“Kami-Sama, I follow the patterns of sharp winds,

I clean with the currents you give to me, and I have yet to see yield,

One day, Oh Kami-Sama, I shall have a field of grain.

For I thank you, the air you provided to bend I thank,

And for the wind that blows behind my end,

I am sure, for that back is protected by you,

Kashikomi kashikomi mo maosu.”

Two claps were sound from the praying man.

He was praying in front of a small wooden shrine. Only a few steps separated them.

The shrine was box-shaped and had a triangle for a rooftop, made of stone-covered moss.

A candle hung in the middle of the ancient wooden box. It swung from a white cloth string that had denied the dust of the shrine in its bright gloss.

The man inhales deeply, absorbing the blend of smells that made the aroma; a musky and wet scent from moss and wood, a soft and delicate smell of flowers, it all made him feel fresh.

The man stood up slowly and shook his numb legs to wake. He bowed before turning around towards a long stair of stone, it was bumpy and wet.

Down the stairs stood tall the Shrines gate, The Torri; red pillars raised from either side, on top of them, was another red rod, as big as them, but it was curved as the moon, and atop it, two smaller curved rods of black color rested.

As the man walked down the bumpy stone staircase, he passed by a birch-colored wooden sign stuck to the dirt beside the stairs.

It read ‘Shinto Kami - Fujin’.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The classroom windows were broad, so much so they looked like a painting of the outside and the wall was just the surrounding frame. The teacher said it was because they believed in giving the students as much freedom as possible.

Shou sighs.

He was leaning on the glass wall, lime eyes pondering.

He could see the bluebirds chirping above the purple tree,

but he could not hear them.

He could only hear a faint echo from the distance. It disturbed the immense assessment of outside color.

Not a minute passed before the echo became a familiar brittle. “SHOU!!! I AM TALKING TO YOU” a startle, making Shou’s eyes return to focus as he spun around his chair to face the teacher shadowing over him.

“Shou, could you repeat the words that had just come out my mouth?” the teacher spits and quickly jumps to another sentence “BET YOU CAN’T! YES SHOU YOU CANT!” the yelling was loud. So loud it seemed as if a tone of steel fangs ran across the rough green board.

To retaliate Shou had to cover his ears in horror. “Takemori Heijirou… you already know I don't even need to be here,” Shou takes a moment to relax his tense shoulders “I have already aced this class, remember?” Takemori slams his hand onto Shou’s desk “YEAH, YEAH, BUT-”

For a voice to louden, the mouth has to widen with it.

And that led to this. The sudden opening of a bright red tunnel across Takemori’s face made his cigarette fly like an arrow toward the student sitting behind Shou Sato.

As the burning edge of the cigarette stuck to his forehead, chatter ran across the classroom. Takemori’s jaw fell to the ground, and the stricken kid quickly shook the burnt paper from his face.

and as it dropped to the ground, a tear dripped with it.

Frozen Shou did not budge. His eyes rushed back towards a sudden movement in the purple tree shrouded across the entire building.

The two birds had now made them a nest.

“Sensei…” Takemori's eyes widen. he saw it in the other students too, they all felt the pressure,

it was as if the entire class had collapsed, falling two floors down.

“Akio-” Takemori quickly shook his head and rushed with a napkin toward Akio’s hissing forehead “I am sorry! here let me clear it up for you…” Takemori’s stutter made it all the more obvious, the entire class’s face told the same truth as well.

on the other side of the room, the last table back sat a student, whose bravery was louder than a samurai's commitment to their lord.

“Takemori-Sensei… You might get fired from this…” his words were awkwardly put, but he looked no less than the opposite; a fur of a head, his hair resembled a lions' - in color it was yellow, wavey in shape, covering the back of his neck entirely and reaching down to his chest were two braided lumps of hair, resting upon a pair of broad shoulders.

His eyes were of a bright red - above them was a pair of thick eyebrows that would have put the burning cigarette to sleep.

His posture was of a different temper; from head to waist he swayed his body, leaning backward, his chair flailing in the air desperately clinging to the single wooden leg of his chair still on the ground.

A tremble of his legs - Shou noticed - made it all the more difficult to balance the school chair.

A rough cough was heard from Mr.Takemori - loud and clear it traveled the class, making even the board behind him tilt slightly. “That is true, Shimazu-kid…” Takemori had let a smirk show on his lightened face “BUT - you have forgotten, for I am the strongest!!!”

“Heijirou-san, your excitement could rival an entire class’s, please keep it calm” Shou states.

“Shou!!! My name is SENSEI in class! Not Heijirou, or Takemori!!!”

From behind the scenes, a meter of red boil had reached the point of overheat. As it sizzled, slowly the flame had to chase. “SENSEI!!!” Akio’s high-pitched sound traveled up and down his chest, “I am going to!!!!-”

Akio had swallowed his tongue. He now had a fist clenched up high and a reddened face. The only words he could mutter were curses and roars.

A side of the window was opened slightly by a kid sitting two seats behind Akio.

It made air rush through from the open space, causing Akio’s bowl-cut hair to push back, making the fresh burn uncover to the open air,

and the focus of a pencil thrown to blur.

and so, like how the air rushed to lift Akio’s dark bangs, the pencil flung right towards Takemori’s shining yellow eye,

What put that arrowhead to a stop was Takemori’s fingers, that had just enough time to catch the pencil.

The pencil did not give in though, for Takemori’s grip was strong enough to stop the pencil from touching his eye, but the spin had shown no sign of stopping, drilling into the gap between Takemori's fingers.

Takemori crushed the pencil in between his fingers, and quickly rid of its remains, throwing it outside the window.

He sighs, his eyes still trembling even tho the pencil is long gone.

“What am I gonna do with you, Takasaki’s kid?” a huff was added to that sentence, a huff that made Akio’s eyes water with anger “I challenge you for a duel!” he screamed. “If I win, you let me go there!!!”

Takemori took a small pause - scanning the room for answers. From chair to chair, from the plant at the back of the door, until finally, he found his smirk widening more.

“Eurika” he whispers, his eyes wrenched at the target as he winks subtly

“Shou!!! Shou is the answer, you will both fight me, yes!” he mutters and mumbles, but the silence is so stabbing, his mutters echo through the room.

“Me?” Shou pops out of his blue-bird dream, “Yeah, him?” Akio adds.

At that point Takemori could not hold breath, he had burst into chuckles and chaotic laughter “YES! YOU WILL BOTH FIGHT ME, TOGETHER! AS A TEAM!”

The garden - a stage of sand, as big as two classrooms, surrounded by many green blades of grass atop which rose the all-blooming Wisteria.

It was Shou’s first time visiting the arena, although he had been studying here for about a year by now.

What stopped the evergoing border of green was a door that expanded into a small building, a cabin of sorts - the door was made of bamboo, and whats more - it was slightly open.

And so, Shou’s body had levitated towards the black shadow leaking out the bamboo door.

As his hand reached, a little shiver ran through his arm up to his neck. Making him stop in place.

“Shou, what are you doing?” it was Akio who tore down his frozen stare. “Oh its you… I was wondering” Shou says quietly.

“Wondering? Could you speak any lower? I can almost not hear you” Akio looked around, from each edge of the arena, before coming back to watch Shou’s wiggly arm struggle to push open the sliding bamboo. “Just, move, okay?” he spoke. Shou moved out of place and watched as Akio solved his puzzle of the bamboo door.

he shoulder-bashed it. to the other side.

And so, slowly, light started filling the room, wiping shadow after shadow, and revealing the treasure inside.

At first glance, it was just dusty boxes, filled with play balls and wooden swords, dumbbells and thrown Tameshigiri stands. But the more their eyes lingered in the room, the more they understood its purpose.

In another corner of the room, cloth was found - cloth that did not look like it belonged to a man. “I don't think we should be here…” says Shou as they both investigate the abandoned structure. “It looks like a storage room of sorts, or was,” Akio says while waving around one wooden katana, making the dust clear off it.

Then the sound of chuckles accompanied with a slight creak of a door.

Shou and Akio’s faces turned white in a second, and they both dragged their gaze toward another door to the other side of the room, where the pile of clothes was sitting.

“A ghost…?” Akio mumbles.

Slowly, the spring smells were gone, and what replaced them was the trimmed air and the pressure of snowy mountains. Akio knows, finally, something made Shou excited.

Icicles formed on the door handle, and a loud painful scream was heard from the other side.

It was a mans scream,

Not even seconds after, follow up loud thuds and steps, after them, comes the open shut.

“SHOU!!!!” Takemori yells. “What are you thinking?!” he asks quietly, he was half naked, with only a white towel covering his lower body.

“Takemori-san… you know I can't control my ice.” Shou’s words were not loud, but they managed to make everyone’s ears ring. “Besides, we should be training, don't you agree?” Shou puts a finger up, and widens his sneerful smile.

“Ah, yes! I'll be back right away, okay?” Takemori quickly reaches for the knob and pulls with all his might, but to no avail, the door was frozen to the ground. Giggles were heard from inside the room, there was a cozy, king-sized bed inside, and red, almost pink light brimming the room.

Takemori takes a glance back at the girls sitting on his bed, chattering and flattering, then back to ice-cold Shou and beet-red Akio.

He had to blink, twice and even three times, before sighing and nodding in agreement “Okay, fine. I'll fight you, but you leave me alone after this!!!” Takemori whispers to the girls goodbye and starts walking towards the exit, but yet another obstacle stands before the bright light of the outside heaven.

“Takemori, I don’t think you should go out naked,” says Shou, gritting his teeth, he seemed like a dog ready to bite. Takemori spun around slowly to face the cold demon “Oh! Yes! Of course!!!” and so, the walk of shame began, and Takemori finally wore his pants.

“Don’t you think you should have worn a different pair?” Shou’s cold manners have settled, but the last snow drip of winter hasn’t melted down yet.

“Nah, these are comfy, and in any case,” Takemori gets into position on the other side of the sandy arena, his right foot sliding ahead, moving every pebble in its way as the left leg is slid back, balancing him perfectly.

“Hey, Shou.” Akio leans into his left and whispers “Why does he insist on wearing these oversized trousers…?” as they talked, Takemori spoke his words and signaled the start of the fight, with a simple push of the legs, sand blew with the wind and The distance between him and the students in a moment had closed, as what was left was only Takemori’s flap open palm, a few inches from the face of Akio.

Akio had closed his eyes, his arm flung up to protect his face, even though he knew Takemroi’s slap was a lot closer to Akio’s cheek.

Akio embraced pitch dark and awaited his doom.

Yet, no sound was made. No impact was felt. Akio started counting, and when he had reached the number five, he slowly opened his eyes to the view of an earthly wall standing in front of him.

Akio carefully sneaks a glance from the side of the wall, his eyes glitter, and slowly his mouth widens in awe at the scene in front of him - first he noticed was Mr. Takemori, he was struggling. with every jump; followed by the sound of boom; rocks hitting the ground.

They seemed like they were making craters on the sandy earth. Takemori was desperately trying to avoid them; air-fast rocks, mud spheres, and blocks of dirt and grass, all the while he had a grin capable of cutting mountains. As were his chuckles, prone to send the calmest monks into madness.

Akio’s eyes glided through the sandy battles, through trees and glimpses of the surrounding bamboo fence. Every corner his gaze could reach baggy blue pants being held by Takemori’s left rushed into frame, as did his shiny silver hair, waving in the wind being followed by huge rocks and spits of mud.

And so, Akio follows the shots of earth back, tracing their source. The ground seemed to have shifted, chunks of soil were removed from the arena, making a scatter of holes.

As he desperately tried to find the source of this meteor shower, his eyes caught sight of one Shou Sato, on the other side of the battlefield he stood, holding his mage staff to his right that overshadowed his slim body. His gray attire of the mist Kenjutsu school waved back with every shot of mud and rock he released.

His Staff’s edge had a rough and rocky blue shard of some sort, it shed a glow as Shou half-heartedly tapped the tall stick of mana on the ground, making the earth beneath him move and louden.

Akio’s eyes dimmed, and a long locked sigh was released from his lungs. His tense posture slowly softened, and his eyes moved from the cat-and-mouse battle to the blowing sand beneath him.

And so, Akio crumbles, now kneeling on the shaking grounds. His eyebrows scrunched and his lips tight.

Should it truly be this way? He was the one to propose the idea, and yet, he couldn’t move a muscle.

Is that why Takemori-Sensei included Shou in their quarrel? To protect him?

No, Akio reflected, it was because Sensei wanted to enjoy the fight. He has never seen him smile such a wide smile when he spars with him alone.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

‘Am I... weak?’

Akio’s thoughts echoed in his head like shouting drums in a canyon.

Slowly, he started feeling a shift, his head felt like it had started spinning in and around itself, slowly twisting around his entire body.

And so, in despair, he held tight his head and covered it down, towards his legs, towards the ground.

And yet he found no ground. Even his legs, they didn’t feel like they were touching anything at that point.

And so, he slowly opened his left eye, to asses the situation.

What he found was his body levitating in the air, being carried by a slight current of wind.

It was nothing special, a practice he does every week, a meditation practice. It lets the inner mana connect to the wind around the body, and so after reaching relaxation, he should levitate.

The only difference was, he was not relaxed but filled with unwavering emotion.

His other eye opens.

And with all his senses, he lifts his head to find the stalemate still ongoing.

Nobody stopped, not even for a second, not even after he collapsed.

Akio’s eyebrows scrunch together, he lifts himself in the air, above blowing sand.

His arm forms a fist, and his lips tighten.

‘What the hell am I doing…’

Before a tear could be released and rain on his shaking cheek, he lunges forward, sword in hand, and the drip of water in the air.

And there it was, his first challenger, a rock of mud and moist, flying right at Takemori.

The air currents carrying him suddenly shift, and a small tornado-like storm forms under him, making him spring in place, sharply cutting the boulder in half.

Across the field, Shou sighed, tapping his staff.

Now, the two halves of the boulder started spinning, becoming themselves a tornado of mud. right before unleashing from the side of Akio, right onto the person celebrating behind him - Takemori.

Rain of mud poured at the moment of impact. The smack of rock on Takemori’s striking head was almost as loud as the earthquakes Shou was making.

And yet, Takemori stood, wiping the dirt off his face, smiling his usual crooked smile.

How could it be? Such a loud sound, at such speed, surely it should've done something.

But no, in Akio’s brown eyes, it seemed like a muddy slap, with no power behind it.

And so, Akio's knees thud right onto the ground, and the air around them calmed, As it calmed the tense hairs of Shou Sato’s head to sleep.

Yet it couldn’t calm Shou's tightened lips, nor the intense tapping of his right foot on the sand-grounds.

And so, Takemori, standing before the now calmed leaves and trees surrounding the Arena, shakes himself of dust and mud, then, with the raise of his arms upwards, he roared with laughter; eyes scrunched and slightly water.

“Ahhhh, this is the stuff!”

Takemori high in cloud, did not notice the blue pants of his fall.

all he did was laugh, but Shou and Akio noticed.

they noticed it very well, they were ready, and they knew it would hinder Takemori's movements.

Little drops of sweat dripped from both their faces, but they stayed still, not even chuckling to the strange act bestowed upon them.

Shou grunts, the weight of his staff made his struggles all the more obvious, it seemed it was pushing up against him.

“Pff! I told you not to bring this thing!” Akio chuckled, pointing at the short wizard and his staff, making Shou redden slightly. “Shut up… and please focus on the monster in front of you.”

“Oh? Finally recognizing me, Shou?” naked Takemori says, grinning with pleasure.

Then the sound of chime came,

A bell's ring,

It made Akio look up to the sky, towards the main estate, as atop it was the golden cup-shaped instrument, pounding heavily.

The estate never failed to amaze Akio, as it could make a Shiro castle shame in its size.

It seemed foreign enough from the outside though, pillars filled its balconies - or halls, to be precise. Its huge gray walls were smooth, not even the Shifuyo could climb them.

There was only one entrance, a huge opening at the front. Stairs led down to the outside.

Not to mention the great fence of wood surrounding the place of study, covered with the scent of wisteria.

But all that was in vain, as long as Takemori still stood above him. as anyone else is, he thought.

And so Akio quickly throws his gaze from the golden bell shrouded in gray clouds back to the trees in front of him.

It took Akio a few seconds to understand the situation.

The continuous bell ringing, the noise of soldiers running around, and most importantly - there was no Takemori-Sensei marking the sand field, overshadowed by golden leaves.

It was only then, only then did he realize there was a hunt calling.

A smile ran down from Akio’s ears, together with a shaking body, and yet again a pair of scrunched eyebrows.

Suddenly he began running towards the main building of the Estate. “Wait where are you going…” Shou mumbles, his eyes follow Akio’s fastening sprint, and soon after his legs do the same.

As Shou climbed the wide-spread stone stairs of the estate, he took a glimpse of Akio changing directions, he went in between pillars to the right.

And so Shou follows, knowing exactly where that path led.

The changing room,

Right into the hall, stuck to the outside wall, from the inside of the building was the room. There were more locker stands than students learning at the Estate.

After he reached the room, it was time to slow down.

With the footsteps of a ghost, he scanned the halls of lockers and stands, looking for the number and name of Takasaki Akio.

Finding him was an easy task for Shou, the only other person in the room, and the only person to have the same gaze as Shou.

He was staring at his blessed Katana, his legs trembled, but he dared not show face.

“Shou…” he whispers.

Impatience took over Shou - speaking up before Akio could continue.

making his words quiet and calm, yet all Akio could hear was a thunderstorm.

“I heard soldiers talking about Fūjin kami Shinto shrine, I think it was attacked by demons, which is why Takemori-sensei had to go.”

Hearing those words, Akio needn’t stare any longer. He quickly snatches the Katana from his locker, not even changing to his hunt uniform, and rushing outside of the building. Shou takes a few seconds, his eyes scatter around.

then they stop, and Shou starts approaching the target his eyes chose for him - a locker with the number #27 written on it, right next to his name.

Inside the locker were gray robes and a uniform, with the corpses crest embedded in gold on it.

He quickly pushes the clothes aside to reveal a rod-like figure, covered by dark-brown cloth.

Shou wasted no time taking it out of the locker; not even a second to remove the cover.

The shrine was not too far from the estate, as it sat right outside of the city in which the estate resides.

Although trees of great length had completely circled the fancy school of theirs, crossing them revealed to Shou the living city, many people were walking back and forth on the streets.

and the sound of carts

and pebbles,

and horses and conversation,

it was all too much for Shou, making him cloud in walk and judgment.

Quickly he shook himself, and stabbed his target with his eyes; to the northern gate. He prepares for a run, but is instantly met with a bump.

“Hey!! Watch where you're going!!!” the man screams, as Shou’s backside meets the ground.

Nevertheless, his green-as-leaf eyes never lost sight even if they were blurry and full of sand.

And so he gets back up again, shakes the dust of his gray yukata and reaches for his fallen sandals.

Shou stabs his legs into the ground, and pushes into a jump, reaching the roofs of the various triangular buildings and houses, making noise as wood and brick shake with each step - but he never stopped, didn't even look down once, even when one house lady yelled at him and threw an onigiri right at his face, he never wavered.

Finally, breathless and full of sticky rice and fruit, through a lump of bushes and trees he sees the moldy steps of the Fūjin shrine, and a sign right beside them.

Shou starts climbing the stairs; it's so slippery, he thought, as his wooden sandals could barely be balanced atop the stone stairs.

As he reached closer and closer to the top, he heard more and more. From screams of fight to the noise of trees falling.

But then he smelled it, it was the first smell he absorbed today, other than Takemori’s broken wind.

The smell of ash, the smell of fire and smoke.

Then he finally looked up, and he noticed what he couldn’t notice before; heavy black smoke, just like the smoke the charcoal back home produced - it filled the sky making it seem like it was about to rain.

Shou’s eyes widen in awe, then he quickly starts rushing up the stairs.

Suddenly his feet swung up and he found himself lying on the stairs instead of climbing them.

A curse slipped through his lips as he threw his wooden sandals to the side. they rolled right down the path of wet grass next to the stairs.

As Shou had finally reached the top, his eyes reflected the shine of flames - it was entirely ablaze;

As big as the estate, and yet it was all gone, in flames.

From inside the drizzling flames, he saw shadows, three, no, four figures.

Fighting, jumping from side to side.

The impact of their blows made the flames blow like wind. He saw through the gaps Akio slicing and dashing against a human beast with a head as long as a snakes'.

Shou’s expression slightly tilted, his lips tightened together and his ears reddened.

From the cloth he carried around he pulled a sword out - a katana, something was written on it.

Its handle was white, and had a turquoise misty pattern covering it.

The guard, on the other hand, seemed to be carved into a square, and a mountain was drawn, climbing up from the guard and onto the blade itself.

A jump and a slice of air were all Shou needed to cut through the fire, making way for his attack.

Still airborne, his eyes finally met Akio’s, as both had their blades pointing right at the creature's chest in a thrust, each from each side.

But they both were shunned, each blade barely scratching the tough skin of the green-humanoid snake.

They both fall to the ground, balancing on their feet, and the demon retreats backward.

He hisses, elongating his neck to shadow the two that came to slay him, revealing weird writings printed on his neck.

“Why did you come?!” Akio spits at Shou.

Shou did not flinch. Not even for a second. Set on the demon before him,

“Never mind that. What is his core? The chest?”

Akio scans Shou thoroughly. It seems both of them were still in their training clothes. “Yeah… just where you tried stabbing, I missed it a little.” Akio runs a finger across his blade.

“I am going to take him straight on. Do as you please,” he grunts, followed by a rush of wind blowing dust from the ground.

It took no longer than the time that dust traveled towards Shou’s face for Akio’s katana to reach the creature’s right arm. Akio’s swing was not short of perfection; he tilted the blade upside down to the exact degree, striking from below, hitting the weakest point of the demon's arm. it flew right into the flames surrounding them.

Shou looks around, it seems they were the only two in the ablaze shrine.

‘Only a rice farmer would think that’ Shou mused.

He looks up and sees the shadow of his sensei, like he seemed like a small dot in the air. But Shou could sense him, swinging at his target, laughing.

Shou’s eyes dazzle in excitement, as he always does when he sees Takemori fighting.

Suddenly he feels a chill air breeze pass by him - it was one of Akio's attacks.

Shou shakes his head, shifting to gaze at his own fight.

He saw Akio's fast-paced swings being countered from every corner, and when his blade finally did hit the demon’s chest, it bounced right back to the open air.

Shou intuitively throws his katana to the hold of his left arm, and stretches his right arm, reaching for the wind beside him, letting it hang in the space as he opens his palm; a glitter of light manifests itself into it.

Then the light becomes longer, forming into something resembling a tree branch, or a long stick of sorts.

The light mush slowly forms to the shape of a staff, and the shine fades away into glitter in the air, revealing Shou’s staff, this time, it seemed more rod-like, straighter, covered with steel, and the same icy-blue crystal floating atop it.

Shou taps the staff lightly onto the ground, being as heavy as it seems, Shou could barely hold it in place.

Afterwards came a shift in the ground. The pebbles moved slightly, but there was no sound, only the sound of blade hitting bone.

Then the inevitable came. The demon’s left arm lands a punch on Akio’s chin, making him fall to the ground, lump together with the small rocks still shaking.

But the snake-demon did not take another step forward, to finish his pray.

Instead he rushed backwards, making the distance between him and Shou farther away.

It all came to a halt though, because no matter the distance, Shou only needed his staff to assist in this battle.

Akio knew, he saw the fear in the demon's eyes. Akio's eyebrows scrumch yet again, and he tightens his grip on his weapon. He lifts his body and flies with air current speed, reaching the demon.

But Right before he could swing his katana, he was met with spikes coming right out of the demon’s thick neck.

They were spikes of earth; stretching from the ground up right from behind the now-cornered creature. They even almost reached Akio’s face, scraping his dark hair slightly.

The demon screams. his now paralyzed body was twitching.

Blood started dripping from the rocks.

as did the smell, a wreak of burnt corpses and obsolete blood.

Akio let out a roar, he once more tilts his katana. A swing of the hips, from left to right, like grass letting wind pass his shoulders flung the sword, slicing into the demon's tough torso.

As blood dripped and flesh flew, it revealed a slight bone.

Akio tried his hardest to break every bone of the ribcage with his katana, screaming while the now-blooded blade ran through the demon's upper chest.

his face the same, drops of blood slowly covered his cheeks, as did flesh and bone flew towards his face.

It was as if he was cutting wood, splintering it with each strike.

But no matter how much his teeth hurt, no matter how much his arm stretched, how much his muscles ached, the sword didn't want to get past the middle point of the torso.

It seemed Akio had missed the heart completely, for it was on the other side of the demon's body, still covered in bone that felt less and less like bone the more he cut into them.

Another scream roars out of Akio’s lungs. The blade finally moves, but only so slightly.

Suddenly, the blood-gushing demon growls in laughter. His neck moves on its own, sliding out of the stone trap Shou had set him with.

The demon stands, he was now so tall Akio seemed to hang on his sword in the air, only his right arm keeping him connected to the demon's bare chest.

Flesh started forming, filling every hole Akio had created. Broken bones began to restructure, until slowly even the skin came back to cover the chest of the green demon.

Even his severed arm was back in its full glory and with it the three holes made in his thick neck filled; not with stone but with purple flesh and green skin.

It all happened instantly, there was no time for Akio or Shou to reconcile.

“Akio look-” before his words reached his hung friend, Akio’s body was struck by a hand as big as his head, and as thick as his chest.

It struck like lightning, causing Akio’s arms to release the now-stuck sword, and blew him bluntly to the side.

He flew past Shou before hitting the ground, and even after that, the thuds never stopped. He rolled crashing into a tree, leaving a trail of dirt behind him.

No more than a glance was needed by Shou to realize Akio was not conscious. Even though his eyes were wide open, his head was in a pile of beet red coloring the brown tree, his body like a training dummy, completely soft.

Shou’s eyes tried to quickly sweep back, but all they saw was a shade of olive green in front of them.

It was the demon's neck, shrouding above him.

Now Shou can clearly see what was written all over,

in black ink, the kanji read ‘Capital, Envy’.

Shou was quick to react; in blistering speed he released a barrage of slashes, making the recovered flesh of the demon fly away again.

The barrage continues until nothing of his thick long neck is left, and Shou jumps backwards into safe distance.

Shou mumbles something.

Even though his staff is gone and back to glittering light, the ground shifted once more.

from behind Shou a boulder started forming, even making a tree lose its place and hit the ground.

The boulder was never still, always changing shape, it seemed it was a liquid of sorts and not a rock.

The boulder had a body, legs, and even a trunk for a nose.

It seems,

the earth had birthed an elephant.

The trunk was made of spiky earth, and its legs seemed to still be a part of the ground they stood on, sliding instead of moving, making pebbles fly and holes of dirt wherever they moved.

Speedily the dirt elephant rushed towards the still recovering demon, sounding trumpets of war, crushing a path towards the snake, until eventually, tusks of rock met his rough body, penetrating him in place;

spiking him again.

But this time the demon did not linger.

In less than a second Shou saw the boulder break, becoming back to dirt and dust.

The demon bursts into laughter, he holds his stomach tight and rolls on the ground “Man you are something!” he says, his voice husky and full of hiss.

“How about you become a demon too? Then I can show you the truth!” he says breathlessly “You were born in the purple, right? It is so obvious!”

The demon gets back up again, his body spotless.

He takes out the katana still sticking out his chest and makes it crumble under the hold of his fingers.

The blade becomes dust of metal, and he blows it into the flame incinerating it.

“Well, shall we contin-”

The sentence was cut short, because the demon could not talk again.

Of course he could not talk again, Shou thought, his eyes dazzling again as he realized who stood above the crushed demon that had now fused with the grounds like a squashed spider.

“Heijirou!!”

Takemori glanced from his shoulder at Shou behind him, his striking yellow eyes didn’t have a slight of Mr.Takemori’s shine in them.

“Take Akio and get out of here,” he whispers,

but Shou could hear it. No, he didn’t really hear it, he sensed Takemori’s command.

Suddenly a gust of wind made Takemori’s silver hair blow like the flames. It seems another had joined the fight, for in front of Takemori landed a demon, crushing the floor under him.

His black skin shone to the light of fire, as did his red eyes, they looked like the blaze itself staring right at Shou Sato. This demon also had weird writing covering his cheeks, from ear to ear. Shou could barely read what it was from a distance, but he glimpsed the kanji of 'greed'

“Oh. your apprentice, I suppose.” the demon says, then glances into the paste of green and purple under Takemori “Oh, I see Amara is done for! Very well, I shall avenge my brother!” he yells.

But it was not a roar of sadness and mourn, but a scream of joy. It reminded Shou of the drizzling inferno.

Then, faster than his eye could follow, Takemori appeared right in front of him, blocking the demon's black fist with the edge of his sword.

“Get out.” Takemori says through grit teeth.

No seconds to breathe, no time to gaze, Shou had to force his numb legs towards Akio.

Through quivering lips and slumping Shoulders, he carried the weight of his unconscious friend. A flopped back, he was barely able to escape from behind the flames, not to mention sprinting down the stairs.

it was too much for him, a small pebble was all it took for both of them to fly down the stairs,

they fell right to the side, sliding with the wet grass towards a tree.

they were quite fortunate, Shou thought, for the tree was a tall one.

He climbed, hugging its branches. His muscles ached, but he could not rest his eyes.

He had to watch.

As he gazed into the flames and through, he glimpsed the shadow of three people.

That demon’s recovery is so quick… he thought.

His eyes tried to follow the shadows, but they couldn’t, and soon he only saw two shadows, then no shadows at all.

And at the moment when all shadows disappeared, rain poured in, cleaning the blood off of Shou’s face. He looked down and noticed it had helped clear Akio’s body of dirt and blood as well. his eyes were closed now, and his chest was bloating up and down.

He was breathing,

Shou exhaled in relief, but quickly shook all thought hunting his mind and switched back to the scene.

What he saw was something of dreams,

The flame was gone, yet the shrine was still covered.

It was covered by what seemed like a cloud that had reached down from the sky, to touch with the mountain atop laid Shinto kami Fūjin's shrine.

Mist covered the field.

Mist, just like three years ago, the night his father was killed.

And so, Shou waited.

But boredom never came. Even the sweat that climbed down his cheek did not make him flench, his mind was waiting.

Shou looks up to the sky for a moment. He sees the moon hasn’t traveled a distance.

It seemed, atop this mountain, time had stopped.

“You see that?” a familiar voice from behind Shou startled him, letting all his senses loose. “Akio…” Shou stared at Akio for a little while, expecting to meet his eyes, maybe he was dreaming? He thought.

Akio’s eyes never moved. Instead, he lifted a finger pointing towards the Shroud, right where the stairs met it.

Slowly, Shou saw it too. A shadowy figure, it was tall at first, but as it approached the shadow grew into human size.

It seemed to totter.

“Is that Takemori?” Shou whispers. A chill breeze ran through his spine.

“I hope so,” Akio says through trembling lips.

Two dots of glitter bugged Shou’s eyes, a bright yellow glow from inside the shroud.

He blinked and rubbed his eyes.

The light never wavered. Moreover, they were moving. Towards the stairs.

Speedly Shou climbed down the tree and rushed to the top of the stairs.

There he saw the figure clearer but still engulfed in clouds.

He saw his arms holding tightly, running deep into two heads' hair like they were a trophy.

He saw bright teeth from the clearing mist, an infectious smile.

Finally, the shroud cleared, and silver hair drowned in rose dark blood was revealed laying atop a face he had known well as he knew his own.

The infectious smile was too much this time, and a grin stretching from ear to ear appeared on Shou’s face, as did his eyes dazzle, just like the night three years ago.