Chapter 1

After that massive surprise Yasaka, the nine-tailed kitsune and leader of the Western Yokai Faction, turned into a near blur as she practically flew out of the room. Not caring whatsoever of the obstacles in her way. Not even the expensive glass was safe from her flight. After she left the building through unconventional means, she allowed her tightly spooled control over her form to waver.

In one instant a beautiful blonde with an incredibly voluptuous figure who would be commonly mistaken for a cosplayer and in the next, a building size fox with 9 equally golden tails barreled out of the compound. Her paws patted lightly against the ground, Touki suffusing every strip of deadly muscle. With the slightest of twitches, she exploded further and further at an ever increasing pace. The startled shouts of surprise didn't phase her in the slightest. The foxes entirely focused on the normal looking mountain slowly approaching in the distance.

Tails whipping around wildly subconsciously, snout taking in the musty scent, skin enjoying the feeling of fur waving in the wind. She missed these things. The times in which she didn't have all these responsibilities. When roaming the land in her fox form was the norm. A simpler time. Eating from nature, fighting, running, hiding. At the time, the life was shit but if she knew what the future would hold for her then she would've just guarded those temple doors.

After a traveling a distance that would've taken averagely strength yokai days to reach in a but a few moments, she began to slow down her pace. It wouldn't do to show her Master how excited she was to see him. With ever tightening control, she spooled her form back down into that same blonde and golden eyed beauty.

Yasaka walked the last couple of yards to mossed over temple doors that previously were firmly closed. Tightly in fact. She should know, especially after spending over 20 years trying to slip herself inside without any results. Just the memory of her yowling and clawing at the door like an insistent cat made her want to curl up in a hole somewhere.

'I hope he didn't witness that..'

After straightening her yellow kimono and fixing the hair pins in her blonde hair, she stepped into the open clearing only to have her 1000 year old heart freeze.

There sitting in the middle of the old decrepit stone doors, was a man. Average in all ways. He wasn't overly muscled, nor tall. In fact, he looked more like a scholar than anything else. His hair laid in an inky pool behind him. Even the man's face was average at best. But those eyes…

'Brilliant blue like the Leylines, ever changing shades, sparking, clashing…'

His eyes were not mortal. They weren't something she had ever seen before and since. It gave him the aura of some kind immortal banished to toil around in the dirt with his lessers.

The man's posture was somewhat relaxed, practically coddling the monster of a weapon. The bow was made of some kind of fine 'wood', stringed with a silver 'string'. She had never seen the man ever put arrows on the master piece, knew how much destruction was wrought every time it was drawn.

But even all of that was secondary from what the blonde felt from her other less physical senses. Or to be more accurate, lack of. When he had gone into seclusion all those centuries ago, his Ki was a tangible ocean just weighing down on all those around him. Caressing and grabbing at the spiritual self.

But now? He didn't feel any different from a normal mortal.

"Come Little Fox." His voice was deep and music to her ears, with an ever quickening heart she launched herself into the lap of the man. Grabbing, holding and taking in his oh so familiar scent. Memories flew past her inner eye and nostalgia tinged feeling bubbled up to the surface. She had to fight back the tears that threatening to fall from her clenched eyes. All nine tails wagged happily behind her as she gripped him tighter. Fearing this was all just a cruel illusion.

'If it is,' She whimpered internally,' Go ahead and kill me. I won't try to break out of it.'

"There there." She felt his large hand ruffle her hair, completely ruining her noble look. But she was way beyond caring about her appearance at the moment. That was how they spent the next half-hour, the man comforting a sniffling blonde woman. Softly saying words of assurance to ease her mind.

But alas, all good things must come to an end.

"What happened to your cultivation?" The man's words caused the kitsune to freeze in her nuzzling," You were almost to the Condensation Stage."

"I-I" She knew her enemies would love to see the mighty Ultimate-Class Golden Nine-tailed fox and leader of the Western Yokai Faction flustered under her teachers' hard look," Had to.."

"Explain."

He ordered crisply, causing her to dig her face deeper into his white robes.

"When you went into seclusion," She muffled," I stood guard over the temple and became a bit of a legend, acting as a beacon for Yokai all over the country. Some wanted to fight me and other wanted to follow me. They were planning to build a city around me but that's when I had to jump in. Long story short, I became the leader of the small Yokai faction."

She peaked her golden eyes up from his clothing, wanting to see if he was following along. His ever shifting blue eyes looking into hers was more than enough of an answer.

"But then the Three Factions became aware of our existence. In particularly, they became aware of the Spirit Plums and want them for themselves. I tried to fight off as many of them as I could but then some of the more powerful members started to exert pressure on us to submit. I didn't have a choice so I bound myself to Kyoto's Leyline, gaining near infinite energy in exchange for my cultivation."

There. She said it. Ever since that day she had thrown away her life's work, Yasaka had been the most concerned of how her Master would react to her failings. In fact, it had plagued her.

"That was stupid." He admonished, rubbing her head to take the edge to his words," But I understand. You were put into a bad situation and you had to make the best of it."

Those words filled her heart with warmth. The kind reassurance instantly forced the weight of her shoulders, maker her feel free for a moment.

"Now." His voice turning as cold as a blizzard, Ki slowly boiling away in a thick cloud," Tell me who dares to bully my disciple?"