A Holiday Interrupted

Southern Kyoto, Fushimi Airport.

For most of its thousand-year history, Kyoto has been the heart of Japan—the largest and most prosperous of cities. However, after the Sengoku era, with the complete decline of central imperial power and the repeated rise and fall of various shogunates, its status as the center had long since faded. The rise of cities like Edo and Osaka shifted the nation's gravity. Yet, this did not mean Kyoto’s political and economic importance had vanished entirely. Thanks to the rapid development and expansion of the Inari after the war, the city had benefited significantly, seeing respectable growth.

Inside the airport, the crowd surged. Countless domestic and international travelers streamed through the massive terminal. Fox and rice ear decorations were everywhere; a giant, cute, chibi fox inflatable even stood in the terminal hall. With the Inari Festival approaching, the entire airport was decked out in these themed decorations. For many in Kyoto, this was the most important and grandest festival of the year.

At that moment, somewhere within the Fushimi Airport terminal, Miketsu—having just gotten off her plane and dismissed all her attendants—walked through the terminal alone, dressed in elegant casual clothes and carrying a small bag.

"What? You’re saying a flight has been hijacked?"

Miketsu responded calmly to the voice on her phone, and an affirmative answer came from the other end.

"Yes. Currently, it is certain that the hijackers are not ordinary humans. They used supernatural means to succeed. It could be practitioners with ill intent, or perhaps yokai disguised as humans."

"I see. So it’s likely another border-crossing incident. These guys really are moving with the times. Before, border-crossing attacks were mostly just about eating a few people. Now they’ve learned how to hijack planes."

"Indeed. Whether for yokai or Onmyoji, committing such a crime is truly rare. Furthermore, the perpetrators this time have set their sights on us. They just contacted Fushimi Airport through the cockpit's communications, demanding that the Inari prepare a ransom of ten billion yen. They also named a series of yokai sealed by us and the Onmyo Agency, demanding their release. Otherwise, they will crash the plane, killing all passengers on board."

"Huh? They want money? That’s so low. Do they think they won’t be caught once the money is in their hands?" Hearing the hijackers' demands, Miketsu couldn't help but chuckle. She had rarely heard of a hijacking being done for money.

"Lady Uka is right. For a hijacking, such conditions are indeed problematic. Therefore, we have judged that these conditions are likely just a smokescreen to confuse us. Their true purpose is definitely not that," Tsuruha replied.

Miketsu nodded and continued, "So, Tsuruha, what is the plane's current flight path?"

"No changes. It is still flying toward Kyoto. We estimate it will reach the airspace over downtown Kyoto in twenty-five minutes. Fushimi Airport’s air traffic control has already begun clearing the skies. The airport has also started diverting arriving flights to Osaka. Although the Japanese government and the US forces have expressed full cooperation, since this involves border-crossing entities, it will likely fall on us in the end." Tsuruha’s voice was full of gravity, clearly understanding the severity of the situation.

Even though the terrorists had made demands, the flight path remained unchanged, heading straight for Kyoto. This was likely an attempt at a terrorist strike, using over a hundred hostages as a shield. Therefore, the plane could not be allowed to reach the airspace over downtown Kyoto; otherwise, the consequences would be unpredictable.

"Mmhmm... so, do you have a plan yet?" Leaning against a railing in the terminal, Miketsu watched the airport staff evacuate travelers while she chewed a piece of gum.

"Don't worry, Lady Uka. We have already drafted a rescue plan. The Ghost Unit has been deployed, and I have urgently recalled the Divine Messengers currently stationed in Kyoto who are most skilled in aerial operations and cleanup."

Tsuruha spoke with confidence, and Miketsu nodded after hearing her.

"Good. In that case, I'll leave it to you. I'll be watching from down here."

"Yes! We will not fail you!"

"Oh, one more question. Which flight exactly was hijacked? How many people are on board?" Miketsu asked. Tsuruha answered without hesitation.

"Japan Airlines Flight 387."

Hearing Tsuruha's words, Miketsu froze for a moment, then rubbed her chin with a thoughtful expression.

"What a coincidence. I was just waiting to pick up that flight..." Miketsu whispered. She now knew exactly where the calamity on Hayakawa Rin's face was coming from.

With the festival approaching, signs of celebration were everywhere in downtown Kyoto. On the bustling streets, countless fox and rice ear themed decorations hung. Along the tree-lined walkways, fox amulets and Ema dangled from the branches. Every few hundred meters, one could see stone fox statues with red bibs tied around their necks. Many shops on both sides of the street adopted golden signs and rice ear patterns. Every now and then, one could see fat, adorable plush foxes waddling clumsily along.

On the second floor of a street-side cafe, a woman with black hair in a ponytail, wearing sunglasses, a shirt, and trousers—looking quite fashion-forward—sat at a table. While admiring the view outside, she sipped her hot coffee and watched the crowds.

"It seems there are even more people this year. Looks like this festival will be even more lively. I’m really looking forward to it, mm-hmm~" The fashionable woman spoke while giving a long stretch, then she glanced at her seat. It was piled high with shopping bags. She nodded with satisfaction.

"Another day of abundance. A leisurely holiday paired with a lively festival—it's the perfect match! Don’t you agree, Kanna?"

As she spoke, the woman looked forward. Sitting across from her was a girl about twelve or thirteen years old. She had white hair, pitch-black eyes, and wore a simple white dress with little white sandals. Her face was adorable. The girl named Kanna sat in her seat, drinking milk tea through a straw while staring blankly at her phone. The screen was playing a comedy variety show.

Kanna remained completely unmoved by the woman's words. The reason was that she had earphones in both ears, currently filled with the voices of comedians. She couldn't hear the woman at all, causing the fashionable woman's face to darken.

"Hey, Kanna, can you hear me?!" the woman continued. This time, she waved her hand directly in front of Kanna's eyes, successfully catching her attention.

Kanna looked up at the woman. However, she didn't take off her earphones or speak. Instead, she picked up her phone, opened a messaging app, tapped on a contact labeled 'Kagura,' and typed rapidly in the chat box.

'What's the matter?.'

The woman named Kagura twitched her lips at the sight. She pulled out her own phone, tapped the notification, and spoke after seeing Kanna's message.

"I'm saying, since we're out shopping, can't those comedy shows wait until we get back? We have plenty of time during the break anyway. Also, can you change the way you communicate?! Don't you think it's a hassle to use a phone to chat when we're sitting face-to-face?!" Kagura spoke loudly.

Kanna, who had taken out one earphone and heard Kagura, remained expressionless, but her hand was typing at high speed.

'No. There will be even more shows to watch once we go back. Time is tight; I must seize every spare minute. Besides, for me, this way of chatting is more comfortable.'

After sending the message—complete with kaomoji—Kanna opened her collection of stickers and began clicking on a bunch of them like she was firing a cannon. Kagura had barely finished reading the text before her screen was instantly flooded with a massive number of various emojis and stickers.

"Alright, alright, I get it! That’s enough emojis!" Seeing the flood of network memes, Kagura immediately called for a stop, and Kanna timely ceased her barrage.

Seeing the emojis stop on her screen, Kagura let out a sigh of relief. Every time she chatted with Kanna, the other would send a huge amount of emojis, to the point where Kagura had to clear her phone's cache after every conversation to prevent it from lagging under the weight of the sticker packs.

Since entering the new century, her colleague and old friend's living habits had undergone a drastic change. Although Kanna was usually silent and stoic, in the realm of online chatting, she was an emoji-bombing machine. It was said her phone held over ten gigabytes of various stickers and funny GIFs. When she had nothing to do, she loved watching manzai or comedy shows, though she watched them with a completely blank face, without a hint of a smile. Such a contrast could be extremely eerie at times.

Clearly, the Smirking Emoji energy that had tainted Kanna five hundred years ago had left behind a significant aftereffect.

"Forget it, do whatever you want. I rarely drag you out for a walk because I want you to stop staring at those shows all day. It’s the Inari Festival holiday! Walking around and shopping is so much more meaningful. You shouldn't place your life's hopes on the illusory internet."

"Eh? What did you send me now? This is... oh! The 147th issue of the Yokai Handsome Man Ranking from the Pink Feather Report!" Seeing the link forwarded by Kanna, Kagura's eyes lit up instantly, and she quickly tapped on it.

"Let me see who's at the top this time... hehe, it's definitely my Lord Sesshomaru. After all, he’s held the top spot for over seventy issues. He is the true definition of a handsome yokai, a supreme being with both strength and beauty."

Opening the link with a clear fangirl look, Kagura looked at the top of the list, but then her expression froze on her face.

On the giant banner at the top of the list, the one appearing was not the beautiful dog yokai she was familiar with, but the figure of another young man with long white hair, holding a tachi, with a resolute and handsome expression. Beneath it, his name was printed in large letters.

"The... the young master who saved the Nura Clan of Kanto from crisis, Nura Rikuo!?"

With trembling hands and gritted teeth, Kagura finished reading the introduction of the number one character, then nearly threw her phone to the ground in an uncontrollable burst of emotion.

"What the hell! Where did this brat come from! I’ve never even heard of him! Suddenly popping out and snatching the top spot from my Lord Sesshomaru? Where is the logic in that?!" Kagura shouted, her voice drawing the attention of other customers and staff in the cafe. Opposite her, Kanna remained expressionless, calmly drinking her milk tea.

"Hmph! I'm so mad! I'm really so mad! What on earth are those Tengu doing?! How can they rank this list so haphazardly?! Putting an unknown brat in such a high position... No, I have to organize the sisters later. We must raid those crow-kids' official website. If they don’t change it, I don’t mind going to Sugo Ungo to find them myself!"

Kagura spoke while picking up her phone, preparing to mobilize her fan group. Just then, her phone suddenly rang. When she saw the caller ID, her expression froze.

"No way! My holiday just started... don't call me from this number. I’ve only had my vacation for a single morning!"

Despite the internal scream, Kagura helplessly answered the call.

"Yes... yes, this is Kagura. Is that so? I understand. I'll be there immediately."

After hanging up, Kagura looked at Kanna with a dark face and slowly said, "Emergency recall. We have to go back. Something big has happened."

Suffering the pain of her holiday potentially being ruined, the forced-to-work Kagura spoke slowly. Hearing her words, Kanna immediately sent another message: 'whl'.

Kanna hadn't even finished sending her emojis when her phone also began to vibrate and ring. Looking at the caller, Kanna froze in place. Across from her, Kagura couldn't help but burst out laughing. After answering the phone, Kanna sent one last emoji.