Ghostly qi ran rampant through the eerie, chilling night of Tokyo.
Deep within the Imperial Palace in Chiyoda Ward, under the cover of the blackest night, the current Emperor of Japan, Reinin, stood behind his desk in his office. He stared in shock at the uninvited guest who had suddenly broken in. Looking at that familiar young face, he searched the depths of his memory and found a startling name. He murmured in disbelief.
"Saburo... Kitano."
Hearing the old man utter his name, Saburo, dressed in his old military officer's uniform, pressed down on the brim of his cap. He opened his mouth with a calm, composed smile. "Oh my, after all these decades, I didn't expect Your Majesty to still remember my name. It is truly the honor of a lifetime," Saburo said slowly. Hearing him admit his identity, Reinin couldn't help but stumble back a few steps. His expression shifted into further panic as he shouted uncontrollably.
"Y-You're supposed to be dead! You died in the war! How can you still be here?!"
"Haha... I am indeed dead. But I am still here today. That is the charm of onmyojutsu, is it not, Your Majesty?" Saburo spread his hands and spoke with a smile to the man who had been a mere boy in his past. Reinin was momentarily stunned before turning to look out the window at the distant sky pierced by ghostly qi.
"The emergency in Tokyo tonight... it was all caused by you? All those malicious spirits over there were summoned by you?" Reinin pointed out the window, his expression tense and solemn. Saburo gave a calm reply. "Correct. However, I would like to correct Your Majesty. Those are not malicious spirits; they are soldiers who gave their all and remained loyal to the nation even in death. For Your Majesty to call us malicious spirits... I fear it will chill the hearts of the warriors." Saburo spoke slowly, and the look in his eyes as he watched Reinin turned visibly cold and sharp.
"Stop this at once! Leading troops to attack the city! Do you have any idea what you are doing?!" Reinin waved his hand, shouting at Saburo. Saburo replied unhurriedly, "Of course I know. I am slaying the national traitors, purging the sovereign's side, and restoring the Imperial Way. Please stay calm, Your Majesty. Once the rebel factions in the court are removed, you can once again take direct control of the government."
"Restoring the Imperial Way? Then I command you to stop! Major General Kitano! This is an order!" Reinin continued to point at Saburo, using a commanding tone. He hoped that since the man claimed to be restoring the Imperial Way, he might actually listen to an order.
However, things were not that simple. Seeing Reinin like this, the coldness in Saburo's eyes deepened. He looked at Reinin and continued slowly.
"It seems the years of humiliating peace have eroded your will, Your Majesty. Since you are so weak, it appears there is no other choice. Once the matter is settled... I shall act as regent for a period to allow you to recover," Saburo said. He thought to himself that if Reinin still refused to cooperate after the victory, he would simply install a more obedient prince on the throne. Reinin stumbled back two more steps in fear. He finally understood—the "Imperial Way" Saburo wanted to restore was his own twisted interpretation. It had nothing to do with him, the actual Emperor. If he, the Emperor, deviated from their imagined "Imperial Way," they wouldn't hesitate to "correct" him as well. Their goal of restoring the Imperial Way had nothing to do with the Emperor's personal wishes.
Having realized this, Reinin grew even more panicked. He stood there for a moment before gathering his thoughts and shouting at Saburo again.
"Do you truly think you can succeed? Whether it's Inari or the American military, the Onmyo Agency or the Self-Defense Forces—none of them are easy to deal with! The international community won't allow this to happen today! You are making enemies on all sides, Saburo. This is destined to fail!" Reinin tried to persuade him. As the Emperor who took office during the era of peaceful development and economic boom after the defeat, he understood the domestic and international situation very well. He knew exactly which powers were absolutely untouchable.
"Haha, Your Majesty makes some sense. The rebel gods are powerful, and the American brutes are overbearing. With my current strength alone, it would indeed be difficult to achieve the Restoration. However... with Your Majesty's help, it will be different." Saburo looked at Reinin, a hint of danger flashing in his eyes. Reinin stumbled back until he hit the wall. "Y-You... what do you want to do?!" Reinin said warily. Saburo approached him step by step, a dangerous smile playing on his lips.
"Nothing much. I just want Your Majesty to come with me for a little trip."
In the outskirts of Tokyo, amidst the dark hills near the city, the spirit army that had been charging toward the urban area was being held back. The Rapid Response Team from the Onmyo Agency had delayed their advance, and the Inari fighter jets that arrived first had decimated their initial charge. However, the spirit soldiers were numerous—over a thousand. After the onmyoji exhausted their spiritual power and the jets ran out of ammunition, the remaining, fearless spirits surged forward once more. In a normal army, massive casualties would shatter morale and lead to collapse. But these soldiers had no concept of morale; they were undead puppets of onmyojutsu. They continued to charge through the flames. The onmyoji, now devoid of power, and the ammunition-depleted jets were no longer capable of stopping them. But at that moment, an explosion of demonic energy completely shattered the spirits' formation.
"Wind Scar!"
On the flame-lit hills, an invisible blade constructed entirely of demonic energy swung. A violent hurricane of energy erupted, transforming into thousands of wind blades that swept forward. They plowed deep furrows into the earth, annihilating the charging spirit army in a single breath. Over a hundred spirits were wiped out instantly.
Amidst the firelight, Miketsu, still dressed as Owl, had her black robes illuminated by the flames. A vortex of demonic energy swirled within the void blade she held. Watching this scene from a short distance behind her, Tamamura and Nura Rihyon were both stunned.
"Has... has he condensed a demonic blade from demonic energy alone? To release such powerful energy without even needing a physical sword..." The obese Tamamura murmured in shock. It was the first time he had seen his Great Clan Leader release demonic energy without using his signature blade. "It seems the Great Clan Leader has grown to the point where he no longer needs a weapon to display his strength. That demonic blade, which commands the power of a hundred demons, has become optional for him. No wonder Owl gave his personal demonic blade to Rikuo. It's because with his current strength, he doesn't need a weapon anymore! He is even stronger than he was a thousand years ago!"
"Hey, Slippery Nura. Is it possible the Great Clan Leader never stopped training during these thousand years? Even in seclusion, was he still striving to improve?" Tamamura continued to whisper in disbelief. Nura Rihyon nodded gravely.
"I... I suspect so. Even if he no longer participated in the struggles for dominance in the demon realm, he never stopped pursuing the path of the strong. For a thousand years, he must have been tempering himself within his own divine realm, constantly reaching for the peak..." Nura Rihyon said slowly. Tamamura swallowed hard after hearing this.
"Then... how strong do you think he is now?"
"Who can say? In this world today, what yokai could truly survive a single encounter with the Great Clan Leader? I think the only ones capable of being his opponent now would be the orthodox gods of the Celestial Realm, who haven't manifested in a thousand years," Nura Rihyon said. Tamamura couldn't help but sigh in awe.
"This is truly like something out of a myth..."
Seeing that the current Owl seemed even more powerful than in the past, Nura Rihyon and Tamamura, who had both fallen from their peaks, felt a wave of shame amidst their admiration. Behind them, the yokai of Shikoku and the Nura Clan were largely numb to the shock. After witnessing Owl's display, they had nothing left to do but instinctively cheer from the rear. In the end, these yokai had followed; after all, their Grand Commander was here, so there was no reason for them to stay behind.
"So he gave this sword to me because he didn't need it anymore..." Rikuo said to himself, looking at the demonic blade in his hand. With that thought, the psychological burden of whether it was a waste for such a powerful sword to be given to him lightened significantly.
On the battlefield, after Miketsu destroyed a batch of spirits, more continued to charge out from the fires. Miketsu flicked her hand slightly, dissipating the demonic energy blade, and murmured softly.
"Go. Tamamura, Slippery Nura. Let me see how much your strength has improved."
"Yes, Great Clan Leader!" Hearing her words, Nura Rihyon and Tamamura immediately charged forward into the spirit crowd. Nura Rihyon nimbly dodged the ghostly bullets and drew his short blade, decapitating several spirits in a few swift motions. Tamamura leaped high into the air, using his short legs to launch his obese body into the sky. Amidst a cloud of smoke, he rapidly grew in size and then plummeted down like a crushing weight, smashing a pile of spirits into nothingness.
"Grandpa's already gone in! We can't just stay here! Let's go, everyone!" At this time, Rikuo, who had been itching for a fight, also raised his blade and charged. The Nura Hundred Demons behind him exchanged glances before howling and rushing in. On the other side, the Shikoku yokai hesitated for a moment before seeing their own leader fighting at the front and followed with a roar.
Thus, the yokai of Shikoku and the Nura Clan, who had been fighting to the death just recently, miraculously began to fight side by side. Led by their respective commanders, they joined the fray, clashing with the remaining spirits. Although the spirit army had originally numbered over two thousand, they were now at their wit's end after the heavy blows they had sustained. They were unable to withstand the assault of the yokai, and their total annihilation was only a matter of time. On the battlefield, Miketsu, who had only moved once, stood still. She quietly gazed into the distant night sky, where a golden silhouette was flying toward her. It landed elegantly before her.
"What is the situation, Makoto?"
"Great Clan Leader, there is no sign of reinforcements for the main force of these spirits. Instead, they are continuing westward, moving further away from Tokyo."
"The main force is moving away from the city? Are they trying to flee?"
"It is unclear, but their movement speed is slow; it doesn't look like an escape. Furthermore, I believe the unit sent to attack the city tonight was likely a decoy. Their purpose was to draw the defensive attention of Tokyo and provide cover for their secret operations within the city." Looking at Miketsu, Makoto's expression grew solemn.
"Great Clan Leader... Inari just received word from the Imperial Household Agency. Emperor Reinin has been kidnapped."
West of Tokyo, in the skies over the outskirts, a crow-shaped shikigami constructed of bones and black feathers flew through the dark canopy. On its back stood the resurrected vengeful spirit, Saburo Kitano. At his feet was Emperor Reinin, his hands and feet bound by a spell, completely unable to move. At this moment, the cold, piercing wind of the sky had turned the old man's face bright red, and he seemed to be in great distress.
"Please endure a little longer, Your Majesty. Please forgive your servant for not knowing wind-shielding spells and allowing your imperial body to suffer from the cold."
Looking at Reinin at his feet, Saburo spoke slowly. Hearing this, Reinin sneezed several times in the cold wind before replying with a trembling voice.
"Y-You... you great traitor!"
"Traitor? No, no..." Hearing this, Saburo knelt down and looked at Reinin's flushed face. "I am currently the Empire's only loyal subject—its greatest loyalist. I am the one who can turn the tide for the Empire."
"I know it is difficult for Your Majesty to understand my painstaking efforts right now, but I believe that in the end, you will surely understand my good intentions," Saburo said. This was not mockery; he truly believed he was the ultimate loyalist, more so than anyone else in Japan, even if he had kidnapped the Emperor. Or perhaps, he felt even the Emperor himself was not as "loyal" as he was.
Hearing Saburo's words, Reinin shivered even more violently. He couldn't help but shout at Saburo.
"W-What are you trying to do?!"
"What? Why, to seek the powerful strength required to slay the rebel gods and expel the Americans. Did I not tell you this before?"
"Slaying Inari and expelling the Americans... T-This country does not have such power!" hearing Saburo's words, Reinin continued. Saburo smiled slightly, stood up, and looked toward the sky.
"No, this country below does not... but above the heavens, it exists."
As he spoke, Saburo slowly pointed toward the sky.
"Your Majesty, do you believe that high above the heavens, the gods of our Great Yamato truly exist?"
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