cutting off their dispute. "Let's just call it a day already, okay?" Having said that, the sun had already started to dip below the horizon. The quarreling twosome reluctantly agreed and soon calmed down.
We headed to Sakuya's tree, getting ready to settle in for the night. Usually, Sakuya would come out to greet us. But today, there was no sign of her whatsoever. Her tree, Konohana, wasn't looking so well, either. It had lost all its beautiful cherry blossom petals, leaving it bare like that time before when it was cursed . . . oh no!
This meant that the evil currently plaguing Nippon is now starting to spill over into Kamiki Village, normally protected by Sakuya's divine powers. If whatever is behind this was strong enough to curse the sacred guardian tree Konohana, then it is clearly getting stronger by the day. Maybe as powerful as Orochi . . . or possibly even more powerful.
I lay down, unable to sleep with these thoughts troubling me so. Looking over at Waka, I noticed that he was still awake, as well.
"Can't sleep, ma chérie?" he said gently. "Neither can I. The recent state of things is very concerning. I can sense the dark entity gaining power quickly. Even the sacred tree has now been cursed . . . we need to do something about it."
He knew it, too. The darkness is growing, and we do need to do something about it. I sighed inwardly. I put my head on Waka's lap and closed my eyes as he gently stroked my fur. The gentle, rhythmic motion of his hand soothed me, and I soon drifted off into sleep.
The next day, we prepared to head out towards the Moon Cave. I'm not sure myself why, but something drew me there. I had a feeling that our new foe lay in wait for us there. First, though, we decided to stop by Agata Forest, a beautiful forest just a little ways from Shinshu Field. Before we left, Kiyoko came running up.
"Amaterasu! Wait!" she called as she hurried over. "You're going outside the village, right?" I nodded my head, and she continued. "Well, I was wondering . . . may I . . . come with you?"
"No way!" shouted Issun. "It's way too dangerous out there for you, Kiki!"
"What my little bouncing friend means to say is, that is a cursed zone out there, and it is very risky for a human to enter one," Waka added. But no matter what we said to her, she refused to be talked out of it.
"Come on, Kiki!" Issun said, exasperated. "You're being stubborn as a mule!"
"I don't care!" she yelled. Then, her voice took on an unexpected pleading tone. "Please . . . I've never even been outside of Kamiki once. I just want to see more of Nippon. I want more adventure in my life. So please, please let me come!"
". . . Fine," Issun grumbled. "As long as you promise you can take care of yourself in that cursed zone."
"Who cares about that stupid curse?" she scoffed. "I promise, you won't have to worry about me! 'Cause I am a warrior, and I can handle stuff like that easy!" With nothing left to say, we set out to Agata Forest.