After spending the day wandering Kyoto, Furuya had taken Yasushi and the group to spots hidden from the usual crowds, places untouched by typical tourists and barely mentioned in any guide or pamphlet. By evening, their energy faded, and they returned to the villa, seeking rest.
The moment they stepped inside, an unmistakable tension replaced the calm they expected. Staff gathered near the entrance, avoiding eye contact. Conversations fell silent as the group entered. Something had clearly gone wrong.
Yasushi stepped forward, catching the uneasy glance of one of the men nearby. "What happened?"
The man hesitated, his discomfort obvious before he spoke. "Lord Yasushi, there was... an attack," he admitted, each word seeming more difficult than the last. "Some of us head out to explore, not staying in all day. A group got caught in it, out near the western district. Miss Yinhaie was with them. She defended the group, but they were still hurt. Most of their injuries are minor, thanks to her... but they've been wounded nonetheless."
"Where?" Yasushi asked, his voice sharp, cutting through the room's unease. The butler nodded, keeping his head down as he led the group to a room nearby, now serving as an infirmary.
Inside, the relief was instant. The injuries were less severe than feared. Bruises on most, and Yinhaie with a cast on her arm. She spotted them, her lips pulling into a small, weary smile. Jingliu rushed to her without hesitation, wrapping her tightly in an embrace, holding her close.
"I'm alright, Lady Jingliu," Yinhaie said, her tone calm but tired. "I was lucky. He left before doing any serious damage. I just need a few days, maybe a week, and I'll be fine."
Yasushi's jaw clenched, his mind racing. 'What happened to the deal? No harm was supposed to come to them. Unless... Hades is ignoring the consequences. If that's the case, I'm in for more than I planned. Seeing Yinhaie like this… it pisses me off,' his fist curled tighter, nails digging in, almost breaking the skin.
The others surrounded Yinhaie, their voices full of concern as they checked on her and the others, who looked battered but safe.
After a while, the rest of the group dispersed, leaving Yinhaie alone with Yasushi, Jingliu, Xinyi, Yunxue, and Layena. Heinz stayed outside, posted like a guard while they spoke.
"It was the man you described, Yasushi. I didn't expect him to just show up like that, but I guess now we understand. I never thought he'd come after me and the staff from the Yang family." Yinhaie leaned back, shaking her head, regret flickering across her features. "I should have been more careful."
Xinyi, arms crossed, shot her a look. "Now it makes sense why that woman walked right past us earlier. She probably knew what was going on and came to mock us."
Yinhaie seemed taken aback by this. Yunxue quickly filled her in on what had happened during their lunch. The more she heard, the deeper her frown etched.
"This wasn't random," Jingliu muttered, her voice low but biting, and her clenched fists said everything her words couldn't.
"Yeah, it was a planned attack. So now we know they'll strike again… but who's next? Someone in our group? Someone in this house? Or maybe our classmates, the ones not even involved?" Layena's words hung in the air, tightening the knot of concern gripping them.
Yasushi shifted. "Then let's face them now," he said, drawing every eye to him. "They want me, right? I might as well fight them. If it means fewer people get hurt, then I'll take them on now."
"That's reckless! Absolutely not," Xinyi snapped, her frown deepening as she stared him down.
Jingliu's eyes darkened, her anger still simmering. "I want them to feel it too. I'm all for it," she said, her fists clenched. What they did to Yinhaie was still raw in her mind, and she was ready to repay the favor.
"If I can be honest, Lady Jingliu… I don't think you'll stand a chance." Yinhaie's voice cut through, quieter than the rest. "I'm no weakling, but he overpowered me without much effort." She lowered her gaze, the sting of her defeat clear.
Jingliu's gaze locked on Yasushi, frustration creeping through her silence. Before she could speak, Yasushi raised his hand, pulling everyone's attention toward him.
"Tomorrow, we'll draw them out. I'll handle them myself. No more innocent people getting caught up in this. We'll deal with them first, then the gods later." He paused, scanning their faces before continuing. "But you all have different roles to play."
Confusion rippled through the group.
"Roles? What exactly do you mean?" Yunxue asked, her head tilting slightly.
Yasushi let a smirk tug at his lips. "Pay attention. We have to do this right if we want to avoid getting caught. Get things in order so everything goes as planned tomorrow," he said, raising a finger for emphasis.
The room fell into silence as everyone leaned closer, listening carefully to the details. When he finished, nobody said a word. The weight of what he laid out left them speechless.
+-+
"Hmm? What were you talking about with everyone earlier?" Furuya asked as he walked over to where Yasushi was sitting.
Several hours had passed since that conversation. Yasushi sat in the large living room, the cup of coffee he had been sipping on resting in his hand. His posture was relaxed, but Furuya wasn't fooled. He could tell there was more beneath the surface. Yasushi gave a shake of his head before speaking.
"Just a little operation I'm planning. I want to get back at the ones who attacked Yinhaie and the other staff members," Yasushi explained. His tone was calm, but the underlying intent wasn't hard to miss.
Furuya furrowed his brow, confused by Yasushi's response. "How would you even know who they are?" he asked, moving to stand beside Yasushi, eyes fixed on him.
Yasushi set his cup down on the table in front of him, leaning back slightly in his seat. "They're coming after me. Hurting Yinhaie and the other staff, that was their way of trying to piss me off. Well, it worked, and I'm not going to let it slide. Not a fucking chance."
He met Furuya's eyes then. "I need you to do something for me tomorrow. It won't take long, but I'm going to need your help with this. So, are you in?" Yasushi's voice didn't carry a hint of doubt. He knew Furuya would have his back. He always did.
"Man, I just hope I don't die doing this!" Furuya shouted, laughing right after.
"You're not going to die, dumbass." Yasushi cut him off before diving into the details of the plan. As Yasushi explained everything, Furuya listened, a grin spreading across his face. The more he heard, the more entertained he seemed by it.
When Yasushi finally wrapped up, Furuya chuckled. "That sounds easy for me, honestly. Sure, I'm in. Not like I've got anything better to do anyway. I'll catch you later, man." Furuya gave a wave over his shoulder as he turned to leave the room, not bothering to wait for a response. His footsteps echoed down the hallway until they faded entirely, leaving Yasushi alone.
Yasushi stayed seated for a moment, staring out the window. His expression remained calm, almost like he was already seeing the outcome in his mind. "Let's see how the two of you handle this... And maybe, Inari, I'll get a little bit of help from you," he muttered under his breath.
+-+
On the third day of their trip, sometime in the afternoon, Yasushi and his group made the decision to begin their mission. They had set themselves up across Kyoto, strategically placed at different points, now simply waiting for Yasushi's signal to proceed.
Yasushi, accompanied by Jingliu, had chosen a quieter path, far from the busier parts of the city. They were ascending the stairs leading to Mt. Kurama, where Sōjōbō, the King of the Tengu, was said to reside.
Both of them knew the supernatural world wasn't just a myth. Their aim was to get the attention of two beings — Inari, the deity they sought help from, and Sōjōbō himself. Their walk up the carefully maintained stairs carried a certain tension, the sensation of unseen eyes tracking their movement.
Yasushi's growing reputation in the supernatural realm was likely enough to draw interest, and he silently hoped that someone from the other side would make contact soon.
Reaching a flat section halfway up the mountain, Yasushi suddenly shoved Jingliu aside. Her eyes flashed with surprise, but she kept her balance. Before she could speak, Yasushi turned, catching a fist that came at him faster than she could see. The force sent a ripple through the air, shaking the trees behind them.
Jingliu's senses flared, her body tensing. She stepped back, instinctively ready. The man who had appeared grinned wildly before leaping back, his tongue running across his lips.
"Kukuku, I didn't think you'd react so quickly. You really are something, Little Yasushi Boy," the man sneered.
He stood out. His long, black hair framed a face that looked wrong — black pits where his eyes should have been, his nose crooked, and his mouth twisted. His clothes, a pitch-black that seemed to swallow the light around him, made him even more unsettling.
Yasushi's voice came steady, though his anger was clear. "Who are you? You've been stalking us for three days, even went after one of my friends."
"I'm no one. But I went ahead and gave myself a name — call me Yubruhganggang," the man said, almost sing-song, the grin on his face creeping wider, stretching into something that shouldn't be possible. "Just a lowly grunt for Lord Hades, nothing worth a second thought. But that also gave me the chance to screw with someone as special as you."
"That's the dumbest fucking name I've ever heard. Call yourself something else," Yasushi said, shaking his hand out from the hit he'd blocked. The pain surged through it, his fingers tingling like they'd gone dead. He half-expected bones to have cracked under the force of it, but nothing seemed broken. Not yet.
"Peter," the man fired back without hesitation, as if that was an improvement.
Yasushi just let out a breath, unimpressed. "Whatever. Still better than whatever the fuck you thought of earlier." His eyes stayed locked on the man, fists tightening. The silence between them thickened. "So? What's the deal, then? Why's Hades so interested in me? Why are you following me around?"
Peter laughed again, that grin still plastered on his face. "You already know. What else is there to say? I think he wants your soul, kid. Humans like you don't get opportunities like this. It looks too much like special treatment."
The man vanished in an instant, reappearing right behind Yasushi. His fist flew toward him, and Yasushi barely managed to turn in time to block it. The hit landed hard, but it wasn't just physical. A strange, tingling shock rippled through him, knocking him back.
Before he could fully recover, the man — Peter, as he called himself — kept up the pressure, throwing punches at a speed Yasushi could hardly follow. His arms came up to block, but each strike slammed into him, one after the other, bruises forming with each hit he barely deflected. His body took the brunt, each impact pushing him closer to his limit.
Yasushi gritted his teeth, his arms trembling as he tried to fend off the barrage. Peter's grin never wavered, wide and mocking, while the attacks continued. Yasushi's body screamed at him, but he refused to give in, his mind fixed on one thought: his friends needed to come through soon. All he had to do was hold out a little longer.
Yasushi kept blocking, his arms aching with every hit. Peter's laughter rang out, mocking, as he kept swinging, each punch pushing Yasushi closer to his limit. But he waited. Every second stretched as he played defense, buying time.
Then, finally, the familiar buzz from his phone hit his pocket. The signal.
"Minion of Hades, cease your actions at once!" a voice echoed around them, commanding and loud.
"The fuck—?" Peter started, pausing his attack, confusion on his face.
Yasushi seized the moment, grabbing Peter's wrist tight. Peter's grin faltered, surprise flashing across his face.
Up in the sky, a tengu swooped down, black feathers cutting through the air. Peter barely had a second to react before Yasushi shot forward. "You better clench up, because I'm going Plus Ultra up your ass!" he spat.
Peter's eyes went wide. Yasushi's fist connected, faster than lightning, slamming into his face. The force launched Peter back, smashing him into a tree with a sickening crack.