Gentō:

Everything. HURT!

The Baku's aching head guided him back to the waking plane. Although his vision wasn't much better with his eyelids open. How deep in the woods was he?!

.........

Oh crap! What about his minions?!

Gentō stood up quickly. Too quickly, as proved by his trembling body and joints at the breaking point. He howled in pain, taking the attention of a very familiar Oni.

"About damn time! I was wondering if that pup killed you!" Her cackling was not a very pleasant sound.

Hanaken and Kreef were having a relaxing time by the fire. Did those simpletons just tossed him in the cold?! Unbelievable...

He angrily marched towards them. "How could I have been beaten?! So much Saniya was flowing through my veins! I could feel it! I should have been invincible!"

The Oni's laughter burst to heights never before seen by Gentō. "Tell him! Tell him what happened!" She referred to the Amikiri.

Kreef's googly eyes alternated between his two companions. He was clearly conflicted about whether he should go on. "Uh... That Wolf pup just kicked you all the way here."

Gentō's jaw was on the floor. "Where are we?!"

Hanaken answered, her smile still persisting at the corner of her lips. "We're only about half an hour to Chikukei. Your ass got beat that far by a kid!" She could barely hold her snickering. "I wish I could've seen it."

"How about you!? You were defeated by a single blow!!!" Pink smoke involuntarily blew out from his snout.

Her mood was unshaken. "Hey, at least I got felled by an actual warrior! Even the kid here got taken out by the CAPTAIN!" She pointed at the Amikiri. "You got the short end of the stick among the loser club."

"That should be the name of our group if we're honest," Kreef added. His remark prompted both Gentō's companions to join in a hearty laughter.

The Baku's patience became steam, leaking from his nose and ears like a whistling kettle. "Fine! I got a little cocky! But they won't get me off guard again! No one can match this power of mine!"

"Okay, big shot! Can you do it again?" Hanaken asked.

"Keh keh keh! What a brainless question, my dear!"

"Don't call me 'dear'."

He clasped his hands together, grinning like a jester. "You were on your beauty sleep, so you're sadly unaware. Behold! A Baku's true potential!"

Gentō concentrated all of his willpower on tapping into his god-like might. His muscles flared with limitless energy, and his gut felt like it was cooking from the inside out. He could grasp it! The motive why his kind was so revered in the first place!

He. Was. Almost. Th-

THPPTPHTPHPHHPH!

...

......

.........

Something came out, alright.

"Aw, man." She gently tapped his index finger, the size of a carrot, on Gentō's shoulder. "You tried, at least."

The Baku was on the floor, literally. On his knees, his mind desperately searched for an excuse for why he wasn't all-mighty anymore. That was not fair! He was so close! Only one more sniff from those sweet dreams, and he would obtain absolute bliss.

Maybe my wording wasn't the best, in hindsight. Ew...

"Welp..." Hanaken stood up. The light radiating from the fire could barely reach her head. "It was fun, boys. But I'm done."

Gentō broke out from his fog of questions. "What?!"

"You heard it. That's it for me. We got our laughs, but we're not getting more than that." Her eyes shifted to Kreef. "Don't you agree, kid?"

The Amikiri's claws were snapping tens, maybe hundreds of times per second. His beak opened and closed without uttering a noise until he finally gathered the courage after almost a full minute. "She's right, Gentō. I just got electrocuted by that captain lady. I don't want to be here if they get us again."

Hanaken added. "These Wolves won't fall to our tricks again. If we give this another shot, we might as well throw ourselves in jail. I can already imagine my father chewing my ear off if we do, and I'm tired of it!" She sighed. "Besides, that kid's not that special, anyway! She looks like a wimp! That pup might be a better distraction, to be frank."

The Baku was... flabbergasted! Betrayed! How could they back away from their dream! HIS dream!

He tried to reprimand them with harsh, strong words, but the only thing that came out was a pathetic excuse for a sentence filled with voice cracks.

"H-How dare you walk away like this?! You have the opportunity to help me achieve greatness, and you want to give up?!"

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Now THAT was enough to bring out the Oni's ire. Her yellow eyes burned through the shadows like two blazing pieces of coal. "I already got knocked out for you, and THIS is how you repay me?" Her indignation elevated her voice into a roar. "YOU PATHETIC EXCUSE FOR A MONOKE! IT'S ALWAYS ME WHO HAS TO GET YOUR ASS OUT OF TROUBLE BECAUSE NOBODY ELSE CARES!"

This wasn't the typical Hanaken scolding. This was... something unseen...

"AND YOU KEEP TAKING ADVANTAGE OF THIS! YOU ONLY THINK ABOUT YOURSELF! HOW RICH AND POPULAR YOU WILL BE!"

Each word crushed his ego to pieces, more painful than the state of his joints.

"HEY! MAYBE IF YOU STARTED BEING A DECENT PERSON FOR ONCE, PEOPLE WOULD GIVE A SHIT ABOUT YOU!"

In the aftermath of the truth bombings, all that was left for Gentō was a catatonic husk. His only friend's words made a permanent mark on his soul. He thought that after Ske, his mind would be steel-plated, protected against any defeat and disappointment.

However, life always found a way to pull the rug from under him.

His cheek felt warm. Not from any surge of power, unfortunately. The last thing Gentō imagined doing today was crying.

He sat on the floor, curled into a ball, and let himself break down like an abandoned child. Only his sobs were echoing through the dense flora.

Kreef's claw gently rubbed his left shoulder, though the Baku did nothing to acknowledge the gesture. "Don't be like that. Maybe messing with the Human is the issue. We can stick around with... I don't know, a simpler plan?"

Gentō could barely understand himself over the sobbing. "I-I... need the... Human..."

Hanaken huffed. "Yes, you want to get powerful, boo-hoo. What do you even want with more power? What's your goal?"

As he was confronted with the core question, his throat was clogged by air. He was afraid of being mocked by his partners. He assumed his motivation sounded silly, downright pathetic, to the common Monoke.

"I-I... I want..."

The words didn't want to come out. The opposite of Gentō's tears.

Hanaken sighed, sitting down beside him. Before he could ask himself, the Oni relocated him to her lap. It was... not an unpleasant feeling.

"There, there. If you want to be a baby, I have no choice."

Judging by her words, she wanted to be snarky, but her voice lacked her usual edge.

"Look, I didn't want to snap on you. You annoy me, that's all. It's not like I hate you or anything. You make things so... difficult, you know?"

Still some harsh words, but... they were fair. The Baku had a recurring streak of dragging the Oni around every time his schemes went downhill. He never took her sarcastic commentaries as a sign of her displeasure.

No, he did. He was just too immersed in his own objectives to care.

No wonder everyone wanted nothing with him.

After taking some time to breathe and calm the nerves, Gentō could speak properly again.

"I-I'm sorry, you two." He took a deep breath. "But the reason why I'm after the Human is different."

"Huh. What is it, then?" Hanaken's voice was as soft as a cotton cloud.

"I... I want my home back."

The Baku was met with silence for about ten seconds. Kreef was the first to question it. "I... don't get it. What do you mean?"

"It means what I said. I'm not fond of this forest. No one seems to understand, let alone like me."

The Oni interjected. "Well, some shred of responsibility falls into you. The scams, the dream sucking-"

Gentō jumped out of her lap. "I told you I can't eat solid food without going to the bathroom immediately after! But people don't understand that!"

She conceded. "You have a point, Gentō. But how will you return to wherever you come from? If the queen can't power her way out of the forest, what makes you think it'll be different with you?"

In times like these, Gentō would break into his trademark chuckle. However, he wasn't nearly in the mood for that. "When I say that I'll become powerful from that Human's dream, it's not JUST power-wise! It's also about my abilities of the mind!"

The Amikiri questioned. "So, dreams? That's your main goal?"

He snapped his fingers at his partner. "Correct! In my current state, I can only wander through others' dreams, consume them, and manipulate them in minor ways. However, with the surge of power that girl gave me, my skillset can be pushed beyond its limits! In theory, a single dream could become anything! A utopia inside one's mind!"

Hanaken reiterated. "In theory."

He agreed. "In theory, yes. But if I can change a few things in anyone's unconscious fantasies, it's safe to assume I could do more with extra Saniya."

Kreef's eyes circled side-to-side, seemingly in deep thought. "Wait, wait, wait!" His claws rapidly snapped again. "Are you telling me you want to remake your old home in a dream?"

The Baku nodded. "Every night, I could sleep and dream about home. I can only remember a few things since I was so little when the war ended. The bamboo trees, the rising sun between two hills that together looked suspiciously like a butt, and-" Once again, he was stuck on his own words.

Hanaken gazed at him, worried. "What's wrong?"

"N-Nothing! Is just..." He fidgeted with his fingers. "I also want to see my... parents again."

Hanaken's eyes widened, and her mouth was wide open. Kreef also did not emit a single word, dooming them to a suffocating silence.

"I..." The Oni was weirdly reticent. "I-I'm sorry, man. I had no idea what was at stake." Her eyes were downcast in shame. "I should've asked before... you know..."

The Baku shook his head. "You're right. I'm a terrible friend to you." He folded his hands in a praying gesture. "So, I beg you one last time. Help me with the Human, then you never have to see me again."

Hanaken crossed her arms and legs in a sort of meditative state. Kreef hovered closer to Gentō, curious about the giant.

After a full minute, she opened her now entirely black eyes. "I'll help you. She stood up, lightening the mood with a big, toothy smile. "But you can cut that last part."

After many subsequent foiled relationships and plans, her smile brought him hope he hadn't felt in centuries.

"T-Thank you, Hanaken!" His voice was being strained by his crying.

The red brute turned her head away. "Okay, okay! You don't have to get all baby-like all the time! You're much older than me, by Tizohi's antlers!"

Gentō's laughter reignited louder than ever! "Keh keh keh! The three of us can do anything if we put our minds to it! Long live the Trouble Troop!"

"Boo..." Hanaken made a thumbs-down.

"Uh..." Kreef's voice took the two's attention. "The three of us?"

"Of course! There's no victory with only two of us! Are you leaving us?!"

The Amikiri got flustered. "Y-You guys still want me around?! I had ruined the plan! I made the wrong girl fall down the hill!"

"AH HA!" Gentō raised a finger. "That's where you're wrong! By pushing that pup, you still prompted the Human to follow her steps! That's still a victory in my eyes!"

Hanaken nodded. "Not to mention when you spied on the old folks' house. You're not a hindrance to the team at all!

"Yeah!" The Baku hopped in place. "Please! For the Crusher Crew!"

"That name isn't bad. I like it." She commented.

That was a bad sign. "We can brainstorm a few more later. Now, Kreef...?" He stared at the Amikiri with hopeful eyes.

After some ponderation, he snapped his claws again. "Let's do it!"

And so, the Baku Bunch, Trouble Troop, Crusher Crew, or whatever they call themselves, were ready for a rematch! They cheered for their renewed determination!

Hanaken, and now Kreef. They weren't judgemental of his desires. They understood him and were ready to support him through this arduous journey, bashing heads with none other than the Dragon's Guard.

He had partners, after all. Heck, maybe even friends.

It was a good feeling, knowing he was not alone.