The following morning, the day started off as usual, with Suzune dropping off her only daughter at what might be considered the most dangerous babysitter that ever existed.

Akiza wiggled like a happy puppy, her excitement bubbling over like a fizzy drink. Nana awaited, and the promise of playtime turned the child into a tiny blur of bouncing energy. Suzune longed for a goodbye kiss, but Akiza was a hummingbird in motion, too excited to stay still.

Finally, Suzune caught a glimpse of that sweet, impatient face. She planted a soft kiss on Akiza's cheek and watched her daughter dash off with the joyous abandon of a tiny explorer heading for a new adventure. A smile bloomed on Suzune's face, warm and bright as the sunshine Akiza was racing towards.

As she watched her daughter disappear into the distance, Suzune couldn't help but feel a mixture of pride and concern. She knew Nana was powerful and capable, but the danger that always seemed to lurk around the corner in their world never failed to worry her. Still, seeing Akiza's unbridled joy and enthusiasm for life always managed to ease her fears, if only for a moment.

Akiza burst into the burrow, her voice ringing out with excitement, "Nana! Nana!"

"Hai... Hai..." Nanashi grumbled, still half-asleep.

"Ohayo!" Akiza greeted her with a big smile.

"Mhmmm," Nanashi mumbled in response.

"Ohayooo!" Sasuke's voice boomed from the entrance.

"Great, this guy too," Nanashi muttered under her breath.

"Ohayoo, Saski!" Akiza responded with the same enthusiasm.

Sasuke beamed. "That's more like it, unlike some people."

Nanashi snapped, "Unlike some people, I know how to respect personal space and boundaries."

"Well, uhmmm," Sasuke fumbled, "I looked to the heavens, in the trees, and dug many holes, and still couldn't remember asking your opinion."

"What? Is that your comeback? It's not even remotely relevant. Gosh, you suck," Nanashi retorted.

"Hai!" Akiza shouted in agreement.

"Hey!" Sasuke protested.

Nanashi grinned. "Yes, very good girl!"

"No, what are you teaching this girl?" Sasuke asked, exasperated.

"How not to suck like you," Nanashi replied smugly.

"Well, if I suck so much, you can look after her alone," Sasuke said, before storming out in a dramatic fashion.

"Sasuke, come on, man!" Nanashi called after him.

"Saski! Saki!" Akiza's voice joined in, calling out to him.

Nanashi turned to Akiza, her voice softening. "Don't worry, he'll be back soon. He doesn't have many friends. Let's go find ourselves some fun."

"Hai!" Akiza agreed eagerly, her earlier concern quickly replaced by the promise of adventure.

The forest seemed to grow more menacing with every step they took, the twisted branches closing in around them like gnarled claws. Akiza's breath grew rapid and shallow, her wide eyes darting back and forth as if sensing an unseen threat lurking in the shadows.

Nanashi paused, her ears perking up at the girl's escalating distress. “What troubles you, child? Are you too tired to continue?" she inquired, her deep voice a comforting rumble.

Akiza swallowed, her voice barely a whisper. “Not... tired.’ The words came out shaky, betraying her growing fear. "Someone..." she hesitated, glancing nervously at the rustling leaves around them, ”following us.”

Nanashi's ears flicked forward, her massive head swivelling to scan the woods. “Don't fret, child.” she said, but her calm tone didn't quite mask the tension that coiled in her powerful muscles. "It's probably just Saki, eager to greet you."

Akiza's eyes widened. "No!" she blurted, shaking her head so hard her braids whipped around her face. "This... bad. Very bad." Without warning, she threw herself onto Nanashi's back, burying her face in the thick fur at the base of the giant fury tail.

Nanashi let out a low growl, the sound vibrating through the forest floor. “Fear not, Akiza.”, she murmured, her voice a deep rumble that promised protection. “I am here. Nothing will touch you, not while I breathe, Okay.”

Akiza gave a hesitant nod

“Good, let of my tail and come stand on my right side, I will deal with this quickly.”

Just as Akiza let go of her tail, they heard a branch snap behind them. Nanashi quickly transformed into her human form, causing Akiza to burst into tears.

"What? What's the matter now?" Nanashi asked, perplexed.

"Nana! Nana gone!" Akiza wailed.

"I'm right here, look," Nanashi said, reverting to her fox form. This pacified Akiza, stopping her tears. However, as soon as Nanashi turned back into her human form, Akiza started bawling again.

"What's wrong now?" Nanashi inquired, exasperated.

"Nana has dog ears. They're ugly!" Akiza replied in a whiny voice.

Nanashi's emerald eyes narrowed. "Ugly, you say?" she scoffed, her voice laced with a shimmer of fey amusement. "Observe closely," she declared, her fingers gracefully enveloping her fox-like ears. In a shimmering instant, they vanished from sight. "See?" she purred, a playful smile dancing on her lips. Then, her smile flickered, replaced by a mock pout. "Though, calling them downright 'ugly' to my face is a touch harsh. I like your sass, but I can't help wondering where you got this newfound attitude from."

"I can, and I know who," a voice rang out above their heads. A large black figure descended from the tree, landing in front of them.

"You!" Nanashi exclaimed.

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"Yes," Jorogumo replied.

Nanashi quickly turned to Akiza. "Akiza, don't look! Cover your eyes, my dear girl. It's the epitome of ugliness! Please, it will traumatize you and scar you for life, haunt your dreams forever. Only one good thing can come from this: whenever someone calls you ugly, you won't need to feel bad at all, because you'll always be more beautiful than her." She winked and blew Jorogumo a kiss.

"You're demented. There's something seriously wrong with you," Jorogumo retorted.

"Nope, I think there's something seriously wrong with your face! Ha! Burn! Isn't that right, Akiza?"

Akiza didn't reply. She was unfazed by the appearance of the half-spider, half-lady creature, and was busy picking her nose.

"Seriously, she has a hairy face with eight eyes, even on her forehead. Come on, girl!"

"I see you're still as rude as ever. No wonder this poor human is turning out like you."

"Hey, she's perfect as she is, but I'm still better."

"Who would ever leave a child in your care is beyond my understanding."

"What do you want? I don't remember us being friends."

"We're not, so I'll give you a warning: leave now. This is my territory, or else."

"Or else what?" Nanashi replied, puffing up her chest and rolling up her sleeves.

"I'll kill you and this little girl of yours."

"I'd like to see you try."

Jorogumo took a few steps back, ready to spit acid venom. Nanashi stepped in front of Akiza and drew her jade sword. Just as the fight was about to start, Sasuke jumped between them with a big smile on his face and said, "Having a little get-together without your favorite person in the world?"

"Argh, who invited him?" Jorogumo muttered, rolling all eight eyes.

"He has a tendency to show up where he's not welcome," Nanashi replied.

"Tell me about it. He's been doing this for the last three hundred years, since he was appointed."

"Ouch!" Sasuke exclaimed.

"Ouch!" Akiza echoed.

"You three do know that I'm standing right here, don't you? And Jorogumo, you never had a problem with me until now."

"Oh no, Nanashi, he's talking to me. What do I do?" Jorogumo whispered.

"Don't panic, girl. I've got you. Just do what I do."

"What's that?"

"Pretend he's not here."

"And that works?"

"Sometimes."

"I've been doing that for about two hundred years, but now... I've got this one. Hey... hey... Sasuke?"

"What?"

"Look! A tailong dragon!" Jorogumo exclaimed, pointing at the sky.

"Where?" both Sasuke and Nanashi shouted, scanning the clouds above.

"Idiots. You two belong together," Jorogumo muttered before leaping into a portal and vanishing.

Sasuke frowned. "I see nothing. Do you see anything, Nanashi?"

"No," Nanashi replied, turning around. "Where did you say it was, Joro—" She stopped short, realizing Jorogumo had disappeared.

"I guess she got us both," Sasuke sighed.

Nanashi smirked. "I think you mean she got you."

"What? But you looked too!"

"Yes, I did, so the trick would seem more realistic. It's called 'acting.' Have you ever heard of it?"

"Really? But if you knew it was all an act, why ask about the tailong's position again?"

"It's called 'improvisation,' another thing only us 'actors' understand," she said, crossing her arms and tapping her foot.

"But—"

Before Sasuke could present another question, Nanashi raised her hand to silence him.

"Enough, Sasuke. I'm tired and want to go home. Come, Akiza."

When Akiza didn't respond, Nanashi turned around to find her companion missing.

"Sasuke, where's Akiza?"

"She's... definitely not here?"

"Really? Wow, great observation, Detective Obvious. No wonder you're so popular among... no one."

"Hey!"

“Let us not jump to conclusion and name calling, I am sure there is a reasonable explanation behind her disappearance.” Sasuke said, turning into a fox and started sniffing the ground

“Like what, KIDNAPPING!” Nanashi roared.

“No, her sent still lingers, follow me.”

Nanashi's every curse echoed through the tightening forest like a death knell. The trees thinned, and a horrifying tableau unfolded before her. The riverbank, bathed in an unnatural, sickly light, became a stage for a nightmare.

There, coiled around a still form, was the Nure-Onna. Her grotesque beauty, a siren song leading to a monstrous truth. A woman's torso, sculpted from porcelain perfection, gave way to a serpent's form, its scales glinting like obsidian knives. Its coils constricted around Akiza, who lay unconscious, a pale doll in the clutches of a predator.

Nanashi's breath hitched. The Nure-Onna's head, stretched wide like a grotesque parody of a kiss, hovered over the girl. Saliva, thick and viscous, dripped from its maw, a sickening prelude to the feast to come. Rows of razor-sharp teeth gleamed in the twilight, promising a brutal end. The air itself hung heavy, thick with the stench of decay and the fetid river, a suffocating shroud that did nothing to mask the primal terror that squeezed Nanashi's heart.

"Let go of her!" Nanashi shouted. As her fury intensified, her very essence seemed to ignite. Her hair crackled with ethereal flames that danced with an intensity matching her rage.

The air around her sizzled with ominous energy, charged with the raw power of her wrath. A menacing aura enveloped her as her nails transformed into obsidian claws, sharp and lethal—a testament to the darkness simmering within.

"You!" the snake lady hissed.

"Nanashi, calm down, I've got—"

Before Sasuke could finish his sentence, Nanashi's hair and kimono burst into raging flames. The stones beneath her feet popped like kernels, and the water surrounding Nure-Onna began to boil.

"You fool!" Nure-Onna cried.

"What?" Sasuke asked, puzzled.

"You spoke forbidden words to an angry woman."

Sasuke smirked, his eyes glowing green. He turned to Nanashi and repeated, "Calm down," this time in a stern yet soothing voice. Nanashi felt her heart skip a beat as a wave of calmness spread through her body, causing the raging flames to dissipate instantly.

"What are you doing to me?" Nanashi demanded. "I need to stop her, or she'll devour that girl."

"And I have every right to do so. She is mine!" Nure-Onna declared.

"Not this one," Sasuke replied firmly.

"What do you mean, Sasuke? You know that any human in the appointed territory is fair game."

"Yes, I know, but she's not from this location. She must be taken back."

Nure-Onna raised herself up, towering over Sasuke and Nanashi. "And if I refuse?" she challenged.

Sasuke turned back into his human form and looked her right in her eyes, ‘It seems to me, that you have forgotten, who I am, I am the guardian of this forest, which means, that I give and take as a please, and everything that inhabits this island, I have full authority of them, even the very air you breath but perhaps I need to remind you, Sasuke snapped his fingers, causing Nure-Onna chest to exploded open, spraying blood everywhere.

‘What have you done to me?’ Nure-Onna asked barely able to speak.

“I caused your lungs to explode, worry not, I will put you out of your misery soon, Nanashi, how do you like your meat cooked?”

“I..I..do”

‘YOU CANNOT DO THIS TO ME!!’ Nure- onna, shouted

Sasuke snapped his fingers again and two reeds shot through each side of her mouth and third underneath her chin, from it a water lily bloomed, stretching her mouth wide open.

“Shut up, I was not talking to you, so what is it going to be?” He asked, this time his tone changed into an excited one.

‘I do not know.’ She answered nervously.

"Let it be my decision," he declared with a smirk, his voice carrying the weight of unseen forces. "But wait, there's something you've forgotten," he continued, his arms outstretched toward Akiza's motionless form. With a mere gesture, her lifeless body obediently floated towards him, a puppet in the hands of an enigmatic puppeteer.

"Here, take her," he offered Nanashi with an air of nonchalance, as if bestowing a mere trinket. And then, with a flourish of movement that seemed to transcend mortal limitations, he began a mesmerizing dance of flickering flames, each snap of his fingers a symphony of divine power.

As the inferno trailed behind his every motion, the air crackled with the intensity of celestial fire. Nure-onna, once a fearsome entity of darkness, now became the unwitting participant in a grand spectacle of divine retribution. Her form ignited with a brilliance that outshone the stars themselves, consumed by the cleansing flames until only ashes remained, carried away on the wings of a gentle breeze.

"No, man! I guess I went too far," Sasuke said, realizing his mistake.

"You think?" Nanashi replied dryly.

"Let's head home. I promise I'll make it up to you."

When they arrived at the village, Nanashi handed Akiza to Sasuke.

"What, you don't want to take her back?" he asked, surprised.

"No, I don't feel like facing that woman. Goodbye," Nanashi said firmly.

"Okay. Goodbye then."

As Sasuke was descending the hill, Nanashi called out to him again.

"Hey, Sasuke!"

"Yes?"

"I haven't forgotten who you are."

"Well, that's a pity," he replied, a hint of humor in his voice.

"Why?"

"Because I kind of enjoy our little dynamic," he said, feeling his cheeks warm up. He quickly turned around and continued his journey.

Nanashi watched him go, a small smile playing on her lips. "Jeez, what was that?" she muttered to herself. "Anyway, I have a date to prepare for."