Shogunate Pride

by Bluestar076

In the region of Caelum, miles away from the guild of Fairy Tail, there's a special guild made of samurais that is always ready to dive into new adventures to save their region from supernatural threats by clashing their weapons. This is their story, as a girl that controls both light and darkness joins them (SYOC Closed.)

25. Corrupted Images

Shogunate Pride Chapter 23: Corrupted Images

By Bluestar076

Hello everyone! Bluestar here with finally a new chapter! As I promised, despite Round Table growing in popularity, I would have turned back to the older story! And what better occasion to start again if not with the beginning of the new year? In particular, for 2025, I've decided to go back to distributing the stories on the days of the week to work on other stories as much as possible, in this case, I'm working on both this chapter and Chapter 6 of Round Table, but I'll also try to work on other stories that are not SYOCs.

As of today's episode, the search for the bones between Shogunate Pride and the Crow Clan continues! This time, it will be quite juicy as the main star of this arc will be involved with some unpleasant surprises! Considering what's boiling in the pot, I won't waste any further of your time, and I'd say that we start with today's episode right away! As always, I hope you enjoy it!

Note: I do not own Fairy Tail. All rights and characters belong to Hiro Mashima, A-1 Pictures, CloverWorks, and J.C. Staff.

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Chapter 23: Corrupted Images

Caelum – Tagibon Wasteland

Standing at the center of the main island of the Caelum nation was the Tagibon Wasteland, also known as the ultimate paradox of this nation.

It took such title for the reason that, while most of Caelum is green and luxuriant, filled with exotic plants of every type, Tagibon was a place where all you could see were rocks, dust, bones, and nothingness.

To this day, no one can give a magical or scientific reason for this. Still, due to its critical conditions, adding to the absence of food and water of every type, the wasteland was named a place of misfortune and famine to those who had ventured into it. Even among adventurers and guilds, people knew that to pass through there, they needed to take extra precautions and resources first.

But despite all these voices, two different groups went there, as it had been told to them that the plausible source of power they'd been looking for was located around there.

After a few hours of flight, Tekina was able to land and put foot on the wasteland, witnessing the emptiness that was awaiting her. The wind was moving both the dust and her hair, and she grabbed the skull of a bull that stood right below her. Only seeing that gave her a general preview of what was awaiting her.

"Eugh…sometimes I forget that Caelum has places such as this." She commented.

Right behind her, Alice comes closer to look around with an almost apathetic expression on her face. Unlike her colleague, she didn't seem bothered by the looks.

"Such emptiness…somehow it makes me feel like home." She spoke.

That made Tekina assume a disgusted face. "You think? I know we're used to everything, but seeing some life wouldn't be a bad thing." She then sighed. "At least getting the bone will be easy. Or at least I think."

Alice kept on looking around. "…I think that this is the trick. This emptiness may become our biggest trouble in getting to that bone, especially considering…" She lowered her stare to see several bones in the distance.

"…There seems to already be a lot of them. Even the size of this place could deceive us. It will be like finding a needle in a haystack." She concluded.

To that, Tekina changed expression and made a grin. "Alice, dear. You seem to forget that we are ninja right now. We are used to every type of space to get what we want. Nothing from the shadows can escape our side as we are one with it."

Hearing that made Alice form a small grin…and a black mist started to surround her. "True, I forgot that part. It's a good thing that I brought my family with them."

"Oh…you mean them?" Tekina asked.

The other woman nodded and started to focus. "Tsu~ei she ke no seirei no atsumari…rise now, my family. Duty awaits us."

The dark aura spread in four different parts, assuming four humanoid shapes.

In a matter of seconds, four different people were surrounding Alice. All of them wore the Crow Clan's uniform, implying that even if they were part of the woman, they were still treated as equal major members of the Crow Clan.

The first one was a girl in her twenties. She had pale skin, yellow eyes, and long red spiky hair. She was wearing a black uniform, red scarf, black fingerless armored gauntlets, black sandals, and tabi socks. She was holding what seemed to be a spear with a platinum-colored tip in her right hand.

This girl opened her eyes and turned to Alice with a cold stare. "We're glad that you need your help again…mother."

Ukime Kibaru – Assassin of the Crow Clan

The second one was a man in his forties, around Alice's age. He had long, spiky blue hair held in a medium-length ponytail, black eyes, and the same uniform as the others.

"You had any doubts? Your mother never forgets the attachment to family. That's what gives us the chance to get back every time from the other side. Our love…cannot be destroyed." He spoke.

Teruko Kibaru – Assassin of the Crow Clan

The third had a very slim body, pale skin, medium-length aquamarine hair, and black eyes, and was wearing the same uniform of the clan, with the addition of a mask on her head.

"Oh, please, Mother! Tell me we have more bodies to step on! My legs were starting to tingle, and I couldn't afford to stay still for too long! So, who is it? Who is it?"

Michizuki Kibaru – Assassin of the Crow Clan

The fourth and last spirit was a lot bigger than everyone else. He had sand-colored skin, short brown hair, and black eyes. He was wearing the uniform of the clan, with the addition of a hood on his head.

"You're too noisy, Michizuki. Let's get over with it."

Kyojin Kibaru – Assassin of the Crow Clan

"Aww, you're no fun, Kyojin! Always eager to finish the job! Don't you know that battles must be enjoyed very slowly? Especially when you have the upper hand…"

Tekina was once again impressed by her partner's magic. "Once again, they've answered your call, even if they're all…" She quickly shook her head. "Well, this will surely help us a lot, considering that we still didn't get any news from our scouting men."

"Don't worry. My family always knows their deal." Alice assured her before turning to the mysterious entities she had summoned. "My children and my love..." She came closer, holding hands with Teruko. "The time has come. We're here under the will of Lord Yoshimatsu, searching for the bone of the great demon Jaquio, which seems to be somewhere on this wasteland. Your duty is like ours…to find it."

"Consider it done, mother. We won't fail you." Ukime said with a small bow.

Teruko was already looking at the environment. "This land of emptiness can be deceiving…but unfortunately for those who had hidden the bones within here…I can see beyond the appearance." He spoke. He closed his eyes, only to re-open them with small will-o-wisps instead of his pupils.

From his point of view, the sight was now blue, and several impulses could be heard and seen. With that, he could see not only the other people…but their magical energy as well, and their spiritual one. Thanks to this power, it didn't take him long to sense a bigger power than usual, a few meters from their position. This news made him form a small grin. "There." He immediately dashed forward.

Alice was pleased with that as she looked at Tekina with a smile. "See?"

"Yeah…no wonder he's one of us as well. Let's go." The other female ninja replied before following Teruko with the others.

They've moved out of a few meters, taking them a couple of minutes, thanks to their advanced speeds.

On the surface, the spot was exactly like the others, just emptiness and a few bones here and there. But Teruko was looking at the ground with a convinced stare.

"I see. If we weren't careful, we could have been stuck in here for days."

"What did you find, Father?" Michizuki asked, bending her head.

"…The bone is down here." The older ninja replied.

"What? Down? Is it at the center of the earth or something?" Tekina asked.

"Don't be hasty, Tekina. Let him work." Alice suggested.

And as she said, Teruko unsheathed a long katana that was attached to his back and gently touched the ground with its tip. "Unfortunately for those fools…I've already understood the trick." As soon as he finished saying it, a large burst of will-o-wisp flames erupted around him, forcing the other ninjas to move away.

The flames converged into an explosion that destroyed the ground below him, who stood on a single stable platform. The result revealed what seemed to be the road…to an underground cave, enlightened by several blue crystals.

"W-Woah…" Tekina was surprised by it.

"Amazing as always, Father…so you're suggesting that…?" Ukime asked.

Teruko nodded. "The bone is down here, in the depths of this cave." He replied. Right at that moment…something caught his attention. His spell, which was still active, perceived something that made him look away. "Hm?"

"What is it?" Alice asked.

From his point of view, he could feel five more presences a few meters away from them…with their magical energy being different from his and his comrades. "We have company. Someone is coming this way."

Tekina and Alice immediately realized who he was talking about. After hearing what their leader had said, only a certain group of people could have been fool enough to step foot in that hellish place.

"The samurais are here…" Alice spoke.

Tekina couldn't help but feel annoyed, especially after how her last meeting with them ended. But even so…she had the strength to grin. "So, the last Star mage insisted on her sin and even brought her friend with them? Fine…we'll let her have her own way. But…we can do it later. Thanks to Teruko here…I think we can take on our priority faster than expected."

Michizuki was already stretching herself, delighted. "Hmm…and here I hoped to have some fun with those samurais. I've always wished to confront one…but immortality surely takes the first place! I'll take the lead then…ah ah ah ah ah!" With those words, she jumped down the hole, heading for the cave.

Ukime scoffed. "Someone should learn how to hold her impulses. Oh well…not that we're expecting something complex down there." She said before taking out a large spear. This weapon was already producing electrical shockwaves from its tip. "With your permission, I follow her." And she jumped as well.

"If there are more bones than we need…I'll just have to crush them all." Kyojin simply spoke. He made a heavy jump and immediately landed down.

After seeing her supposed children go down, she looked at what seemed to be her lover. "Thank you, darling. With this, we won't take long before putting our hands in the bone."

Teruko nodded. "Everything for you, my love. Neither death nor immortality will destroy our bond." With that, he jumped as well, leaving only the two original ninjas.

"So…are you ready, Tekina? If I recall correctly, Lord Yoshimatsu made it clear for you not to make any wrong steps this time." Alice asked.

Tekina flinched for a moment. She knew well that it was a wise choice not to anger Yoshimatsu and that succeeding in this mission was vital. Not only that, but after she was forced to be rescued and retreat the other time, she couldn't afford herself other failures.

She promised herself to become stronger so that no one could have ever looked down on them. That was the whole reason why she joined the Crow Clan in the first place.

Having that in mind, she looked up at her older comrade with a serious stare. "Of course, I'm ready. Last time, I was too confident in my plan, and I didn't expect the way they answered. But this time…I won't restrain myself. Besides…I'm more efficient when it comes to straight violence, you know? They won't escape my venom this time."

Alice was pleased to hear it. A black aura that looked like smoke and what seemed to be little souls surrounded her. "That was what I wanted to hear. Let's go."

And in the end…they jumped as well. The Crow Clan was once confident to get their hands on the bone. But…they didn't know that apart from Shogunate Pride going after them…they had to consider something else.

---

"DIE!" In the meantime, a few meters away like Teruko sensed, the lesser ninjas that were sent in advance intercepted the mages coming from Shogunate Pride and immediately assaulted them. These all synchronized together to shoot poisonous darts made out of magic simultaneously.

"HAAAA!" But they surely weren't prepared for the more advanced moves of their opponents. After seeing the attacks, Yukiko stepped forward and deflected all the darts with a blizzard coming from her double-bladed staff. "They're all yours, My lady!"

Hoshiko, who stood behind her, started to run as soon as she got the signal, swinging her ninjato sword. "Tōran- Snow Leopard Arctic Storm!" As she was synchronized with the winter celestial spirit, the mage with the star-shaped eyes released a barrage of crystal shards that all rained down on the enemy ninjas, reducing them to stews.

"GAAAAH!"

"Dammit! A member of the ninja clan can't be this strong! We wiped them all easily last time!" One of the other ninjas exclaimed.

Hoshiko was already looking at them with cold eyes. "Don't expect anything less. This is my payback for what you have done!"

"That's right! And aren't you forgetting someone?" A second voice added behind the ninja.

"Uh!?" When the henchman turned around, he could see Henry galloping his trustworthy Icarus behind him. The ninja didn't get a moment to react the Pegasus had already turned around to give him a heavy kick, making him fly away with a well-known cinematic shout.

"Great job, Icarus! Now, leave me a solo moment!" The cowboy samurai jumped down to meet more ninjas that were already circling him. He could see how they were infusing their nails with poisonous magic, making their hands look like snakes' mouths. "That magic…or rather, ninpo, seems the same as that girl we had met the other day. I assume you work directly under her? Too bad because if that's the case, I know exactly how to answer you!"

"Don't count on it!" The ninjas didn't feel intimidated and threw against him.

Henry made a small smirk, took his hat off, and threw it up. Instantly after that, he swung his katana and prepared to answer. "Jabberwock – Third Style – Soresu!" By applying the defensive style of his sword, Henry was able to defend himself from most of the blows from the ninjas, avoiding the risk of getting hit by their poison. Thanks to the style, his movements were fast and immediate, and his body moved as a reaction, similar to that of a contortionist.

"I'VE GOT YOU NOW!" One of them saw Henry's neck exposed and was ready to stab him in the back, but…

SDONG!

Henry promptly put his blade in front of him to stop the enemy's hand. "Sorry, pal! Better next time!" He lifted the sword to pull him away, and in just a matter of seconds…

SWISH!

Henry released a spinning whirlwind that cut down all of the ninjas around them. Right when he landed on his feet, the hat flew down, and he grabbed it to put it back in his head. When he turned around, he could see a ninja that was trembling and trying to run away, but the young Luminol mage had already taken his lasso to take him. "You're not getting away!"

At the same time, a small squadron of ninjas aimed at Iku.

"She seems the most harmless of the quartet! Let's get her!" One of the ninjas suggested.

The S-Class Mage looked at them with one of her silly smiles. In the bat of an eye, her kanabo cub was filled with the Cinnamon Spice drink. By drinking it, she slightly opened her mouth and released a large burst of flames that burned the ninjas. "Cinnamon Spice: Pepper Garden!"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! FORGET IT, FORGET IT! SHE'S NOT THE EASIEST OOOOOONE!" The ninja who boasted before cried out as he got burned.

Iku put her cab behind her back and, with a more serious grin, looked around. "Come on…don't tell me that this is all you can chew. I had barely STARTED!" Feeling charged, Iku changed the drink into the Static Storm. Her body got covered in small electric shockwaves, and she had already started to dash at high speed against the other ninjas. She didn't have the same speed as Rere and Ren, but it was still something impressive.

The hitmen of the Crow Clan tried to engulf her in several bursts and puddles of poisons, but whenever they blinked their eyes, Iku was already in another direction, forcing them to keep on moving around, making their heads spin. When they were starting to get disoriented, the Drunken Beast was already in front of them, wiping them away with powerful fists filled with electricity or violently throwing them away.

After taking out the last one, she turned around and could see an aligned series of five ninjas aiming at her with poison ninpo.

"We've got her now! One blow of these, and she's more than gone!" One of them exclaimed before they all shot darts of poison.

"Are you sure?" Iku asked before pointing at them as well with her kanabo cub. "Static Storm: Railgun!" Instantly, the tip of the cub released a beam of lightning that surpassed the poisonous darts, burning them away and going straight toward the ninja, blowing them up.

"GAAAAAAAAH!"

Iku groaned a bit as she stretched her arms. "All these boastful people, and they all fall like that. Guess that there's no respect for people like me anymore."

And finally, Sena found his own group of henchmen to take down. "So, you're those messed up ninjas who destroyed Hoshiko's home, eh? How about I pay you back the favor for her?"

Seeing him as young as he was, the ninjas laughed. "Really? You and what power?"

As an answer, Sena's smile didn't fall, and instead, he put on a mask that turned him into a Tengu. "This power!"

"What!?" The ninjas' mood changed immediately, and they all prepared rotating discs of poisonous ninpo to throw at him.

The young mage of Shogunate Pride spread his Tengu wings and started to fly through to dodge them, imitating the movements of a fighter pilot. In a minute, he was already behind them. "My turn now!" With those words, he started to quickly wave his enormous fan to generate a tornado that wiped out the henchmen of the Crow Clan until the only thing that could be seen of them were small stars in the distance.

But one of them was able to escape the tornado and aim at him with several poisonous shuriken. "I'VE GOT YOU BRAT!"

Sena sharpened his eyes and quickly went down to dodge the shuriken, which took out just some of his feathers. Once he landed on the ground, he quickly changed his mask to switch transformation. "TakeOver: Kitsune!"

"What!? He has more than one form!?" The ninja didn't expect it, and it was already too late for him. Sena already jumped against him and pummeled him to the ground, leaving him the victim of the nine flames that blasted him a few centimeters underground.

Once the young mage of Shogunate Pride got the certainty that he wasn't standing anymore, he removed his mask and went back to normal, heading back to the others.

"Man, they already had preceded us! This means no good…" Sena commented.

"Does this mean that their superiors had already reached the place? Tch…I can't afford to see them in the proximity of the bone." Hoshiko commented, feeling frustrated. Her fist tightened. "Now that we're pursuing them, there's no way I'll let them do as they please."

"My lady…" Yukiko whispered. As the most loyal celestial spirit to her, she wanted to help her as much as possible, so seeing her like this made her feel bad.

"Let's not be this grim!" Henry suggested, getting back on his horse. "If anything, we're lucky that one of the bones is located in here. It gives us an advantage!"

"Quite funny that you're the one saying it," Iku said with a small smile before sipping some alcohol from his cub.

"What do you mean, Henry?" Sena asked.

"Just take a look around!" The cowboy replied. "This is a huge authentic wasteland filled with bones of dead animals. Even if they're skilled ninjas, we don't have the certainty that they know the exact form of the bone they're looking for! Plus, I know that there's more than meets the eye of the ninja who took him down, and the empire put him somewhere in this place. Which means…"

"If we're able to find the bone before them…we could win?" Hoshiko asked, making the cowboy nod.

"I don't want to bring bad luck, but…what's their disadvantage is also ours…" Sena fairly pointed, considering that they were in an empty wasteland where the only thing you could hear were the vultures flying around.

Henry made an embarrassed laugh. "Oh, right, eh eh…didn't count it…still!" He regained his typical smile. "All that we need to do is anticipate them! And we can't surely do anything if we stay still, right?"

Seeing his friend trying to be optimistic, as always…made Hoshiko smile. The idea of her guild helping her achieve her revenge made her feel compensated and relieved. At least she knew that she wasn't going to be alone on this mission as she thought at first. "Thank you…"

"Of what? You know it's my duty! Come on, let's move!" Henry replied with pleasure.

"Where exactly?" Iku asked.

The cowboy samurai took some minutes to answer, embarrassed to admit he didn't know how to reply. "Uhm…anywhere will go! As soon as we see something out of place between those bones, we check it out!"

The other members weren't that convinced, but it's not like there were that many other choices in that wasteland.

Having that in mind, Sena reused the mask to turn back into a Tengu and flew up. "I'll monitor from above! I'll let you know when there's something out of place!"

"Wait, Sena! Let me reach you!" Henry suggested before looking at his horse. "How about it, Icarus? Ready to stretch your wings?"

"IIIIIH!" To answer, the Pegasus reared up…making Henry fall.

"AAAH!"

"Pff, ah ah ah! You're just absurd sometimes!" Hoshiko happily commented before lending a hand. "Here, let me help you."

"With pleasure! Wanna join the ride, too? I'm sure Icarus would be fine with it if I'm with you." The boy then proposed.

"Ah! R-Really?" The question made Hoshiko turn red, something the boy noticed.

"Are…you ok?" Henry asked.

"N-No, nothing at all! Give me one second…" The ninja girl answered quickly before turning around and making a keen wheeze of excitement.

"This must be a dreaaaaaaam!" She thought. She then instantly turned around. "Sure do! Get back in the gate, Yukiko! I'll call you as soon as we find something or we need you!"

Seeing how the scene was developing, Yukiko frowned at both of them, probably out of jealousy, but she agreed. "Fine. Stay careful, my lady, and you, Henry, be careful at what you do!" After that, she came back to the gate. Leaving the two mages confused.

"Don't worry, she acts like this often. Quite the cat, isn't she?" The ninja girl asked, joking about it.

Nothing else needed to be added. Hoshiko went on Icarus's back, and Henry told her to stay tight while he ordered his horse to fly high, joining Sena in their flying scout.

Iku simply stayed on the ground, starting to run fast and leave a large pile of dust behind her, promising to scout on the land side, even though she inevitably crushed some of the bones that were on the ground. The others would have probably told her to slow down, but they were already high, and…they didn't know if they could stop her of all people.

At the same time, Icarus was flying high on a moderated speed. The ninja of the former Star clan couldn't help but notice how the sky was devoid of any clouds, and the sun stood perfectly in the sunset, giving the wasteland and the sky a unique orange color. This made her feel bad a little bit. It was a perfect picture, but unfortunately, for the wrong place and the wrong situation.

But if anything, another major concern of hers was another: as she was standing on Icarus's back, she needed to hold Henry tight, and as such, her arms were wrapped around his belly at that moment. Something that brought her both embarrassment and…excitement at the same time.

"I'm holding on, Henry, right now…w-what should I do? Should I…act like normal? Make a hint? N-No! Hoshiko, what are you thinking!? Come on, this isn't neither the place nor the time. We're talking about the Crow Clan here…" Her head was starting to get messy with what was going on and what was her feeling. And for the sake of her mission, she tried to keep some composure. きれいな心 – Kireina kokoro: A clean mind was the third trait a samurai needed to have. Considering that she was both a samurai and a ninja, she was supposed to be one of the members to show this trait the most, but…

"…But it's hard…I didn't think it would turn out this way…"

"How's it going behind there?" Henry then asked.

"Ah! W-What do you mean?" The ninja girl countered with a question as well.

"Well…about Icarus. Feeling comfy? Two people standing on a horse can be quite a delicate situation. But it seems that my boy here doesn't seem bothered at all! Not that I should be surprised, considering that he's well-trained." Henry explained.

Hoshiko kept on sweating, but hearing that made her feel calmer. "Oh, that! Yeah, I'm comfortable here. Icarus is doing a good job!"

The horse in question snorted as if he felt a bit offended.

"Glad to know! But…what do you mean with 'that'? What were you thinking?" The cowboy asked.

"WAH- Uh, nothing?" Hoshiko immediately replied, trying to look elsewhere. "D-Don't worry, really! Sometimes I make silly questions!" She replied before taking a deep breath. "Besides…considering the situation we're in right now, I'm trying my best to remain calm and collected. But it's hard."

Henry tried to make a comforting smile. "Hey, I get the idea. Approaching those who had destroyed your home vis-à-vis after so long must not be an easy task at all. I could see it back at the judge's birthday party and last night when you had that nightmare."

Hoshiko felt bad upon hearing that, to the point that she leaned her head on Henry's back, putting her embarrassment away for once.

"Uh?" Henry did not expect that as he slightly turned his head at her.

"I'm sorry if you had to see me in those conditions. As someone who had been in the guild for a long time, I should have brought a better example. I almost even ended up in an argument…"

"Hey, like I said, it's all water under the bridge now! Besides, it's not the first time you argue with Revany, even if this time it was for something serious. This is a delicate thing for you, so it's normal that you feel all those emotions. Upset…anxious…hasty. What matters now is that you're willing to do this and that you're not alone."

"Hmmm…" Hoshiko was happy to hear it, but she was still concerned.

"Plus…I think you have been pretty lucky, unlike me, if you know what I mean! It's not like you get to have some deserved justice from those who made you suffer every day! The fact that they've exposed themselves so much because of their nonsense about immortality must have helped you a lot!" Henry continued, trying to keep a happy tone.

"Indeed it did!" Hoshiko replied, feeling slightly better. "But…what do you mean with lucky? Are you…perhaps looking for vengeance toward someone too?" She then asked.

Henry looked down and made a small chuckle. "Not really. I was talking more about…having a goal in general. And when it comes to that, I couldn't even compare to you or any other in the guild."

"How…?" Hoshiko asked.

"You want to take down the Crow Clan to put your clan's souls at peace, Revany wants to be the best swordswoman in all of Earth Land, Cal wants to affine his swordsmanship, Tsukuyomi wants to follow the path of her mother, and Domino wants to explore as much as she can of the world while being a proper mage like the one who rescued her. Many people in the guild who have wonderful goals they want to achieve, and then…there's me! Who…somehow doesn't have something he wants to do within the guild." Henry explained. "That…makes me feel a bit inferior, if anything."

"What? Really? I mean…you didn't give me that impression." Hoshiko commented.

"But it's true! I was found near that beach, remember? With no memories of who I was, or how I ended up in there, and why I was unconscious. Just a big black in my mind." Henry replied. "While I surely want to know whatever happened to me, and I'm trying my best to search for clues here and there, even if it's hard…I still think that…I'm missing something…something that could make me feel like I can be considered a samurai just as you."

"Henry, don't you ever say something like that again! Because that's not what you are!" Hoshiko suddenly exclaimed. It wasn't nice for her to hear him talk like that.

"Uh?" The cowboy samurai was left surprised.

"Do you remember when you made your battle against Fern for being admitted to the guild? I was there, and I could see how you earned a place with us! Uncle Dohko would tell you the same thing. Ever since you passed the text and got our traits within your sword, you had always been one of us, and I was there several times to confirm it! And not only me!" Hoshiko explained.

"You…you think?" Henry asked.

The ninja girl nodded. "Look, the sole idea that you are all working out just to help me on this thing I would have rather faced on my own at first makes my heart overflow with relief. But…I don't want it to become a cause for you to feel inferior 'cause you're not." She said, feeling a bit guilty. "Plus…having a goal can surely make you someone noteworthy, but that isn't the only thing that defines you, you know? I mean, you are kind, cheerful, you're an excellent babysitter with the Master's daughters, you try to always be there for the others, just like you're doing it now, and you're even one of the most skilled swordsmen I've ever known! True, I'm skilled, but it would take me years to reach your levels!"

Henry was genuinely surprised by that act of sincerity coming from her guild mate. While he knew that she was a kind girl, he surely didn't expect her to go all-out just to comfort him. But…he definitely couldn't say that he disliked it.

He looked forward. "Wow…that's…quite a lot coming from you. I…I didn't expect you'd be this generous toward me…" He spoke. "You surely know a lot of things about me! Almost like I've come to be of your liking as a person!"

CRACK!

That was the thing that triggered the ninja girl the most when it came to embarrassment. "WAH- Uh, no? I mean…I just wanted to make a flashy person like me feel better, ah ah!" She tried to act it cool. "You…didn't like it?" She asked, worried.

"Are you kidding? Of course I did! I…never thought you would have had this opinion of me. Like you said…it fuels my heart with relief." Henry replied.

That…was enough to give Hoshiko a sincere smile. "Glad to know. Well…I hope it sticks in your head, or else I'll make sure that you'll remember it better than your mom's name!"

To that, Henry looked at her with a goofy face.

"Oh…right. Well, you know what I mean!" The girl insisted.

"Eh eh, of course I do! And stay assured that I intend to support you on this until the very end! And you know that I'm not the only one!" Henry concluded.

"Yes, I do!" Hoshiko happily replied…though internally, her thought was another. "Did…did that really happen? I just had a conversation like that with Henry!?"

Right at that moment…Sena lowered his flight to be at their height and looked at them with a smug face.

"Sena, did you notice something?" Henry asked like nothing.

"YOU DIDN'T SEE ANYTHING, RIGHT!?" Hoshiko asked, alarmed that her whole reputation could sink with just an answer.

"Oh, I just couldn't help but see you two talking. You certainly wouldn't mind if I do the third party, right?" Sena asked.

Henry was confused and unaware that right behind him, Hoshiko was smoking from her red face. "…Is it me, or it's getting hotter in here?"

"Anyways, I've looked up from here, and still I didn't-" Sena was about to give his report, but…

"FOUND SOMETHING!" Iku's sudden yell caught all of their attention, and when they lowered their stares, they could see the last thing they'd expect to notice in a place such as that.

Something that was way too notable and evident in a place such as that.

"What the…?" Hoshiko wondered. They didn't waste any time, and all landed down near their guildmate.

When they did so, they could see a giant hole within the wasteland that clearly led to an underground cave.

"I-It's true that we said to look for something out of place, but this is too much!" Henry commented.

"H-Hey, at least it will spare us from wandering for ours, right?" Sena asked with a drop of sweat near his head.

"What do you say, Hoshiko? You think it's convincing enough?" Iku asked.

"Yes. I don't see where the bone they're looking for would be otherwise. Which means…whoever they sent must be down there." Hoshiko replied, looking at the hole with a serious stare. "We'll probably have some problem down there."

Iku chuckled after hearing that. "Hey, that's why we work, right? To solve problems. And besides..." She made her knuckles crack with a delighted smile. "After those minions, I could go for a boss fight right now. Whatever happens, I'll make sure to be with you, baby girl."

Hoshiko nodded. "Thanks, I count on it." She then looked at everyone. "Everyone ready?"

"Of course I am!" Sena replied.

"You had any doubt?" Henry added. Even Icarus snorted as a nod.

Hoshiko then took out the key of winter to summon Yukiko again. "Get ready, Yukiko. It's time to get serious down there."

"What happened between you and the cowboy?" The celestial spirit asked, worried.

"DON'T CHANGE SUBJECT!" The other ninja exclaimed before shaking his head.

This wasn't like at Hachiman's birthday or when she had that encounter with those two spider minions. If they were going to meet the serious members of the Crow Clan, that would have been her first serious fight with the clan that destroyed her family. And she knew well that they were going to be strong.

…But so was her. She wasn't going to let them away that easily.

That thought made her sharpen her stare. "Let's go!" Nothing else needed to be added. She jumped down, with the others following her.

---

After they jumped, they went down for a few minutes, with several blue crystals as the only light.

Iku, Hoshiko, Henry on Icarus, and Sena all landed down, only to be both amazed at the sight that prostrated before them. It was a single straight-forward road, but the crystal's light granted a unique guide. It almost sounded like their resonance echoed through the cave, the only sound they could hear apart from their own voices and footsteps.

"Woah…this is surely something flashy…" Hoshiko commented

"Indeed! It's similar to the crystals that you can find in Stella! And at least we won't have to get lost with that single road." Iku added.

"Who knew that such a place was below that wasteland? Heck, it was impossible! Only someone-" Henry wondered about the cave's existence, only to find the realization in his own words. "Oh no…could it be?"

The others also realized it, which brought up some tensions.

"Of course…only someone with magic could have foreseen that the cave was under the wasteland. And if this wasn't discovered before…" Iku started.

"The Crow Clan must have preceded us, which means they're already further within this cavern!" Hoshiko ended the phrase.

To confirm it further, Icarus started to beat the hoof repeatedly on the ground, something that Henry noticed. "Icarus is sensing that something is wrong, too."

"Then we can comment about the looks later, let's go!" Sena concluded. Everyone agreed on that, and they started to move as fast as they could.

Much like what they had seen at first, the road was calm and clean for most of the time. The enemy was supposedly ahead of them, and considering that probably no one had ever discovered the cave, there weren't any dangers to be sensed. Or at least they thought.

Henry drew his sword and used the third style of the Jabberwock to pick up any possible dangerous threats within their surroundings. But like a submarine in the depths of the ocean, the road was clean.

"Man…if it wasn't for us and the enemy, I'd surely not want to stay in such a place, even with all these crystals around us. It's basically empty." Henry commented.

"You shouldn't expect that much from an underground cave, don't you think?" Hoshiko asked.

"Yeah, but at least, I don't know, some bug? Moles? Underground salamanders? Something, at least, so I'd knew that we're not entirely alone." The cowboy replied.

"What, are you scared? Want me to turn into an Oni and lighten the mood?" Sena proposed, but Hoshiko immediately made an X with her hands as a sign of negation.

"Are you crazy!? They'll find us out if we make too much noise! You'd also be too big to move in these tunnels!"

"Ah, right!" Sena answered, laughing while scratching the back of his head.

Iku shrugged with a small grin. "I wouldn't mind in case."

"Leaving this aside, it's not that I'm scared! I've visited places like this ever since I joined the guild, in one of them, I even had to rescue someone from an earth golem!" Henry talked back. "It's just that…the idea of this emptiness added to who are we gonna face makes me just…uneasy, you know?"

"…So you're scared?" Sena asked.

"They're two separate things!" The cowboy samurai insisted before turning around and hearing a strange and childish laugh. "Wha-!? Are you laughing at me now, Sena!? I'm being serious here!" He immediately turned back to the younger member.

But…the response was not what he had expected.

"What-? Who laughed? I certainly didn't!" Sena replied.

"Uh?" Henry seemed confused by that…even the others looked at him weirdly.

"Are…you ok, Henry?" Hoshiko asked.

"Did I accidentally make you drink something?" Iku added.

The young samurai blinked his eyes. "I…didn't imagine that, did I?" He wondered. "Uh…don't worry, I'm fine. Let's keep going."

The others still didn't understand the situation clearly, but they followed him. But all that it took was five minutes for him to hear it again.

That childish laugh.

He stopped again and turned around. "Are you sure you didn't laugh now?"

"N-No? Henry, is everything all right?" Sena insisted.

The cowboy took off his hat and started to wave it at himself. "What the…hell is going on?"

"What do you mean, Henry? Are you implying that we're under attack?" Hoshiko asked.

"I don't know, that's the point! My sword didn't sense anything before, and we know that the enemy is up ahead! But…I still heard someone laughing like-" Henry couldn't even finish his reply that he listened to it again. "There! There's a laughter that sounds similar to Sena!"

"Laughter? I didn't hear anything! Are you sure you didn't-" Hoshiko got even more worried, but like nothing…

She listened to it, too.

"Huh!?" She looked around, swinging her ninjato sword.

"My lady is everything ok!?" Yukiko immediately asked.

"What…you too?" Iku asked…before hearing it. This made her look at her gourd bottle. "Me too!?"

Sena looked at everyone with wide eyes. "Come on, guys, you too!? Look, I know that in this world everything is possible but don't you think that maybe it's the pressure that makes us listen to " Needless to say, not even the time to finish what he had to say that he heard it too, making him assume a skeptical and deluded expression. "…It's not the pressure."

Everyone stood back against back. The laughter became more frequent and en-masse, sounding like a storm of air horns echoing through the cave.

"I don't like one inch at all of what's happening right now…" Hoshiko commented.

"But we're under a wasteland, right? Who could ever live down here?" Yukiko asked.

Henry started to sweat. "You know…even if we're going to find out right now…I wish not to know the answer to that." He commented.

Iku raised her ears. "They're coming!" She warned.

The roads forward and behind suddenly became all dark…revealing several white pupilless eyes opening and staring at them.

"…I think I get what you're saying, Henry…what are those?" Sena asked.

But the answer came for itself. The blackness and the eyes dashed against them, revealing their true forms: several spirits that looked like human beings without arms or legs. The mages of Shogunate Pride could state it for themselves: even if they had a look, those creatures were not human in the slightest.

They threw themselves at the attack with ferocity and their laughs roaring louder, making Icarus rear up for the agitation.

"They're coming!" Hoshiko shouted. Before they could reach the group, Iku and Yukiko both went forward and pushed them away with bursts of ice coming from their weapons. Some of the spirits were even erased by the attacks, but the rest didn't seem to have faltered.

"Specters! That's why the Jabberwock couldn't sense them! And even if they're immaterial, they can still be erased by magic!" Henry noticed.

Hoshiko raised the ninjato sword, glaring at them. "Well, it seems that we know how to proceed! Yukiko, stay close to me!"

"Whatever you say, my lady!" The celestial spirit answered. The others got ready, too, and prepared themselves.

The ghosts started to shoot several bullets of darkness from their bodies as if they removed a part of themselves to attack. Their laughter quickly turned into a roar of anger.

"Icarus!" Henry quickly called out his Pegasus to jump on it and answer their charge. "Jabberwock – Second Style – Makashi!" As Icarus spread his wings to fly low, Henry swung his katana perfectly and immaculately to cut through the bullets. The senses of the special sword helped him see the bullets in time and use the right movements to cut them down, in less than a minute, all the phantoms were cut down, releasing a wail of pain.

"He did it! They don't seem that strong either!" Sena exclaimed, already enthusiastic. But he ended up talking too soon.

Once Henry cut through the ghosts' bodies, they exploded, spreading the darkness they were made of in the surroundings, engulfing even the crystals that illuminated the way.

"What!?" Henry exclaimed. Icarus started to panic. "No, calm down!" Both the horse and his man looked like they had been swallowed by the darkness as well.

"HENRY!" Yukiko cried out.

"Taking them down means to snuff out the light!? Dammit! We can't afford to have our sight completely blinded!" Hoshiko added. "We must find a way to leave them behind and proceed!" She was already making some ninjutsu poses with her hands, but to her shock, the specters had already surrounded her and the others.

"But how!? They've circled us!" Sena exclaimed.

"HOSHIKO! SENA! IKU! YUKIKO!" Henry tried to turn around and reach back to his friends…but everything was already pitch black for both of him and his horse, and he started to wander further from them.

Iku clenched her teeth at this. But then she remembered that there was a magic that she could use. "Cinnamon Spice: Flame Cudgel!" She imbued her kanabo cub with flaming magical energy and started to swing it against the specters. "With this, we'll have at least a torch to use to move and find Henry back!"

The specters threw themselves at her. For the S-Class Mage, this wasn't something troublesome. By moving to the right, she dodged their attacks and slammed the specters down with the cub, making some of them burn up due to the light of the fire. "Huh! Even if they're spirits, they almost feel like cutting or slapping a piece of ham!"

"Iku, look out!" Hoshiko warned.

"Uh!?" When Iku heard it and turned around, she saw a specter trying a surprise attack from above. She was able to destroy it in time, but its erasure brought its darkness spread, engulfing even Iku and her surroundings. "AGH!"

"IKU!" Both Hoshiko and Sena shouted. It was too dark to see what happened to her, and the spirits were still around the two of them and the Celestial Spirit that was accompanying them.

"What do we do!? We can't let them get near us, but if we destroy them, we won't be able to see a thing!" Yukiko asked.

"Calm down, Yukiko! I'm sure there's a way to do this! Although…" Hoshiko wanted to remain confident, but seeing two of her guildmates disappear started to make her sweat. Was that going to be how her mission on that wasteland would have failed?

"Y-You're right, Hoshiko. Let's not forget to have a clean mind. It's not like we didn't get out of situations such as this before, right? Even Henry and Iku are fine, I'm sure of it!" Sena added, trying to sound optimistic. "And that's why…I think I'll have to do another one of my foolish actions…"

"Foolish actions-? What do you mean, Sena? Don't try to do anything hasty!" Hoshiko warned him.

"I'm sorry, Hoshiko! But there seems to be no other way! If anything, I'll at least open the road for you!" Sena proclaimed. His heart and mind were already set. With one step forward, he already threw himself against the specters, wearing the kitsune mask to transform. "See you on the other side!"

"SENA, STOP!" Hoshiko tried to stop him, but the boy had already unleashed nine flames to destroy the majority of the phantom. Once again, their explosions completely engulfed Sena, who looked at his guildmate with a smile before fading into the dark.

"SENA!" Hoshiko shouted. She tried to reach with her hand, but everything was already black in front of her. Only a small spot of light behind her and Yukiko caused by a last crystal was left. The ninja of the Star clan was already breathing heavily. She knew that they had just disappeared, or at least…that was what she wanted to believe in. But the idea that she was alone…made her feel agitated. It was a bit ironic. Ninjas used to be alone all the time. Then…why was she having such a hard time to keep her calm? Maybe the idea of facing the clan who destroyed her family was still too much to carry?

"My lady?" At that moment, Yukiko held her hand. Hoshiko looked down to meet eyes with her most faithful Celestial Spirit, who tried to comfort her with a smile. "It's all right. You know all of them, there's no way we won't see them again because of something like that. And besides…you still have me."

"Yukiko…" Hoshiko whispered. Once again, as it happened just two nights earlier, that celestial spirit that grew her was at her side, ready to serve as her therapy. And once again…her heartbeat slowed down to a more regular pace, and she was able to take a deep breath with her consciousness clean. "You're right…we didn't come here just to lose to a bunch of shadows…"

Both she and Yukiko turned around to see that there was still one ghost remaining. Even if it was the last one, it still sounded like it wanted to devour them.

Hoshiko resumed her serious and cold stare. "I have my occasion to make them pay for everything…and as such, I certainly can't let myself be put into panic by some errant spirit!" Before she threw herself to the attack, she looked at her celestial spirit one last time. "Thank you, by the way…"

Yukiko nodded with a smile in silence.

With that settled, both she and Hoshiko prepared their weapons.

"You want to eat us so badly? THEN COME AND GET US!" With those words, the ninja of the Star Clan threw herself against the spirit, who answered otherwise.

Needless to say, Hoshiko and her celestial spirit were able to take it down easily with a single cut…that brought another dark expansion.

"G-GAH!" Even if they remained resolute to figure out what was going on, Hoshiko and Yukiko still had to cover their eyes…as darkness surrounded everything in that road of the underground cave.

And like the small flame of a candle that gets turned off by the wind, the last crystal was engulfed as well, leaving nothing else but dark.

---

For the next moments, all that could be seen was black, with only the sound of the footsteps and their voices that could be heard.

Hoshiko and Yukiko did their best to orientate themselves, even if it was hard. If anything, they could still relate to their nature as ninjas.

"Good thing that we're used to become one thing with the dark. Though maybe…it's a bit too dark in here…" Yukiko commented.

Hoshiko sighed. "I feel a bit bad for Sena. He went on to open me a way to proceed, and yet, I've got everything blackened as well. I hope he'll be able to forgive me."

"Hey, it's not that we could have had much of a choice. And…knowing him, I'm sure he won't mind. We just need to find him and the others now!" The winter cat assured her.

"Easier said than done. Even with our affined senses, I keep on- ack!" Hoshiko commented before slamming her head against something. "…banging."

"I know…those creatures were just the worst thing that could have happened to us! Just…what in the world were they?" Yukiko wondered.

"I wonder, too. They didn't seem just errant spirits that couldn't reach the Sanzu River. There must be…something else behind it. But what?" Hoshiko added before shaking her head. "No, we can't waste further time thinking about it. I certainly don't want to stay separated from the others for too long and let the Crow Clan put their hands on the bone!"

"Though a question remains…are we going in the right direction with all this dark?" Yukiko asked. "The only thing I can see is you for some reason…"

"I hope not! Just as…I hope this cave isn't a labyrinth…" The ninja of Shogunate Pride answered, thinking of that worrying possibility.

"That's exactly what I wanted to hear from you…my daughter." Then…a voice echoed throughout that blackness, making both ninjas widen their eyes and look around.

"What the-!? Who said it!?" Yukiko wondered…while Hoshiko seemed shocked by that. That single voice…sounded way too familiar.

"It…can't be…"

"What's with the shock, dear Hoshiko? I thought you would be more than relieved to hear our voice again…" Another voice, a more feminine one, said.

The blue-haired girl slowly turned her head up. "H-How is it…?"

A few meters in front of her and Yukiko, two dark spirals appeared, starting to take humanoid shapes, but their essence remained made of darkness.

They looked like the specters they had faced before, but this time, their forms were more detailed. Forms that Hoshiko could recognize well: a man with long spiky hair collected in a ponytail wearing an outfit that was a mix of a ninja and a modern fighter with a scarf around his neck, and a woman with long hair collected in a medium-length ponytail, wearing a kimono.

"You have grown to be such a beautiful woman, Hoshiko. We're so happy to see you again…" The feminine figure said.

"Yes! Don't give us that look now! Aren't you glad to see me and mom again?" The male one added.

"M-Mom…dad…" Hoshiko whispered as if her world was getting upside down.

"W-Wait…Bang…Tsubaki? Is that really you?" Yukiko asked. "But how?"

"Ha! You seem quite shocked, Yukiko! You're asking how, but it's just like you! Did you think that death would have been enough to separate a member of the Star clan from this world?" Bang replied.

"We couldn't leave this world…not yet. There was still a lot you needed to know and get from us, Hoshiko." Tsubaki added.

Hoshiko felt…confused yet relieved to hear those words. "You…you didn't pass on the afterlife…so that you could look after me? You were…always with me all along?"

"Of course, my little girl. We couldn't leave you alone…and we never will…" Tsubaki told her. Both she and Bang spread her arms.

"Come now! Why don't you give your old pops and mom a hug?" He added.

They were there. Even if they had a different form because they were spirits…they were there for her.

A vision she only imagined in her dreams was now reality. How many times had she hoped that some supernatural event made things go differently? How many times she had expressed her feeling of loss and how she missed them?

Now…all of that could finally disappear. Her parents were there.

Hoshiko couldn't resist it…her legs almost moved on their own. She left all rational thoughts just so that she could reach them. "Yes…mom…dad!"

But before she could run toward them, Yukiko grabbed her by the wrist. "Wait, my lady!"

"Uh!? Yukiko, what are you doing, let me go!" Hoshiko exclaimed.

"Don't you think this is all too sudden!? I'm certain that your parents have turned into spirits after they died, but…there's something wrong with them! That can't be their look!" Yukiko told her.

"What? Now, this is just offensive, Yukiko! And you said it even if you're a spirit, too?" Bang spoke.

"Things just work differently in the afterlife. I know we can look suspicious. We, too, were shocked by this, but…I can assure you that we're still us." Tsubaki added.

Yukiko's reasoning made the girl think twice for a moment, but the feelings were still strong. "Y-Yes…maybe mortals' spirits aren't like we imagine them, right? We…don't know how to tell it and-" Then…another reasoning made her…understand more. "No one…ever returned to tell anything about it."

It was true. Despite being in a world of magic…no one has ever returned from the dead, nor was it revived. And those who tried to overcome the barriers between life and death were punished severely by the gods such as Ankhseram.

That lesson she had learned from Master Dohko…made her look back at them. "Mom…dad…it is you…right?"

"Yes…like I said, we could never leave you, Hoshiko. And we never will, dead or alive." Tsubaki replied.

"Come now. Let's leave this place together…you won't have to fight anymore." Bang added.

In those words…another realization came in, making Hoshiko skeptical.

"What…did you say?"

"Uh? I said that you won't have to fight anymore! We'll take care of you! As we always wanted to. You don't…want that?" Bang asked.

Adding to that…the tone that both he and Tsubaki were showing… wasn't the one she remembered.

Bang liked to prank a lot, but he would have never told Hoshiko to stop fighting. And Tsubaki, while she was caring, she still was a strong woman. This woman, instead…seemed even too caring.

"…Mom… Dad…you do know that the Crow Clan, the very people that killed you, are in this cave, right? Or at least…some of them." Hoshiko then told them. She raised her head to look at them straight in the eyes. "Why would you tell me not to fight anymore?"

"Hoshiko, what are you saying? You don't want to fight anymore! Come on, do you think you can handle them? Even we couldn't take them! Why won't you come with us instead? We'll get far…and we'll take care of you…" Tsubaki insisted.

That was it…the last straw.

Hoshiko chuckled. "…Heh. It seems that I didn't wake up after all…it was too good to be true." She said to herself. "Yukiko…you can let me go now. Thank you for making me understand. I lost it for a moment."

Yukiko understood what she meant, and she was more than glad to see that her master regained her lucidity in the end and let her go.

Once she had her hand free, Hoshiko quickly swung her ninjato sword at the two ghosts, who were shocked at first.

"Hoshiko, what are you doing!?" Tsubaki asked.

"Are you drawing your weapon against your parents!? Yukiko, talk to her!" Bang added.

"Cut the crap. You're not my parents. Even if you tricked me for a moment, you're terrible at portraying them…even if they'd surely be happy to see me again just like I would, they would never act like you two are doing right now." Hoshiko retorted.

A flinch could be seen in the spirits' eyes.

"…You flinched for a moment. You must know what I'm talking about. Heh…I should have expected it." The ninja girl noticed. "You must be some sort of effect caused by those specters, right!?"

"You must have some nerve to take the shape of your target's beloved one!" Yukiko added before swinging her stuff. "I won't ever forget whoever insults the figure of the two previous leaders of the Star Clan!"

The two specters' demeanor changed, assuming cold expressions. "Do you truly wish to go through with this, Hoshiko? You know how strong we can be." Bang asked.

"I think I've said that spirit earlier. I have a mission to carry on, especially for those you are impersonating right now, and I don't intend it to be tampered with by some errant spirits like you! You should be the one to reconsider because I don't intend to go easy on both of you!"

"So be it. Just say we didn't warn you! DIE!" The two spirits had enough and threw themselves at the attack.

Even if it was dark around them, Hoshiko and Yukiko could see their enemies very well. Plus…they didn't need light to take out their targets.

"Yukiko! Cover me!" Hoshiko exclaimed as she dashed against the two specters.

"You got it, my lady!" Yukiko agreed, dashing right behind her.

As soon as she reached the two spirits, she started to clash her sword with theirs. Several sparks came out as they moved through the blackness. "I'm not crashing against things I can't see! Have I ended up in a vast area?" She wondered.

"Why are you putting up such a resistance, Hoshiko!? Do you really want to break your parents' hearts!?" Bang exclaimed.

"Enough of it!" Hoshiko didn't want to hear further of their nonsense and was able to push them away with a horizontal cut of her blade. "Don't think you can still play the part of my parents because you are not! Now pay the price!" After that, she used her magical energy to generate a large shuriken made out of magic and pushed to throw it. "Shadow Star Second Form: Leaf of the Moonlit Night!"

"Ah!" The two specters put their swords in front of them to defend themselves, but the magic was strong enough to push them a few meters away. In the end, they were able to dispel the shuriken, only to find out in horror that Yukiko was already above them.

"TAKE THIS!" The cat celestial spirit already threw a tornado of ice at high speed by spinning her guitar, which swallowed the two specters.

The enemies felt their essence getting slowly consumed, which led Bang to be annoyed. "Don't mess around! Karan – Tiger – Fire God Dance!" He started to spin his sword with the chain attached to his hilt, sounding like a nunchaku, to release several tongues of fire around him to melt down the tornado, which made Yukiko sweat.

"Oh no! My lady, watch out!"

"WREAAAAAAAAAH!" Bang didn't waste any time and threw himself on the attack with the sword still engulfed by flames

"AH!" Hoshiko widened her eyes and used her own blade at the last second to defend herself.

BOOOM!

A large shockwave followed, with the ninja from Shogunate Pride doing her best to resist. "Kh…such strength…"

"Did you have any doubts? A ninja of the Star clan must always show unsurpassed strength! And your old pops is no less!" Bang replied, pushing further.

But Hoshiko was already preparing her counterattack. "Well, unfortunately for you, this is something the original Bang had taught me as a ninja from the Star Clan as well! Here's a proof!" She quickly attacked him on the stomach with her elbow and prepared her next technique. "Ultimate Move: Red Star Wave!" With her spell, she could wipe away the false Bang by attacking him with the full wavelength of her soul.

"GAAAAAH!" The spirit was pushed away, but Hoshiko was already running toward him. "Uncanny Sword! Zeroth Form!" His sword stretched, and as soon as Hoshiko got closer, he started to throw a barrage of blows at her, all straight like flashes of lightning, forcing the ninja girl to stop her charge and defend herself.

"Indeed, you have grown strong, Hoshiko. But you should learn your place whenever there's someone who clearly surpasses you!" Bang scolded her as he kept on attacking.

"Hah! There's another point that makes you a horrible actor! My father would never say that! A ninja of the Star clan never bows and never knows any limits!" Hoshiko retorted.

"YOU THINK SO!?" Suddenly, Bang was able to throw a single cut that apparently cut her in half. "Then apparently, you didn't learn enough…" He whispered, thinking that he had won…only to see that in Hoshiko's place stood a doll made of hay with her features that got cut.

"What!?" He was astonished. He then looked down and saw that Hoshiko was already below him.

"Uncanny Sword: Conan The Great."

SWISH!

With a single sword slash, Hoshiko passed through him and cut him in half. "You can imitate him how you want, but you'll never be like him. Now get erased already, disgusting spirit."

"GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" The fake Bang released a shout of pain that became more distorted, similar to those of the spirits from before, as he dissolved into nothingness.

The false Tsubaki was focused on a battle with Yukiko, only for her to turn around and see the scene, getting stunned. "No way!"

"You should run while you have the time!" Yukiko told her. The spirit pushed her away with the sword.

"Never!" The false Tsubaki prepared her for the next attack, one that Yukiko knew and threw at the same time.

"Tōran- Snow Leopard Arctic Storm!" Several ice shards from both sides were thrown and clashed with each other, leaving out only a large pile of cool smoke.

The false Tsubaki looked around for the small celestial spirit. "You forget who I am, spirit! It won't take too long for me to find you!" She spoke. Just as she turned around, she saw what she thought to be the silhouette of Yukiko running around. "See? Not even a minute that you're already discovered!" She went straight for the attack, only to hit nothing but air. "What!?" She saw more silhouettes running around, but every attack the spirit made was empty. "Goddammit, stop hiding and-" As she started to complain, a long staff stabbed her in the belly. "AHH!"

Yukiko appeared right in front of her. "Not only have you insulted Bang and Tsubaki, but you're also terrible as a ninja! The real Tsubaki would have found me sooner! My lady, now!"

Tsubaki turned around, only to see Hoshiko surpassing her with the sword. "GRAAAAAAAAAAH!"

SWOSH!

The spirit's head was already severed…and fell. Still…she could see the ninja girl one last time.

"M-Magnificent…w-we should have been more careful with your memories…" With those last words, the second spirit dissolved.

Hoshiko regained her composure and sheathed her sword…only to make a sad sigh.

"My lady?" Yukiko asked, worried.

The ninja girl turned around at her to make a small smile. "It's fine, Yukiko. As far as I've wished it to be a reality…I should have known better earlier." She commented. "After all…it's because of them that I'm here now. And I don't intend to disappoint them further."

Yukiko returned the smile. "Yes…I know they would be happy to see you now after this."

Just as they were talking…the darkness that surrounded them started to fade away.

"Uh!?"

In a matter of seconds, they could see their surroundings again, and the cave was once again enlightened by the bright crystals…at least for them.

"The darkness had disappeared! We can see again!" Yukiko exclaimed.

"So, taking them out erases the darkness with them…I'm getting more confused about what those things are supposed to be…well, at least we know where to move again. I have the impression that we unknowingly proceeded further within the cave." Hoshiko added. She looked around. "…Sure, we moved on, but we're still on our own." She then slapped her face. "No! Enough with the long faces, Hoshiko! Retain yourself! They're fine!"

"Eh eh! That's more what I wanted to see! Or else I would have slapped you personally!" Yukiko commented, happy to see her in the right mood again.

"HEY! What's that supposed to mean!?" The other girl complained. "Bah, never mind…come on, let's go!"

The two girls resumed their run. Whether they had found the bone or their friends first, all that mattered was that they could have proceeded with the mission.

"Hey…Yukiko…" Hoshiko said while keeping on running.

"Yes, my lady?" The celestial spirit asked.

"Were you sincere before? When you said that my parents would have been proud of how I have behaved?" The ninja girl asked.

"Of course! I have known them for a long time, and I'm certain of it! Why the question?" Yukiko talked back.

Hoshiko smiled. "Nothing in particular. Just an adding reason to smack the Crow Clan in a flashy way!" She said with confidence.

And she intended to keep that proclaim, no matter what.

---

Ever since she got separated from the others, things haven't gone well for Iku. Wandering throughout a cave was already dangerous by itself. Let alone walking around in the dark while partially drunk.

So, you could expect how her walk went: full of crashes to the walls of the cave.

"Maaaaaan…this is so annoying! I can't stand banging here and there! I knew we should have brought Rokumon with us!" The woman complained as she kept on walking through the dark with a big groan. "Why am I always the one to get the spirit enemies? It's always like this also when I'm on a solo mission…I hope that at least the others managed to get somewhere…"

She then stopped to take a deep breath. "I'm even starting to get tired…but I need to reach baby girl and the others…I surely can't laze around on the job when I'm doing it! Dad would tell me the same thing."

"Indeed, I do, my dear Iku…" Then…a strange yet familiar voice echoed throughout the dark, making the Number III of Shogunate Pride look around, confused.

"…What?" That was all that she could say. She looked at her gourd bottle to be sure.

"Oh no, I can assure you that you didn't imagine it out of drunk. I'm here…at your right." The voice repeated.

When she looked in that direction…she could see a bizarre yet familiar figure that made her widen her eyes and lower her guard for a moment.

Sitting on a table with a glass of wine…stood a shadowy figure with glasses. Despite the dark look, Iku could recognize it even too well.

"It…can't be." She whispered.

"Hey, it has been a while, Iku." It was the silhouette of her father. "You surely had grown ever since I saw you last time."

"D-Dad…?" Iku slowly came closer. "But…how? I-I know this can't be real, you're dead! I saw you die…that day." She spoke. She couldn't help but put a bit of guilt in those words, feeling that maybe…if she was stronger, things could have been different.

"You remember well." Her father replied, looking at himself. "I'm still dead. But…it seems that you were a bit…skeptical about a few things. Like the ghosts of which you complained about just now."

"So, it's really you…" The woman spoke.

"You know you could recognize me anywhere! Just as I do, my sweet little girl." The ghost continued. "You seem tired…how about a drink? It could make you feel well."

"Oh…no, don't worry. As you can see, I still have the brews we have worked on together." Iku said.

"Indeed you do! I'm glad that you still hold to them dearly. At least I know that I've left this world doing something good." The man continued. "But…you can put them aside now. There's no need. You can drink normal alcohol for once."

Iku really didn't know what to say. His voice and chill attitude…it seemed like him. For many years, she carried the self-guilt of not being able to save him when those bandits killed him. If she was just stronger…just faster…she could have avoided that.

But now…he was there…showing no sign of grudge, waiting to greet him. Maybe…it was ok. She could talk to him again… hug him…let him know how much she had missed him.

She made a sad smile. "Y-You're right…" She spoke as she came closer.

"Dad…I'm…I'm so sorry. We…both know what happened that day. I…I just want you to know that I kept my promise. I'm part of a guild, you know? I…I help those in need, like you wished."

"And you've done such a great job in that. You've made your pops proud. But…there's no need to strain anymore. You can stop. You can put the kanabo cub and its beverages apart, quit these adventures and battles, enjoy a good drink, and…go back home with Daddy." The spirit persuaded her.

…

Iku stopped.

She looked down for a few seconds, confused…and then she looked straight at him. "What?"

"Hm? Is there something wrong, my dear?" The spirit asked.

"…What did you just say? Why did you ask me to stop fighting?" She asked.

"What do you mean? You even said it yourself! You're tired! Come now, have a drink. It'll fix everything!" Her father insisted.

"I said it because I was walking for a while, not because I was tired of everything. Why…would you tell me such a thing? I've started to become a mage because of what you have inspired me. You…you would never tell me to stop." Iku said, starting to figure out that…maybe there was something wrong with him.

"…Oh, Iku…I told you those things to lighten the pain caused by my departure. There are many things that you don't know about me. Now, don't make it hard, Iku. You know you can trust me!" The phantom insisted.

But…Iku seemed to have made up her mind already, at least most of it. Her expression changed into a more serious one. "…My father would never tell me to quit. It was because he wanted to see me live happy that he asked me to defend those who couldn't protect themselves." She spoke before making one of her usual grins. "Gotta admit…you almost caught me. But I should have realized it as soon as I saw that ghostly form of yours."

The specter flinched, narrowing his eyes. "D-Don't be ridiculous, Iku! Even with our alcoholic tendencies, I've raised you to have some respect! How can you even talk to your father like this!?"

"Oh, really? Weren't you the one who supported me in fighting the bandits in the first place? They were technically our superiors, but we never showed them respect." Iku asked. "I think your farce had gone long enough. And I think that I'll have an adding confirmation to that." She pointed at him. "If you're claiming to be my father…then what is your favorite drink?"

The specter made a nervous laugh. "What? Do you have amnesia? Come on, you know well that it's wine-" As soon as he gave his answer, Iku already dashed in front of him, knocking him away with a heavy punch. He crashed several times, even destroying the table he was standing on. "GAAAH!"

Iku was already holding her kanabo cub. "Aaaah. You know what? I'm very glad that you gave me this answer. Because now I know that I won't feel bad to smash you into dust."

The specter stood up, annoyed, and summoned a replica of the Iku's cub. "Is this really what you want, Iku? We could have gotten back to being the family we once were. But if it's violence that you search for…then you can disappear like the Oni you are!"

"Come on, is blabbering all you can do? I think you're forgetting what an Oni is all about…" Iku retorted by assuming a battle stance. "And that is fighting!"

"YOU…!" The specter felt annoyed and immediately dashed, making Iku trigger as well.

When the two clashed, they released a loud shockwave in the darkness, struggling to push each other away.

"Nghhh! There's another thing that makes you different from my pops! He wasn't this strong!" The woman commented.

"Did you forget that we have worked on the beverages together, including the Devil's Delight? Don't think that it will be that easy to take your pops out!" Her father countered before pushing her away, making her recoil of a few meters. When she raised her head, she could already see him preparing a spell. "Cinnamon Spice: Pepper Shot!" He released several fireballs that all attacked Iku, generating a few small explosions and a pile of smoke. The specter thought that he had already taken her down, but in his shock, the smoke faded quickly, and Iku was still standing up, glaring at him with a grin while she was surrounded by a small tornado.

"We may have worked on them together, but you forget that I've kept practicing." She provoked. He raised her kanabo cub horizontally. "My turn now. Bubbly Bounce: Sonic Slam!" She started to strike the phantom from more directions by flying at high speed against him.

'Iku's father' was unable to defend himself due to the high speed and was forced to undergo every attack until Iku jumped high and finished the combo by planting the cub on the ground, releasing a powerful shockwave that wiped the spirit away.

"That's enough!" When the ghost stood up, he drank a beverage that made its whole body get electrified. "Static Storm: Railgun!" Empowered with flashes of lightning, he quickly dashed toward Iku and started to attack her repeatedly with a burst of punches, forcing the lady to defend herself.

"Kh…" Apart from the impact of the fists, Iku felt the static energy pass over her body.

"What about it!? Have I convinced you, now!? I would have never wanted to do such a thing, but as you know, parents have to sometimes teach their children a lesson they won't forget!" The specter mocked her as he continued to attack.

But even through the pain, the number III of Shogunate Pride kept on maintaining a clean mind, and at a certain point, while the enemy kept on attacking, she decided to take the hazard of giving him a strong headbutt to make him stop and get stunned. It hurt since she had to feel more of the electric shockwaves coming from the specter's body, but she got what she wanted.

"GAH! W-What!?"

Iku didn't give him a chance to react as she had already grabbed his leg and started to slam him everywhere. "Good thing that I've faced an enemy that tried a similar approach not too long ago! So, I know how to answer!" She told him before throwing him away.

The specter crashed several times before standing up and preparing his attack. But he could see that Iku was doing the same.

The girl changed to the Ocean Bliss beverage and started to gather energy. "It was a nice attempt, specter. I almost fell for it, but don't forget that just mind games are not enough to take down an S-Class Mage."

The specter's body started to vibrate, feeling utterly annoyed. "NO! I WON'T LET YOU-"

But before he could react, Iku already puckered her lips to release her attack. "Ocean Bliss: Wave!" A devastating ocean wave was released from her mouth that fully hit the specter, wiping him away.

The specter released a loud wail that got distorted, making it sound similar to the scream of the ghost Iku and the others faced earlier. With that, the ghost was utterly erased.

Once the deal was done, Iku wiped her mouth and looked with a grin. "Oh, and by the way…my father's favorite drink was sake."

Shortly after that, the darkness around her started to fade away, and she could finally see where she was standing. The ambiance didn't look any different from when she was with the others, but she could tell that she went forward a bit.

She got the chance to stretch a bit. "Aaaah, finally! I was getting tired of all that dark." She commented. She then looked at her own kanabo cub…and thought back to her father.

Even if what she saw was nothing more than an illusion, it still made her remember the times she was with him and how heavy it felt to lose him. Even if all those years passed and she kept a smile…she couldn't lie to herself, and if someone asked her, she would have answered that…yes…if possible, she would have loved to see her father again.

But…she also accepted it. Those who died could only remain dead…and looking back on them for too long wasn't healthy (even if it was a bit ironic for her since she constantly drank alcohol). What remained was the promise that she had kept to him…and that was what made her open her eyes.

"…Yes. We had suffered a lot because of what happened back then. And I don't intend to see others pass through the same experience…like Hoshiko." She whispered. She then took a deep breath and turned around.

"All right! My instincts say that the right road should be that one!" Her mood and voice remained the same. She couldn't let herself falter for a trick after all.

As one of the founding members of the current Shogunate Pride and as a S-Class Mage…she needed to stand tall and be there for the others.

That was what her father made her promise.

"Hang on, guys, I'm coming back!"

---

"Anf…anf…anf…"

For some reason, ever since he had started to wander in the blackness caused by the ghosts, Henry started to feel some disturbances mentally and, as a consequence, even mentally.

Several buzzing noises were filling both his ears and his mind. They seemed like several voices talking at the same time. But their words were unrecognizable. Or at least…almost all of them.

In that midst of confusion and distortion…only one phrase could be heard clearly. A phrase that was repeated every couple of minutes.

"Who. Are. You?"

"Kh!" At a certain point, after hearing it again, Henry fell on his knees. Icarus promptly came closer and snorted, worried. "I-It's ok, Icarus. I'm fine…" The samurai assured his pet…although internally, he wasn't that convinced. "T-That is what I would like to say, but…I don't understand. What is going on? I-Is…is this an effect of those ghosts?"

Then…the buzzing noise became stronger, and this time, even Icarus could hear it since he neighed out of agitation.

Henry held his head tightly as he kept wondering but with no real answer.

He could tell that those were voices. Voices that surely said something with a sense, but…they were all so mashed between each other…and distorted. But what creeped out the cowboy samurai the most…was that deep down…

He had the feeling he had heard those voices from before. Even if faintly…he could hear a familiar tone from them. However, the distortion made it difficult to recognize them properly. The only thing he could rely on was the fact that he remembered those voices. Nothing more.

Then…the question echoed again.

"Who. Are. You?"

"Kh- Enough! What game are you playing, whoever you are!? I know who I am, stop asking me!" Henry exclaimed, starting to feel annoyed.

…As a reaction, two large eyes similar to those of the ghosts that attacked him earlier appeared a few meters away from him and Icarus.

"Who. Are. You?" The question was asked again, sounding like it was coming from the eyes.

Henry tried to keep control and stood up, looking annoyed at them. "Why do you keep asking me that? My name is Henry Luminol, a mage of Shogunate Pride and…" At first, he seemed like he knew the answer to give, but…when there was something to add…

He stopped, almost in a paralysis.

"And I…I…..I…"

…He didn't know what to say.

Was there…anything else to say?

Henry tried to remember elsewhere, but…the only thing he could remember was when he was found on the beach. Nothing more. Just like what he had said to Hoshiko just a few moments earlier...there was nothing much to add.

His face went pale.

Icarus came closer, tremendously worried.

The white eyes in the distance…started to tremble like distorted sound waves. And then, more white eyes appeared around them, starting to move around as if they were attached to a body.

Henry and Icarus could see a massive shape start to rise, full of eyes and faces that seemed unrecognizable, coming from a body that seemed like a massive blob made out of black slime.

"Whoareyouwhoareyouwhoareyouwhoareyouwhoareyouwhoareyouwhoareyouwhoareyouwhoareyouwhoareyouwhoareyouwhoareyouwhoareyouwhoareyouwhoareyouwhoareyouwhoareyouwhoareyouwhoareyou?"

The question started to get repeated infinitely like it was a broken disc, and the voices became more distorted and louder. It was like looking at something that came out straight from an analog horror tape.

The amalgamate started to open a massive mouth and tried to devour Henry, who looked with widened eyes.

"W-What the…"

"IIIIIIH!" Sensing the trouble, Icarus quickly grabbed his owner by the neck and put him on his back, starting to fly around the creature.

Thankfully, that gest was able to bring the mage back to reality, take a few breaths, and take a picture of the situation. "Oh…thank you, Icarus, I'm sorry." He said before looking at the monstrosity…still wondering what it was all about.

The creature extended what seemed to be slimy tentacles to reach and grab the horse, which made Henry grab his sword instantly.

"Jabberwock – Second Style – Makashi!" With a precise combo, he was able to cut down the tentacles but could notice how the substance remained on the sword, forcing him to wipe it away manually. He sweated a bit. "Dammit, I think just attacking him directly won't do much, or we could get swallowed…what even is that thing?" He wondered before bringing his head closer to Icarus. "I think we'll have to make some fast tacks for this. Can I trust you?"

Icarus snorted in affirmation. Whatever the deal was, he would have been always with him.

This was enough to make him feel calmer and smile. "All right, then, let's do this." He raised his sword and focused. "Jabberwock – Sixth Style – Niman!" Through the sixth style, he could feel as if his bad luck had faded, making it easier to dodge the attacks. With that, he started to fly around the abomination, directing Icarus at high speed to confuse the target.

The beast kept on reproducing the same question and the same buzzing noises as it started to shoot balls of black amalgamation. Henry promptly cut them down, and thanks to the sixth style, his cuts were more precise and faster than ever, almost as if he were a perfect swordsman.

"All right, time to attack properly!" After he started to gain control of the situation, Henry pointed the sword at the monster. "Vorp!" By pronouncing the spell, the Jabberwock released a beam of its same shape that directly blasted the creature, making it yell a distorted wail.

"It works!" Henry exclaimed. "Ok…I need to calculate carefully when to use them. I can only do it six more times…" With this thought, he started once again to fly with Icarus at high speed around the monster.

The amalgamate, feeling in danger, started to release black shockwaves from his body, trying to attack the samurai on his horse and making him fall. But Niman was still active, and as such, Henry could feel like he could anticipate the blasts and dodge them at the right time.

Right at that moment, Henry could see another perfect chance to strike. "Vorp!" He blasted again, this time attacking the monster at the back and making it scream another time.

The abomination released the heads on its body, which all started to fly toward the prey.

As Henry and Icarus flew around the empty zone, the boy could have a closer look at the faces. He never saw any of them in his life, but…at the same time…he couldn't help but think…

"Why do they look…this familiar?" But he shook his head. "No, I can't get distracted like this, I need to react!"

Like the main body, the heads tried all to devour him. Seeing their intention, Henry made Icarus fly high before diving down at them so that he could cut all of them in half at the same time. Seeing how the body was now more exposed than ever, he didn't hesitate. "Vorp!"

Another blast…and another yell of pain.

" #]# .-. [# # !" The noises of the monster were now more incomprehensible than ever, and the creature itself started to tremble, assuming the form of an upcoming tornado with white eyes on the outside of it.

"Oh no! Hang on, Icarus!" Henry exclaimed. He didn't lower the sword, hoping that one more Vorp or two could have been enough to take it down.

And then…suddenly, several bullets made out of energy attacked the tornado, making large holes that wounded the creature badly, making it slam to the ground.

"W-What!? What happened!?" Henry exclaimed, confused.

"Attack now." An unknown voice warned him.

Henry looked around to figure out where it came from. But…there was no time for questions. Not when that thing was still around. So, even if sweating, Henry pointed the sword at the creature.

The beast was full of holes now. Those shots were precise and deathly, to the point that they left it full of holes. Despite that, it looked at Henry, trying to widen its mouth and try to devour them one last time. But within that attempt…it gave Henry the perfect spot to give one final blast.

"Vorp!"

The blast went straight as an arrow inside the monster's mouth…making it explode with one last yell. The distortion and the question faded away, leaving space for the familiar scream of the ghost that attacked Henry before.

"So…it was trying to corrupt me…" Henry whispered.

The blackness faded away, making the samurai and his Pegasus see where they were standing once again. It seemed like they were in a large circular room, explaining how Icarus was able to move so well.

Icarus landed, and Henry got down from his back. He was able to get out of it. But…so many questions remained. Even if he realized that the monster was a transformation of the ghost that attacked him…what were those voices? Why did those faces seem so familiar? And most importantly…what did that ghost mean with that question?

Who. Are. You?

Was it an attempt to confuse him? But even so…what bothered Henry the most…was that he could not answer that question properly.

As he kept on filling his head with questions, he couldn't answer…he raised his head for a moment and noticed something he didn't expect.

Another person.

It seemed like a man slightly older than Henry with pale skin, short green hair, and emerald eyes, wearing a white shirt, black combat pants over a large black jacket, and black boots. This figure looked at Henry with a cold expression.

"Uh!?" Out of concern, the mage of Shogunate Pride pulled the Jabberwock again and looked at him carefully. It was then that he noticed that…this figure seemed to hold an M-16, which made him realize it.

"Is this…the man that shot those bullets of energy at the monster?" He thought. But despite this, he didn't lower his guard.

But the other guy didn't seem to come closer or raise his weapon. He limited himself to simply lowering his stare on Henry's sword.

"…Even in your conditions, that blade didn't separate from you. It seems that you are not a lost cause, after all." He said with a deep yet young voice.

"What?" Henry looked at his own sword. "You…you know the Jabberwock?" He asked.

"I know many things. If anything, I'm surprised that you know so little." The figure simply replied.

Henry gritted his teeth and glared at him. "Who are you? Are you perhaps a member of the Crow Clan?"

"…The Crow Clan? No. I don't have any interest in their business. And as you can see, I'm not a ninja." The other guy kept on replying with simple answers. He looked around. "I was simply wandering around the nation as always until my attention got diverged by a source of power coming from this wasteland. But…once I figured out what it was, I decided to leave it be. It was of no interest to me. I'm more surprised… to see you here."

Henry changed expression into a more…confused one. "What? What do you mean?"

The mysterious man was about to answer, but he stopped himself. "…No." He turned around. "Considering your conditions, I can't tell you yet. It is beyond your comprehension for now." He slightly moved his head toward him. "But stay assured that this won't be the last time you'll see me. I'm sure that the others, especially she, will be happy to see you again…Azure."

Henry looked down, still confused and lost. Did this man know him? The others? She? And among all those questions…one in particular rang in him.

"Wait! What did you call-" Henry wanted to ask him the question, but when he raised his head…

The figure had already disappeared.

Even Icarus looked around, confused.

Henry, on the other hand…was simply at a loss of words. First, the specter that confused him…and now that guy.

Despite bad luck constantly flying on his head, Henry always thought of himself as an optimistic person. His lifestyle was that, despite everything, there was always a straight arrow of light that could have solved everything. But for the first time...he felt lost.

Was there…something about himself that not even he didn't know?

He started to wish badly to recollect all the pieces. But now that the road was clear…he knew he couldn't have any time to waste.

"…Come on, Icarus. We need to find Hoshiko and the others." With those words, he started to proceed, with the Pegasus following him.

He had to leave all of that aside for the moment…but there was still one thing to point out.

An observation that…made him chill for an instant.

"That guy…he was one of the heads on that monster."

---

Walking. Walking. Walking.

That was the only thing that Sena could do ever since he got swallowed in the darkness as well.

The idea of being completely surrounded by blackness wasn't something that scared him. As long as he knew that Hoshiko could proceed, thanks to him, he would have found a way to get out of that strange space.

But…at a certain point, he started to get bored of it. Because he kept on walking for what he believed to be an hour. And it's not like he was keeping on crashing on things he couldn't see either, and he could not even know if he was going in the right direction.

All that he could do was to simply walk.

But, as someone hyperactive…he grew up to be bored of it, making him release a huge groan that even echoed in the darkness. But even with that…nothing happened.

"…Are you serious!? Not a thing? Not even, I don't know, a huge octopus-like creature like the one Tsuki had seen when he fought that guy from Chimera Tribe? Nothing?" He asked. "Oh, right. I'm talking to literally nothing. I get that I ended up taking a trap, but at least that thing that attacked us could have come up with something! Instead, I'm stuck in this apparently eternal limbo? If that was the best it could do, then I could even avoid waiting!" He complained. "All right. I've had enough; I'll figure something by myself to get out of this."

But just as he was starting to think of a way out, two big white eyes appeared above him, and judging by the expression, they seemed quite annoyed.

"I'M TRYING, OK!? BUT FOR SOME REASON, I CAN'T THINK OF SOMETHING TO MAKE YOU FALTER!"

"Woah! Are you the ghost? Are you still alive? Well…if we can say it considering that, well, you're a ghost." Sena asked.

"IT'S NOT FUNNY! But yes, I'm alive, and I'm trying to come up with something that could make you crumble mentally by using your memory!" The two eyes belonging to the ghost shouted.

"Why does it have to be my memory?" Sena asked innocently. Now that he had a hint of what was going on, he calmed himself a bit. The complete opposite of what the ghost seemed to be at that moment.

"BECAUSE THIS IS WHAT I CAN DO! I use people's memories against themselves! But…but…THERE ISN'T BASICALLY ANYTHING ON YOUR CURRICULUM! You're telling me that you didn't have any traumatic experience!? NOTHING!?"

Sena tried to think about it, but… "Uhhh...nothing really? I mean, I'm the middle child of seven siblings, I was left mostly on my own and moved because I was maybe a bit extrovert. But…apart from that, nothing else, really."

The eyes started to look everywhere as if they were panicking. "Wha- Uh- Ah- W-Wha-"

"Hey, calm down! You'll get an aneurysm!" Sena told him before getting yelled at.

"HOW CAN I BE CALM!? T-This can't be real! Everyone must have a traumatic moment at some point in their life! Y-YOU CAN'T BE THIS HAPPY! HOW!? WHY!? Why couldn't I take the cowboy one!? He seemed quite the person with traumas! BUT NO! He had to go first, so the OTHERS TOOK HIM!"

"Oh, you mean, Henry? I don't know; he's quite the optimistic guy. He's just very lucky." Sena answered. "When it comes to me, why must I be sad or upset? Smiling is always a better option!" He added with a smile.

"NO! THAT'S NOT HOW IT WORKS! HOW I WORK! Please, just tell me that there is at least an elephant in your room, something you're ashamed of, ANYTHING!" The ghost continued in an exasperated voice.

"Well…one day, I went to a puppet show where there was this skeleton puppet that scared me a bit when I was a kid. I think I even wet myself…" Sena confessed, a bit embarrassed.

The ghost looked at him in silence for a few moments…before starting to breathe heavily. "Aaaah…FINALLY! AH AH AH AH AH! YOU HAVE JUST DUG YOUR OWN GRAVE, PREPARE TO REVIVE THAT HORRIBLE FEELING!" After those words, the eyes disappeared, and instead…a small smoke of darkness appeared in front of the young mage of Shogunate Pride.

And when it faded out…it revealed a naked skeleton with red eyes, a long beard, and what seemed to be a turban hat.

The spirit looked at himself in this new form and wasn't clearly satisfied. "ARE YOU KIDDING ME!? This is the best you could think of as an elephant in the room!?" But Sena, instead of answering, burst out in laughter. "SILENCE! …I kill you." The spirit protested. The 'I kill you' part was said with an acute and embarrassed voice.

"How could I!? I can't believe I was this scared; it's hilarious!" Sena said while keeping on laughing, to the point that he even fell on the floor.

"AAAAAAAAH! I'VE HAD ENOUGH!" The specter wanted to end it quickly, and as such, he used his power to transform into a more grotesque, bigger, and more monstrous version of the puppet.

"OH MY!" Sena immediately went back to serious and prepared his wooden stick.

"YOU'RE NOT LAUGHING ANYMORE, UH!? FINALLY YOU GET TO DIE!" The ghost, happy that it could finally fight, released two large rockets from its eyes, which aimed at Sena.

The mage of Shogunate Pride immediately put on a mask and used it to transform. "TakeOver: Tengu!" He turned into the flying creature to immediately dodge the missiles, which exploded on the ground. The skeleton tried to grab Sena with his huge hand, but the mage flew faster and dived against the bottom of the spine. By spinning at high speed, he was able to break a piece and make the skeleton fall slightly.

"AH, DAMM YOU! JUST WAIT UNTIL I-" The skeleton was about to continue…when he noticed something. "Wait…I can't move! I'm stuck in here!" He exclaimed…before realizing that in the transformation, he only made the upper part of the body, so he did not laugh. This made Sena laugh again. "SILENCE! …I kill you!"

"Say, I can see how you're getting quite upset. Don't you think we can call it a day, and you let me go?" Sena proposed while he was still in his Tengu form.

"NEVER! What type of Historia ghost would I be if I let my prey go!? TAKE THIS!" The skeleton protested before shooting gunpowder that generated a series of explosions, which reached Sena.

"Wait, what did you- GAH!" Sena got distracted for a moment and got hit by the blasts, which made him fall to the ground and go back to normal. When he raised his head, he could see that the skeleton tried to crush him again. Thankfully, he was athletic enough to roll away and avoid the hand. Without wasting any other second, he quickly used another mask to change form. "TakeOver: Yukionna!"

"Ok, you may be able to transform and move as you please, but I can still crush you!" The skeleton exclaimed before trying to crush him with a double smash.

"Oh, I wouldn't say so!" Sena said with a convinced tone. And just when the hands were a few inches from him, he gently put the tip of his staff on the ground to freeze the two arms and the skeleton completely.

"…What?"

"Take this!" Naturally, Sena didn't waste a second and generated another blizzard to directly attack the skeleton, making a few cracks in the body, which expanded and destroyed it completely.

"DAMMIIIIT!"

"All right! Does this mean that I can go-" Sena thought that it was over, but to his surprise, the skeleton's head rose from the destroyed piece and floated menacingly in front of Sena.

"Don't claim victory before time! I still have plenty of aces up my sleeves, you'll notice it very soon!"

"Did you just turn into a floating head!?" Sena asked before laughing again.

"SILENCE! I KILL YOU!" Offended, the skeleton repeated the phrase a third time. This time, the 'I kill you' part was the most acute possible. He then started to shoot several large purple spheres at Sena.

The number XV of Shogunate Pride quickly switched masks to change into a faster form. "TakeOver: Kitsune!" By taking the form of the nine-tailed fox, Sena was facilitated in jumping around and leaving the attacks behind him. His tails were already charging nine flames, but then, when he dodged the umpteenth sphere, he could see the skeleton's giant head rush toward him with its mouth wide open.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

CHOMP!

The skeleton flew up again and looked around. There was no trace of that mage. This could only mean one thing.

"I…I did it? Have I killed him? YES! YES! AH AH AH AH AH! I'VE GOTTEN OUT FROM THE ULTIMATE HUMILIATION! EAT THAT FROM THE SANZU RIVER, YOU PEST!" The skeleton was already in seventh heaven. But then…

"Congratulations! Will you retire the trophy in person, or should I mail it to you?" A familiar, annoying voice asked.

"W-WHA!? WHERE ARE-" The skeleton looked around.

"Up here!"

And when he looked up…he could see Sena standing right on the top of his head.

"Nice sight, don't you think?" Sena jokingly asked.

At that point…the specter simply lost every sparkle of enjoyment.

"…Finish me. Just…just do it."

"Ok!" Sena didn't hesitate and planted the nine tails infused with flames on the skull, making him blow up with one last ghostly wail. The mage landed on his paws and turned back to normal.

"It seems that my request to do something has been granted! And in a funny way!" He commented.

And for the last time, the darkness faded away, and Sena could finally see where he was. He seemed in a corridor not that different from the one he was standing in before getting swallowed. But seeing that Hoshiko wasn't there, he could tell that he was in a different part of the cave.

"Finally! Even if sometimes I stay up late, I can't stand darkness for too long!" He commented. "I kinda feel sorry for the ghost, though. But hey…it's a good thing to always keep positivity! You can't think too much of traumas! Not that I can say that much in that regard, but I can say that I had quite a lucky life, and I do know how to cherish happiness! Oh well! I should get back to the others. The bone is waiting!"

Nothing much was needed to say. He resumed his walk, hoping that the others were ok.

---

Once he could finally see, Sena resumed his walk while mumbling a bit in happiness until he found something different from the rest of the cavern. "Oh my!"

He ended up reaching a big wooden door. Judging by the dimensions of it, he could tell that he was either at the end of the cave or at least inside something important.

"Maybe the bone is inside here?" He wondered. "I should get ready then…"

Right at that moment, he could hear several footsteps coming from behind, which put him in an alert state. He quickly turned around, ready to take out his mask and transform since he didn't waste too much energy against the specter. But when he turned around to find out what that was, he found a pleasant surprise.

From three different crossroads, the remaining samurais all appeared, surprised to see Sena as well.

"Ah! It's you guys!" Hoshiko exclaimed.

"Heeeey! You're all ok!" Iku added.

Henry smiled. "I knew I shouldn't have been worried." Even Icarus snorted.

"Eh eh! I told you, Hoshiko! We would have made it!" Sena concluded.

The small group was finally together again, and they could discuss what happened to each one of them, finding out that they had similar outcomes.

"So…after we were swallowed by those ghosts, we all had to face them in different forms if we wanted to get out," Yukino observed.

"And it seemed that they all got inside our minds and took the forms of important figures in our lives. They surely tricked some of us well. We should thank the fact that they weren't entirely accurate." Iku added.

"Y-Yeah…" Henry simply replied. Hoshiko could see something strange in it.

"Are you ok?" She asked.

"Uh?" Henry raised his stare toward her. "O-Oh, yes, don't worry! I was just…overthinking." He replied. He surely couldn't tell what his version of the specter was that easily. "What I'm more bugged about is…what were those things. Were they supposed to be guardians of the bones?"

"Uhm…I don't know if it could serve much, but the one I faced said, 'What type of Historia ghost would I be if I let my prey go.' So, we have the name, I think?" Sena said, remembering his experience.

What he got back was all of his friends making stunned faces. "Uhm…did I say something wrong?" He asked, worried.

"D-Did you say Historia!?" Iku asked.

"That Historia magic!?" Hoshiko added.

"W-What? Is it popular!?" Sena asked, more confused.

"Don't you remember what happened two years ago with the Alvarez invasion? Does the name Neinhart ring you a bell?" Yukiko asked him.

"Neinhart…Ah! You mean the effeminate one!? Wait…they had the same magic!?" Sena exclaimed.

"Of course! This explains why they took those forms! Well…apart from Sena's case. Neinhart's magic focused on calling back the spirits of deceased people, usually important ones for his enemies. These specters do the same, albeit in a more contorted version, so…could it be? They're the original bearers of this magic?" Henry tried to guess.

"You mean that Neinhart went here to teach it?" Yukiko suggested.

"But how does it make sense? Judging by the position of this cave, how did he find it out to find these ghosts?" Sena asked.

"Maybe this isn't the only place where these ghosts lived," Iku said before drinking from her bottle. "In any case…I think they weren't related to the bone. They're probably ghosts that have lived here for years, maybe even centuries."

"This could mean…that the sages put the bones in this wasteland on purpose so that those who would have ever tried to find it would have felt prey to these specters?" Hoshiko found out.

"Wow! They surely weren't kidding! Well…not that they could joke about it, considering that it's the bone of a demon…" Sena commented.

"But…this could also mean that the Crow Clan ended up getting attacked by them on their way through!" Yukiko pointed out.

"Welp! In case, it's better if we take advantage of it, right?" Henry said before looking at the door. "And considering this door…I think we're ready to find out…"

All four mages and the celestial spirit looked at the door. Despite being a simple door, they could get terrible tension from it. If the bone was really on the other side, everything could have happened, especially if the Crow Clan was able to come before them.

"I guess that a big fight could await us! You guys feel ready?" Sena asked.

Iku put her hands on the back of her head and relaxed. "Considering that I'm the older one here, I should ask you this question. But I can assure you that I'm perfectly fine."

"Indeed. Even if they confused us for a moment, we luckily didn't spend too much energy fighting those specters. This means that if the Crow Clan is behind this door, we still have the strength to wipe them away in a flashy way!" Hoshiko added, convinced.

"That's more the Hoshiko I know! And don't worry, I'll make sure to watch all of your backs! Right, Icarus?" Henry said.

Icarus snorted in confirmation.

"Well…I think we can wait for your signal, my lady!" Yukiko said with a smile.

The ninja nodded and put a hand on the door. "Then let's not wait another second."

Fortunately for them, it didn't take a great effort to open the door so they could enter what seemed to be the last room, the depths of the cave below the Tagibon's wasteland.

Once they entered, the mages of Shogunate Pride found themselves in a large hall, from where they could see a hole from above, implying that there was an exit that led to the surface. The hall itself was mostly empty, if not for signs of cracks and traces of dry blood here and there. And at the center of it…stood one small pedestal.

"Wow…this place is huge!" Sena commented.

"And it seems…almost destroyed like there had been some big battle in it," Henry added. "Something that may have happened in the past."

"Well, if this room isn't different from the rest of the cave, it shouldn't be hard to find the bone, right?" Iku asked. When she turned around, she could see Hoshiko looking straight in one direction in particular.

"…It seems that you are right, Iku." The ninja of the Star Clan pointed at it. When everyone looked in that direction…they could see it standing on the pedestal.

"Ah!"

"My lady, is that…?" Yukiko asked.

"There's no doubt!" Hoshiko promptly replied.

Standing on the pedestal…stood what seemed to be the cranium of some sort of monster. But the mages of Shogunate Pride knew well what that was about. The very item they were looking for was in front of them.

"That's the demon's head!"

---

And I say that we can stop here for today! There was originally supposed to be an adding fighting scene, but I've decided to leave it for the next chapter (and it will be shorter than what I had originally planned). Man, I'm glad to have come back here as well!

Truth be told, this was a bit of a hard chapter to make, mostly for the setting. To respect the schedule I made for this arc, I needed to find something that could be entertaining for the first half of this part, and it was hard to make it in a wasteland! Then I've decided to do the secret of the underground cave with the specters, even relating them to canon magic to make more references, hoping not to exaggerate with them in the future (although canon characters will appear nonetheless XD). Once the idea came, all that I needed to do was to put it into action and make sure not to make these fights extremely long, considering that the true battle comes in the next part (including a little surprise!). An interesting fact is that I tend to do the "specters from the past" trope more than one time within my stories, so I hope I don't use it again in the future, at least not that frequently. I also took the chance to give some of the supporting characters some time to shine, such as Icarus and Yukiko, some pink moments in classic Fairy Tail style, and even give some hints of what could come in the future! I hope I have teased you enough because as long as I have time, I certainly want to continue this story, especially after all the good effects that it gave me!

But of course, I leave the last word to you! Did you like the chapter? What are your opinions on Alice and her family? What did you think of the contorted visions that our friends had to face in here? What do you think the outcome of this quest will be? As always, please support this story with a review if you can, your opinion is important!

And with this, I can say that I'm very satisfied that, despite everything, I got back to Shogunate Pride as well! As I said a few months ago, I wouldn't have quit this story for the sake of Round Table, and I surely plan to work on both of them since they're both two projects that brought me a lot of happiness and made me meet a lot of great people! So, I hope that we can enjoy the ride until it lasts! And the thing is that for the next move, I'll work back on these two stories already since we have a part two on both sides! So, expect to see how they continue soon!

And I think that I have said everything for now! I once again thank you for reading this chapter, and I'll see you either in the next one or the next chapter of another story of mine. From Bluestar here, Arrivederci!