Chapter 4: Childhood Dreams

I woke up to the sound of noisy hammering. Groaning in annoyance, I got up and went outside to see Suika nailing wood on the veranda.

Oh yeah, I forgot that Marisa blasted a hole through roof AND the veranda.

Looking up, I saw that the hole was also fixed. It was as if yesterday's battle never happened. Never pictured the oni as carpenters.

Then again, the Outside World's sense of logic doesn't apply here.

"Good morning, Suika. I see you've repaired the casualties from the skirmish yesterday."

Suika looked up, "Oh good morning, Seido! Did I wake you?"

"Yeah, sort of. But I was just going wake up anyway, though I'd prefer something else to be my alarm clock."

The Oni laughed, "Pretty honest, aren't ya?" She then paused, giving me a sly grin. "By the way, were you really kidding when you said you were going make Gensokyo your personal harem? You aren't lying, aren't you?"

She actually remembered that part?

"Oh no! You have seen through my deception!" I raised my hands in mock-defeat, before crossing my arms, "Of course, I'm kidding! I would sooner be beaten to death than make that "plan" into reality. You really think a single human could make it possible, considering the majority are yokai?"

Suika laughed, "Nope. It's just that most people would blush, flush or angrily retort back when Yukari makes those comments. You're the first person I've met who talks back like that."

I raised an eyebrow, "Seriously? And what about you?"

The Oni shrugs, "Well, I've known Yukari for a long time, even before Gensokyo was created… and then there's Yuyuko."

"Yuyuko? Who's that?"

"Yuyuko Saigyouji, the dreaming bourei. You could say that she is Yukari's best friend and the only one who truly understands her.

Huh, who knew that Yukari had-Hold it!

A bourei? As in, the soul of deceased person? Does that mean Yuyuko is… deceased?

"Err… Suika? How long have those two known each other"

"Oh, about 1000 years or so."

… I-I have nothing to comment.

"Hey, Suika! Are you done repairing the holes? Oh! Good morning, Seido." Reimu greeted me.

"Hey, Reimu. Are you gonna start teaching me Danmaku now?"

Reimu raised an eyebrow, "Are you that eager to start?"

I nodded, "The sooner I get started the better."

…..

As a kid, I had some very childish dreams. A few them involved Dragon Ball and of Street Fighter.

Now what do these two have in common? They are both well-known titles among the otaku portion of society, their themes are mainly about fighting and have a long list of fighters as their cast. But for me, it is the name of their most prominent attacks. The Kamehameha and the Hadouken.

And what do these techniques have in common? Their users shoot energy out of their hands. Their. Bare. Freaking. Hands.

Yeah, I had always wanted to be able to shoot energy with nothing but my hands. It looked pretty cool and it is an ideal way of getting back at people you don't like. It wasn't until I was older that I realized such a thing is close to impossible, and that there'd be a lot of collateral damage if it was real. So, I pretty much shelved the idea, but never really forgotten about it.

After all, just because you're getting older, doesn't mean that the child you used to be would ever disappear. Get what I mean?

But now? Consider that childish dream, fulfilled.

…..

One long lecture on Danmaku later…

Forming energy was surprisingly easy, probably due to the various anime I watched that involved channeling one's internal energy and manifesting it outside the body. That's still up for debate though.

My current problem now is trying to decide what my main form of Danmaku bullets should be. Should I go for the classic low-in-attack-but-has-high-speed machinegun attack? Or maybe I should go for something different like the Z-fighters' ki blast? Semi-auto fire but has homing capabilities? Grr…

It's a good thing you can more than just one type of Danmaku attack, or I won't be getting anywhere.

"You better think carefully, once you've decided what form your Danmaku will be, you can't change it." Reimu warned.

"Out of curiosity, what kind of forms can Danmaku take? Besides the paper charms, balls, ying-yang orbs and needles you use and Marisa's stars and lasers?"

Reimu paused, counting her fingers, "Knives, bats, spikes, coins, flames, wind, butterflies… just about anything I guess."

… That's quite the variety.

Well since this is Danmaku, I would make more sense if I went for the machinegun. In a way, I guess I'm making peace with my Danmaku games for forgetting them for so long. Having made up my mind, I raised both hands and aimed at the tree in front of me.

Picturing myself as the one of those fighter jets you play as and the tree as one of the large "boss" airships, I grinned and let fly. Numerous bullets erupted from my hands and impacted on the tree continuously, leaving behind a cloud of dust. When I stopped and let the dust settle, the tree is still intact, albeit with some holes on its trunk.

"Not bad. I see you chose speed over power." Reimu observed.

I shrugged, "Power is meaningless if you can't hit your enemy with it." I looked at the tree again, "Hmm…"

If Danmaku can take all sorts of forms, then it would make sense that they take on various capabilities, right?

I channeled my energy in the right arm, keeping my hand closed into a fist. As I gathered energy into my fist, I pictured a targeting icon in front of me and "locked-on" several places on the tree. One, two, three… eight will do.

Then, I raised my hand and flung the energy as hard as I could. Eight lasers, no larger than my thumb soared through the air and impacted against the tree, blowing it part seconds later.

Thank you, Jehuty.

"Pretty neat for such a dull looking attack." Suika said before drinking.

"Sorry, but I'm placing priority on actually hitting my opponent rather than a light show. Besides if I want to show off, I'll use a Spell Card."

"Well, why don't you make one then?"

And that's where the other problem comes in. There are different ways to create a Spell Card, but being able to create it on a whim is not among my options.

I don't have the proper knowledge manipulate my energy, only channel it. And I'm not confident enough to just go into a fight and let loose my inspiration. And the way Reimu describes it sounds like it responds to a person whims.

But what kind of whim?

Is it a want?

A need?

A desire?

All three? Or perhaps none of the above?

I patted my face and closed my eyes. Only one way to find out.

What is it that I want?

What is that I need?

What is it that I desire?

I want… to protect those I care for. I'm sick of being protected all the time while those I care for get hurt. But to do so, I have to get stronger.

I need… power. I have to obtain it no matter what. My goal would be meaningless if I don't have the strength to reach it.

I desire… a shield. Strong, unbreakable. Not just to protect those around me, but also to protect myself… so that I can continue to protect everyone!

A sudden shout made me open my eyes and I saw why. A single Spell Card is floating in front of me, slowly spinning on the spot and glowing a bright blue light.

"Looks like you did it. Now all you have to do is to give it a name." Reimu said.

Taking the Spell Card in my hands, I looked at the currently blank side and smiled.

Raising the card above my head, I declared its name at the top of my voice.

"Protection: Unyielding Aegis!"

The card then shattered and took began to take form. It now looks like a flower with four petals- Wait, what!

I looked at the "shield" above my head. At first glance, it looks a flower with four petals. But since I was directly under it, I saw that it was made out of smaller Danmaku bullets in the same shape as the "petals". I had to facepalm at what I've done.

Not only did the design not match what I had in mind, but it was from a certain visual novel, which also happened to be one of my personal favorite games.

Good god, I hope Type-Moon doesn't sue me for this.

"So that's your Spell Card?" Reimu asked she came for a closer look.

"Yeah… It's not what I would picture it though." I look at the revolving "flower" above my head. "It's supposed to be a shield."

"A shield? Looks like a flower to me." Gee, rub it in why don't ya.

"If it's a shield, then let's see how sturdy it is!"

What? Suika, what the hell are you doing with that boulder!

"Ei!" Suika swung the boulder… straight at us. Correction; since Reimu just flew away, it's just me.

Oh CRAP!

Almost immediately the shield placed itself in front of me and the boulder shatters upon contact.

Well, I know the protecting part works. But since it's made out of Danmaku bullets, it should have offensive capabilities too.

As if responding to my thoughts, the "shield" broke down and the bullets spread all over the place.

This would be sweet, if I could control WHERE the bullets are heading.

Unlike normal Danmaku bullets, these merely bounce off the surface of whatever they touch, including each other. Also, with exception of each other, whatever the bullets made contact would be damaged. Trees, rocks, the ground, pavement, you name it.

This would be real bad if it got out of control. Now how do you stop this thing?

Once again responding to my thoughts, all the danmaku converge to a single location and formed the shield again.

"Alright! Looks like I got the hang off…" I trailed off.

Remember the list of stuff that was hit by my danmaku? Well, I missed out one item.

The shrine.

The rundown shrine now had several holes all over the place. From the roof and the walls to the ceiling and the floor. The damage I did is way worse that Marisa's.

I. AM. SCREWED.

"Seido~" I froze on the spot and slowly turned my head to the source of killing intent behind me. Reimu smiled at me with her eyes closed… and emitting a rather ominous looking dark aura I am very familiar with.

If there was one thing I've learned from anime about this situation, it is this: Once you are the target of someone's wrath, there is no escape.

Grandpa, looks like I'll be leaving this world before you do.

…..

Nursing the goose egg on my head, I looked at the list of groceries I had to buy while walking to the village.

How am I still alive and mostly intact? Let me explain.

Reimu punished me by landing a severe blow to my head with enough strength that split my skull like an egg, courtesy of her gohei. Or it would have if I wasn't properly trained in raising my endurance from a young age.

Put simply, the reason I'm not lying on the ground in a pool of blood right now is probably because I'm a little~ more durable than most people here. But just a little.

Then again, I think I got off easy from that one.

Anyway, Reimu decided to forgive me on the condition I buy her groceries from the village for her and handed me a bag full of money. She threatened to blow me up if I tried to run away and pointed I couldn't get away since she could fly and I can't.

Again, I've been let off the hook quite easily and I have Osamu to thank for that. But, it would seem that whatever misfortune Osamu had absorbed is now returning to me, so I better watch my step.

So here I am buying the stuff on the list, a very LONG list all the while trying to ignore the strange looks people are giving me.

At first I thought it was just because I am an outsider, until I found even the shopkeepers suspicious of me. They kept telling me not to do anything funny, only to stop when I told them I was shopping for Reimu. I added that I had no intention of causing trouble and even if I did, I'd be blown to bits.

Why is everybody so suspicious of me?

After buying the last of the items on the list, I struggled to see what is in front me. The reason being the two large bags I'm holding that are blocking my vision. Inevitably, I ran into someone by accident.

"Ah!"

Putting the bags to the side, I offered my hand, "Sorry, are you alright?"

The person ran into is (once again) a girl who looks to be 13 or 14 years old. She has purple hair, purple eyes and wears a light pink flower-shaped ornament in her hair which matches flowers on her sleeves. Her outfit has yellow flower-patterned sleeves, a green vest, and a shortened hakama skirt separated by a red, white laced obi.

"Oh! Err, yes. Thank you." She gratefully took my hand and got back on her feet, brushing the dust off her clothes. Before either of us could say anything however, another voice is heard.

"Akyuu-sama! Look out!"

Before I could turn to the source, I was hit at the side of my face and fell to the ground. What the hell?

Sitting upright, I saw that the culprit is another girl. This time she has long, brown hair tied in twin tails with a bell on each side. She is wearing a short kimono with flower patterns… and an apron. A waitress?

"Akyuu-sama, are you alright! Did he hurt you?"

"Ayaka-san! I'm alright, but you didn't have to hit him!"

"I just ran into her by accident, so she's actually fine." Bang! Ow! Again with the head! What is her fist made of?

Ayaka glared at me with her hands on her hips, "Shut up! I'm not talking to you, you pervert!"

What the hell! We only just met and I'm registered as a pervert already?

"Ayaka! He was just helping me up!"

"Be careful, Akyuu-sama. For all we know, he could have sneaked a few "cheap thrills" when he did that!"

…

Oh, that is IT!

"Are you MENTAL?" I shouted while getting back on my feet.

"I said SHUT UP!" Ayaka swung her fist again, only for me to block it. High kick to the chin, dodge. Palm strike to the chest, block. Knee strike meets elbow strike.

Two punches to the head plus an uppercut, dodged. Kick to the stomach, intercept. Roundhouse kick, duck. I can do this all day.

So this is what it feels like to be in control, to be able to read your opponent's move with ease. Of course that only applies if my opponent is human.

The waitress looked dumbfounded that she no longer could land a blow, "What is this?"

I grinned at her, "This is called defence, waitress. And this is offense!"

BANG! Ouch! Okay… I think I did that headbutt a little harder than I wanted to.

And now for some reason, my brain had registered this into an anime scene. That Ayaka girl is now lying on the floor with bandages on her forehead and swirls in her eyes.

"What is going on here?"

The crowd that had gathered made way for a young woman to come our way. She has brown eyes and long silver hair with blue highlights and wears a hat that looks like some kind of building with a red ribbon on top and glyphs inscribed along its side. Her dress is dark blue with white short sleeves, and a red ribbon is tied to the bottom of the collar.

Akyuu looked at the woman in surprise, "Keine sensei!"

Keine sensei? Didn't Reimu mention a Keine Kamishi.. Kamira.. Kamiwa? Her surname is pretty long… But anyway, Reimu did mention a Keine who lives here when I asked if there were any Danmaku users living nearby.

"Akyuu-san! Why is Ayaka-san doing on the ground?"

Akyuu glanced at me, "Well… she-"

"She attacked me for no good reason." I deadpanned. Sorry, Akyuu-san. But this girl has drained the last reserves of my patience.

"No, I didn't!" Whoa, that was quick. "He was going to try and grope Akyuu-san!"

Keine casted a suspicious glance at me, "Is this true?"

I stared at Ayaka for a moment and face-palmed myself as hard as I could.

"Girl, you really are mental…" I groaned out loud.

"What! How dare you-"

I roared at the top of my voice, pointing at Akyuu "YOU'RE ACCUSING ME OF GROPING HER-" I pointed at the sky, "IN BROAD DAYLIGHT-" I pointed at the ground, "IN THE MIDDLE OF THE VILLAGE-" I pointed at the crowd, "IN FRONT OF ALL OF THESE PEOPLE? YES, I'M ACCUSING YOU OF BEING MENTAL! SO HAVE AT THEE!"

Silence then took place. If there was a crow cawing above our heads, it certainly would complete the scene here.

Keine then cleared her throat, "Alright, let's talk about this…err…"

"Seido."

"Seido-san, what were you doing before all of this happened?"

I scratched my head, "Helping Akyuu stand up after I bumped into her?"

Asaka shouted, "Before that!"

I pointed at the bag of groceries, "Shopping for Reimu."

Keine raised an eyebrow, "Explain."

I groaned again… This is going to take a while.

…..

And done!

So yeah, for those of you familiar with Fate Stay Night, the shield's design is from Heaven's Feel with some tweaks in it.

Now allow me to introduce Asaka, one of the servants of Hieda no Akyuu. I didn't know that she had servants to begin with, so I was surprised to find out about this info. Their relationship is akin to overprotective servant and humble master sort of thing.

I'm sure it's pretty obvious who her Shi Fu is, but go ahead and take a guess.

Read and review, please and thank you.