Nobunaga said nothing.
He only gazed at Mitsuhide in silence.
Mitsuhide had made up his mind. He had no intention of running and hiding at this late stage. He would not regret or apologize for his actions. He believed that only following through would affirm the life of the traitor Akechi Mitsuhide.
He would look him straight in the face—straight in the face. Mitsuhide steeled himself.
Nobunaga did not smile. From where had this man armed himself with such an expression? He only stared at Mitsuhide, quietly and with utmost gravity. There was no ridicule or intimidation. There was neither anger nor hatred. This was where his single-minded focus lay, as if his usual boldness were a mask.
Mitsuhide unexpectedly felt a tearing ache in the depths of his chest.
(Tono—...)
“Have you come to kidnap Asara, Mitsuhide-dono?” Ranmaru broke the silence between them. “You are a bold man. I have never seen such fearlessness as yours. Have you returned from the dead to politely offer your most sincere apologies to our lord? Or...”
“...”
“Have you come so that you can be killed by his own hand?”
“!”
Ranmaru’s strong aura was filled with murderous intent. His tone and expression were calm, but his eyes were filled with hatred. This was the first time that Ranmaru, who rarely revealed his personal feelings, had ever expressed such loathing. Resentment and «power» filled his slight frame. But Mitsuhide didn’t intend to die here. He had to fight, even if he was no match for them.
“So you intend to defy him still?” Ranmaru taunted when he saw Mitsuhide preparing for battle. “How dare you turn your blade against him again!”
Still Mitsuhide refused to back down. Ranmaru squared off against him, every inch the lethal weapon. Nobunaga stared at Mitsuhide without a change of expression, then gently pushed Ranmaru out of the way and approached.
“...Are you going to kill me, Mitsuhide?”
Mitsuhide froze.
“Are you—...going to kill me a second time, Mitsuhide?”
The quietness of Nobunaga’s tone bore into Mitsuhide’s heart. He was unable to take a single step, as if he had been deprived of the power to move. Mitsuhide felt as if he were about to snap from the suffocating pressure.
Ranmaru’s aura exploded out of his control.
“This is retribution for Honnou Temple
, Mitsuhideeee—!”
“!”
There was a violent explosion from beyond the trees just as Ranmaru launched his psychic attack.
“What?!”
Explosions came in successive groups. A huge blaze shot up on the other side of the forest with a roar, brightly illuminating the greenery.
(What’s happening?!)
Mitsuhide took advantage of their agitation to attack with «nenpa». Its violent explosion blew Ranmaru backwards, slamming him onto the bunker.
“O-Ran!”
There were more detonations as if someone were pressing their assault against a weakened enemy. They had come from the helicopter site. In an instant, flames blazed higher than the trees. Blasts sent debris flying almost to where Mitsuhide stood. There were bellows and screams as Nobunaga’s men came running. Mitsuhide seized on the confusion to take flight. Nobunaga tched and headed toward the explosions.
“What is it?! What has happened?!” Nobunaga roared, seizing a fleeing subordinate. He caught sight of a helicopter, which was aflame.
(What in the...!)
“Li...lightning! Something like lightning struck them, and the helicopters exploded! There appears to be an intruder!”
Every single helicopter had exploded, and the wreckage was still burning amidst the raging fire. The propellers were bent and broken, and the fuselage scattered, indicating the severity of the blasts.
“Who the hell did this?!”
Nobunaga’s head jerked up and turned towards the clubhouse.
(Maybe...!)
Nobunaga spun on his heels and rushed back to the house.
The destruction was not limited to the outside. In the clubhouse kitchen a gas cylinder suddenly exploded, throwing all the vassals into chaos. Some ran to extinguish the fire, others for cover. A man took advantage of the commotion to sneak inside. He rushed through the building until he finally found Miike Hokage in the first-aid room.
(There she is...)
Hokage lay on the bed as if already dead. Her clothes were stained bright red, as if her wounds had never stopped bleeding. The man entered and took out the automatic rifle hidden in his jacket. He had stolen it from the helicopter stash before the explosion.
The man was an assassin. He was gasping from the sprint, but he didn’t pause to catch his breath; he unhesitatingly lifted the gun and placed its muzzle against Hokage’s white forehead.
The girl covered with Asara’s blood—
“...I won’t let you suffer,” he muttered emotionlessly, and was about to pull the trigger when— “!”
The door suddenly flew open, and Nobunaga burst in. In the same instant the man’s gun spontaneously went off in his hand. His momentum sent him tumbling to the floor, from where he attacked Nobunaga with his will. As Nobunaga recoiled from the ferocious assault, the man smashed through the window and leaped out of the room.
“You’re not getting away, you sneak!”
The man appeared to be wounded. Nobunaga followed him through the bloodstained window frame. The man fled toward the woods, leaving a trail of blood on the grass.
After running for some distance, the man looked back, gasping for breath. Nobunaga was in pursuit.
The darkness of the 18th hole was brightly illuminated by the flames of the helicopters. The man faced Nobunaga without flinching, shielding his wound. Nobunaga was astonished to recognize his face in the firelight.
“You’re alive, then—...”
It was Chiaki Shuuhei.
He had come with the goal of assassinating Asara. Shielding his bloodstained arm, the corners of the assassin’s lips curled into a bold, wicked smile.
“Thanks for before, Nobunaga.”
“My «hakonha» had no effect on you, then? Why?”
“This is why.” He took out a round mirror from under his clothes—the one entrusted to him by Miike Haruya, which had the Big Dipper engraved on its back. The mirror was cracked in the middle. It was not just a simple mirror after all. In addition to its ability to react to flames sensitive to Kihachi, it had stopped the «hakonha».
“You didn’t give it your all because you thought your opponent was small fry. That carelessness might cost you your life.”
“So a mirror allowed you a narrow escape from death. However—” With a trifle application of will, Nobunaga pulverized the mirror in Chiaki’s hand. “Now you have nothing left to protect yourself with.”
“I never intended to depend on it. That face looks familiar.” Chiaki gave Nobunaga a skeptical once-over. “Lord Flamboyant Demon King might’ve performed kanshou on a celebrity, but you don’t have a stage here in Aso.”
“How did you know where I was? Did you follow Asara?”
“The mirror told me everything that Kihachi’s head saw, from beginning to end. This is Kihachi’s territory. Kihachi-san knows Asara is here, and he’s extremely pissed at you for doing this to her. He’ll tear you limb from limb.”
The fire in the city was under Kihachi’s control. When Chiaki had held the mirror up to it, it had reflected Kihachi’s intentions. That was how he’d known where Asara was. And of course, he also knew that Kihachi’s head was now at the Middle Peak.
Chiaki had two objectives: to bury Asara and to destroy her kidnappers, the Oda. He had blown up the helicopters using koppashin containing the God of Thunder. Without helicopters, even Nobunaga couldn’t attack the Middle Peak from the sky.
Nobunaga glared straight at Chiaki with annoyance. A vein in his temple throbbed.
“You mean to say that though you narrowly escaped death, you came all this way so I can kill you?”
“Not at all. I came to kill you.” Chiaki’s lips lifted in challenge. “The games are over, Nobunaga. I’m not gonna let you make a toy out of Kihachi’s head. I’ll finish you right here. I was a little slow earlier, but that won’t be the case this time. I’m gonna «exorcise» you.”
“Hmph, you’ve got some arrogance, but that’s all you have.”
“If I «exorcise» you, it’ll be great proof that I’m better than Kagetora.”
Chiaki kicked away the pieces of the mirror, cradled his bloody right hand against his side, and slowly shifted into fighting stance. A pure strong «fighting spirit» filled him. There was in him now the quiet strength possessed only by those prepared to meet their fates. Nobunaga could see it, too.
“...You are going to die.”
“Never really thought I’d survive.” Chiaki’s cheeks contorted into a smile as he gathered his energy. “If I valued my life, I wouldn’t be fighting you. Isn’t that right, Nobunaga-san?”
“Fine resolve, Yasuda Nagahide.” Nobunaga’s eyes suddenly narrowed, and a white shimmer blazed from him. “What can I say in the face of such resolve?”
Whoosh!
A burner-like roar came from Nobunaga’s back. Chiaki gasped for breath, overwhelmed by the terrifying aura. —-He was not intimidated, however, and took a defiant stance.
(Like I’m gonna lose.)
“You can die like an insect drunk on heroism! I’ll give you what you want, Yasuda!”
“!”
His intense will struck at Chiaki, who «shielded» himself with all his might. He felt as if he were standing in the middle of a firestorm. He gritted his teeth and held on. If he let his guard down, he would be engulfed.
(I won’t die alone.) Chiaki faced his fate head-on. (I’ll take you with me to the underworld, Nobunaga!)
“Graaaah—!” he roar, and counterattacked. A fierce psychic battle ensued. Nobunaga unleashed a ferocious attack, but it didn’t bring Chiaki down. He was no longer the everyday Chiaki. The ground was gouged and seared by raging 1,000-degree flames. Chiaki put everything he had into withstanding Nobunaga’s onslaught.
“Diiieeee—!”
Sword-like psychic blows smashed through his «goshinha», but Chiaki unflinchingly countered with a will generated from the depths of his soul. Each fought this heroic battle as if he were no longer the same person.
“Why won’t you dieeeee—?!”
A tremendous force that felt as if it might crush him hit him squarely. Chiaki fell to his knees. Even as he fed everything he had into his «shield», Chiaki smiled fearlessly.
“This trifle is nothing compared to what Kagetora can do, Nobunagaaaa—!”
CRACK!
The ground ripped apart. Chiaki curled into himself and cast a barrage shield, but it was no match for Nobunaga’s power. Sand and earth flew like arrows, and Chiaki was unable to fight back. The «goshinha» shattered, and Nobunaga’s will hit him directly. Chiaki rose, spitting blood.
“...Don’t underestimate me...asshole...!”
“Though you are weak, you refused to conduct yourself wisely. You have lost. Regret your folly.”
Chiaki saw that dangerous light come into being in Nobunaga’s palm. Its power was so much greater than the previous one that there was no comparison.
Chiaki sneered. It was the «hakonha», so strong that there would be no escaping it this time. Nobunaga appeared to be really serious this time. This would be the decisive blow.
(Let it come...)
It seared into Chiaki’s eyes, this demonic light that would erase his existence forever from the flow of time.
(I have no regrets.)
Somehow, he felt little fear toward his impending demise. He didn’t feel like he had lost. Chiaki laughed: Nobunaga would get no surrender from him.
“When I die, you’ll die with me, Nobunaga!”
He recklessly struck out with his will, but Nobunaga created a strong wall with his other hand and blocked the attack. Chiaki joined his hands together in a ritual gesture: the mudra of Bishamonten. As he gazed into the light of the «hakonha», he recalled that Kagetora had done the same thing 30 years earlier. He had the passing thought that this would be his final «exorcism»—then sneered at his own faint-heartedness.
He had no real lingering attachments. He wasn’t that kind of man. That was how he’d lived his life.
If he regretted anything—
(Kagetora, I won’t be able to see you guys through,) Chiaki told Takaya. You might suffer and you might want to die, but you can’t die yet. No matter what happens, you can’t die until you know the truth. I’m sure that’s what you want as well, deep inside your heart.
If he needed a bridge, (I’ll build you one.)
The light in Nobunaga’s hand grew bigger and bigger. Chiaki was equally determined. He poured everything he had into the mudra. Intense plasma roared furiously in his ears. His heart was about to burst.
A single slip, and he would be blown away by his own «power». Chiaki let out a full-bellied roar:
“Graaaah—!”
“This is your annihilation, Yasuda—!”
Nobunaga hurled his «hakonha»!
I’ll take Nobunaga with me.
(Don’t die, Kagetora.)
With a thunderous roar, the two powers exploded.
There was a flash that seemed to split the heavens, followed immediately by a huge explosion that shook the mountains.
The clash of energies distorted dimensions and extinguished the surrounding forest in an instant. The clubhouse blasted apart as if it were a model. A tremendous shock wave rippled from its point of origin, spewing dirt and sand high into the air.
The terrible sound of the explosion echoed throughout nighttime Aso.
Its reverberation around the outer rim resembled the scream of a shattered soul.
The ground-shaking flash and roar also reached Takaya and company. Tetsuya exclaimed, “What was that?!”
Takaya said nothing. But he had been the first to whirl and shudder. A stark white projection split apart the space between his eyebrows. He caught the blast of imagery and screamed.
“O...Ougi?!”
They were halfway up Narao Peak, one of the volcanic cones that formed the central group to the north of Middle Peak. Based on Shichirou’s information and Miike Norihiko’s advice, they had decided to approach from the east side of the crater, which was somewhat less guarded.
Since the Miike family were guardians of the Middle Peak, they were very knowledgeable about the mountain. The Ootomo held the true trails. Damaging the barrier would raise an alert, which ruled out that approach. After much deliberation, Norihiko had proposed using a lava tube cave. Basaltic lava flow had created several such caves in Aso. They were not so well-known to the general public as the more spectacular limestone caves, but they were thoroughly familiar to the Miike, who used them as byways apart from the regular climbing routes. Underground areas were less affected by barriers. After repeated calculations, they devised a route that would allow them to use the lava tubes cave to infiltrate the barrier.
Aso was too large to guard completely. It was hard to imagine that the areas outside of the trails were fully covered (that was another reason why the barriers were there). Someone with the right knowledge of the routes should not find it difficult to get to the crater.
Norihiko led the way, followed by Takaya, Shichirou, Tetsuya, and three Miike Celebrants. The journey, as one might expect, was not easy, and the group finally reached the lava tube cave exit about three hours after setting out. That was when they heard the explosion.
“Saburou-sama...!”
Takaya suddenly crouched down and curled into himself, and Shichirou and the others rushed to him in surprise. Shichirou reached for his hand in a bracing gesture, but Takaya slapped him away. It startled him. Takaya held his hand over his mouth as if holding down nausea. He shivered, not moving.
“Sa...Saburou-sama...”
“Keep going... Go on ahead...I’ll catch up with you.”
“But!”
“Are you going to disobey an order?!”
Takaya’s pale face looked like that of a demon. Frightened, Shichirou obeyed. Tetsuya alone realized, “That sound just now. Ougi, was that...?”
Takaya was silent.
“It’s all right. He couldn’t...have died. He wouldn’t.”
“Ougi, was that Sensei?”
“He’s not the kind of guy who’d died to something like this,” Takaya insisted, and Tetsuya reflexively pressed his lips together.
Chiaki had appeared a short time ago in Aso Shrine’s brazier fire. The mirror given Chiaki by Haruya was called the ‘Mirror of Fire-Sight’, and there was one each at Frost Shrine and at the Miike head house. Chiaki had contacted Takaya and the others using the mirror’s ability to transmit through the medium of fire.
The flames blazing from the brazier had taken on Chiaki’s form.
“I’ll take care of Asara and Nobunaga,” he had told them shortly. “I’ll leave Kihachi’s head to you.”
The transmission had been one-way and brief. Takaya had wanted to argue, but Chiaki had already disappeared from the flickering flames.
“Don’t die.”
That had been the final thought—and the last they’d heard from him. Tetsuya and the others had heard everything, too.
“What are you going to do about Hokage?!” Tetsuya had lashed out at Takaya, who had not responded. “I’m gonna save her. That’s why I came!”
Norihiko and the others hadn’t known how to deal with a ranting Tetsuya. Takaya had smacked him into stunned silence and then told him off.
“If you want to save your sister, destroy Kihachi’s head. If there’s no head, she won’t have to die.”
Remembering the sting of his left cheek, Tetsuya stared at Takaya’s shoulders. Takaya had his back toward him.
“He won’t die...he won’t...”
“Ougi.”
“He’s all right. He’s all right...he’s fine—...” Takaya repeated as if trying to convince himself. Tetsuya told Norihiko and the others to go on ahead and crouched next to Takaya. Takaya took deep breaths in an attempt to calm himself, but it seemed his nausea had not subsided. His wheezing form was painful to look at. Tetsuya rubbed his back; that was all he could do.
The cold wind blew endlessly across the dark field.
The huge black masses of the Middle Peak and Tall Peak hung over them.
The distant sound of explosions finally faded like illusions into silence. Only the roar of the wind echoed cruelly in his cold-stabbed ears.
Takaya didn’t move for a while—he couldn’t, and Tetsuya apparently recognized that. He didn’t leave Takaya’s side; he seemed to know subconsciously that Takaya should not be left alone right now.
(He’s being ripped to shreds—...)
“Ougi, I...” Tetsuya hesitated, but then boldly expressed his feelings as best as he could. “But we have your power. You’re the only one who is willing to help the Miike.”
“...”
“So...so—”
So...he needed Takaya to try his best—was that what he wanted to say? To someone already so battered?
Tetsuya hung his head, shoulders shaking, his fists on his knees.
(I’m not doing any good...)
“...”
Suddenly, the warmth of a hand fell on his head. He lifted it in surprise to see Takaya looking away from him. His lips were pressed together. In contrast to the warmth, his face was devoid of sympathy and comfort, and his determinedly expressionless eyes were fixed on the Middle Peak. He had pushed all emotion deep into the iron walls of his chest—
“Ougi...”
Takaya walked out without a word. —Toward the black mountain.
It looks like a giant god of death, Tetsuya thought as he looked at Middle Peak. Takaya was like a soldier being called into the bosom of the god of death as he walked toward it.
The corners of Tetsuya’s eyes tilted upward as he started to follow Takaya into a cluster of rhododendron.
It was past midnight. The mountains were getting colder and colder, and the wind-chill made it even worse. Although the down coats Norihiko gave Takaya and Tetsuya kept them quite warm, this deep in the mountains a wrong step would mean disaster.
They had received word from Kiyomasa via the communication shells. He was in Hot Spring Valley [Yu-no-tani] west of the Middle Peak with a force of 500 men. Fortunately for him, Ootomo’s attention had been diverted by the explosions. He said he would take advantage of the commotion to storm the wards.
“I’m going to make a lot of noise; do what you need to do.”
Kiyomasa was going to do his best to draw the enemy’s eyes to the Kusasenri side opposite Takaya’s group. They were going to attack from two directions with the crater between them.
Soon after, Kiyomasa began his operation. The effects became apparent about 30 minutes later. There was visible movement in Ootomo’s forces as sentries hurried about; it was clear they had been rattled by the assault from Kiyomasa’s army.
With the help of Kiyomasa’s diversion, Takaya and the others made it safely up to the Sensui Gorge area. A slow steady climb brought them at last to the east side of the Middle Peak, where they could see the Aso East Station of the crater ropeway.
“There are more of them than I thought.”
Not as many as on the Kusasenri side, but security was still very tight. The square in front of the station was brightly illuminated. Takaya and the others peeked out from behind some rocks at their opposition. The closer they got to the top, the less vegetation there was, exposing the rugged volcanic sediment of a craggy mountain.
“Staying hidden is going to be a challenge.”
The ropeway took only a few minutes to reach the summit, but walking took much longer. Searchlights grazed the mountainside through the darkness, and there appeared to be guards everywhere.
“We’ll go as far as we can. Watch out for the lights.”
Takaya led the way. They proceeded up the slope, carefully avoiding the searchlights—but just as they approached a steep slope, there was an accident.
“!”
Tetsuya slipped, and a stone kicked free by his foot rolled down the slope, drawing the attention of the guards below. The floodlights were quickly pointed in their direction. They immediately ducked, but were spotted by the guards on the ridge.
(Shit...!)
Takaya blasted his will at the men rushing toward them. They screamed and collapsed, but they were not the only ones who had noticed that something was wrong.
“Run! To the right!”
Ootomo’s soldiers came at them in a mass. Some charged at them from the right, cutting off their escape.
Takaya tsked. —They were caught from both sides!
“Waugh!”
Norihiko and the others screamed. Ootomo’s ghost soldiers attacked, brandishing swords. Takaya promptly sent them flying with a psychic attack, but they immediately rose again. More and more appeared—where had they all been hiding?
“Leave this to me!”
“Thanks!”
Shichirou ran in the opposite direction, attracting the eyes of the enemy with showy detonations of will. Tetsuya and the others sprinted up the slope while the enemy was thus diverted. Takaya faced the Ootomo soldiers head-on.
“Ari nari tonari anaro nabi kunabi! (bai)!”
Ghost soldiers hit by «ressa-choubuku» disappeared in twos and threes. The panther valiantly bared its fangs as it guarded Tetsuya et. al.’s dash.
“Run, hurry!”
Tetsuya and the other Miike ran desperately up the bare reddish-brown surface of the mountain. However, their enemies was much more numerous than they had expected. While Takaya and Shichirou fought, Tetsuya and the others quickly found their path blocked by Ootomo soldiers. Though Tetsuya flourished his votive sword, he was unable to drive them off.
“Damn it! Damn it!”
Norihiko screamed from behind.
“Uncle!”
He saw Norihiko fall to an Ootomo soldier’s blade. Tetsuya yelled and rushed to aid him, but hordes of the enemy immediately swarmed them.
“Waugh!”
“ (bai)!”
As Takaya rushed toward them, he exorcised the soldiers in the nick of time. He held Tetsuya close beside him as they ran.
“Shit!”
The news seemed to have spread. Nearby soldiers instantly gathered. Takaya and company quickly found their way blocked. They had no choice but to force their way through.
“Come with me!”
Takaya sprinted up the slope, «exorcising» the soldiers charging at him. But no matter how many he exorcised, there seemed no end to them. In fact, he found himself increasingly surrounded. Tetsuya screamed hopelessly, “It’s no use!”
“It’s not!”
Takaya continued to «exorcise» the Ootomo soldiers, trying to break through the wall they formed, but he had run out of time...!
“!”
There was a a bomb-like explosion right next to them, and Takaya and Tetsuya were sent flying by the blast. An Ootomo general had come rushing upon hearing the news of the enemy invasion!
“Who the hell are you?!”
Their attacker was Kai Souun, to whom Sourin had entrusted the task of guarding the east side of the Middle Peak. He didn’t wait for Takaya, who had been slammed to the ground, to get up before commencing a furious psychic attack.
“Guuh!”
Takaya immediately cast a «goshinha» in response to the sudden onslaught, but holding it took everything he had. Souun didn’t even pause for breath. He launched a fierce concentrated attack in an attempt to break through his foe’s «shield». Takaya curled into himself, but gritted his teeth and raised his eyes.
“Damn you!”
There was a bizarre howl of air as Takaya shoved Souun’s will back. But he didn’t have the power to shift Souun. Souun saw as much and shouted to his soldiers:
“Cut them down!”
The soldiers attacked with brandished swords. Their way was completely blocked. Takaya launched a desperate psychic attack and tried to stand, but was dealt a mighty blow by Souun’s return fire. He was flung through the air.
“Guh!”
He slammed into the ground again and was hit by another blast that felt as if it had broken his ribs.
“Ougi!”
Tetsuya had already been pinned by Ootomo’s soldiers and was unable to move. Takaya was too injured to get up again. He was immediately seized by Ootomo soldiers. His face was unfamiliar to Souun, of course. Takaya could barely open his eyes or manage a glare. Souun looked grimly down at him—he probably recognized him as kanshousha.
“Kill him. He is too dangerous to be left alive.”
“Ougi!”
A subordinate drew his sword in compliance with the order. Tetsuya yelled, “Let go of him!” and flung the men away with a strength that surprised everyone.
“Boy...!”
Tetsuya crawled over to Takaya and spread his arms facing the soldiers.
“If you’re going to kill Ougi, then you’ll have to kill me first!”
“What?”
“Kill me, kill meeee!”
Tetsuya’s voice was so shrill that Souun and his soldiers blinked, thinking that he had lost his mind.
“Stop, Tetsuya...”
“Shut up! If you kill me, I’m gonna come back as a ghost like you and take all of you with me to the next world! So kill me!”
“!”
At that moment, there suddenly came an angry cry from below.
What was happening? As Souun turned, the soldiers next to him fell to the ground, spurting blood, as if they had been sniped by someone from the sky. Souun started.
“What?!”
“Wah!” The Ootomo soldiers surrounding Takaya and Tetsuya scattered. Screams and shouts simultaneously erupted from downslope and a distant spot. But they had no allies here; Shichirou and his men were far away.
(They’re not on the ground...!?)
They were in the sky. The attack had come from overhead, and the unexpectedness of it had thrown Ootomo into confusion. Surely not! A surprised Souun looked up into the sky and gasped.
“That’s—!”
Large black shadows covered the light of the stars. At first glance he thought they were giant eagles, but no—
They were human beings.
Human beings flying like birds!
“Waugh!”
Earth and sand were blown high into the air in one blast after another as if bombs were being dropped. All hell broke loose. As Ootomo soldiers ran for cover, the flying people swooped like condors and violently knocked them off their feet with long metal poles. They weren’t using hang gliders or paragliders— They were flying without any support at all. They had no wings, yet flew freely in the sky..
“This is insane! Who in the world...!”
They were not the bird-people of the Himuka cult, but different people altogether—around seven or eight of them. And their numbers were increasing. They were carrying iron pipes, hunting rifles, and other weapons, and they were plunging out of the sky on the enemy like eagles and hawks. Although they didn’t fight as cleverly as the bird-people, they were bringing the Ootomo down so effectively that it looked as if they were toying with them.
“Who in the hell are they?!”
(They‘re...) Tetsuya gasped as he looked closely at the faces of the diving ’fliers’. (Miike Celebrants!?)
“Tetsuya-san!”
Among the fliers was Atsushi, son of the Takachiho Tomb-Protector—the young man who had been taking care of Hokage. Atsushi and his Miike friends mowed the Ootomo soldiers down. He then shot Souun Kai with a hunting rifle. Tetsuya stared in surprise as Souun fell to the ground, spurting blood. Atsushi landed next to him.
“Are you hurt?”
“What the hell is going on...? How are you flying?!”
“The Spirit-Protector has successfully performed the Method of Bird-Flight.”
“Uncle?!”
“We’ll talk about it later. Hold on, we’re going up!”
No sooner had Atsushi finished speaking than he was in the air with Tetsuya in his arms. Someone else did the same for Takaya.
“Damn you...shoot them! Shoot them! Don’t let them get away!”
But they soared so high and fast that Ootomo’s psychic attacks could not reach them. The Miike Celebrants, now bird-people themselves, picked up Norihiko and the others and rose steadily until they were even higher than the ropeway cables.
“Feh! Call the soldiers above us immediately! They must not be allowed to reach the Middle Peak!”
Soon the floodlights could no longer keep up. The flying Celebrants flew towards the ridge of the Tall Peak with Tetsuya and the others in their arms.
They melted away into the darkness of the sky.
Meanwhile, tension rose in the Ootomo main camp at Kusasenri.
There was a huge explosion of unknown cause at the foot of the mountain. Immediately thereafter, the barrier at Hot Spring Valley was breached, and an unidentified enemy penetrated within. Aso Koremitsu, who was in command, immediately dispatched troops. The enemy was few in number but extremely strong, and they left the Ootomo soldiers in a state of confusion.
“Has the enemy been identified? Are they Shimazu?!”
“Reporting!” A messenger ran to Aso Koremitsu. “The enemy numbers about 500! They are led by Oda onshou Katou Kiyomasa!”
“What?! Kiyomasa-dono?!”
Koremitsu turned white as a sheet. Kiyomasa was the benefactor who had protected Koremitsu and the Aso family after their fortunes had foundered in the war. He had heard of Kiyomasa’s resurrection, but had never imagined he might appear here and now.
“Is it really true? It it really Kiyomasa-dono?!”
“That...that was the name he gave in battle. The troops are unable to handle him—please—please send reinforcements immediately!”
Trembling, Koremitsu swallowed hard and looked down at the map in front of him. His fingertips quavered. Even though Kiyomasa had once been his patron, he could not defy Sourin now.
“There is no need for hesitation, Koremitsu-dono.”
Koremitsu’s head jerked up at the calm voice of Naoe Nobutsuna, who was supposed to be at old Bouchuu, with a camp enclosure between it and the Ootomo headquarters.
“Naoe-dono.”
He had just arrived by car after hearing the news of the assault. He refused the wheelchair prepared for him by Yoshie and walked to Koremitsu on his own two feet.
“Kiyomasa is now your enemy. He incorporated Higo into Oda’s jurisdiction. Do not hesitate.”
“Oda’s jurisdiction?!”
“Yes. If Kiyomasa is making a move, it likely has something to do with Nobunaga. It may be a diversion.”
“Which means his main force is elsewhere?”
“Please tell them to reinforce the Sensui Gorge side. It would be better to retain as many of your best here as possible while dispatching your forces. I will inform Sourin-dono.”
“I understand. Let it be done!”
His vassals immediately began to bustle about carrying out his orders.
Naoe stared grimly at the black mass of the Middle Peak.
He had, of course, sensed the clash earlier, and the violence of it had raised in his mind the specter of what had happened 30 years ago.
Inside, he was frantically shaking his head. His impregnable poker face was near to crumbling. Here where the wash of magic was so strong, he hadn’t been able to figure out what it had been. Except—it hadn’t been Takaya. It’d been someone else. Not Takaya, who was safe. Who had to be safe. Naoe closed his eyes, tightened his shoulders, and desperately gnashed his teeth again and again.
(Don’t be here—...!) Naoe cried out silently like a prayer. (Please, you mustn’t come here...!)
At the Middle Peak’s crater, the ‘Ritual of the Great Fire Wheel’ was proceeding smoothly. News of Katou Kiyomasa’s attack reached Sourin at the rim there.
“Kiyomasa?! Are you sure?!” Sourin snapped at Ichimata, who had delivered the news, his face going white with anger. “Cursed Kiyomasa, just when we thought we had wiped out Shimazu and Akechi, now he comes along. Has he learned of the ‘Ritual of the Great Fire Wheel’ and come to stop us?!”
“There is a possibility that Oda is involved. We must strengthen our security.”
“Insolence! As if I would allow that Lotus Sutra fanatic and lover of raids to obstruct the construction of our earthly paradise! Send out an army immediately and take him down! I want to see his head!”
“Aye!”
(That man will not be allowed to get in the way of our Christian kingdom!)
Despite the surrounding tension, the ‘Ritual of the Great Fire Wheel’ proceeded steadily. Volcanic ash had begun to erupt inside the crater, which indicated increased magma activity. They could clearly feel the steadily intensifying rumbling and shaking of the ground. One could feel energy suffusing one’s entire body just by standing here.
The Middle Peak’s—the mountain’s life force was growing stronger and stronger.
(No one will stand in our way...!)
Sourin turned bloodshot eyes toward the clusters of fires at Kusasenri.
A few hours after that great clash—
The scene of the gigantic explosion was quiet.
Nothing moved. Nothing make a sound.
A girl dressed as a shrine maiden lay beneath the debris.
Asara.
She was not yet dead, having apparently protected herself with a «goshinha». She was in a space between pillars and had escaped being crushed by the destroyed building. She had lost even more blood, however. She was a whisper away from death.
Her consciousness was almost gone.
Someone called to her.
Who...?
«Asara, our shrine maiden of hope...»
A dim light flared into being near her. Was it not strong enough to take on the clear form of a human being? Still, it tried to appear before Asara in the form it had had before death. It was...
Yasuo...
Yasuo’s ghost. He had not gone to the next world.
«Don’t die. You can’t die yet—...»
Yasuo cheered Asara on as she tried to gather her strength. He had given everything he had to bolster her «goshinha».
«Resurrect the Himuka Kingdom.»
«I will release Kihachi-sama.»
I’ll help you... Yasuo’s ghost cried. He had wanted a glimpse of the land of hope.
I’ll give you whatever power I have...he thought like a prayer. His ghostly form turned into light and lifted Asara. Then it entered into her.
An orange glow covered Asara’s entire body, and it floated up as softly as a feather.
At the world’s end, he had wanted to be shown the Himuka Kingdom—...
Asara opened her eyes.
But Yasuo’s soul faded into darkness.
O shrine maiden of hope—...
Comments
Yay! Chiaki is alive!....
Yay! Chiaki is alive!.... maybe
I wonder if Naoe will fight Kagetora when he sees him? The pressure from the people he is supposed to be leading could be enough to make him act rashly or will his unending love for Kagetora cause him to falter?