At a certain mansion, Keikain was racing up the steps, through the halls until he came upon a room.
"Hidemoto! Are you here, Hidemoto?!"
He stopped at the sight of two Shikigimi, whom he recognized immediately. His face changed to one of disgust. However, he ignored them continuing to the front of the room.
"Many have been killed at the Main House. It's that damn fox again!"
Behind the screen, an outline of a man spoke.
"Koremitsu-niisan, even though I am here, for the most part I know what's going on in the middle of Kyoto. After all the trouble I went to create that sword and you didn't even use it did you?"
His voice was soft and exasperated, as if explaining to a child.
Koremitsu's face darkened.
"You were watching?"
The two shikigimi giggled and whispered behind their hands.
"Completely useless!"
"28 years of training for nothing!"
Throwing out his hand he swiped at them, sending them crashing through the screen.
"Get these things out of here, Hidemoto!"
Hidemoto was surrounded by toys, lounging back.
"Ayakashi, youkai and demons live for hundreds of years, you now. For them losing is no big deal."
Thankful at the soft 'shikigimi return', Koremitsu recalled what he originally came to tell his younger brother.
"But it's caught your interest. That ayakashi… has set out for Osaka Castle."
A quick smile flashed over his face in remembrance.
"Oh, yes he's an interesting one. Always so reckless. He's the only ayakashi who would come to eat at an Omyoji's house."
Turning solemn he added, "But Hagoromo Gitsune 'cannot be killed'. I wonder what he's planning."
Standing quickly, he threw back the sliding door and entered the courtyard.
"Oi, where are you going Hidemoto?!"
Pointing towards a cart pulled by an ox covered in flames, he laughed.
"Why going to Osaka Castle, of course! To watch him!"
At his older brother's flabbergasted face, he whispered.
"You coming too, Niisan?"
In the surrounding area of the Castle, the townsfolk were gather speaking anxiously to one another.
"Hey, look over at Osaka Castle!"
"Hii, those heavy black clouds!"
And one screamed out, "I saw a Hyakki Yakou show up!"
Those that heard his words, began to think the rumors they had been hearing, were not rumors at all.
"It's the end of the world!"
A man shrieked before running off.
However, a traveling priest studied the Castle closely.
The Toyotomi… it seems they truly are connected with ayakashi! I must report this to High Priest Tenkai!
Back at the Castle, Nurarihyon tried to reach Yohime, or at least hold the attention of Hagoromo Gitsune by running in wildly once more.
"How artless, just coming at me head on!"
Nurarihyon suppressed a scream of pain as a large portion of his side was ripped away by a tail.
"Just when I start thinking you might have some skill, you turn out to be on the same level of ayakashi as those over there. This is 'entertainment'," she reminded me mockingly, "entertain me!"
He fell to the floor, quickly soaking the mats in his blood.
"Can you see how many of these tails there are? Even I can't count them all… their number equals the amount of times I've been reincarnated," she slid her gaze to him, "it seems they react to hot-blooded ayakashi coming to oppose me."
Gritting his teeth, he picked up his sword once more, striking quickly. But a tail blocked each slash before delivering a counter-strike. Nurarihyon's blood coated the floors, the walls, her tails. It gushed out of his many wounds.
The fox smiled in dark delight.
"Now dance the steps of death. I suppose whirling ayakashi blood around would suit the musical performance just fine."
Yohime was horrified at the staggering amount of very serious injuries that blood was running out of. Tears stung her eyes as she tried to reach out her hand to do something.
"Nurarihyon!"
Back with the slowly approaching omyoji, Hidemoto remarked, almost casually, "Hagoromo Gitsune is not your average ayakashi. According to the secret Ayakashi, Demon and Youkai records from before the 8th Generation of Keikain, Hagoromo Gitsune appeared during turbulent times. Possessing the body of a notable child and growing within, when the impurities reached their peek she took over the body and attained adult form. After she became an adult, she continued growing stronger gathering power by absorbing hatred, envy, anger, despair and other such large quantities of malice at the center of government.
The stronger the malice whirling about this world, the more powerful she grows. In contrast to this, she can only live as long as a human. When her host's body life comes to an end, she must hide her 'true form' until one suitable for her reincarnation comes."
Pausing from reading said records, Koremitsu grasped the seriousness of the events unfolding.
"A reincarnation ayakashi. That would also put her in the category of 'youkai' as she is a fox and gains tails through some way, this way being reincarnation. If that true form isn't sealed, now matter how many times she's cut down, she passes to the next generation and emerges again. She's a really troublesome youkai."
He nodded.
"Clad in the robe of her 'human' form, she strives to throw the capital into disorder, no matter what age of the world she's in. Hence the name, Hagoromo Gitsune, I suppose."
Only a moment of silence passed before Hidemoto continued.
"What worries me is that Hagoromo Gitsune if gathering hearts to eat at the Capital's Osaka Castle. She must be planning something, taking a hold of this much. It means that the power she has currently isn't enough."
"The ayakashi you're interesting in… can he win against her?"
"There is absolutely no way he could, I'm sure of it. Not a chance in a million. Still," he added calculatingly, "I don't know what he'll do. Right now, he's still… maturing. I mean in a mere hundred years, he's managed to form a Hyakki Yokou comprising of so many powerful ayakashi and youkai. By the same token, Hagoromo Gitsune has spend a thousand years forming hers."
As the Castle slowly came into view, both men fell silent, observing the rapidly gathering of dark clouds and that massive amount of Fear accumulating.
As Nurarihyon took another hard hit, Yohime couldn't keep silent any longer. Twisting slightly she released a extremely underused, small bit of reikei to attempt to break free. She only managed to take one step before she was hauled back with bruising force.
"Now, now, none of that!" the fox said, pressing a large amount of Fear on her small body, "I know about your other ability and doing that would just make it boring."
Not fazed in the slightest, more tears gathered in her eyes as she burst out.
"Why?! Why are you so reckless?!"
Inuyasha didn't even go this far for me.
"I don't understand you!"
When the others didn't even try to stop me, they let me go.
"Carrying on like this, paying no heed to those injuries!?"
Inuyasha had taken a hand through his chest before for her, but not to the extend of this!
"What makes me so special?!"
Hagoromo Gitsune laughed merrily.
"You say such adorable things, Yohime. Listen carefully, among this world of ayakashi, demons and youkai there are many wise men," she paused carefully observing the tear-filled eyes of her captive," You really don't know men at all, do you? How pitiable that the first man you come to know is such a foolish tactless creature. And how pitiable he will be the last you ever know."
Before she had a chance to refute her words, Nurarihyon spoke.
"Yohime, how do I appear to you right now?"
She flinched at the pain in his voice, and one tear slipped traitorously down her cheek.
"I must look like a fool, just as she says, right?"
Her throat was too choked for her to answer so, she vigorously shook her head.
A grin formed on his face as he lifted his head to look into her eyes.
"When I think of you, my heart completely unravels. Just like 'sakura'," he added, his tone turning tender, "so beautiful, so pure… and fleeting… soothing the hearts of those who see it. I know that for sure, that just with you by my side, everything around me will shine brightly and flourish."
Dropping his head slightly, he tightened his grip on his sword.
"That's the future… that I can see."
He means that. With his very soul.
"But despite that, you look unhappy, I will make you happy. So, how do I look here before you? Do I look like a man? Who could make you happy?"
Yohime trembled. For the first time in her life, there was someone who actually placed her above himself. No one whom had asked for her hand wanted her just for her. It was because of her powers, who she resembled, things she could do for them, the knowledge she possessed. Nurarihyon didn't know her past, only thought she was a noblewoman who had a magical power that could heal wounds.
Yes, you can make me happy. I am already so very happy.
Try as she might, she couldn't get the words through her throat. He scoffed.
"Heh… I guess not, huh? I should be trying to impress you to make you fall for me, but instead… I'm so intoxicated by you I'm about to lose my mind."
As he spoke these words, he stood tall, a firm grip on his sword, the darkness drawing in around him.
Bringing his sword in front of his face, his eyes bled black and the marks under them stretched towards his cheeks. In that moment he looked every inch an Angel of Death.
"It's about time you returned her to me, Hagoromo Gitsune!"
At the sound of her name in a tone that promised death, a sliver of fear ran down her spine.
What's this? The atmosphere changed!
"Nurarihyon…"
Fear leapt, and the darkness cloaked the form of the man before her eyes.
"Let's go, the true battle of shadows of ayakashi begins now."
My tails aren't reacting! But he's right there!
And he was. Right in front of her, sword raised.
I can see him!
Instantly her tails once again reacted, aiming for the blade she knocked it out of his hands, a sense of relief invading her.
However, he merely pulled another sword from behind his, swinging it up.
"The same move again?!"
She didn't even finish before the blade sliced through the tails as easily as air, digging deeply into her neck before cutting through her face.
Yohime saw her chance and quickly planted her fist into the fox's stomach, using the force to move out of the way, yet again cursing her heavy clothing.
Though the screams of Hagoromo Gitsune were satisfying to hear, her eyes caught the soul of the real Lady Yodo. It was small and curled in on itself, as if trying to hide. It was tethered down chains of malice, and she alone could hear her cries.
"W-what is that? W-what is that sword?!"
She did not receive an answer before her face split open and a large about of youkai energy was fed to the blade. It rose up through the roof, surround by ancient kanji whose meaning only a few knew.
"T-this is?! My Spiritual power! It's escaping!"
She screamed in agony as more and more her youkai left her, as Nurarihyon watched. She completely ignored him, focusing on the energy that was leaving her.
"W-w-wait! Where are you going?! Come baack! How may years do you think it took me to gather you!?"
Reaching out, she rushed after the energy, her vassals and subordinates watched in horror as their Lady's life force dwindled.
"Lady Yodo!"
"Just what did he do?!"
Jerking his head around, Nurarihyon shouted for Yohime.
"Supreme Commander!" Catching sight of Gyuki protecting his woman, he relaxed slightly. "Let us deal with things here! You go after her! Finish her off!"
He only hesitated slightly after taking in Yohime's unharmed form.
"Gyuki, I'm counting on you."
Turning, he rushed for the stairs only to hear several ayakashi scream for him to stop, they were quickly halted in their tracks by a blade.
"Whoa there," Hitosume grinned, "your opponents are…us, you know?"
Cutting easily through a pesky demon, he walked his Commander's back vanish from sight.
"That's it! Climb! Just like that! Go forth, up towards the Lord of Pandemonium!"
However, in his excitement, he missed his previous opponent swinging blade towards his head. When a glint off the edge caught his eye, he was too late to dodge.
Golden sparks erupted as the sword stopped inches away. The enemy screamed and dissolved into ashes.
Gyuki blinked.
"Hmm, it appears although they are sadly underused and tire me greatly, I can still control them reasonable well! Then again, I was always able to do something right when people were in danger."
Shifting to look behind him he saw his Commander's hime with a thoughtful expression on her face. When she noticed his probing gaze she smiled, tilting her head to the side.
"If you're distracted, another blade will aim for your head."
I should have guess someone as eccentric as him would never pick a normal human.
A/N Ah, Gyuki is the first one who notices Yohime extra-ordinariness...
To Guest Reviewer: Oh absolutely! I'm not ending this fic when Nura-chan takes Yohime back to Edo, it's going to continue far after that. Probably… well actually that depends if people really do enjoy this fic and want to have more.
Thank you for reading, drop a review, will ya?