Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Magnolia.
August 12, x788.
The last of the guests to arrive at Amar'e's birthday party were the ladies from Mermaid Heel, which included Millianna, Kagura, Retsu, Anko, Araña, Risley, and Beth. While crossing the bridge most of the girls chatted happily with Retsu smiling happily at the front of the group and Kagura with her usual expressionless look.
However, as soon as the group stepped onto the island, Retsu and Kagura tensed. They both felt something that had been with them for a long time was just taken away. However, before they could react, Alfonzo appeared in front of them in a flash of violet lightning with Amar'e in his arms.
"Please, before you lose it, let me explain." Alfonzo said while smiling wryly. "I really don't want you to get yourself hurt if you go on a rampage after feeling them go missing."
At the moment, Kagura's usual expressionless glare was filled with an almost tangible amount of killing intent. And Retsu was in a similar state. Though, she was wearing her trademark gentle smile, instead. In fact, if it weren't for Amar'e both of them might have attacked already.
'*Sigh* Bringing Little Man with me was a good idea.' Alfonzo thought to himself.
The reason for Kagura's and Retsu's changes in atmosphere were because of Alfonzo's new invention. Because they had just felt Archenemy and Minazuki disappear from their inner worlds. And to those who wielded Zanpakuto, that was a cause for concern.
"Why don't you two come with me so I can explain?" Alfonzo asked with a friendly smile on his face.
"For your sake, I hope your explanation can satisfy me, Young Man." Retsu replied in a gentle tone with a similarly gentle expression on her face.
Despite the fact that Retsu's smile was so gentle, the pressure it exuded was unimaginable. In fact, if Retsu had smiled at Alfonzo like this back when the two of them defeated Irene, he might have been close to kneeling in front of her. But after almost two years of training, Alfonzo did not fear Retsu's power in the slightest. Though he would not be able to defeat her with his current power, even if she used her [Bankai], Alfonzo was confident that he would be able to survive the encounter.
Seeing how relaxed Alfonzo was when facing her pressure, Retsu's eyes lit up and her smile widened, losing quite a bit of its gentle quality. And that was the moment when Alfonzo knew...
'Shit! I done fucked up!' Alfonzo thought to himself. 'Why the fuck am I letting her see how strong I've gotten? She'll definitely want to fight me for real sometime in the near future. And if things get too intense, it won't just be a high-stakes spar. It will be a real life and death battle.'
Alfonzo was not the only one who noticed Retsu's change in atmosphere. All the girls from Mermaid Heel noticed, as well. Because of that, they all, even Kagura, who was still waiting for an explanation for Archenemy's disappearance, took a step back in unison as they gazed at Alfonzo with pity.
Luckily, Alfonzo's secret weapon for situations like this made its presence known just at that moment.
"Ah!" Amar'e exclaimed with a smile while reaching his arms out to Retsu.
Seeing Amar'e wanting her to hold him, Retsu's expression turned complicated for a moment. However, it eventually changed back to her usual gentle expression as she reached out to take Amar'e from Alfonzo.
"Hahaha!" Amar'e laughed happily as he wrapped his little hands around Retsu's braid.
"*Sigh* I suppose it would not be good to lose my composure in front of a child so young, would it?" Retsu asked herself softly while smiling at Amar'e.
Meanwhile, all the ladies from Mermaid Heel breathed a sigh of relief.
'Little Man strikes again.' Alfonzo thought to himself while wiping off a bead of sweat internally. 'If she really lost it, I don't know how many people on the island would have made it out unscathed. But it would have definitely been tragic. My house probably wouldn't exist anymore, at the very least.'
With that, the volatile atmosphere was subdued. Then, Alfonzo led the ladies from Mermaid Heel to the backyard where the rest of the guests were. Then, after getting Millianna, Arana, Risley, and Beth settled, Alfonzo led Kagura and Retsu inside the mansion.
When the trio entered the mansion's back door, they ran into the ones Alfonzo wanted to introduce Kagura and Retsu to. The two figures who were coming towards them had female frames. However, their faces could not be seen at all.
The first of the two figures was slim and wrapped completely in bandages. They also wore a green hood that hung down all the way to the floor. And the face under the hood could not be seen at all. Instead, there was only a pitch-darkness under the hood.
The other figure was a tall female figure wearing a full suit of black samurai armor with purple trim and an oni mask that completely obscured her face. The only facial feature that was visible were the completely white eyes that could be seen through the mask's eye holes. She also wore a sheathed katana on her hip.
"Archenemy?" Kagura muttered with a dumbfounded expression on her face.
"Yes, it's me." the armored female, Archenemy, said with a nod in an emotionless tone. "And I'm just as surprised as you are, Kagura. I never expected to find a door to the outside world when we stepped onto this artificial island. But when I did, I could not help but explore."
On a side note, this was the biggest fluctuation Alfonzo had ever seen in Kagura's expression since he first met her in November of x784. But he really could not blame her. Seeing her Zanpakuto Spirit standing in front of her must have been something totally outside her expectations.
"So, this is what happened." Retsu said while still holding Amar'e. "And I trust this won't have any negative side effects, correct."
"That's right." Alfonzo replied. "I tested it on myself and my [Armament Spirits] before I implemented this magic item into my house."
"I suppose I should have expected as much." Retsu said with a nod. Then, she shifted her eyes to the bandaged figure. "Minazuki, I would have expected you to tell me what was going on before simply leaving as you did."
"There were actually two reasons for that." Minazuki replied.
"Oh, I'd like to hear those reasons, then." Retsu replied while smiling gently as she began bouncing Amar'e in her arms.
"First, I was hoping to find someone strong to fight when I came out." the bandaged figure, Minazuki, replied calmly.
"Understandable." Retsu replied with a nod.
"Second, I thought the expression on your face when we met up again would be quite the sight." Minazuki continued, a hint of playfulness held in her calm tone. "And although your expression was not as exaggerated as your disciple's, the way your facial muscles twitched was quite amusing."
"I see." Retsu replied, her smile getting even more gentle as she did so. Then, Retsu handed Amar'e back to Alfonzo as she rested her left palm on her Zanpakuto's pommel. "Well, it's been quite a while since the last time we fought. Perhaps it is time we checked each other's progress."
Though Minazuki's face was not visible, Alfonzo, Kagura, and Archenemy would have sworn that she just rolled her eyes.
"As much fun as that sounds, it's not possible." Minazuki replied while shaking her head. "Though I have manifested in the physical world, all of my power is still sealed within you."
"Oh, that's quite a pity." Retsu said in a disappointed tone.
Thinking that was where this issue would end, everyone was surprised when Retsu drew her Zanpakuto with a forlorn expression on her face.
"Retsu, what are you doing?" Minazuki asked as she took a step backwards.
"It's truly a pity." Retsu repeated while taking her fighting stance. "This fight is going to be much more one-sided than I expected."
"Huh?" Minazuki exclaimed in confusion. "Wait!"
Unfortunately, Retsu had no intention of stopping. So, since she was unable to get through to Retsu, Minazuki turned her attention to Alfonzo.
"Young man, stop her." Minazuki said. "If you don't, she'll definitely end up damaging your home."
After hearing that, there was no way Alfonzo would be able to stay out of this. So, after sighing, he handed Amar'e to Kagura, who was thoroughly confused by having the little boy in her arms, and stepped forward, blocking Retsu's path to Minazuki.
At the same time, Kagura and Amar'e locked eyes, just staring blankly into each other's eyes. However, after only a few seconds, Kagura was the first to break eye contact while a slight blush appeared on her face.
"So cute." Kagura mumbled to herself while Amar'e began laughing happily.
"Are you taking her side, Alfonzo?" Retsu asked after Alfonzo stepped between her and Minazuki. "That's fine, I'd much rather fight with you than a powerless Zanpakuto Spirit, anyway."
"No, I was just going to offer a solution to this." Alfonzo replied. "I don't want you destroying my house, after all."
"And what would that solution be?" Retsu asked as she inched forward looking for the best angle to strike from.
"I'll set up a ring on the lake." Alfonzo said with a smile. "That way you can have your skills challenge with your Zanpakuto Spirit without messing up my house."
"Oh, that's not a bad idea." Retsu said as her smile widened.
"When I told you to stop her, this is not what I had in mind." Minazuki said, sounding a bit angry.
"What do you mean?" Alfonzo asked in the most innocent tone he could muster. "You were worried about the well-being of my house, weren't you? You're really kind, Miss Minazuki."
'Gimme a fucking break.' Alfonzo thought to himself. 'There's no way in hell I'd take your side over hers. The only way you'd ever be able to face me in the real world is if you're here. And you can't even show your power when you're here. But if I piss off Master Unohana, I'll have real hell to pay in the real world. It's not even worth considering whose side I should take.'
Not long after that, Alfonzo led Kagura, Retsu, Archenemy, and Minazuki out to where the rest of the guests were enjoying themselves. And just as he said, he created a ring that floated on the lake's surface. However, Minazuki refused to go up to fight with Retsu.
"Even though I enjoy a good battle to the death, I have no interest in being beaten one-sidedly."
Those were the words Minazuki said when she refused Retsu's challenge.
Even so, the ring got quite some use, regardless. Even if all the attempts did not end well. For example, when Natsu, who was excited to fight someone after Alfonzo created the floating metal ring, jumped onto the ring, his motion sickness kicked in, immediately.
Yet, after getting Natsu off the ring, there were more than a few rounds of friendly spars that brought the party's atmosphere up to a new peak. And just when the party's momentum started to wind down, Grayfia and Maria brought the birthday cake out. Unfortunately, Amar'e was too young to understand the concept of blowing out the candles and making a wish.
Even so, everyone had a piece of cake. Shortly after that, the party came to an end. Not because the sun was going down, which it was. Rather, the party ended because the birthday boy, who was maintaining an excited state for so long, finally got sleepy.
So, everyone who planned to spend the night in Magnolia before heading back home returned to their lodging. Meanwhile, Irene, who had been wanting to talk to Alfonzo for a couple of days, grabbed Erza and made her way up to Alfonzo's room after inquiring about his whereabouts.
However, when she got to the door, she could only look on dumbfoundedly.
"Seriously, this is happening again?" Irene asked as she looked through the cracked door, only to see Shizuka and Rika getting intimate with Alfonzo.
"Shall we go inside and join them, Mother?" Erza asked as she, too, looked through the cracked bedroom door.
"Oh, you two are back again?" Elicia asked as she skipped up from behind the mother-daughter pair. She then peaked into the room before continuing. "I guess we'll be picking up where we left off last time, huh?"