The Third Head Awakens

Night deepened as the moon and stars hung high in the sky.

On the outskirts of Ome City, Tokyo, shrouded in darkness, the dilapidated and desolate Old Fukiage Tunnel exuded a thick, malevolent aura. The nest of the malicious spirit had finally, after a long wait, lured in fresh sustenance. The ferocious Great Evil Spirit was now sharpening its blade, prepared to slaughter the new lamb that had fallen into its trap.

At the exit of the old tunnel, a terrifying, pale Great Evil Spirit stood three to four meters tall, its massive, brute-like frame completely blocking the way out. In its blood-stained hands, it tightly gripped a giant greataxe encrusted with bits of flesh. Upon its head, which was draped in a mask of human skin from a woman, a pair of small eyes stared intently at its prey.

Seeing the boy who had somehow managed to block its previous strike, a hideous grin split the Great Evil Spirit's face.

At the sight of that smile, Rikuo, blade in hand, couldn't help but shudder. Though the creature did not speak, he could clearly sense the message it was conveying.

'A prey that can fight back... even better...'

With a cruel sneer, the Great Evil Spirit swung the flesh-caked greataxe in a horizontal sweep toward Rikuo. Startled, Rikuo relied on the reflexes and physical prowess inherited from the yokai blood in his veins to leap backward just before the axe could connect. He narrowly avoided the savage blow, though the wind from the swing tore through his outer shirt, leaving it hanging open. The greataxe, missing Rikuo, slammed directly into the tunnel's rocky wall. With a thunderous boom, the wall shattered under the immense force, sending up a cloud of dust. A massive gouge was carved into the brick and stone, and rubble began to rain down.

"Heh..."

Seeing Rikuo dodge its attack, the Great Evil Spirit let out a cold, rasping hiss. Without a moment's pause, it stepped forward, swinging the bloody greataxe once more. Rikuo immediately gripped his blade with both hands to parry, but the disparity in strength was far too great. After a sharp, loud clang, Rikuo was sent flying, landing hard on his backside. His hands were left numb from the sheer force of the impact. Sitting on the ground, a wave of dread washed over his heart.

'Damn it... such power... it's almost like Ao's... Can a Great Evil Spirit really reach this level?'

Seeing its strike blocked again, the Great Evil Spirit's twisted grin grew even more manic. It raised the greataxe for a third strike. Rikuo once again used his blade to block the downward diagonal slash, but because his hands hadn't recovered from the previous numbness, his grip faltered. The demon-slaying blade forged by an Onmyoji was knocked away with a loud clang, embedding itself into the tunnel wall.

"Heh-ah..."

"This is bad..."

Watching this scene, the blood-axe Great Evil Spirit wearing human skin let out a sinister, mocking laugh. Without his weapon, the fear in Rikuo's heart spiked. Facing the tall, terrifying, and bloody figure before him, an uncontrollable cowardice began to sprout wildly in the twelve-year-old boy's mind.

With a cry of alarm, Rikuo scrambled up from the ground, turned, and bolted back into the depths of the tunnel. Having lost his ability to resist, he had no choice but to flee.

"Heh-ha-ha-ha..."

The Great Evil Spirit let out a loud, mocking laugh at the sight of Rikuo's retreating figure. It tightened its grip on the bloody axe and drove its massive body forward in pursuit, its cold malice trailing closely behind the sprinting boy.

'Fast, I have to be fast! There's an exit at the other end of the tunnel... If I can make it there, I might have a chance!'

Inside the dark tunnel, Rikuo sprinted desperately, his mind racing. However, he soon realized that the light that should have been shining from the far exit had vanished. Ahead of him lay nothing but a bottomless, pitch-black void.

'Where... where is the exit? It should be right there! There was definitely an exit!'

Despite the lack of light, Rikuo continued to run forward frantically, but he saw no sign of leaving the tunnel. By all accounts, the Old Fukiage Tunnel wasn't that long; at his pace, he should have reached the end long ago. Yet, there was nothing but darkness before him, with no trace of an exit.

As the young master of a yokai clan, Rikuo quickly realized what was happening. This was a demon realm space... or rather, spirit walling... He had been trapped within the Great Evil Spirit's domain inside the Old Fukiage Tunnel.

"Heh-ha-ha-ha..."

Behind him, the Great Evil Spirit's cold, mocking laughter continued to ring out, a constant reminder that it was right on his heels. The Great Evil Spirit showed no sign of speeding up, maintaining a steady distance from the fleeing boy.

It was toying with its prey. It knew that within its demon realm space, Rikuo could not escape. All it needed to do was keep up the chase, slowly draining the prey's stamina until they collapsed in despair, weeping on the ground, only to be tortured to death.

Rikuo knew exactly what the Great Evil Spirit was thinking, yet he was powerless to do anything but continue running into the dark. He couldn't bring himself to face that horrific creature head-on.

He could only press forward on a path he knew was hopeless... until a low voice echoed in his ear.

"Why... are you running?"

Hearing the familiar voice he had heard earlier on the iron bridge, Rikuo froze for a moment, then answered between ragged breaths without thinking.

"Huff... huff... why wouldn't I run?! That's a Great Evil Spirit... only the cadres of the clan can handle a guy like that..."

"But aren't you the Young Lord of the Nura Clan? Aren't you the grandson of Nura Rihyon?" the low voice continued to resonate in his ear. Rikuo's heart tightened, and he continued to speak through his gasps.

"Huff... but, but I'm human too... I'm not like them... even if I have yokai blood... huff... huff... at my core, I'm human..."

"I... I'm not a powerful yokai like Grandpa... I'm just... human..."

Rikuo said between breaths. Hearing his words, the cold, low voice went silent for a moment before speaking again.

"I see... In that case, I'll help you out. Once you're back, remember to live properly as an ordinary human..."

Just as the low words faded from Rikuo's ear, a spark of light appeared in the darkness ahead. The darkness shattered, and the tunnel exit suddenly appeared before his eyes. Outside, he could clearly see the bright moon and the starry sky. Rikuo's heart leaped with joy.

'Great! The exit!'

"Aaaah!" Disturbed by the sudden shattering of its demon realm space, the Great Evil Spirit pursuing Rikuo fell into a frenzy. It had only intended to toy with its prey, but it suddenly realized the prey might actually escape. With a strange cry, it surged forward with a sudden burst of speed, intending to hack off the prey's legs to prevent his escape.

Just as Rikuo was about to sprint out of the tunnel, the moonlight from outside spilled into the dark passage. Bathed in that light, Rikuo was on the verge of escaping the horrific tunnel, but at that moment, the joy on his face froze, and his movements slowed.

Under the moonlight, the darkness inside the tunnel was partially dispelled, revealing things that had been hidden. What was shown before Rikuo's eyes made him go wide-eyed, his feet coming to a near halt.

"This... this is..."

The soft moonlight scattered across the dark Old Fukiage Tunnel, illuminating the rocky walls. There, one after another, human face skins were stretched out and pinned to the stone, covering almost the entire surface of the walls near the exit.

These skins, fixed to the walls, all stared at Rikuo with hollow eye sockets. It felt as if dozens of sharp gazes were fixed upon the would-be escapee... every single face skin was twitching slightly, as if trying to let out a cry of agony.

These skins... were the victims who had perished at the hands of the Great Evil Spirit. Like a hunter, it seemed to have a habit of collecting the hides of its prey, and the souls of these victims remained imprisoned within these thin layers of skin, pinned to the cold stone walls, never to find peace.

Rikuo stood dazed. He had been so close to escaping, but now he stood frozen in place, surrounded by dozens of agonized gazes from the walls... unable to take another step.

Though he heard no sound, the sheer pain in the eyes of these skin masks made him feel the silent screams of the souls trapped within.

"This... this is too much..."

With eyes wide, Rikuo lowered his head and clenched his fists... the cruel reality of the demon realm was now laid bare before him. Yamasaki Anna alone hadn't been enough, but seeing so many more victims of the Great Evil Spirit—and in such a horrific manner—he could no longer run away. He was three-quarters human... and the sight of such human tragedy cut deeper into his heart.

"I... won't forgive you!"

Words laced with fury were squeezed out from between Rikuo's gritted teeth. At that moment, another voice echoed in his ear.

"Why have you stopped running? You were only a few steps away."

The familiar low voice resonated once more. This time, Rikuo kept his head down and answered calmly.

"Run? Why would I run? I am..."

As Rikuo spoke, the terrifying Great Evil Spirit that had been chasing him finally reached his back. It raised the blood-caked greataxe high and swung it downward in a diagonal arc toward Rikuo's legs.

"...the Third Head of the Nura Clan!"

BOOM!

Accompanied by the thunderous sound of shattering stone, the lower part of the tunnel wall was struck by the forcefully swung blood-axe, sending up a cloud of dust. The Great Evil Spirit stared intently at the dispersing dust, expecting to see the boy with his legs severed, writhing in agony on the ground.

However, as the dust cleared, there was nothing before the Great Evil Spirit. It was empty.

"!?"

A look of shock appeared on the face behind the Great Evil Spirit's mask. Just then, a cold voice reached its ears.

"Where are you looking? You disgusting monster..."

Hearing this almost entirely unfamiliar voice, the Great Evil Spirit whipped its head around toward the source. It was shocked to find a boy standing tall atop the head of its own greataxe.

It was Rikuo... or more accurately, another Rikuo...

His short brown hair had turned bone-white, growing out wildly and flowing behind his head in an incredible, sweeping style. His glasses were gone, and his once gentle, kind face had become cold and stern. The jacket he wore now draped over his shoulders like a cape, and he even seemed to have grown several inches taller.

Under the moonlight filtering into the tunnel, the Rikuo whose yokai blood had awakened stared down at the Great Evil Spirit with eyes full of frigid intent. The gaze was so intense that even the Great Evil Spirit faltered; it could not reconcile this presence with the boy it had just been hunting.

With a roar, the Great Evil Spirit swung its other thick, blood-stained arm at Rikuo. Rikuo tapped his toes and leaped lightly into the air. After easily dodging the blow, he twisted his body and delivered a fierce kick to the Great Evil Spirit's face. Its head was kicked to the side, and the creature's massive frame stumbled back two steps. The skin mask belonging to Yamasaki Anna flew off, revealing a bald, hideous, and revolting face underneath, its expression filled with shock.

"What a foul face. Is that why you cover it with the faces of others? To hide such ugliness?"

Landing back on the ground, Rikuo spoke coldly to the Great Evil Spirit as it regained its footing. Hearing his words, the creature's expression shifted from fear to pure rage. It gripped its blood-axe and charged at Rikuo with a frenzied roar.

Facing the Great Evil Spirit's violent onslaught, Rikuo retreated and dodged with fluid, graceful movements, completely evading every attack. In the process, they gradually moved out of the tunnel and into the night air.

The Great Evil Spirit swung its axe wildly, carving deep cracks into the old pavement with every thunderous strike. Taking advantage of the openings, the white-haired Rikuo retaliated with kicks, but they didn't seem to cause any substantial damage, causing Rikuo to furrow his brow slightly.

"Tch... I left my sword in the tunnel..."

Standing on a nearby tree branch, Miketsu, shrouded in the shadows of her black robes, watched the white-haired boy battling the Great Evil Spirit. A slight smile curled behind the bandages on her face.

'His yokai blood has awakened? He really does look like him...'

Miketsu murmured to herself as she reached into her robes. She pulled out a tachi sheathed in a scabbard with dark gold patterns.

"Catch!"

Using her demonic power to project her voice, Miketsu threw the tachi down. Startled by the voice, Rikuo dodged a dangerous axe swing and leaped into the air, stepping off the Great Evil Spirit's head. He caught the black-gold patterned tachi in mid-air. Under the moonlight, he could clearly see the design of a galloping demon dog on the tsuba.

"This is..."

Gripping the hilt, Rikuo drew the sword in mid-air. As a flash of cold, bone-white light descended from the sky, one of the Great Evil Spirit's thick arms was severed cleanly, falling to the ground. The physical form of the Great Evil Spirit let out a heart-wrenching scream of agony.

"A fine blade..."