Kintoki's amnesia was an interesting dilemma. While I was hoping he retained his memories after that stunt, if only so that he had full knowledge of the Golden Dragons operations, this presents its own unique opportunity. I now have a minion with high potential and a caretaker who doesn't mind the job nor molding the minion to my wishes. "What do you remember?"
His face scrunches up as he tries to draw something out, a memory that he can hold onto, a feeling, a sensation. From the look of terror that he comes out of his search with, there isn't anything but void for him to find. I can see that moment that he latches onto Yaeko like a lifeline when she puts her hand on his shoulder.
"There's nothing… I don't understand what's going on." I shoot Yaeko a quick glare when her hand starts slipping down his back. She backs off but not without pouting at me. Seriously, the man doesn't remember you, enough of the horniness.
"Well, your name is Sakata Kintoki, and you are the reincarnation of the legendary hero of the same name. You are also the former leader of a chivalrous organization known as the Golden Dragons." He doesn't recognize any of the specifics but he understands the context of the words themselves. That means that he hasn't lost his memory so much as his ego has been destroyed.
"So I was a hero then? You said I lead a chivalrous organization, so I help people." He looks almost hopeful that I'll affirm his conclusion, an expectation that goes against what I know of the original Kintoki. I glance at Yaeko for confirmation and she looks as confused as Kintoki did when he woke up.
This would be a fairly large moral shift, so is his superego a casualty of that technique as well? My knowledge of the soul is at a beginner's level at best and Byakko can only intuit so much. How much of this change could be attributed to the damage to his soul and how much is simply a result of memory loss? Which matters more, his innate self as defined by the expression of his soul or the way his mind is shaped by his experiences?
"Not exactly, you were a hero to some of the people who worked under you but you were a villain to many others." His face falls and I can't truly take any pleasure in that. It's impossible to consider him the same person who was involved in the trafficking of sapients; he's just a being adrift and alone.
Yaeko comes to his rescue in a way that only someone of her personality type can, "You're a new person, right? You can be a hero now if that's what you want." If I said the same thing it would be treated with suspicion and skepticism but not from someone so open and straightforward.
He relaxes a fraction, the death grip he had on the sheets of the bed lessening. He looks younger now without the anger on his face from before, closer to his mid-thirties than the early forties that I would have guessed before. The confidence and resolve that fills his posture as he nods toward Yaeko is… heroic. Heroic is an adjective that wouldn't have described the man he was before now and falls more in line with the echo of the original that burst forth from his soul.
"Who are you then, where am I, and what is a chivalrous organization?" I raise my brow in question and he snorts, shakes his head with a grin. "I know who I am now, or at least who I want to be. Now I need information so I can move forward."
"My name's Yaeko and I'm your favorite- only lover." I sigh as she crushes him against her chest. Now I remember why I don't envy her straightforward nature, no tact whatsoever. He escapes from her hold after a minute of struggle, the tent in his pants not going unnoticed by any of us. The amnesia didn't hinder his licentiousness, though with something that size I suppose it's hard to think about anything but sex. Thankfully that just makes him easier to control.
"You two can reacquaint yourselves later. For now, I'll answer your other questions." Their attention remains on each other so I cough and leak a little killing intent. Both of them sober up and refocus in short order. It doesn't escape my notice that his hand reaches for the axe that is no longer at his side. Good, his reflexes haven't been lost.
"My name is Ibaraki, today is the first time we've met but I spent the last two weeks learning about you and your organization; what has now become my organization." I nod approvingly when his eyes narrow at the implications. I have no need for brainless muscle -as much as Yaeko prefers to tackle problems head-on she isn't an idiot- so I'm glad he is still able to put things together. "To put things simply, you pissed off the wrong people and I was sent to eliminate you. As you can see, I elected to make a different choice."
"You're the reason I can't remember who I am?" He bares his teeth at me and lightning starts to dance across his body, instinctually responding to his rage. The wind is taken from his sails, replaced by surprise when I laugh. Yaeko sighs and rubs his back until I'm done.
I straighten up and wipe a tear from the corner of my eye before responding, "No, you actually did that to yourself funnily enough. I am the reason you are still alive though and it would do you well to remember that piece of information. Not sure what you named the technique or if you even knew what you were doing but you basically ignited your soul to surpass my strength. I think you realize that it still wasn't enough."
"You took some important people, the woman who I work with was quite concerned and asked me to help her find them." The mention of his less than heroic past is enough for him to back down, properly chastised. I'll be able to use that to point the organization in the direction I want later.
"As for where we are, we are in your suite inside your club The Golden Boy. I would say you were compensating for something based on naming it after yourself but I now know that would be a lie." I smirk as he fidgets uneasily, clearly not expecting the abrupt jump from chastising to flirty. I doubt he'll be fun to tease for long as that prod barely hit the mark, he also isn't my type so I'm not likely to continue. "The organization has a few properties around Kyoto, all for various purposes. That would be a good place to start explaining what the organization actually is."
"The Golden Dragons, from what information we gathered, are closer to what the media calls Yakuza: Boryokudan or violent groups. Things like protection rackets, trafficking of drugs and people, sokaiya or stockholder extorsion, with a dash of violent crime to keep things interesting, are the mainstay of the organization." His face grows stony as he attempts to hide how the news is affecting him. From the turbulence of his Ki flow, he isn't happy about it. "For the more legitimate businesses, there are; shipping and logistics, spas, night clubs, and automotive shops. The less-than-legitimate side of those businesses are; smuggling centers, soaplands, strip clubs, and chop shops."
"Things are going to change with the new management and I think you'll agree to the direction I want to take things. First of all, the protection rackets will involve actual protection. I want the communities and businesses that pay us to see our presence and feel safe as a result. If an old lady who lives in one of our neighborhoods doesn't have their groceries carried by our men, well someone is going to be punished." Of course, it goes without saying that outside our territory it isn't our problem. Like any tax, your benefits are taken away when it isn't paid.
"The second part may take some time but the drugs we give out aren't going to ruin lives." A fireball orbits me as I speak, punctuating my point. "Magic is real and ever-present, if we can't make drugs that don't destroy people and are more potent than the original, I'll kill myself out of shame. Plus, without the side effects, they can be sold for a premium."
"I don't actually have a problem with sokaiya as a practice but let's put more pressure on businesses supported by devils and fallen rather than those owned by Yokai or humans." If we start affecting both their legal and illegal interests they may send someone challenging after me. That devil that Yaeko fought was amusing due to the novelty of a real devil more than their ability as a mage.
"Theft and mugging are for the bottom-feeding cowards, we have more important things to do. If we catch them on our turf they should pay a fee for forgetting who owns the area, right?" Kintoki grins, the combination of stopping criminals and extorting idiots striking the sweet spot between the old and the new him.
"The rest I'm fine with, barring two exceptions. Trafficking of people is done full stop. We can help people enter or leave the country but we aren't dragging them from their homes for sex work. Tying into that point is that our sex workers need to want to do their job. They need good wages and a proper support structure so they feel safe in their employment; whether that's protection from infections, patrons, or law enforcement. We have the muscle, we should use it." I puff up a little at Yaeko's expression, considering she's looking at me as though I'm a genius. Kintoki, however, isn't so easy to please.
"You said this was an organization, right? That implies there is a large membership and presumably a hierarchy. Do you think they'll just accept all these changes?" My teeth glint as I bare them in response, Kintoki flinching at the blatantly inhuman gesture.
"They don't need to like it, they just need to fall in line. Sanctions and distancing from the organization's support will be fine for small infractions but should someone openly defy us…" The golden pillar at the corner of the bed starts to melt as my hand wraps around it. "They'll learn why that is a bad idea."
He eyes the molten mess warily, finally realizing that despite how amiable I've been this whole time, I was still a hostile party. "Fine. What is my role in all this then?"
When I level a predatory gaze and a too-wide smile at him, he shivers. "I'm so glad you asked! The truth is your job won't change too much from what it is before. In most cases, you are still going to be the leader, hence why the name of the gang isn't changing. My identity, while not a secret, would be better served being hidden from the public eye. What with being an Oni and all."
"You will have the added job of sparring with Yaeko and I." Yaeko looks at me, not expecting that but really she should have. Other than Akio and I, there aren't any opponents who are near her raw strength or surpass her and that we have easy access to. She needs to get stronger to properly serve the interests of the village and myself.
I'll be sparring with him for the same reason. Fujiwara may be far superior to Kintoki in technique and slightly in speed but I need experience in fighting those with the power to actually threaten me. That is the reason I'm a bit disappointed he doesn't remember how he got here; if he had, he would have come at me with lethal intent, furthering how quickly I could grow from the spars. The gains from this outcome are arguably better though.
Kintoki grunts in response and turns to Yaeko, promptly becoming distracted because Yaeko had begun to shrug her clothes off while we weren't paying attention. I pinch the bridge of my nose and put my arm on Kintoki's leg, healing the remaining damage. "I was pretty much finished talking anyway so you two have fun. Tomorrow the real work starts."
Grumbling, I make my way out of the room. I fire a weak ball of ki backward that knocks the half-melted bedpost down onto the two of them. That's what they get for not having the decency to wait until I'm gone.
From the Golden Boy, I travel straight to Yasaka Shrine, stepping into Urakyoto on the way. I mostly want to go to have my mission be officially complete, but the rest of my motivation is so I can know what the fuck Yasaka was thinking. Even if the Tengu clan or clan head pissed her off, leaving their heiress -or anyone else for that matter- to become a Yakuza boss' sex toy is a bit much.
The servants by now know me by sight yet they seem to sense my mood and give me a wide berth. The skittish servants are enough for me to figure out I'm leaking killing intent and rein it back in. My brief demonstration has distressed the guards though and halfway to the usual meeting room, Fujiwara intercepts me.
He places himself in between me and my objective, an action that makes me scoff. "Move, Fujiwara, before I move you."
"Don't walk in there like this, it will be something you regret, kid. This isn't the time or place." I shake my head and relax my posture, gazing at my sparring partner impassively. His hand drifts towards his sword but he stops himself short.
"I'm not some hothead who can't think things through, Fujiwara. I'm just here to talk to her, don't get your panties in a bunch." I click my tongue and hook my thumbs at my sides in my obi. "If you want to fight just ask, don't waste my time on falsehoods that you could stop me if I tried."
I smirk as he grimaces, imagining the tick mark that would appear on his forehead. He'll pull out more tricks and fight harder in our next spar because of this slight. That's exactly what I want though so I don't mind. Rather than storming off he calms down and stares at me seriously, "We may have gotten off on the wrong foot but you're a good kid, I don't want to see you barred from the city because of a misunderstanding."
I swallow to ignore the fluttery feeling and smother any sentiment with bravado. "Don't get ahead of yourself old man, you can't get rid of me that easily."
He laughs and shakes his head, "If only the world was so merciful to save me from impetuous brats with no respect. I'll see you on the weekend for more training but go easy on Yasaka-sama, okay?"
"Sure but you better sharpen that blade, old man, we're using live weapons again when we fight!" I give him a lazy salute and saunter by, grinning when he rolls his eyes at me. I wasn't that pissed at Yasaka but I realize now that getting stopped here was probably for the best. Even if I hadn't done something I couldn't take back, it would've set back relations between us a fair amount if I went in raging.
When I enter the room, Yasaka doesn't even bat an eye, simply continuing to read through the report she's working on. It pisses me off a little to be ignored but I know it's another social tactic she's employing to throw me off balance. If I didn't enjoy pissing others off as much as I do, I might even dislike Yasaka for it. That would make me a hypocrite though.
Deciding instead to play along with her game, I plop down across from her and pour myself a cup of tea. I drink it while lounging, throwing all proprietary out the window, and if I drink a bit louder than usual it must be a coincidence. As I start to drink my second cup of tea she finally lowers her report, smirking at me as she puts it down. "A crude method but effective. I wouldn't suggest using tactics like that unless you know how the other party will take it. I assume congratulations are in order?"
"As if I'd settle for anything other than total victory. It was a good fight too, who would have thought the old captain of the Shitenno's reincarnation led that gang?" I glare playfully at Yasaka and she laughs.
"That is a coincidence. What an auspicious encounter, Fate enjoys toying with you, hmm?" She coyly smiles as she tilts her head in faux contemplation. I snort and wave my finger to and fro in front of her.
"I know someone who enjoys toying with me, though she doesn't usually go by Fate. To think she has such high aspirations as to take the mantle of Fate as her own." A gasp at the audacity of such a person. "To think working closely with a goddess wasn't enough and she wants to be one herself."
"I'm offended that you would think so little of me." Her look of outrage is too comical to be anything but fake. "I haven't lasted as long as I have, leading this faction, by treating people as expendable pawns."
"No, but I would say that is more due to expendable pawns being less useful; certainly less re-usable than a proper subordinate. I do, however, believe you're forgetting something important." The flippant attitude I had adopted while we were bantering melts away as my teeth are bared. "I'm not your subordinate. I work with you because it's beneficial for my aims; the keyword being 'with' rather than 'for'. I'm fine with you using me, I'm doing the same with you, but be careful where you tread."
"Hmm, you're upset about the girl?" No shit, Yasaka. What else would I be upset with? I enjoyed fighting Kintoki and all the stuff leading up to it. Allowing a girl to be potentially raped is long past where I draw the line. She seems to take my expression as an answer and nods to herself.
"She was perfectly safe, she was a target for ransom and nothing more. We would have received a missive in a week or two and after some back and forth either paid or destroyed the group that you now rule. Her father was getting arrogant, too assured of his clan's status, and needed to be taken down a peg. Nobody touches a hostage that is that valuable." She waves the accusation off lackadaisical and I pinch the bridge of my nose.
"Yasaka, I'm telling you, you're wrong. Kintoki was exactly the kind of person to touch someone because they were valuable. The man was the epitome of vanity and pride. He would have seen her status as a worthy conquest to 'honor' himself with." The response is well covered but I can see Yasaka's nose scrunch up minutely in distaste and the edge of her mouth twitch, trying to form a grimace.
"If my subordinate hadn't done such a good job of keeping him 'distracted' and tired out, that girl would have come back in a sorry state. Do you think the Tengu chief, who you said was becoming too arrogant, wouldn't want retribution? His clan makes up the majority of the guard, including the honorable position of guarding your daughter!" Yasaka's tails stand straight up, the fur puffing out as she bristles with anger at the threat to her daughter. The very idea of someone being negligent in their duty of defending what she finds most precious in the world being anathema.
"They wouldn't dare!" The air thrums with power as Yasaka's presence swells. My hands twitch, eager to fight the absolute monster in front of me and my breathing speeds up in excitement. Sadly, Yasaka restrains herself as she seems to realize how hypocritical that notion was. Getting offended that someone else wanted retribution for their daughter's distress when she does the same thing is beyond stupid.
Yasaka sits back down and I wait patiently for her to regain her composure. She stills herself and takes slow, deep breaths with her eyes closed to center herself again. I find myself mimicking the process to temper my excitement from before. One of these days I'm going to have to convince her to fight me; it isn't fair that someone at this level interacts with me regularly without even a light spar.
"I apologize for the outburst, it seems I should have collected more information before deciding on that course of action." She ignores me mumbling about how that isn't what she should be apologizing for, electing to continue her train of thought instead. "I also believe that I now have to thank you for preventing an issue that I would have been hard-pressed to deal with."
"It's funny you should mention being thankful." I lean forward with my hands on my knees and smile. I had been thinking about the lacking strength of my minions and had realized that I had a 'relative' that was unaccounted for; one that I happened to know where they might be. "You see, there's something very important to my people and their cultural heritage. The best part is, it's even in Kyoto!"
She seems wary of what I'm angling for but doesn't know exactly what I'm aiming for. "Depending on what you're asking for... the return of it could be arranged. What item are you speaking of?"
"I took my family to a blacksmith recently but I couldn't find a weapon that matched my sister's preferences, she's quite picky. So, I was doing some thinking and thought, 'Hey, what about Kenmyoren? It's sitting in the treasury of Byodoin temple just a leisurely walk away.' Surely, Shuten would be happy to wield a weapon like that." I take a moment to enjoy the first state of complete shock I've managed to leave Yasaka in. While she isn't the type to gape in astonishment, it's a close thing.
"That is… How would you even know about that? Who would have even told you?" I smile giddily. Catching Yasaka flat-footed is the highlight of my day no matter how she replies.
"I was doing some light reading the other day and stumbled across it. Humans are pretty casual about throwing details like that in their myths to drum up tourism. Gloating about where powerful beings are sealed and it being actually true seems pretty dumb to me, unless they want someone to come knocking." I shrug and from the look of her Yasaka is a combination of exasperated and resigned. Exasperated at the stupidity of what they've done but resigned to the fact that people value wealth over common sense. "To be fair to them, they most likely don't realize the truth of their words."
"Ignorance isn't an excuse you can hide behind for safety. This extortion has nothing to do with the Kijin, Otakemaru, whose spirit is sealed inside Kenmyoren, would it?" Yasaka sighs when she sees my 'completely real' look of surprise.
"You mean to say an old relative of mine that we all thought dead is still alive? To think you've kept this from me all this time! This betrayal is too much for my frail body to take." I swoon, barely catching myself before passing out. When I sit back up Yasaka is glaring at me but fighting a grin at the same time.
"To think my long-lost Uncle was still around. You wouldn't keep family apart, not even you can be so cold!" I'd be crying at the inhumanity of such a cruel woman but that would be a little too far for this act, even if it would be amusing.
"If you'll stop the theatrics I may be willing to try and make this 'reunion' come true." Faster than you can say, 'crocodile tears' I've straightened up and am the picture of dignity. Yasaka, however, looks completely unimpressed by my refined aura. "This path won't make you many friends, assuming you can even convince Otakemaru to follow your lead. Is this really worth angering Suzuka Gozen and Bishamonten?"
"Why wouldn't he follow me? I'm amazing. Also, what's another foe on the pile?" I sigh dreamily, fantasizing about all the battling I'll get to do in the future. "That just means more people to fight later. Is that supposed to be a warning or a promise?"
"You're insane. Those are minor Gods with millennia of experience, not a Yakuza boss who is barely competent. I'm just making this worse aren't I?" I discreetly wipe away the drool at the corner of my mouth as she finishes. "I'll work on it, don't expect those monks to give an artifact like that up easily though."
"Just say that there is a safer place for it; it isn't technically a lie. I'm getting used to how these things go so it should end with me beating him into submission and leaving him at my home village to protect it. I wasn't lying about giving Kenmyoren to my sister though." The sword won't be seeing action for a while if I have anything to say about it. If someone wants to fight my sister, they have to go through me first.
"Fine, be patient though. Now, I have reports and missives to review, along with a growing headache to nurse. I trust you know your way out?" She doesn't even wait for me to respond before pulling out paperwork. Well, I know when I'm not wanted.
"Bye love, I'll be back to pick up my shiny present later!" I blow her a kiss and wink as I back out of the room. She glares at me and ruthlessly crushes my air kiss in her fist, gesturing with her other hand to slam the door closed on me. I'm pretty sure she's into me.
With the dawn of a new day came a new commitment to training. Even if the fight with Kintoki had been won by me, and could have been easier if I went all out, I'm dissatisfied by the results. A man who was bereft of challenge all his life, stuck with no real opportunities to temper his strength, was able to go toe-to-toe with me after using a sacrificial technique. While it helped that Kintoki, strength-wise is basically Japanese Heracles, that isn't an excuse.
My strength is still growing with both age and circulation of my body refinement technique but it isn't fast enough. It's a shame that I can't cheat at strength like Heracles and just drink Hera's breast milk… Zeus is a bit of a dick so I'll just jot that idea down for later.
Ahem, the main issue with my body refinement is that it is something I need to focus on. Originally, I had wanted the process to become something that always runs in the background, constantly increasing my strength. That had never panned out and the idea had been shelved as I focused on other, quicker increases to my power. Now that I have the time, I need to make that happen.
It isn't something that will just happen though, rather I'll have to train other things while attempting to maintain the flow of natural Ki. That leaves me in the interesting conundrum of making gains in my other training vectors while suffering through the pain of my every cell being violently torn to shreds.
Within seconds of trying to maintain the Ki flow while running through sword forms, I realize that it won't work. The pain I can deal with but when your muscles are being torn, even if they heal quickly it still interrupts your movements. It also would be detrimental to the precision of my movements if I tried to practice like this because my standards for accuracy would be lowered.
I'll have to only use this while practicing magic or something sedentary. It would be ideal if I could circulate my body refinement method in my sleep, yet pain and sleep don't generally go together. Since physical training for me is better with an opponent to fight anyway, I don't feel bad about switching gears to magic training.
Two minds are better than one so Byakko materializes from a swirl of flame. Rather than the monochrome coloring he had just yesterday, I can see hints of that vibrant silver from my mind space poking out of the flames. Byakko notices my confusion and smirks, "Yesterday's battle helped me realize some things about the expression of the soul. I would have liked to thank Kintoki for this but that man is no longer the same one that showed me this path."
"You noticed that too then?" The man has become a blank slate if tainted with the essence of the original hero's spirit. The final circumstances are something of a miracle honestly, the technique burned enough away to paint fragments of the ancient hero into the gaps without falling apart completely.
"Of course I noticed." He sniffs haughtily, as though there could be no other conclusion. "We aren't here to discuss that or the luxurious perfection that is my fur. We are here to apply some of the theories we've compiled with the little spark."
"Let's begin then. To start, what do we know about fire?" I start to pace and cycle my body refinement while I put together my analysis. "Fire from a scientific perspective is energy in the form of heat and light; It's an exothermic chemical process that at its base is the rapid oxidation of a material. It's only visible due to impurities in the reaction or incomplete consumption of fuel."
Byakko nods along with my explanation before interjecting, "Fire is also passion, anger, creativity, bravery, willpower, and hunger. It is hot and dry and is propriety as well as the nobility of the soul. Both eastern and western philosophers agree that fire is sharp; angular according to the Wu Xing, and a tetrahedron by Plato's estimate."
"There's an agreement between science and philosophy on some things but contradictions in others. For example," I light a fire in the air between us, "Feeding it causes its hunger to grow."
As I pump more energy into it the fire grows wild, eager to devour more and more of my reserves; the same way that an influx of oxygen will cause a flame to burn through its fuel even faster.
"Yet sharp and angular imply a physical presence," I swipe my hand through the flame, the limb slipping through without resistance, "Something mundane flame lacks."
"My body isn't lacking presence though. Fire can have mass through magic. We know that physical laws aren't quite laws, so long as the cost is paid." That was the rub, wasn't it? The basic rule of magic from what we could gather is that it was an exchange. You paid a price that was usually personal energy to make phenomena happen. The price varies depending on how feasible the intended effect is within the purview of nature.
Affinities for certain elements and styles of magic both have their own roles to play in the execution of a spell. I, for example, can weave fire like a tapestry for a relatively small price. The same can be said for Shuten and Akeno with poison and lightning respectively. If any of us tried to use the other's specialty we would perceive stark contrasts in the resultant efficiency.
Akeno could use fire fairly easily due to being a member of the Himejima clan and also the similarities between fire and lightning. Shuten and I, in contrast, have difficulty using the other's affinity since poison is based on the element of water. Poison though would be easier for me to use than water because of poison's traits of hunger and consumption which is closer to fire.
Different magic systems also have different modifiers to the cost of what you're trying to do. The Merlinian method focuses on knowledge and calculated efficiency, making it cost-effective but also far less intuitive than other systems. Yojutsu rewards whimsy and strong emotion, this makes the magic-less consistent and a bit mischievous.
All these findings can be summed up into a somewhat confusing if apt metaphor. Magic itself is like traveling, with the destination being the result you want. The discipline of magic is the mode of travel -like a car, train, or plane- whether that means healing magic or necromancy, or elemental magic. The magical tradition, such as Yojutsu or Norse, is the manufacturer of the vehicle; each having its pros, cons, special features, and quirks.
If these descriptions are taken at face value then the laws of nature are the environmental conditions that your journey faces. Trying to light a fire underwater would be like trying to drive a car up a vertical incline. The thing is, with a powerful enough engine -spell- being supplied enough fuel -energy- you can push past those restrictions.
Things get even more confusing when you take into account the fact that different magical traditions have their own affinities and properties for elements. The Norse see fire as a sign of renewal, warmth, and growth, so they can use fire to heal. Egyptians in contrast have water as the origin of life due to the symbolism of the Nile, therefore it's natural for them to heal with water. Eastern European magical traditions can draw more power out of ice magic than say African traditions.
But as I said earlier what matters most is the energy you supply to ignore these things. With infinite energy anything becomes possible.
"Well? I'm waiting?" I pull the flames in between us back into my control and form them into a ball, hovering in front of me.
I want a ranged method of attack with fire that isn't simply throwing flames at something till it melts or burns. That means solidity for impact at a distance and a powerful image that resonates with me. A bullet may be more powerful than a spear or arrow for a baseline human but for me, an arrow is the strongest.
The arrowhead forms when the ball of flame is drawn backward, the tip is fixed in space. The flames seek to flow outward from my control and I allow them to. Fire is naturally chaotic, too much control and it loses power. Finally, I grab a handful of flame and pull it from the center of the flow forming the shaft of the arrow. Through the process, I focus on my meditations of Archery and solidifying the flames.
"Not bad for a first try." Byakko walks up to the arrow and prods it with his paw. "It's fragile and ugly, but not terrible. It's lacking in heat as a result of becoming physical too. The lack of emotion might be a problem since this is Yojutsu. Rage would raise the power, hunger for battle to track the target down, creativity to make it pure heat, not sure how passion would affect it."
"Hmm, the size maybe? Passion swells, anger builds." On my other hand, my custom magic sigil appears, a formula winding its way around the sigil and forming the circle. Unlike the other arrow, this one starts out intangible and as pure heat; as it flies it will convert the oxygen it picks up into heat and turn that into kinetic energy. "How about this one?"
One gets stronger the further it flies, the other will get stronger the more skilled I get with Youjutsu. Both are valid approaches to the same problem and each has its benefits.
"The enemy just needs to run toward it to dampen the impact. Bad design. You need to study more before that kind of magic is useful." I roll my eyes in response. I'm not going to use it but the academic value of knowing the process behind it is beneficial to me. "Fine. It's a cute attempt. Move on to the clone next."
There isn't any point in actualizing the spell since we aren't worried about that aspect. It's the permanence that matters, not the effect. Instead, I wait for Byakko to continue.
"What does your mother do for clones? I've been thinking about it and comparing it to your old memories of clone techniques. What conclusion can you reach?" I huff after a minute of thinking because I draw a blank. My mother is a lot of things but gold at explaining magic isn't one of them. She's one of those prodigies who says, 'I just did it.' and shrugs.
From the amusement on his face, he had anticipated this and was baiting me into waiting time stewing on that thought. "Now think of something useful; compare Sun Wukong's clones and Shadow Clones."
Almost instantly I groan in realization. I'm trying to make physical clones without a medium! Not only that but intelligent clones. Shadow clones form a physical shell out of Yang Chakra and fill it with Yin Chakra for intelligence. Sun Wukong's clones are formed from a hair on his head, hairs that grow from the source of intellect.
I go to slash open a wrist and use blood as the base when Byakko tsks in annoyance. "Good idea, if you were your sister. Your mother gives illusions substance for physical clones because she sees her life now as a dream turned real. Make it more personal than that."
I swallow and make a mental note to spend more time with my mother before reaching above my head. I sigh when Byakko gives me a nod of approval as my hand hovers over my horns. Deciding to get it over with I snap one of them off and toss it in front of me as I actualize the spell. Sure enough, a picture-perfect clone of myself lands where the horn would have.
"As much as you try to deny it you are a leader now. Horns and crowns both represent a power above the body, as royalty is a position above the body of the people." My clone and I both glare at him as he starts to laugh. "To think you were mocking me for my pride just yesterday, brat."
"So I can-" My clone and I look at each other as Byakko chuffs in the background.
"You go ahead, I'll dispel myself." With a cheeky wink, she shoves her hand through her chest and pulls her heart out. She cackles as she scatters like ash in the wind.
"Am I always that creepy?" Byakko suspiciously pays incredible attention to grooming his fur at this moment. "Anyway, so I can make two clones maximum. One for each horn."
Byakko rolls his head as though tossing the idea around and shrugs. "For now, yes. Eventually, you may have enough power to spawn multiple per horn. Remember, Otakemaru was able to split himself into thousands of Oni from a ten-meter tall Kijin."
"It doesn't matter much now, I'll worry about it later. Grudge flame time!" Since the flames originated from feelings of rage, regret, hunger for vengeance, and bitterness, those same emotions make the best fuel. I've been fueling the flames with Youki for a while now because without the grudges I had accumulated they needed new fuel. "You agree with the development path, right?"
"A flame that hungers enough to devour magic and chase down prey; That fuels itself and grows the more it eats? Sure, what could possibly go wrong with that plan?" I swat at him but he ducks it and smacks me with his tail. "Imagine if you wanted it to be able to consume Gods, wouldn't that be ridiculous? Oh wait, that's exactly what you're planning."
Pouting while pushing aside thoughts of a tiger skin rug, I focus on conceptualizing the grudge flames. The closest thing I can think of to what I want is the void… I think I'll hold off on trying to incorporate that into the flames. Even I know when an idea is completely insane. With that option firmly off the table, I turn to my own hunger for battle instead. Combining that with the hunger for vengeance that the grudge flames have been filled with should produce a flame that seeks out a strong opponent to consume.
All that's left to do is remove the instinctual safeguards that prevent a technique. This will make it truly wild, giving it the instinct to devour anything. "Ok! Conjuring, now."
A ball of black flame floats above my upturned palm and for a second I think I messed up. It is almost comedic how quickly the fire leaps for my arm the moment that thought crosses my mind. Grinning, I trap the fire in a cuboid barrier before it can move any further. Immediately, the drain on my reserves from maintaining the barrier starts to grow.
I drop the barrier both because I want to test other things and I don't want the fire growing too powerful yet. Then I do the only sensible thing and grab it. I've covered my arm in Touki, I'm not an idiot but I still have to test it. If anything, the flames get more out of eating my Touki than they did the barrier spell.
When it gets to the point that I'm sweating from exertion I detach myself from the grudge flames. Since it is following me, the only way to do that is to sever my arm at the elbow. Without my Touki actively shielding the forelimb, it's swiftly devoured by black fire. Satisfied with my test, I reapply the barrier and start shrinking it. The goal is to snuff out the grudge flames by collapsing them on top of themselves.
It takes nearly half of my reserves to finally destroy the last vestiges of the flame, and by that point, I was considering running to get Akeno so she could seal it. If even she couldn't seal it, then I would've had to go get an adult; because I clearly would've been out of my depth. Byakko didn't get up to try and help even once, simply staring at me with a smug expression.
I think that's enough for now. I have an imminent appointment anyway.
Once I got myself cleaned up and presentable -regrew my horn and forearm- I awaited the arrival of the tutor Yasaka had sent at my request. Apparently, the man was highly recommended, and thoroughly checked for any outside loyalties; something that told me he either was trustworthy or simply worked directly for Yasaka.
I smile when he arrives five minutes early to our scheduled time, early but not annoyingly so. When I slide open the front door I come face to waist with an absolute mountain of a man. He stands at about fourteen feet tall and if that isn't weird enough he's wearing a yellow-brown Kasaya and has a single large eye in the center of his forehead. Now, someone might guess that he was a cyclops that converted to Buddhism. That person would be wrong. What he actually is would be an Onyudo or more specifically a Hitotsume Nyudo, a one-eyed priest.
While Onyudo are usually not benevolent, that is based on human mythology, and quite frankly I'm something far scarier. "Please, come in. Yasaka didn't inform me of your stature so I don't have any slippers in your size, my apologies, Mr..."
He places his hands in front of him in the Anjali mudra and gives me a small bow, something that causes him to loom in the doorway due to his size. "This one has taken the name, Jun. Greetings to you, Ibaraki. Do not fret, you have no need to apologize, the Buddha gave me the gift of shifting in size so this one may experience the strides of all people." Saying so he shrinks to a normal height and I place the slippers down for him.
"Right, follow me your pupils are excited to meet you." I wasn't expecting a Buddhist monk who by the color of his robes is at least a Zen master or Osho who would be in charge of a temple. Ignoring the likely high status of the man, I bite my tongue and don't tell him that Shuten is definitely not happy about having a tutor. This man will need the patience of Buddha if he's going to make headway with my sister. Akeno, the little angel, will be fine as always. She even told me she was excited to learn new things, I nearly cried.
"While we walk, are you planning on nudging the kids towards Buddhism?" I keep any threat out of my voice but I wouldn't be surprised if my less than amiable thoughts slipped through. I don't mind if either of the girls decides to follow a set of beliefs, so long as it's their decision and an informed decision. Especially given that in this world the existence of Gods is a certainty.
"All follow The Way, whether they hold the Buddha in their hearts or not he smiles upon them and holds them in his. If you mean to suggest this one will force them to follow his teachings, no, no he will not." I nod in response and brighten back up, becoming a respectable host again.
"Wonderful! I will say that if you can get them to meditate I'll be grateful." He looks at me in a new light when I say that and smiles. Belatedly, I realize my mistake.
"Aha, a fellow seeker of the liberated way of living! This one told you that we all follow The Way, didn't he?" His eye -and boy is that still unsettling- glimmers with glee, the knowledge that I too meditate regularly being enough to satisfy him. "What forms of meditation do you practice? Zazen, kinhin, koan, or perhaps oryoki?"
He smiles at me and blinks? Err, winks conspiratorially. "You do not seem the type to practice prostration before the Buddha, friend."
"Zazen but focused on three main ideas instead of my breathing; the sword, the bow, and nothingness." There isn't any sense in holding back information. As a monk he knows more about meditation than I do, probably by a staggering amount; he also can't comprehend the void unless he was Buddha himself, so it won't help him.
"Hmm, you do not meditate to seek peace but seek war… This one is unsure of such a practice yet this one is still but a student as well. Perhaps this is another form of the Buddha." He closes his eye in heavy contemplation as we walk. Thankfully, the courtyard isn't far. By the time we get there he opens his eye, seemingly finished his introspection, and I slide open the door.
"Hey Shuten-chan, Akeno-chan, here is your new tutor! Have fun!" The moment Zen Master Jun steps through the door into the courtyard I hightail it out of there. He's their problem now.
I head to find my mother and help her with whatever she's doing. Part of my reasoning is that I need to stay in the house so I can kill the Zen Master if he tries anything, the other is that I need to spend more time with her. With the added responsibility of running a gang, I'm going to be busier than ever so I need to spend time with family while I can. When I find her she's fixing some damaged clothes and when I ask if I can help her smile lights up the room.
I promise myself to do little things like this more often after that.
Later in the day -after Zen Master Jun finished their lessons- we settled down to watch some television. Shuten was still very into Familiar Master, the only good part about that being that it provided a wealth of knowledge concerning magical beasts. I am being a bit uncharitable saying that, it's actually a fairly well-done show. Zatouji is more like the Steve Irwin of monsters than the gag character he was in Highschool DxD. Considering in one of the episodes he willingly approached a Hydra so he could help it finish molting? He earned some respect from me.
Akeno became interested in magical girl shows, something that I wouldn't expect from how reserved she usually is. When I teased her about it after catching her watching Miracle Levia-tan, she puffed out her cheeks and said it had an intricate plot that was masterfully written. To my surprise, it was… decent. I'll begrudgingly admit that. Most of the show quality is probably due to Serafall's immense mastery over magic and the equally immense budget
Mother was partial to dramas, and cooking shows. While I am always entertained by a good cooking show, dramas are a hard no. Akeno was the only one who was willing to sit through a drama but even then it was only when it was a period drama.
Right now, however, we are watching an emergency weather broadcast. The area of the Sea of Japan, situated between mainland China and Japan, was blanketed in what they were calling 'The Storm of The Century.' Unlike most of the time when things like that are said, this wasn't an exaggeration. Massive waves, howling typhoons, and torrential rains mingled together to create a superstorm that looked like something out of a movie.
The weirdest thing was that none of the weather was making landfall on either side. Waves would suddenly lose their momentum and crash back into the sea, hurricanes would twist their way along the coast rather than climbing onto land, even the rain barely made it to shore. If this isn't divine intervention, I don't know what is. "This is going to make more work for me, isn't it?"
Mother reaches over and pats my head consolingly; Akeno and Shuten in contrast are openly laughing at my expense. Shuten I had expected this of, not Akeno. "I'm sure nothing too bad will come out of this, Onee-sama."
I glare at Shuten as she blatantly temps fate. From the smirk she's giving me she's doing it on purpose too. I leap to tackle my little sister but my mother snatches me out of the air, flipping me around, and puts me back where I started. Defeated, I cross my arms and pout.
"Whatever this is, I'm sure you'll handle it deftly and with grace." I preen at the praise and nod. My mother recognizes my brilliance, as she should. My concern is that neither Japan nor China were being affected by the weather. If it were a feud between the gods of both nations, they each would be hit by the 'natural disaster.' Instead, it is almost as if they're trying to contain an outside issue in the center.
Who or what is messing with two whole pantheons?