“So... in the end, was the faith in that Suwa wild god successfully dissolved? Did she disappear?” The speaker was the third of the three young men who looked like brothers, and he addressed Kanako with a hint of mockery in his tone.
“It still needs time. Her foundation of faith in Suwa Province was very deep; it isn't something that can be dissolved in a moment... Hoori-no-Mikoto...” Kanako continued to speak to the three brothers who looked like young gods, trying to argue for an explanation that favored her.
“Hmph, it still needs time? I think you never intended to deal with her at all! The Suwa wild god's wicked faith is spreading across the land. Mortals are suffering under the cruelty of a god who is insatiably greedy, savage, and bloody. There are a massive number of innocent believers right now petitioning about the suffering in Mino!” The speaker this time was a giant god over three meters tall on the other side. His voice was so loud it filled the entire platform, and Kanako couldn't help but be startled upon hearing his words.
“Insatiably greedy, savage, and bloody... Suwako is absolutely not that kind of deity! Have you all done something?!” Kanako shouted. Hoori-no-Mikoto, the eldest of the three brothers, responded with a cold snort.
“That attitude... it seems you admit to shielding her. I don't think there's any need to ask further. What do you think, Lord Tajikarao?” Hoori-no-Mikoto spoke to the burly god beside him, and the burly god nodded.
“There was no need to ask much in the first place. Regardless of the reason, as long as the fact that she shielded the Suwa wild god exists, it is a crime of deceiving the heavens. This so-called inquiry is simply a waste of time!” Tajikarao spoke with a hint of irritability, and the three Fire God brothers nodded to each other in agreement.
“Then we shall now report the results to Amaterasu Omikami and have her descend punishment upon Takeminakata...” After speaking, the three brothers began to walk toward the stone torii gate at the edge of the mountain peak. At that moment, Kanako couldn't help but clench her fists.
'Dammit... is there really nothing I can do?'
Just then, behind them, a soft and gentle female voice suddenly rang out.
“Phew... I finally found it. This mountain is really quite high.”
“That voice is...” Kanako, who was still kneeling on the ground, turned her head sharply. She saw a familiar white-haired girl dressed in a white robe and scarlet hakama slowly walking up the stairs from the back of the mountain. The moment she appeared, all the stone statue guards on the mountain peak turned around, pointing their weapons at her.
“Who is it? Do you not know that without a summons from Amaterasu Omikami, Mount Ama-no-Hi-no-Kami is a forbidden ground?” Tajikarao turned around sternly, wanting to see which god had the gall to climb the mountain without following the rules. However, when he saw the white-haired girl, he found himself unable to recognize who she was for a moment. The Fire God brothers beside him also looked puzzled.
“Mount Ama-no-Hi-no-Kami is forbidden. We are here under summons to interrogate Takeminakata. Do you not know that intruding here is a sin?” Hoori-no-Mikoto shouted accusatorily. However, the girl acted as if she hadn't heard a thing, walking toward the center of the mountain clearing on her own.
“I've finally found the place. This is my first time in Takamagahara, and it's so big I almost got lost. Fortunately, this mountain is quite prominent. I just had to ask for directions to find out you were here.” With a faint smile, Miketsu walked step by step toward Kanako, who was kneeling on the ground with a look of utter shock.
'Uka-no-Mitama-no-Mikoto...'
“Hey, hey... what are you still doing kneeling there? Your Suwako asked me to come and bring you back. Stand up now; we're going back. I heard she's even prepared some good sake...”
Miketsu continued toward Kanako, completely ignoring the words of Tajikarao and Hoori-no-Mikoto. It was as if only Kanako existed in her eyes, and the others clearly could not tolerate such blatant disregard.
“How dare you! Where did this minor god come from, to be so insolent...” Tajikarao clenched his fists, his knuckles cracking. Beside him, Hoori-no-Mikoto spoke with a cold snort.
“Though I don't know where she came from, since she has violated the rules, there is no need for mercy in her punishment.”
As Hoori-no-Mikoto spoke, he pointed a finger toward the distant Miketsu. A spark of flame flickered at his fingertip, and then... a massive pillar of fire erupted, shooting toward Miketsu and engulfing her in the sight of everyone. Seeing this, the other two Fire Gods couldn't help but feel puzzled.
“She didn't even let out a single cry of panic or pain? Could it be she isn't even a god and was burned to nothing by Brother immediately?” Standing behind the eldest brother, the second brother, Hoderi-no-Mikoto, spoke with confusion. The eldest brother maintained the flames for a while before stopping. The spot where Miketsu had been was now nothing but a patch of scorched black on the ground; nothing else remained.
“Even the ashes are gone. She really wasn't a god; could she have been a mortal?” Looking at the scene, the third brother, Hosuseri-no-Mikoto, spoke with surprise. The eldest brother patted his sleeves and spoke with a slight sigh.
“Since when can mortals ascend to the heavens so easily? Where did she come from? It seems we'll need to investigate this thoroughly later.”
“No need for an investigation. I came up directly from my divine territory. It's at Mount Inari in Heian-kyo.”
At that moment, a soft and calm female voice came from behind the three Fire God brothers. They were stunned upon hearing it and turned around in shock.
What they saw was Miketsu’s kind smile.
“I say... you little brats playing with fire, have you prepared yourselves to be killed before you go around attacking others?”
A terrifying glint radiated from the white-haired girl's eyes, which were narrowed into slits by her smile. For some reason, an inexplicable chill instantly ran down the spines of the three Fire Gods.
Thump!
With a casual swing of her fist, the face of the eldest of the three brothers collapsed under the immense force. His entire body was launched at high speed, flying straight off the mountain peak and falling far below into the sea of clouds.
“Brother!!”
The remaining two Fire God brothers cried out in alarm. Immediately, massive sheets of searing flames erupted around them, and the entire mountain peak was instantly shrouded in brilliant firelight as the temperature skyrocketed.
“You wretched person... you...”
“Fire is forbidden...”
Following Miketsu’s soft whisper, the rising temperature suddenly plummeted. The wildly spraying flames that were about to sweep across the entire mountain peak vanished in an instant... The remaining Fire God brothers found that they were suddenly unable to use a single shred of their divine power as Fire Gods; they couldn't even ignite a tiny spark.
A spreading fire was a terrible disaster for forests, crops, and towns alike. Drawing upon her Inari divine authority and supreme divine power, Miketsu easily erased any trace of fire.
For a moment, the Fire God brothers, having lost their divine authority over fire, stood there staring at each other in a daze. Unlike Takemikazuchi-no-Kami, they possessed no other combat-related divine authority.
They could only watch as the smiling, white-haired girl clenched her fist once more.
Rate on N.U.
