He was the leader of the Arataki gang, the mighty oni, the champion of all beetle brawls. He was none other than the almighty Arataki "The One and Oni" Itto.
It was said that he never lost any battle he fought. (Retreating was not considered a defeat.) He even took on the famous Kujou Sara in a duel and walked away unscathed. (She left after taking his Vision.) He could probably take on the Raiden Shogun by himself. (The Archon had never met the oni in her entire life.) He feared nothing. (Except soybeans.) And there was no one mightier than him. (Not including Granny Oni.)
Aether was also not an exception. Just because he was the legendary Traveller who duelled against the Raiden Shogun and won, it did not mean that Arataki "Will Never Admit Defeatto" would simply bow down to his strength. No, if he wanted the oni's respect, he needed to earn it.
People warned him not to look down on the Traveller, Kuki Shinobu especially. She told him again and again, over and over, and even made him promise that he would not try to prank or anger the Traveller in any way. However, when Itto laid eyes upon the legendary hero of Inazuma, he thought that he was just a strange kid who wandered into the territory of the Arataki gang. Itto was a boss, the boss of the Arataki gang, that meant he had to protect his land from anyone trespassing it.
All that changed when he got taken out in one punch.
"Uh, are you okay?" Aether asked in concern as Itto laid on the ground, groaning in pain after Aether punched him in the stomach.
"Why did you scare us like that anyway?" Paimon asked as she crossed her hands in annoyance.
Itto made a note to himself not to ever shout "Boo" at the top of his lungs from behind Aether without giving him any warning.
He wanted to scare the kid out of his territory. It always worked before he met the Traveller, especially on people who believed the oni to be a myth or legend. He thought he would scare the kid then laugh as the kid ran away screaming with his strange floating pet. The last thing he expected was to lay on the ground groaning in pain. Just what kind of muscles was the kid packing in that body? That punch to the gut was more painful than the time he fell down a hole and hit every single rocky ledge on the way down!
After he recovered, the Traveller's floating pet introduced themselves and seizing the opportunity, Itto decided to make his grand entrance. There was no such thing as being too late to make an entrance after all!
"I am the one and only Arataki Itto! The crimson oni, the boss of the Arataki gang!" Itto said, puffing his chest out with pride. "I'm sure you've heard of me. I'm pretty famous, you know."
Itto opened one eye to look at the two reactions, only to be met with blank looks.
"Erm… are you sure this is the guy?" Aether asked, confusion laced in his voice.
"Paimon thinks he can't be the culprit."
"Guess we'll have to look around."
"Well… if there's nothing else, we'll be on our way," Paimon said and Aether nodded his head in agreement before turning to walk away.
Okay sure, maybe he needed to work on his entrance a little more and it did not help that the rest of the Arataki gang were not here to help bolster the grandeur of his entrance but come on! What was with the blank reaction? He deserved an applause at the bare minimum!
As it turned out, the Traveller, Aether, and his companion, Paimon, on behalf of the Tenryou Commision, were looking for someone who was robbing travelling merchants. Someone who, in some strange unfortunate coincidence, bore the same resemblance as a certain Arataki Itto.
It took everything in Itto's power not to curse loudly. He knew who the culprit was and he hoped he had a little more time to find them but it seemed that was too optimistic. He could not let some human, hero who freed Inazuma or not, catch the thief before he had a chance to ask. There had to be some way to buy more time…
"Actually, hahahaha, you are looking at the true culprit right here!" Itto said with a wide grin.
"You are!?" Paimon exclaimed loudly but Aether looked as though he did not believe the oni.
"No you're not," Aether said with a frown. "Why are you lying?"
"I-I'm not lying!"
"...You're not a very good liar."
Itto bit his tongue. Why was Aether so sharp? If only Shinobu was here, she would know how to turn people around with words until they believed her lies. Before he could dig himself deeper, Ushi appeared and mooed loudly to announce his entrance. Both Paimon and Aether looked surprised and confused at the sudden appearance of a bull.
"Is that… Is that a cow?" Aether asked in confusion.
"A cow!? Ushi's not a cow, he's my best pal!"
Ushi's sudden and unexpected presence made the two adventurers forget about Itto momentarily, something that the oni was not happy with… Not that it was a bad thing but why did everyone like Ushi more than him? He was the boss of the Arataki gang! "The One and Oni" Itto! He was not losing to Ushi, best pal or not!
"Hey! I'm still here!" he said but Aether ignored him in favour of picking Ushi up to hug him.
There must be something to be said when he felt a little jealous of his best pal who was enjoying the attention Aether and Paimon were giving him. If the rest of the Arataki gang were here, they would definitely be comforting him right now… Not that he was missing them or anything!
Why were all of them busy today of all the days?
They decided to rest under a sakura tree when a sudden downpour took over the area. Ushi was still in Aether's arms and Paimon was talking with Aether in hushed whispers that were drowned out by the falling rain. In the midst of it all, Itto was still trying to figure out how to buy more time to search for the culprit while getting the adventurers to leave. He had no idea what to do and scaring them off would not work… not that he had any desire to try again.
Damn, his body still ached from when Aether punched him. Why did he have to hit so hard anyway?
Itto turned his head to his side, his eyes falling on Ushi who was enjoying the pats he was receiving. Then he shifted his gaze to Aether who was listening to Paimon talk with a smile. Itto still could not believe that this was the man who won against the Raiden Shogun. The news had spread like wildfire and if it had not come from the mouth of the general of the Tenryou Commision, Kujou Sara, he would not have believed it. His oni pride demanded a rematch against Aether and Itto would be happy to oblige, except he had other things to worry about right now and he was definitely not an idiot to challenge the Traveller while he was still wounded.
…Definitely not because he knew that he would lose again. Definitely not.
Itto sighed, feeling a little lonely, and he turned away, only to look back when he felt something prodding his shoulder. He turned his head to find Ushi by his side, mooing as he made himself home on Itto's lap. Itto's hand was on Ushi, scratching the spots where he knew his best pal liked. Ushi mooed in content and Itto could not help but smile.
His attention was interrupted when Aether made a comment about how close he was with Ushi. Itto's relationship with Ushi was similar to Aether's relationship with Paimon. They were best friends for life, brothers forever, and Itto would die before he let anything happen to his best pal.
"You're really close with Ushi," Aether said.
"Of course! He's my best pal! Aren't you best pals with Paimon?"
"That's right! Paimon is Aether's best friend!" Paimon said, puffing her chest out with pride.
"Even if she eats me out of my wallet."
"Hey!"
As Itto watched Aether and Paimon bicker, it reminded him of the Arataki gang. The guys were always arguing over every little thing until either Itto or Shinobu broke them up. The others would have liked to meet Aether and Paimon, even Shinobu would have liked to meet them… Wait, he was the boss, he could just recruit them! He was a genius!
"Hey, you two should join the Arataki gang!" Itto said but instead of looking happy, Aether looked upset.
"No thanks, we don't want to join any weird gangs," Paimon said, making Itto splutter in outrage.
"Weird!? The Arataki gang isn't weird! You're the weird one, you… you… Flying Lavender Melon!"
"Flying Lavender Melon!? That's it! Paimon is giving you an ugly nickname!"
Itto continued to argue with Paimon even when the rain stopped and it was only when Ushi knocked him down that they finally stopped. It did not stop Aether from laughing, even if he apologised for doing so.
"I don't think you want a blind guy like me in your gang," Aether said, looking apologetic.
"Wait…" Itto said, almost disbelieving. "You're blind? And you beat me in one hit? No way! You should join the Arataki gang! Someone as strong as you can be my right-hand… no wait, my left-hand man!"
Aether let out a laugh again before he lowered his head. "Maybe I'll consider it if you told me why you lied."
"Eh? Are you really going to join his gang?" Paimon asked but Aether never answered.
Itto bit his thumb as he considered his options. On one hand, he really wanted Aether to join the Arataki gang but on the other hand, he did not want to involve his new little bro in matters relating to the oni. Then again, it had been a few weeks since the thefts started and he was not any closer to finding the thief. What did Shinobu always say when he got stuck? Something about relying on the other Arataki gang members instead of shouldering everything by himself. But he was their leader! The boss! How could he make the others take over when he should be the one to take charge?
Yet, Itto sighed to himself. Just meeting Aether and Paimon led him to making more progress than he had since he started the search. Ah what the heck, just telling him would not hurt and he felt guilty letting his little bro go in blind when Itto already knew who was doing it. Maybe it would help if the oni could look at it from a different perspective on the motive that his little bro could provide.
"I'll be honest with you. This thing the Tenryou Commission is investigating, with someone going around taking people and their possessions... It wasn't me. Any of it."
As soon as he started speaking, the words came easily to Itto. He explained how the robbery started and how the Arataki gang managed to catch the culprit in the act as well as the history behind the red and blue oni. He told Aether how he did not want to get anyone involved, including the Arataki gang even if they helped him identify who the thief was. It was his pride as an oni and this was related to the oni. Yet, in the end, he had done nothing and achieved nothing. What was the so-called pride of the oni when he was forced to accept that he failed?
"I don't think failure has anything to do with the pride of the oni," Aether said. "You're trying to resolve this by yourself because you're an oni right?"
"That's right, and an oni will never lower their head to others."
"So I'm offering our help to you. Me and Paimon, we'll help you."
"Huh?"
"If I offer our help then you don't have to lower your head. And in order to help, I need to know everything. You've been investigating for a long time right? Tell me everything you know and no more lies this time."
"Little bro…"
"Who?"
"Thank you little bro! You won't regret it!"
Itto told Aether about everything he found so far. When the robberies started along with rumours about an oni, Itto already suspected it was one of the blue oni. However, he could not be sure until by chance, one of the Arataki gang members saw the robbery happening and confirmed that the oni had blue horns.
"And another gang showed up on our turf a couple weeks back, but I don't know where their leader is. I wanted to issue a challenge, but I don't know where their base is as well."
Aether hummed. "I think these two might be related. The thefts started around the same time the new gang appeared."
"Wow! You're really smart, little bro!"
"Of course, Aether's the smartest!" Paimon said with a nod and Ushi mooed in agreement, making Aether blush at the praise.
"But it's thanks to Itto that I was able to make the connection," Aether said and Itto puffed out his chest.
"Of course, it's me after all!" Itto boasted.
Footprints gave way to a well-worn dirt path that eventually led them to a group of nobushi with a cart, and more importantly, a blue-horned oni. The group had yet to notice their arrival, something that was about to change the moment Itto rushed in without waiting for Aether or Paimon. Ushi mooed in exasperation, already used to the oni's spontaneous actions, as Itto loudly proclaimed his arrival and challenged the blue oni to a battle of strength.
"If I win, you're coming with me!" he shouted as he pointed at the blue oni.
"Oi, Takuya," one of the Nobushi called out. "Do you know these guys?"
"Not at all," the blue oni answered.
The battle was chaotic and Itto was enjoying the adrenaline pumping through his body as he fought back against the Nobushi. He did not know where Aether went but he trusted in his little bro to handle himself. After all, this was the guy who took him out in a single punch! There was a cry as a Nobushi got knocked down by Ushi and Itto quickly praised the bull after he sent the enemy flying with a single swing of his club.
The rest of the enemies fled once they realised they were outmatched by Itto's strength and Itto only realised that there was no one left to fight when there were no more swords coming down at him. Rather, the only enemies left were the unconscious ones lying on the ground. Even the blue oni, Takuya, was no longer here.
Itto turned around to search for Aether and Paimon but neither of them were here. Where was his little bro? Ushi mooed, as if sensing Itto's distress, and trotted off in a direction. Itto followed after him, hoping that his best pal would know where his little bro and Flying Lavender Melon went.
Itto found Aether and Paimon not too far away, talking to a group of Tenryou Commission soldiers. However, judging from their expressions, Itto was not sure that the conversation was anything good. Itto hauled Ushi up on his shoulder and ran towards them, just in time to hear Paimon shout at the soldiers.
"And Paimon is telling you that you've got the wrong guy! Itto isn't the thief and neither are the both of us! Do you even know who this is? This is the Traveller!"
The soldiers looked sceptical at the reveal of Aether's identity, as if they could not believe that this was the famous Traveller who fought against the Raiden Shogun and lived. They looked to their leader who decided to arrest both Aether and Paimon in the end. However, before Aether could draw out his weapon to defend himself, Itto charged in with his club swinging and sent the leader flying a fair distance away. Everyone was stunned at Itto's sudden arrival but the other soldiers reacted quickly and attacked the oni, only to be blasted away when Aether released a bolt of lightning at their feet. Aether ran off and Paimon grabbed Itto's hand, pulling his limb and urging him to follow. The oni was quick to obey, quickly catching up to his little bro with his long legs.
They ran until Aether came to a stop and Itto had to dig his heels into the dirt to stop himself from colliding into him. Itto was about to ask what was wrong when Ushi nudged his head at him from his place on the oni's shoulder, making him shut his mouth. Paimon approached Aether, whispering words too soft for anyone to hear, and it was only then that Itto noticed Aether was shaking and breathing far too quickly than normal.
He tried to assure everyone that he was fine once Paimon finally got him to react but the moment Itto grabbed Ushi and placed him in Aether's arms, the mask crumbled.
"Sorry," Aether apologised as he hugged Ushi. "They weren't even the Raiden Shogun… just a bunch of soldiers… Even when we were fighting the Nobushi, I was fine. So why…?"
"Was it the lightning?" Paimon asked and Aether's head snapped up.
"The lightning? Oh…"
Itto had no idea what was going on but he felt out of place. Paimon was by Aether's side, giving him a hug and Ushi was still in his arms, mooing to try to keep him calm. But what was Itto doing? Nothing, absolutely nothing at all. There was nothing he could do to help his little bro and it infuriated him. How could he call himself the leader of the Arataki gang when he was stumped by this one thing? How could he say that he carried the pride of the oni when the strength he was so proud of was useless here?
He turned away, giving a quick excuse to check if the soldiers had followed them and he walked off before anyone could stop him. He stopped in his tracks once he was far enough and he punched a tree. The bark splintered under his fist but the destruction was not enough to soothe his anger. Before Itto could punch the tree again, he heard a moo and he looked down to find Ushi staring up at him.
"Thanks, best pal," Itto said as he squatted down to pat Ushi.
Ushi mooed and Itto scoffed. He was not sulking… okay so maybe he was. What if he was sulking? He was allowed to sulk! Ushi mooed again and Itto's shoulders slumped forward. Ushi was right, he was trying too hard to shoulder everything alone and blaming himself when he failed. It was a bad habit and Shinobu was always telling him that being a boss did not mean he had to do everything by himself.
"Hey little bro," Itto asked as they walked down the streets of Ritou, passing by several food stands along the way.
"Hmm? Is something wrong?" Aether asked, stopping in his tracks without warning and making Itto almost walk straight into him.
"So… I heard from my bro Thoma that you don't really trust people but when we first met, you didn't seem to distrust me."
"Oh. It's because you're a really bad liar. A person who is bad at lying would rarely have a reason to lie in the first place and that makes you an honest person."
Ushi mooed and nudged Itto's leg. Itto reached out and pulled Ushi up into his arms. There really was nothing he could hide from his best pal but the bull was right, he did not need to excel in everything, it was impossible to do so. He was a leader, the boss of the Arataki gang. His gang members looked up to him because he was Arataki "The One and Oni" Itto, nothing more and nothing less. So who cares if there were things he could not do? He was Arataki Itto, the boss of the Arataki gang. He had the pride of the oni and that was all he needed.