72

AN: I hope this is as cool as I felt it was while writing it. Idk if it was because I could imagine the scene but it was so fucking sick. I hope my writing captures 20% of how cool the scene in question was in my head, because gah! I also hope I didn't just overhype it lmao. Either way, here's the second half of Takehiko's latest adventure. The next chapter is the beginning of Ibaraki and Tobio in Yomi, with special guests Izanami and TBA. See you in the comments!

Chapter Text

"Thank you again for your help, Dear," The little old lady says while waving from her doorstep, bags of groceries sitting inside the entranceway behind her.

Takehiko rubs the back of his neck and grins, "You're welcome, Granny. Enjoy the rest of your day!"

Strolling back onto the main road, Takehiko rests his grocery bag in one arm and takes in the morning air.

When he arrived in town this morning he immediately followed up on the advice Yuto gave him yesterday. He had planned to stop quickly at a local shop, grab the cucumbers and a snack for later, then head on his way to the lake. Of course, when the old lady in front of him at the checkout counter had so many bags he couldn't just let her carry them all herself.

She had stubbornly insisted she was still spry at her age and she wouldn't have bought all those groceries if she couldn't handle it but that didn't deter him. Instead, he offered a trade, if she let him carry her groceries, she'd have to tell him about herself.

Despite her initial complaints, she eventually agreed, spending the trip to her house telling him about her life in the town.

She'd been born in this town and lived her entire life here, married her high school sweetheart, and had three children, each child eventually leaving the town behind, raising families of their own elsewhere. A simple story, a bland small-town cliche she called it, yet she still smiled throughout her tale.

"Our town and the people here are blessed," She had said, staring off in the direction of the lake for a minute, "The spirits have loved us for centuries, only asking for our love in return."

She had scrutinized him after ending her reminiscence. Nodding once she found what she was looking for she touched his elbow gently, "Would you mind heading down to the lake for me? My knees aren't what they used to be."

"I'd be happy to," He said, and the rest of their trip was spent in comfortable silence.

Back to the present, Takehiko arrived at the edge of the lake, feeling an ambiguous sort of tension in the air. Nothing overtly hostile or welcoming, the atmosphere feels almost undecided as though the balance could be tipped either way.

The surroundings of the lake are empty save a small hut with two beautiful horses tied to it and two figures fishing at the edge of the lake.

Takehiko finds himself struggling to tell which of the two fishermen looks stranger.

The fisherman closest to him is strange in an inhuman sense; he has green wrinkly skin, easily visible given he's only wearing a crude grass skirt, sharp nails at the ends of his thin webbed fingers that wrap around his fishing pole, and long pointy ears that flare out beneath the bowl cut hair that surrounds his head.

The strangest part by far is how exceptionally flat the top of his head is, as though it was cut clean off.

An older-looking Kappa, Takehiko recognizes belatedly.

The other fisherman stands out not due to any inhumanity but his odd choice of attire. 'He', or at least Takehiko assumes he's a man due to his sheer size, around seven and a half feet if he had to guess, is dressed in a fully enclosed suit of mirror-polished white Samurai armor.

The armor isn't something you would see in a museum but some sort of bleeding-edge reimagining of a Samurai for modern times. The sleek reflective white and the bright red accents almost make the armor look mechanical to Takehiko's eyes, or if not mechanical then certainly magical.

Sitting in between them are weapons of all kinds; spears, swords, massive bows, and even a trident.

They both suddenly pull their fishing rods back with all their might in unison, yanking the lines out of the water with nothing attached for seemingly no reason.

It's then that the tranquil surface of the water explodes as a titanic catfish, the size of a bus, breaches the surface, flopping in the air for a moment before slamming back into the lake.

"The bait isn't for you, you gluttonous bastard!" The Kappa yells, standing up and shaking his fist at the catfish.

Its head pokes out of the water and it stares with a look of pure contempt. The catfish's cheeks swell and it spits out a stream of water towards the fishermen, which the Kappa swats away. Then as one final insult it tucks over, flipping its tail at the two before disappearing below the surface again.

"Want to call it a draw and get on with the whole execution?" The Kappa asks nonchalantly, which stuns Takehiko.

"There's still time, a challenger might appear." The samurai replies.

The Kappa scoffs, "The villagers are nice folk but the water challenge escaped their memory decades ago. I've allowed them to use my lake and the benefits that come from it despite them not observing ancestral rites for too long as is. No, I'd rather fight you to the death here than be forced to revoke their access to the lake."

Takehiko stumbles forward in a panic at his words, knowing he needs to do something, "Wait a moment!"

The two turn towards him in surprise and the samurai chuckles, "It looks like you might have a challenger after all."

The Kappa's eyes narrow and he scoffs, "Bah, the kid arrived after you anyway so your challenge is still first."

Takehiko splutters and holds up his grocery bag, "I brought cucumbers?"

The Kappa's beak clicks shut and he glances at the bag, "Well, maybe you two can discuss the order of the challenges. Hurry up kid, we don't have all day."

Takehiko jogs over to the two, staring at the samurai warily. Based on the tidbits of their conversation he caught, the samurai is here to execute the Kappa. That… doesn't sit well with him no matter what the reason is.

The Kappa snatches the grocery bag from Takehiko's hand and pulls out one of the vegetables, taking a big bite and chewing thoughtfully.

He glances between the Takehiko and the samurai, "You two can discuss your challenge order, I suppose."

He then waddles off to the nearby hut.

"My snacks…" Takehiko laments as the Kappa takes the whole grocery bag with him.

His shoulders droop as he thinks of his meager finances. Sure, he still has the money his Shishou's mother generously gave him but he doesn't want to spend any of that if he doesn't have to.

"You have a good sword," Takehiko jumps as the samurai says this to him, and he grasps the hilt uncertainly.

"Thank you, it's my ancestor's sword." He awkwardly responds, not knowing what to make of this man. With no facial expressions and the rest of his body language obscured by the armor, it's hard to get a read on this samurai.

"Yosh! Let us decide who will battle the master of these waters." The samurai yells, startling Takehiko.

He holds his hand up to forestall the samurai, "Before that, can you help me understand what's going on here?"

The samurai's helmet tilts in a gesture of confusion, "You arrived here ready for battle, yet know nothing of your purpose here? Lord Yahata mentioned that another champion would arrive so I assumed that champion was you."

"Sorry, I was sent here by a kind old lady to play with spirits not fight to the death. Well, that and a vague tip." Takehiko mutters wondering how all this happened.

The samurai cups the chinpiece of his helmet, "Indeed? You must be the champion of the common folk then! A hero of the people, what a wonderful surprise!"

Takehiko feels a headache beginning as he shakes his head, "Sure, that works I guess. Can we maybe circle back to my question?"

The samurai ever exuberant nods, "Of course, young hero. Where lies your confusion?"

Takehiko resists the urge to shout 'all of this!' "What's this talk of an execution?"

 "Oh, that. It's the condition lain upon me by the leaders of my clan. Lord Yahata sent us an oracle, decreeing that we must ensure this village retains access to the lake. The leaders in their wisdom specified that I must kill the master of this lake once I claim victory." While the statement is said matter-of-factly, there is a hint of regret in the samurai's tone.

Takehiko shakes his head, "Why must he die though, can't you talk things out?"

"Historically, victory is all that is needed for the water challenge. I cannot go against the command I was given, however." He pauses for a moment, "Though that is only if I fight. Should someone else have solved the issue before I took action, such as a local hero…"

He trails off and Takehiko coughs in embarrassment, "Enough of the hero stuff. My name is Takehiko."

"Well met, young Takehiko! I am Yoshishige no Senzaemon, champion of Lord Yahata! Tutelor god of war, protector of samurai, lord of the eight banners, and divine archer!" The samurai bows and then shakes Takehiko's hand vigorously.

"Senzaemon then," Takehiko says slowly, his head still spinning from the bombardment of titles.

"As I said earlier, by command of the clan leaders, I am to kill the master of the lake should we battle. If you battle in my place and are victorious, that would change." The samurai nods to himself as though their discussion has concluded.

While Takehiko finds that result preferable, that doesn't mean he understands why that's what needs to happen.

"What's the difference between me fighting and not killing that man, and you doing the same? Why must you kill him if you fight?" Takehiko stresses, hoping to get through to this man.

Senzaemon responds with a wistful tone, "I too wish that I had an option besides killing this man. Not all of us are free to choose, young hero."

The samurai places his gauntleted hand on Takehiko's shoulder and stares straight into his eyes, "I am the oldest and strongest of my siblings, thanks to my Lord's blessings. Yet despite my power and the love of my god, my path is set by others. If I must act as a spear, wielded along the whims of another, I will be the greatest spear so my wielder does not take up another. Do you understand?"

Takehiko doesn't if he's being honest but his throat feels tight all the same. He can hear the sadness in Senzaemon's voice but also the ironclad determination.

"My god can't act directly, he can only give me solace in his embrace," Senzaemon says as though that explains anything.

"You won't have to kill anyone today," Takehiko mutters, firming his resolve.

"I hope you're correct," Senzaemon responds, his voice returning to the bright boastful tone from before, "Remember though, you need to win the challenge."

"I still don't know what the challenge is though," Takehiko says, before being interrupted by the startled whinny of the horses tethered to the shack as the door is kicked open.

"Right, it's my turn to explain the rules then." The Kappa says, waddling back to them. "Do you remember how territory disputes over water sources are decided?"

'Are decided?' Takehiko mouths to himself, wondering when the last time villagers in this country had a dispute over a lake. Wracking his brain he tries to remember any history on the subject. A vague reference to a sport is on the tip of his tongue when it clicks suddenly.

"Sumo, right?" He asks.

"Right in one, kid." The Kappa responds and the edges of his beak curl up into an approximation of a grin.

"That 'sport' was originally a form of ritual combat to claim water, the most valuable resource there is. Of course, the real thing doesn't have so many rules or limitations. A real primal killing art that gets the blood pumping." He huffs and his cheeks darken into a blue hue as steam shoots out his nostrils. "Ah, it was also a ritual for purification sometimes but ignore that part."

He shakes his head and points towards the village, "When humans first settled here, back when I was a tadpole, my father faced all challengers, defending this lake for our family. By the time I had matured, he fought for forty years, slaughtering all challengers."

His eyes sparkle with pride, "Then this beast of a human came, a man with the most powerful physique you've ever seen. His wrestling was an art form and when he faced my father, it was a breathtaking clash. In the end, he flipped my father over after hours of combat, emptying his dish and draining his strength."

"Yet despite having the right to, he didn't kill my father. That man, the founder of the village you see here now, instead promised to entertain us and share the lake as kin." The tone of the Kappa is filled with respect as he tells his tale.

"This water challenge is a symbolic representation of that bond, and for centuries challengers from the village would be trained to honor that original promise." The pride in his voice slowly fades, being replaced with longing, "Then with the tides of time, that promise was forgotten."

He sighs and shakes his head, "Sure, the villagers are kind and treat the lake with respect but my lineage? They haven't honored us with battle for sixty years. I held out hope that perhaps they were simply struggling to train a new warrior but I've waited long enough."

He sighs taking one last look at the village before strutting out on the water's surface. "Today will be the last challenge. If I defeat all challengers, this lake will no longer welcome humans. The villagers will lose their blessings, and the town will slowly fade away."

His arms are spread wide in a gesture of challenge as he stares at Takehiko, "Should either of you win, my life will be in your hands and the lake will belong to the village. What is your choice, kid?"

Takehiko's grip on his sword tightens and he takes a deep breath, "I will save this village, and I'll save you as well."

The Kappa shrugs still unaffected, "I'm a bit old for saving, kiddo. If that's what you want though, do your best."

Takehiko walks to the edge of the water and freezes, "Um, I can't do the whole walking on water thing…"

He hears what sounds suspiciously like laughter from Senzaemon but ignores it.

The Kappa snorts and waves his hand, a ripple spreading across the water, "It'll be solid enough to walk across now. The surface will be as hard as that concrete stuff you humans make though. Don't trip."

Takehiko cautiously steps on the water's surface, sighing in relief when it holds despite small ripples spreading across it with every touch. He walks carefully, slowly gaining confidence until he ends up across from the Kappa in the center of the lake.

The Kappa glances at his sword and then back at Takehiko, "Do you plan on using that or should you have left it on the shore."

With flushed cheeks, Takehiko shakes his head, "I've mostly trained with a sword, sorry. I wish I could give you a sumo match but well…"

The Kappa's shoulders slump, "It's not like that samurai over there was going to kill me with sumo either. I guess I should just be happy two people showed up today."

There's a metallic hum from the shore and a silver blur flies past Takehiko before connecting with the Kappa's outstretched hand. The trident that had been resting on the ground earlier sits comfortably in the Kappa's grip.

"With all that sappy stuff earlier, I assume you don't want to fight to death?" The Kappa asks while rolling his shoulders in preparation.

Takehiko swiftly shakes his head from side to side, "No, definitely not!"

"Points then? Best of five?" The Kappa asks rhetorically, shifting lower and stretching his hamstrings, "Drawn blood or an aborted attack that would have drawn blood? I won't back down further than that though, no tapping on shoulders."

Takehiko just blinks wondering if most Yokai are obsessed with violence. "That's fine with me."

He takes a deep breath and focuses, remembering his training. In anticipation of battle, that chill seeps out from his navel again and an intense awareness of his sword permeates his mind.

The Kappa gives him an appraising look, "This might be more fun than I thought."

He spins his trident and points it at Takehiko, rushing water enveloping the weapon. For a moment, his memory of fighting Shinobu yesterday overlaps with the image of the Kappa.

Takehiko throws up in his mouth a little as the image of the beautiful woman mixes with the old Kappa and his flabby gut.

The distraction costs him as the Kappa chooses that moment to surge forward. The prongs of the trident flash towards Takehiko's chest, the Kappa's beak open in anticipation of winning the first bout.

Takehiko nimbly dances around the strike, taking a step closer when the Kappa sucks in a deep breath and pulls, dragging the trident back in for another thrust. He blasts out a sharp exhale as he thrusts the trident again.

The surprisingly dextrous motions catch Takehiko off guard and with a hiss the rhythm of his breathing breaks. Still, Takehiko draws his sword, the flowing white intent billowing around his blade.

His sword clashes with the trident, slipping in between a set of prongs and crashing against the back of the weapon's head. Takehiko's sword intent blasts through the layer of water and digs into the metal, seemingly ready to cut through at a moment's notice.

On impact, however, the Kappa releases his grip on the weapon, and Takehiko's swing continues upward, flinging the trident away.

Yet Takehiko only has time to widen his eyes when the Kappa crouches low under his swing and grapples him.

The sky and the surface of the water blend in a blur of blue as his world turns upside down. Takehiko's eyes slam shut and he flares his Touki just before impact.

Yep, that felt like concrete.

The Kappa climbs off him and Takehiko groans as he picks himself back up.

When he collects himself again, the Kappa is standing straighter grinning widely as he spins his trident. "Hehe, it's been too long since I've slammed a warrior into the ground like that. If nothing else I'll get to relive memories of victory before my death."

Turning his head to the side, Takehiko spits out the traces of blood in his mouth, "I already told you that you aren't dying today."

"If that's the case, you'll have to do better, kid." The Kappa snipes back and this time Takehiko launches the first attack.

His Touki flares for the briefest moment and his foot stomps into the water surface. Takehiko shifts his body low as he glides across the water's surface, shifting his sheath so it hits the Kappa's side as he passes by.

Takehiko stumbles a little as his momentum slows but he manages to catch himself and turn to face his opponent again, "The score is one to one."

The Kappa pats his side with a frown, "Love taps aren't going to cut it. You'd better draw your sword 'cause that move only works once."

"Worry about yourself," Takehiko mutters, rolling his eyes.

He hurriedly draws his sword to deflect a thrown trident and the battle's on again. The trident bounces off and flies back to its owner while Takehiko follows.

He keeps his sword drawn and thrusts at the Kappa's waist. The trident is caught and spun, the haft rotating to knock away his thrust with perfect accuracy. But Takehiko already expected that, and rotates his sword in his palm, slamming the blade back into its scabbard.

He ducks under the retaliatory sweep of the trident and sucks in a deep breath that floods his lungs with strength. The energy in his body floods into his scabbard, enveloping his sword in the soothing chill.

Feeling a sudden pressure in the air, Takehiko shifts slightly, dodging a thrust of the trident and while his opponent is committed, he draws.

His draw is the proof of his effort and his sword flashes through the space between like an imperceptible haze, drawing a thin red line across the Kappa's gut.

Takehiko steps backwards avoiding the butt of the Kappa's trident as he swings it upwards in an attempt to trade points.

"That's two to one," He says with a grin despite panting in exertion.

Between his brief uses of Touki and the pressure put on his body to fight at full speed, he's beginning to feel the strain. He has enough left in the tank to finish this, but if these bouts grow much longer it'll be close.

The Kappa touches the wound on his stomach and watches Takehiko with an unreadable expression. "You're different than him but maybe that isn't a bad thing."

The Kappa shakes away his thoughts and points his trident at Takehiko, "If this is to be the end of the water challenge, I'll make it grand!"

With that shouted promise, the surface of the lake shudders and tendrils of water rise up all around them. "Don't hate me too much for cheating!"

The Kappa laughs with joy and Takehiko screams in frustration, "Do you want to die, you old bastard?"

He dodges around a tendril that lashes out towards him, only to find another intent on whipping across his waist.

Takehiko's eyes slam shut and he kicks off the ground, arcing smoothly over the tendril and landing in a roll. He calls upon his Touki again and shoves his body sideways to dodge another slamming tendril of water.

His sword flies from its scabbard as he launches a crescent slash of sword intent that slices through the tendrils of water in front of him.

It's then that the hairs on his neck stand up and he feels the air in front of him rapidly compressing. He grits his teeth and strains his shoulder as he pulls his sword back in front of him, just in time to block the trident from impaling him.

He pants heavily as the trident flies away, his shoulder throbbing in pain from that maneuver and the rest of his body burning with lactic acid. The soothing energy that flows from his navel is only flowing faster, however. There's a faint tension in his gut that flares whenever he draws upon his sword intent now.

He can feel himself on the precipice of something but all he can feel is annoyed at the man he's fighting.

He glares at the Kappa who is still smiling at him, "I already told you, you weren't dying today. What part of that isn't clear, old man?! Do you think the world will be better for it?"

He feels angry at the... at the entitlement of this bastard! Who does he think he is, choosing to die for something as stupid as honoring this tradition? Does he think his father would want to see him in the afterlife already? It doesn't matter how old this Yokai might be, a parent would want their kids to live as long as possible and to fill their lives with joy. Takehiko refuses to believe that this is the end this Kappa deserves.

Takehiko pulls himself up straight and grits his teeth, "If you think your life is worthless now, find something new. If you have something to atone for, do it by living. I don't care. I refuse to allow you to die here, and allow that samurai behind me to be forced to kill you."

The Kappa chuckles as more tendrils of water form, "You're much more selfish and arrogant than I thought if you want to dictate everyone else's lives."

"Yeah, maybe I am." Takehiko snorts and readies himself. "Now either surrender or finish this."

The tendrils come together to form one massive whip that slams down towards Takehiko. He sees the attack and knows he should run, dodge it, anything but take it head on. Screw that though, he thinks as he pours more and more energy into his draw, even flaring the last of his Touki for extra power.

The pillar of water crashes down towards him as though the sky itself is crashing down, swallowing his vision, but he doesn't run. Instead, he glares at the attack and draws his sword, the slash colliding with the water in a brilliant flow of billowing white.

There's an explosion as the two attacks meet and Takehiko is blown backward across the water's surface, with a distant sound like shattering glass. His vision swims and spikes of pain, pulse across his arms and chest.

His hand squeezes around the hilt of his sword, the texture of the wrap comforting him, but the sword feels too light all of a sudden.

As his vision clears, his heart jumps into his throat.

The blade of his sword has shattered into hundreds of pieces, some of which are the cause of the pulsing pain across his body as they stabbed into him like shrapnel. Nothing dangerous, thankfully but danger is hardly on his mind at the moment.

His sword, a family heirloom is shattered it lays in pieces all around him. He feels tears well up in his eyes as the remains of his partner are scattered around him. The sword that he had trained with all this time, sweat and bled with, bonded with through meditation, has been destroyed for what? Because he didn't want to back down in the face of an attack? To prove what?

He clenches his fist, ignoring the sting from the shards embedded in his hands, and tries to swallow his tears.

A gauntleted hand pats him on the back and Takehiko blinks to clear his eyes, "I can still fight."

"Of course, young hero!" Senzaemon says back without an ounce of doubt, "Though should you need a sword, I can lend you one of mine."

Takehiko looks down at the hilt of his sword and sniffles, feeling exhaustion seep into his shoulders, "I don't know if I should. If I can just move on from my partner like that."

He thinks about all the time he spent trying to with his sword, to become one. All of that time -gone in an instant.

"Hm, I dread to consider the pain of losing my companion, Hikaru Tsukige. Losing him would hollow out my chest and flood it with grief." The samurai says and Takehiko's incomprehension of what he's talking about helps him clear his mind.

He closes his eyes and remembers all the impossible things he has seen his Shishou do. He might not understand how she does most of the things she does, but he knows that the impossible is possible. So he tries to connect to his sword, one last time.

The memories of their battles and their training flit through his mind and he allows himself to be embraced by the feelings that flow with them. His gut wraps itself in knots as the tension in his navel grows stronger but he pushes on.

With a deep breath, he slides into his drawing stance, not rushing things but with a painfully slow reverence since this might be the last time they enter this stance together.

The knot in his gut suddenly unravels and for the first time he truly senses his partner, shattered, in pain, and yet crying out full of joy.

The wind ebbs and flows around him as the shards of his sword hum together, floating on a cloud of sword intent as they lazily drift around him. The fluffy cloud of razor-sharp energy embraces him and he feels the soothing chill of his partner's presence. Despite being in the eye of a hurricane of sword intent, he feels like he's floating above the clouds again.

The pieces gradually slide together reforming the blade as the cloud is sucked into the void of his scabbard.

When he opens his eyes, the Kappa standing across from him a distance away is watching him with awe.

Takehiko's arms feel heavy as he holds his sword, feeling immeasurable relief.

Senzaemon pats him on the shoulder again, "Don't forget that weight you feel in your arms. A hero's sword should always feel heavy."

After saying that the samurai walks away and Takehiko smiles tenderly at his partner, drawing his sword despite the distance.

The densely packed sword intent billows outward as a rolling tide of clouds, looking gentle but carrying incredible weight and intensity. A storm of sword intent that embraces those who need protection and strikes down those who wish to harm others.

The Kappa tries to surround himself with a shield of water but it's torn apart in an instant, leaving him covered in shallow wounds.

Takehiko sheathes his sword and walks to shore, "The lake belongs to the village now. Maybe head to Kyoto or Tokyo instead of wasting away here. Teach the people there the sumo you think has been lost from the world."

He pauses and turns back glaring at the Kappa, "If you do go though, put some more clothes on!"