The room was now quiet, Atashi laid back and watched the program airing on television while thinking about everything Eiko said a while ago before his family left.
Atashi could feel his body sinking into the comfort of his pillows when he heard voices outside.
Someone else was here to see him, but who?
A brown-haired girl in a yellow shirt and white pants walked into the room with a beaming smile. Atashi immediately recognized her on the spot.
"Hello Atashi, how are you feeling?" Haru said in a sweet voice.
"Haru, it's you." Atashi looked shocked he noticed Haru holding something familiar.
"You left your baseball bat on the table in class the other day." Haru handed Atashi's bat to him and proceeded to hug him right away.
Atashi brought the brunette closer to him. He never felt a tinge of immense comfort after a longtime. This was a surprise that he was going to cherish.
"I'm so glad you're OK Atashi." Haru said. Despite the troubles Atashi got himself into, Haru still appreciated his friendship and kindness. He didn't need to ask for any chances.
~~~
"Thanks Douma that was a fun trip." Shinobu said with the waffle still in her hand.
Douma stood outside the house, it was time for both he and the violette to depart after a long day of putting the bad guys in their place.
"Rest well Shinobu." Douma replied waving at the violette who shut the door leaving Douma alone in the neighborhood.
"There's something I gotta check on real quick." The blonde took off down the path leading to a denser forested area beyond Hayori Town.
Once he got to his destination, he was met with the same kitsune who had been instructed to watch the Hasu Mountains while he and Shinobu were away, especially the spot where they found the truck that belonged to Cryptic Sanctuary.
"So did you find him?" Douma asked.
"Yes I have." The kitsune opened its mouth revealing a purple ghostly spirit roaming about within the pile of unfortunate trapped individuals.
"Great work." The blonde replied as the fox statue bowed and vanished into the night.
Douma continued heading back to his shrine when he heard the sound of chickens squawking and running around up the slope. Someone must have left their barn open.
The blonde ran up the slope and saw around five chickens and roosters running in circles. Luckily they didn't go far but they were making a lot of noise at this hour. It was strange that the home owners didn't come out to check, maybe there was nobody home.
Douma picked up one of the roosters that strayed too far from the flock.
"Where do ya think you're going?" The rooster in his arms looked back and forth in confusion.
The chickens and roosters were gathered into one spot after Douma started chasing them away from the darker corners of the forest. He led them back to the barn and made sure that every last one of them had been retrieved.
Suddenly a sharp object that looked to be a needle or shard flew by which left a deep cut on the throat of the rooster that Douma was holding in his arms. The wound began to bleed putting Douma in a spiral of panic.
"What the-" Douma heard the sound of something burning behind him and slowly turned around.
That samurai armor Mr Moikawa wore during their confrontation. What was it doing here of all places? The fiery effects that Atashi had inflicted on it was still lingering. It appears that nobody was wearing the armor it was completely empty but somehow standing on its own.
Douma healed the rooster and placed it in the barn. He shut the door and stepped away from the burning samurai armor that stood there like a stature.
To Douma's shock, the samurai armor unsheathed its sword and rushed towards him with the same large weapon that Mr Moikawa couldn't handle as threateningly. The shrine leader dodged the sudden attack and took out his fan.
When the samurai armor regained its still posture, it flung the large sword at Douma's direction clashing with the golden fan before swerving to the other side.
The burning samurai armor decided to rush towards Douma again at a higher speed this time to catch him off guard. Douma managed to read its movements, landing a blow at the flimsy burning armor approaching him. The samurai armor fell off the slope and crashed into the ground below.
Douma waited for a while in case the burning samurai armor decided to pounce on him but after a while it was quiet.
Or so for a dark purple light radiated from the spot where the samurai armor fell, turning into a large dark figure that still wore that armor.
There was something off about this person who appeared out of nowhere, the air was becoming suffocating and Douma could sense temperatures dropping to extremely low levels. Whoever this person was had control over the surroundings, which made it more unsettling than it already was since his appearance.
"It's been decades since I last wielded my sword." Glowing red eyes were flickering in the dark storm surrounding this being.
Douma widened his eyes at the figure emerging from the dark clouds. This samurai looked like a person but he had a very dull and cruel expression. Almost like he didn't regret his actions earlier, instead he embraced this reign of terror that he brought to the Hasu Mountains. Determined to bring about the worst of his powers.
The samurai stood his ground. Douma never felt severely intermediated by an entity like this opponent who was just standing there, watching him closely. His senses were overwhelmed by unsettlement and fear despite his status. The blonde's breathing wasn't consistent like before he was taking in deep breaths even though the battle hadn't reached a stage where it would tire him.
"The name's Ryukushu, also known as Eiyū no kage (Hero's Shadow). I was one of the great rulers during the Seian Era. It's a shame that the formidable strength that I brought about my people has doubled down to such buffoonery. Therefore, it's time for me to put an end to it all as I intended from the beginning of this tragedy." The ghostly samurai raised his sword.
Douma held his fan firmly unable to control his trembling fingers and limbs. What is this power that's gotten ahold of me? I can't stop it let alone move or speak.
"What a-are y-you doing h-here." Perhaps that wasn't the best way to warn his opponent not to cause any trouble but there was nothing Douma could do, he was consumed by fear.
Ryukushu seemed to find the entire situation amusing. He grinned and watched Douma who was struggling to overcome the surge of adrenaline. "This power of mine, is not something you can pluck out of a tree like that hotheaded simpleton friend of yours, no, this is far different. I'm sure you might have guessed by now, this power was given to me by a demon that was sealed away for centuries. Its legacy has been deep-rooted within me from the time I approached it to help me with my ambitions."
"And now I have become the face of that demon who still continues to help me accomplish those ambitions, it's not just one but a whole colony of them! Residing in every ounce of my being, and I will not let us down. For I am destined to keep this kind of power and strength alive."
The samurai flung his sword and dashed to Douma's side with a trail of wind catching up with his steps. He landed a few feet behind Douma, startling the blonde who leaped away.
"If you're this great ruler, then how did you end up becoming a dummy at that coward's lair?" Douma said coldly, Ryukushu seemed to have been captive in that glass display for a very long period of time.
"Well certain things don't go as planned but that doesn't mean they won't happen. While I hate to admit it but my defeat centuries ago has given me the opportunity to achieve that goal of mine with improvisions and a change of strategy from before. I've learned my mistake if you consider it as one and it won't happen again, that's a promise I've made to myself." Ryukushu replied boldly.
Whatever this guy's goal is it doesn't sound good. Douma got his fan ready. "I won't let that happen." The blonde warned him.
"Oh, that's interesting, we have a fool who thinks he can stand up to me when I haven't even unleashed my power yet. How naive." Ryukushu raised his sword again, this time he wasn't going to let Douma hop out of the way as though he was a scurrying bug. Things were about to get as ruthless as they can, and Ryukushu didn't want to hear any complains or pleads, he never took them into consideration during his battles.
Douma could sense a strong overwhelming force of negative energy stirring in the air, the ground was shaking slightly as the blonde maintained his composure while the winds tried to lift him off his feet. This was a battle that Douma had second thoughts about, which wasn't a great start but he had to for the sake of the innocent lives out there.