Warning: Slop and Blatant wish-fulfillment ahead.
No one truly knows what dreams are. They say dreams are a looking glass for a person's subconscious desires, some will say that dreams are simply memories of either days long past or exaggerations of the day that had just passed by, and there are those who don't believe that dreams have any purpose, certain neurons firing off in the brain just so happen to have certain imagery attached to it.
Whatever the case, most would agree that dreams have some purpose.
Tsuda was one of them.
He was five when he had a dream that changed the entire course of his life.
He remembers standing underneath a tree, watching over a plain field. Within this dream it was just him and one other person. He doesn't know this person, and since he wasn't completely in control of himself during the dream (he was rooted to the spot) he wasn't able to ask, but he could describe the person in great detail.
The other person in this dream was a young man, with long indigo hair tied into a ponytail. The young man's indigo eyes narrowed in concentration as he swung his nodachi, glaring at a swallow in the distance. Tsuda took note of the fact that he and the man had the same hair and eye color.
The young man swung that long sword over and over again, even when his arms began to shake and his mouth began to dry, he continued to swing. What did he have against the swallow? Tsuda didn't know, but he kept looking on in interest.
At some point the technique began to change, each swing becoming slower than the last. The man eventually stopped, before taking a deep breath. He held the sword above his head.
He then proceeded to swing downwards at incredible speeds (to the point that Tsuda could hear the sword cut through the air), and then right before it hit the ground, the swordsman would completely halt its descent, and faster than the blink of the eye, he would swing upwards at equal speed. He repeated this technique at least twenty more times.
Tsuda looked on with widened eyes, for a young boy even he knew just how insane the technique he just witnessed was.
The man looked at his sword with a sense of accomplishment and determination. Tsuda assumed the swordsman was at least going to take a break– he didn't. Even as he stood with vibrating arms and heavy breaths, the swordsman did not let go of his sword, he was not done yet.
"Almost…"
Then, as the man allowed his arms to rest, and allowed his body to recover slightly, he still stood up straight.
Was he waiting for something? Tsuda's question was answered minutes later.
A swallow flew up close, pecking at a few bugs that were crawling in the grass, just a few meters away from the man.
The indigo-haired man closed his eyes and took a deep breath. As he exhaled, he held up his nodachi towards the sky.
He was attempting to slash to swallow. That's impossible, the thing was too small and too fast, add onto the fact that the man held an extremely large sword. Nodachi swords were known for their length (they're more likely to be referred to as odachi– literally 'great swords'), but the one that the man held was definitely larger than most.
How did the boy know this? His adopted parent was a blacksmith.
Then, the man took a step forward towards the swallow. It was a light step, but it was enough to alert the tiny bird. It flapped its wings at quick speeds and prepared to zoom off, but as soon its tiny body lifted off the ground, the man swung downwards.
Tsuda assumed that he was going to attempt to use the same move that he used minutes prior, but instead something else happened.
Something more.
The boy could have sworn that the man swung only once, yet at this moment– in an act that defied the very rules of physics— the technique changed.
What was supposed to be just "two swings in quick succession" turned into "two swings simultaneously". If the technique from just minutes ago was faster than the blink of an eye, this technique shouldn't even be possible by a normal person (maybe someone from the Anti-Demon Corps could accomplish something similar, but even then that would have been with the help of a Peach ability).
And yet…
The sliced remains of the swallow fell onto the ground with a soft thud. The man stared in silence, before a noise escaped him– a mix between cough and a chuckle. Then the swordsman bursted into full blown laughter.
The kind of laughter that is only possible after one achieves a life-long dream, the kind of laughter that comes from accomplishing what you thought to have been impossible.
Tsuda did not know this man, yet something filled his young soul— a strange sense in his heart. The boy knew that he could never accomplish something like that, he knew that even if he had tried for one hundred years, he could never achieve something like the technique he just witnessed. This was all a dream, after all. That technique isn't possible, the boy knew so.
He wouldn't even be thinking of this if it weren't for the fact that he–someway, somehow– understood how the technique worked. Any other person would have just seen the man swing once, but the boy saw him swing twice at the exact same time, not "quickly after" but "at the exact moment." What should be an impossibility felt so real to the boy.
And it was at that moment, what had been one man's passion became the young boy's obsession.
Tenka Izumo had been elected as Chief of the Anti-Demon Corps 6th Unit the very moment the position was available and the decision was made with absolutely no backlash. If anything, it was her rare mixture of kindness as well as pure loyalty that had put her in favor with many of the captains prior. It's been a few years since she became the Chief, and while she doesn't regret the decision, things definitely didn't really play out how she had expected.
Not like she expected much to begin with, she had her hobbies and her skills. She adored the members of her unit, as well as the other members of the Anti-Demon Corps (Chiefs and regular members alike).
Yet as she stood here alone on the battlefield, littered with the corpses of Shuuki, she felt a sense of boredom. The exact same boredom that had plagued her even before she joined the Anti-Demon Corps.
Perhaps it was selfish of her to think this way. While many are risking their lives to fight for Japan, and while innocent lives are unfortunately taken during many Mato mishaps, she stood here complaining about boredom.
It was because of those things that she did not even attempt to complain, though there were a few times when she allowed herself to let loose with Yachiho and Sahara.
She sighed, though the smile that she always wore remained on her face. As she turned around and opened a portal, preparing to teleport back to the base, she heard something. A sound so distinct that it would be impossible to miss.
She closed the portal and turned towards the direction she assumed the sound was coming from. She listened closely, concentrating.
She heard it again.
She walked forward, continuing her concentration, and with each step she took she could hear the sound become clearer.
The sound was coming from… a sword?
She walked forward a few more meters.
She heard the sound of a sword cutting through flesh, followed by the fading screams of Shuuki.
Was Kyouka here? That was the first person to come to Tenka's mind, but she wasn't informed beforehand, and Kyouka isn't the type to visit another Unit's on a whim.
She walked faster, she had informed those of her own Unit to stay within the base while she did recon, did one of them defy her orders? That can't be right, none of them wielded a sword.
A portal opened in front of her, jumping into it she appeared on a cliff face, getting a better view.
Not even a mile away from her own confrontation, someone else was facing off against the Shuuki.
She wanted to go down and assist, but before she did, she noticed something. As the person below turned with every swing of their sword–one at an unnatural length, an odachi perhaps? -she noticed his facial features.
She wasn't one to discriminate, but even she could tell that the person below was not a female.
Past their shoulder-length violet hair, she saw an unfamiliar face. A young man wearing torn casual clothes— holes filled his long white sleeve and jeans.
She used her portal to get closer. Her instincts as a Chief told her to step in, but she was curious.
Curious that despite the hoard of Shuuki raining down on the boy, he still stood strong. All it took was one swing of the sword to cut each beast in half, or a few swings if the boy was feeling lucky.
Though it's not as if men are completely worthless in combat–the men of the Azuma household come to mind–but this is the first time she's seen one actually fight beyond the safety of the Anti-Demon Corps. He definitely wasn't supposed to be here.
The hoard of Shuuki finally stopped with one last monster slain. The man released an exhausted sigh, sheathing his sword. She had only been waiting for half a minute, but she decided that now was the perfect time to interact.
Right as she took a step out, another Shuuki appeared from behind the young man. He felt the monster's presence a little too late though, as he quickly turned around and unsheathed his sword right as the Shuuki was right in front of him– its hand attempting to crush his shoulder.
A hole appeared in front of him in the same place as the Shuuki. He stood in confusion and slight awe as it roared, but its cries of pain went ignored as the abyss devoured it.
"Are you alright?" Having appeared at arm's reach next to him, Tenka's voice broke him out of his stupor.
"?!"
He flinched back away from her, having not registered her presence until she made it known. The first thing that he noticed as he took in her appearance was the bright lime-green hair– with streaks of white at the top. The next thing he noticed– which was a lot more important– was the obvious military-esq outfit, one that only a Chief of the Anti-Demon Corps wears.
He leaped backwards, holding his sheathed nodachi behind him, one hand on the sheath itself and the other on the sword handle.
Finally at a close enough distance, Tenka took one last good look. He looked no older than Tenka herself–maybe a year younger, she assumed– and he was definitely taller than her. She took note of how his indigo eyes narrowed at her presence. His breathing heavy and head sweaty, she assumed that he'd been fighting Shuuki for quite a while.
"Are you hurt anywhere?" She ignored his defensive stance, opting to take a step forward.
Fast he may be with the sword, she had the upper hand. In her mind she was prepared— her hands ready to use her ability the very moment he attempted to unsheath his blade.
She took another step closer.
"I'm fine." He took a step back—hands still on his weapon.
"You seem pretty good at fighting off the Shuuki, have you been stuck in Mato for long?" She indulged in her curiosity while still keeping up appearances as a Chief. Something different finally happened— something unforeseen has finally broken her out of her boredom.
She attempted to take another step forward, but he stopped her. Faster than the blink of an eye he had unsheathed his blade and slashed at her. It didn't hit but it was extremely close. Were it not for the sound of the blade piercing through the air, for the slash to produce a small gust of wind, for his obvious change in position after the fact: she would not have noticed he had attempted to attack her.
He was faster than Kyouka with the blade, combine that with the size of the sword and his obvious fatigue, he shouldn't have moved at such speed without the help of a Peach: but he's a man, it was impossible for him to have any supernatural ability.
So maybe it wasn't supernatural, and that only got her curiosity growing even more.
"Well, that was rude," Despite her words, her smile only grew. "I was just asking a few questions."
He clicked his tongue, and responded, "I don't have time for this." He sounded agitated, but it felt obvious to her that he missed on purpose, did he have something against her? Or maybe against the Defense Corps itself?
"And exactly what do you have time for then?" She asked with a smile and a tilted head. "Do you perhaps have somewhere else to be? You looked pretty excited while you were killing those Shuuki."
She meant to just tease but she ended up calling his bluff.
"It's…" His agitation only grew. Beads of sweat dropped down his forehead and his eyes focused on everything that wasn't her. "It's none of your business."
He's really not good with improv, Tenka thought to herself. As much as she could keep the barrage, she knew that she had a job to do. Her personal enjoyment can be saved for later.
"Well, whatever 'business' you have can hopefully be fulfilled another time, we should bring you back home now."
She took a step forward and held out her hand.
He glared at her hand before moving his gaze towards her eyes. Light purple pierced into blue. He took a step back and tightened his grip on his sword. He wasn't all that good at hiding his intentions, was he? Tenka almost found it cute.
It took him a few seconds to come to a decision. An exhausted sigh escaped his mouth.
"I'll go," He paused, and the Chief patiently waited for him to continue. "If you fight me first."
She looked at him curiously– the smile still present on her face. With a hum she leaned forward. "Really?"
At first the request seemed random but considering he had attacked– and purposely missed– her mere moments earlier, asking for a fight is definitely better than forcing her to fight him.
Maybe she can have a little more fun before duty calls…
"A fight? Are you sure you'd want that?"
"Not a fight to the death or anything like that, just a spar." He threw the sheath onto the ground and moved his blade into both hands. His mouth tilted up into a smirk. "If you win I'll go with you and if I win then you'll leave me alone and forget this ever happened."
"And what's stopping me from just dragging you back?"
She noticed the smirk on his face twitch downwards before returning back to the smirk. She smiled as he responded, "Then I just won't let you."
"You're pretty confident, huh?"
She stood back straight, her hands at her side and ready to move at any moment.
"Alright, I guess I can entertain you. You better not regret this."
He kneeled slightly, spreading out his legs, and held the sword upwards with both hands, near the side of his face. The smile on his face returned in full force. Even being in a state of disarray, he still had enough energy to be excited at the prospect of sparing, at this moment he almost looked like a puppy.
"I won't."
He counted down in his head.
3
He stood his ground, spreading his legs just a inch wider.
2
The Chief just stood there; her small smile felt almost smug.
1
NOW
His mind screamed a command, and he took a step forward.
Right as he prepared to swing, a hole— a portal— opened behind her, and right as he swung, her body had already faded into the abyss.
His attack created a small gust of wind, and he stood slightly dumbfounded. Teleportation, or was it something more?
Maybe fighting the Chief was a good idea—
As he was contemplating her abilities, a hole opened up underneath his feet, devouring the ground beneath.
Shit—!
He twisted his body to look downwards as he fell, expecting her to appear below.
Instead, a portal opened above him, his reaction time allowed him to twist his body upward and swipe at the portal, expecting her to appear from it.
She did not; instead, right as he swung at the portal above, a portal opened from below, and a hand grabbed at his back and roughly pulled.
His vision faded into black as he was pulled into her ability, only to readjust as he realized that he was falling from the sky.
"You—!"
Disoriented as he was, he still attempted to predict her movements, but he couldn't.
One last portal was all it took. He fell headfirst into a portal below him, and he released a painful groan as he felt his chest slam into the ground. His sword released from his grasp and clanged onto the ground beside him.
"I win!" She appeared on top of him, sitting on his back.
This entire "fight" took place within 10 seconds. The fastest battle he every took part in and also the fastest he's ever lost.
"Damn it." He muttered.
"I should bring you back home, but I have a few questions for you. You wouldn't mind an interrogation, would you?"
He groaned in response.
"Good! Thank you for your cooperation." She grabbed onto his back, but before she could teleport the two, she heard him speak, "wait."
She stopped with a raised eyebrow, watching as he pointed towards a boulder a few meters away from them.
"My things."
She used her ability to move the boulder and found a backpack laying on the ground.
"Looks like you had been prepared."
"Can I—" He moved his hands towards the backpack, but Tenka kept him in place.
"I'll grab it on the way back."
He sighed as she grabbed onto his back, opening a portal right under the two. With a smile on her face the two vanished into the void that is Ame-no-Mitori, teleporting back to the Anti-Demon Corps hideout.
(A/N)
I've realized that I've been getting too angsty with the plans for my stories, and in life in general, so I decided to take a step back and remember my roots. Fanfiction allows for stupid dumb fun so why not abuse that freedom? At its core fanfiction is simply wish fulfillment so why not just give into it? Everything written in this story is written on the spot with little to no revisions or future planning. The shackles of attempting to write something "objectively good" are not present here, I'm really trying to write something that I find cool and fun.
But don't be mistaken I'm still going to write this story with the same passion as I would with my other stories, and despite it being dumb fun I am still going to attempt some coherence in this story. And on one final note this is also not an SI, it's an OC that, while being inspired by Kojiro, is his own person. I wouldn't want to disgrace the Regend with my mediocrity.