High in the sky, the Karasu-tengu and Miketsu’s group were still soaring swiftly, continuing their approach towards Sugo Ungo.
During this time, Aoi and Miketsu’s group exchanged a good deal of information. Among it, what Aoi last mentioned about Sugo Ungo being attacked by an unknown assailant ten years ago, a certain word in her explanation greatly piqued Miketsu’s interest.
“Monster?” Miketsu questioned, sounding puzzled. From her perspective, it was rather intriguing that Aoi, a yokai herself, would use such a word.
“Indeed... I don’t know how else to define him, so for now, I’ll just call him a monster...” Listening to Miketsu’s words, Aoi pondered for a moment before replying, understanding Miketsu’s confusion.
“That guy... outwardly, he looks like a normal human, but he wields a strange power that is neither demonic nor spiritual. No matter how severe his injuries, he regenerates at an incredibly fast rate; he’s more yokai than yokai, yet not a yokai at all... His power is immense, and it’s impossible to understand what he is... No one but the Great Clan Leader can suppress him...” Aoi recounted slowly, her face darkening as she recalled unpleasant memories. Her words subtly startled Miketsu, stirring up her own past recollections.
“What does that seemingly human monster look like? What are his distinct features?” Miketsu asked Aoi directly.
“Features... Hmm, he wears armor, dressed like a human samurai. Oh, and he has a sword! A sword that looks very sinister!”
After hearing Aoi’s words, Miketsu immediately thought of the experience Mokou had once described – the human who had left a broken blade in her chest, compelling her to proceed to Heian-kyo and self-detonate, also seemed to be a human samurai wielding a strange sword.
Could it be the same individual?!
The mere thought sent a jolt through Miketsu. In that instant, she felt as if she had seen through layers of illusion, identifying the mastermind behind it all, while simultaneously, a cascade of perplexing questions flooded her mind.
A host of questions kept surfacing in her mind. Who was this human samurai? How could he remain ageless, wandering various parts of this country for centuries? What was his purpose in attacking Sugo Ungo and manipulating Mokou to bomb Heian-kyo? Could the human who granted the leopard cat yokai the power of Blood Sacrifice also be him? Was there anything special about his sinister sword?
Miketsu shook her head, forcing herself to momentarily set these thoughts aside. She had slowly committed them to memory, intending to thoroughly analyze and investigate the matter using divination techniques once they returned.
After Aoi finished recounting the events, silence once again descended upon the scene. Aside from Yamausagi’s humming, only the howling wind could be heard.
In the stillness, everyone continued their approach towards Sugo Ungo.
Just as the sun began to set high in the sky, and dusk was approaching, a sudden anomaly occurred in the distance, ahead of Miketsu and her companions.
A streaking afterimage shot directly from the distant horizon, swiftly passing far beyond the group in an instant, continuing straight towards where they had come from, and vanished from their sight in the blink of an eye.
Following this, the surrounding air became saturated with a potent demonic energy. The vast demonic energy was as majestic and grand as a towering mountain. Its intensity far surpassed any yokai Miketsu had encountered before!
“No way, this demonic energy... it’s the Great Clan Leader!!”
No sooner had Aoi’s words fallen than a fierce storm, laced with immense demonic energy, arrived with a deafening roar. The sheer force of the gale pushed the trees in the forest below uniformly in one direction, flattening them. All the dead branches and leaves were swept into the sky, and those suspended in the air were buffeted by the strong winds, stumbling everywhere and nearly being blown to the ground. They all had to lower their altitude, using the tall trees as cover to avoid being thrown off course.
After the storm subsided, everyone gathered together.
“Such terrifying demonic energy... such a powerful storm. What was that thing that just flew past?” Slippery Nura and the others were clearly startled by the sudden demonic energy and gale; their faces were a little pale, and even Seimei’s expression turned exceedingly grim.
“That... that was the Great Clan Leader. That storm... was the Tengu Wind he brought with him...” Aoi explained to the group, her face growing even more distraught.
“The Great Clan Leader? You mean that was Kakuhanbo, your Yokai Lord Great Tengu, who just flew past?” Hearing Aoi’s words, Tanuki froze in astonishment.
“Yes... that was the Great Clan Leader’s demonic energy; I couldn’t mistake it... But what is he doing flying in that direction? So fast, not bringing anyone... and he didn’t even acknowledge me. This, this isn’t logical...” Aoi said slowly, her voice dazed, clearly indicating that the current situation was far beyond her expectations.
“That direction is Heian-kyo... Could Kakuhanbo have been incited by Roku to attack Heian-kyo?” Slippery Nura said gravely, looking in the direction Kakuhanbo had vanished.
“No, he wouldn’t. Even if the Great Clan Leader were to attack Heian-kyo, he wouldn’t go alone. Besides, he said before that he would wait for my report before making a decision; he wouldn’t act rashly!” Aoi immediately refuted Slippery Nura’s speculation.
“Your clan leader might have already lost his self-awareness...” Miketsu slowly interjected at this moment. When Kakuhanbo had just passed, Miketsu had not only sensed a vast amount of demonic energy but also a dense Blood Sacrifice power, identical to the sinister energy on the leopard cat yokai and Mokou. If this were true, then Kakuhanbo was likely in a state of trance, just as Mokou had been.
“Control? That’s impossible. Losing self-awareness... that’s the Great Clan Leader...”
“How is it impossible? Didn’t you say he’s been taking problematic medicine for over ten years? It might be caused by that. Those guys knew we were coming, so they might have acted first.” Miketsu continued, her voice heavy, as she gazed at the spot where Kakuhanbo had disappeared.
“Kakuhanbo has now lost his mind. What he intends to do, I’m afraid, is nothing short of destroying Heian-kyo.”
Miketsu made her judgment, daring to be so certain entirely because of Mokou’s previous case.
“Destroy Heian-kyo? If that’s truly the case, we must stop him!” It was Slippery Nura who spoke now. If a Yokai Lord who had lost his mind reached Heian-kyo, it wouldn’t just be the human city that would suffer.
“It’s impossible... No one can stop the Great Clan Leader now. If he flies at full speed, no one can keep up with him. You all saw it; his speed just now... we can’t possibly catch him.” Aoi continued, her face grim. As a member of Sugo Ungo, she naturally knew the Great Tengu’s speed very well.
Miketsu had no doubt about Aoi’s words. Kakuhanbo had first flashed past as an afterimage, with his demonic energy, sound, and storm following behind. Clearly, Kakuhanbo’s speed had surpassed the speed of sound. Unless they were in a fighter jet, trying to catch Kakuhanbo at that speed would be a fool’s errand.
Hearing Aoi’s words, everyone’s hearts sank. While it was one thing for the other yokai, Seimei and Miketsu were different.
Seimei, an Onmyo-sei, lived in the Onmyoryo with his teacher in Heian-kyo; it was his current home. Miketsu, as a deity, not only couldn’t bear the suffering of living beings but also worried about her foxes at Mount Inari, which was very close to Heian-kyo. Could Tsuruha and the others protect themselves from a Yokai Lord’s attack?
“Well... although the situation is serious, you all don’t need to worry too much... Heian-kyo has the Onmyoryo! There are several powerful Onmyoji there; they’ll stop the Great Tengu. Heian-kyo should be fine...” Tanuki said at this moment, but Aoi immediately doused him with a bucket of cold water.
“No... it’s not that simple. Flying at this speed, the Great Clan Leader will reach Heian-kyo in no time. Along the way, the Tengu Wind he generates will grow increasingly powerful. Once he reaches Heian-kyo, the storm’s intensity will definitely be more than three times what we just experienced. That wind alone could wipe out Heian-kyo and everything around it...”
Aoi’s words startled everyone. According to her, even if the Onmyoryo successfully intervened and defeated Kakuhanbo, Heian-kyo would still suffer heavy casualties.
Just as Miketsu was racking her brain for a way to stop Kakuhanbo, Seimei suddenly spoke up.
“If you want to stop the Great Tengu... I have a way...”
Hearing Seimei’s words, everyone’s gaze turned to him in unison. Seimei, seated on the White Crane, had already formed a hand seal.
“I will now use a Secret Art to inform my Teacher, asking him to depart directly from Heian-kyo to confront the Great Tengu and intercept him before he reaches the city.”
Rate on N.U.
