Chapter 99: Hyakki Yagyō

Our travel back to Mount Ogi was quiet. Retsu seemed lost in thought, while I was dealing with a few problems of my own. Aside from the old woman at the kimono shop assuming I was both a husband and somehow shaming Retsu, I was also battling Muramasa's curse, which was more active than I'd anticipated. 'I hate snakes.' I thought, heading to another part of the house to get ready as the moon started to rise. The curse was conjuring illusions, snakes slithering out from my skin and warping the world around me, twisting it to chip away at my sanity.

Clicking my tongue in frustration, I looked over at Honjo Masamune leaning on a chair, then at Muramasa, which I had summoned and set on another. 'I should've taken the sealing ropes and talismans from the cave.' I thought, sighing as I threw on the black haori and slid into the geta sandals. 'Surprisingly comfortable, just hope I can fight in them.' Clenching my hand as I thought out another stupid plan, I sighed again before heading outside to wait for Retsu and Eri. 'I'll deal with the Blood River later.' I thought, gazing up at the rising moon before sitting on the steps with a tired sigh.

After close to an hour, the sound of geta's clacking on the floor caught my attention, and I stood, turning to see Retsu. My mind went blank for a moment. 'Wow.' Normally, she wore wrappings around her chest, keeping her figure modest, or loose clothing that disguised her curves. But tonight, her outfit had the opposite effect. She wore a white haori decorated with flowers scattered across the fabric, over a plain black kimono that clung lightly to her upper chest. It was all tied together with a white obi and a red ribbon. In her hair, she wore a flower ornament, which she tilted her head to show.

"Are you there, Ryou?" she asked, snapping me out of my daze. I blinked, tilting my head. "Sorry, what did you say?"

She raised an eyebrow, adjusting the haori. "How does it look? I can count on one hand the number of times I've dressed like this."

I blinked, then nodded. "It looks… alright."

She tilted her head to the other side, her expression neutral, and I winced. "Just alright?"

I raised my hands in surrender. "No, not you-the clothes!"

She took a step forward. "So my clothes are alright, but I'm not?"

Shaking my head, I stammered, "No! Yes? You're not just alright, you're… beautiful! And the clothes are good?" She took another small step forward, making me freeze. "Wait, no! You're not beautiful, the clothes are!" I winced again. 'Why is this so difficult?' I kept stammering before a sound from Retsu stopped me from speaking.

With a snort, she stepped back to the doorway, her tone calm as if nothing had happened. "You dress up alright, too." She turned her head slightly. "Eri, come to Mama."

I raised an eyebrow at the sound of little waddling footsteps, and soon my other eyebrow joined it's twin as I saw Eri walking. "Since when could she do that?"

Retsu replied calmly, "Five days ago. So, how does she look?"

Recovering from the surprise of missing a milestone, I looked at the one year old, also dressed up in a white yukata tied with a pink and blue obi, complete with a little bow in the front. "Mwamwa!" she called, toddling toward me.

Kneeling down, I held out my arms with a grin. "Princess!"

Eri giggled as she fell into my arms, and I lifted her, shifting her onto my right arm. "Eri, you look like a Snow Queen!" She only giggled more, though what I said likely went over her head.

I heard a soft cough and turned to see Retsu watching with a gentle smile. "Shall we, Ryou?"

I looked at her again, taking in her appearance one more time, then nodded, turning toward where the Night Parade would be held. "We shall, Retsu." With that, we set off.

{Pics}

~Scene Change~

The Hyakki Yagyō was essentially just a march.

I held in a sigh as I glanced over at Retsu, now wearing an oni mask, and Eri who was donning a kitsune mask. Meanwhile, I was sporting a Hyottoko mask. 'I feel like a blacksmith.' I thought with a snort, catching the brief attention of a passing oni before he turned away continuing on toward whatever the night's endpoint might be. I sighed again as I paid for dango at a nearby stall.

I had at one point politely asked a lone youkai why humans were mixed in, given the legends of the Hyakki Yagyō. I was informed that this had supposedly changed five hundred years ago.

Sighing once more, I tried to sense the strongest aura in the crowd, but apart from a few presences radiating strength comparable to Retsu's and mine, I didn't detect anything remarkable. No one stood out in the crowd, nor did anyone—

I frowned as I felt something prodding at my mind. No, not prod… more like trying to distort my senses. I tensed, noting a subtle flare in Retsu's Reiatsu and I spoke in a low voice, mindful that whoever was meddling with our minds could be close. "Did you feel someone trying to mess with your mind?"

She hummed in agreement. "Feels like something Aizen would do, though on a much weaker scale."

I frowned, attempting to locate the source. 'Twenty feet away? Seven? Wait… now it's twelve-' My thoughts were cut short as a sharp object pressed against my neck. I glanced over to see Retsu with a hand charged with Ki held to her throat. A gruff voice sounded behind me. "Follow quietly, or we'll make you."

I didn't move as the Ki-charged hand pressed harder, drawing a thin line of blood. I spoke calmly. "If we follow, will you take us to Nurarihyon?"

He twitched, pressing the blade harder into my skin as he growled. "Silence human! Don't speak Lord Nurarihyon-sama's name so casually!"

'I'll take that as a yes.' I raised my hands in a show of surrender. "Fine, we'll follow."

He grunted and started forward, forcing me to walk along with him. 'Not exactly the way I wanted to meet a leader, but it'll have to do.' I sighed as we passed through what looked like a solid wall, which turned out to be an illusion. 'Nifty.' Along the way, I spotted more youkai, all looking like they were ready for a fight. 'Either they're expecting trouble or just putting on a show.'

We came to a halt, and I was roughly shoved down onto my knees. "Careful." I mocked casually. "I bruise like porcelain." Retsu knelt beside me, holding a sleeping Eri. 'Did they do something to her?' Retsu caught my gaze, shook her head, and gestured subtly to herself. I nodded and turned my attention forward, where I now noticed an old short man sitting in a chair, maybe around 4'11 with a gourd-shaped head. He wore a brown haori over a black kimono tied with an obi and was smirking at me.

"Fashionable." I remarked dryly as he tapped his face, making a vein in my forehead throb. 'Little bastard.' I shifted my gaze to his left and noticed a woman who looked to be around Yasaka's age. She had white cat ears with small black spots and seven fluffy white tails, each with the same dark specks. 'Is she like Koneko?' Her piercing gaze met mine, sending a chill down my spine and forcing me to quickly look back at the old man, who tilted his head at me.

"Why are you looking for me, Hyottoko-kun?" he asked with a smirk.

Another vein bulged in my forehead. Suppressing a sigh, I cracked my neck and replied. "I need a place to stay and train without having to worry."

Nurarihyon raised an eyebrow, exchanging a glance with the neko woman, but said nothing for a few moments. I could feel Retsu's gaze on me, but I ignored it.

Finally he spoke, his eyebrow still raised, an amused expression on his face. "And why should I grant that? Given that you've hunted my kind before, what guarantee do I have that you won't continue to do so?"

I froze, sensing Retsu's demeanor shift slightly. "I haven't harmed any youkai unless they attacked first." I responded calmly, which made the old youkai chuckle.

"Is that so? I must be getting old if I mistook you for the one responsible. Perhaps it was a stray devil causing trouble, then."

I shrugged. "I'm sorry for your losses, but I'm afraid there's not much I can do about that."

He leaned back in his chair and glanced at Retsu and Eri before turning to the neko woman. "Magari-chan, take these two somewhere around the Parade."

Magari's eye twitched, but she nodded, gesturing for the guard to step back and helped Retsu to her feet. "Come along. Let them discuss their negotiations while we find something sweet for the young girl."

Retsu gave me a questioning look, but I didn't meet her eyes, only giving a nod as I watched Nurarihyon's smile grow. Retsu and the newly identified Magari left the room, and Nurarihyon motioned for the other youkai to leave.

"I'll be fine, I'm not that old." Though they hesitated, the guards followed his order, leaving just me and the leader of the Hyakki Yagyō.

I stood up once they had left, cracking my neck again as I removed the mask, keeping eye contact with the old youkai. "So, what is it you want from me? I doubt there's much I can offer you."

He laughed as he slowly approached. "Haha, normally no, you wouldn't be able to." Suddenly, he moved faster than I could track, appearing right in front of me. A cold sweat ran down my back. "But that would only be the case if you were part of my faction."

I frowned, staying silent and motionless as he circled me, his aura steadily intensifying. "You see, I'm the leader of the Eastern Youkai Faction, and because of that there are certain restrictions placed on me."

Sensing danger to my left, I blocked a kick aimed at my ribs, gritting my teeth as I dug my geta's into the ground, channeling Reiatsu into my body. 'Damn, he hits hard.' He hummed thoughtfully, blitzing to stand in front of me once more, inspecting me as he paced around.

"You certainly have the strength for it." he said, his tone cryptic.

I twitched slightly. "Strength for what?" I asked slowly, refraining from retaliating after his hit.

He chuckled. "Oh right~. My age must be catching up to me. Where was I? Ah, yes." He paused, tapping his chin. "You see I can't normally hire people since that would make other factions potentially feel threatened."

I raised an eyebrow, keeping my Reiatsu usage minimal. "Why would they feel threatened? Isn't the Western Faction the strongest? Wouldn't that mean they'd have to watch that faction more closely?"

He shook his head with a low chuckle, then vanished from my sight entirely, his aura disappearing. I felt it suddenly. 'Above me!' I crossed my arms just in time to block a kick that cracked the ground beneath me and nearly broke my arms. 'This one's stronger than the last.' I thought, clicking my tongue as he vanished again. He reappeared, resuming his circular pacing around me, which was starting to grate on my nerves.

"If that were the case, you wouldn't be alive right now." His aura flooded over me, but I barely flinched. 'I've gotten used to this crap.' I thought, shrugging off the pressure, which raised one of his eyebrows slightly.

"A bit better than I'd thought." he admitted, slowing his pacing. "Lady Yasaka and I are close in strength. However, she possesses certain restrictions that I do not, which makes the other factions more wary of me and my actions." He returned to his chair, sitting down with a thoughtful nod.

"Now." he continued, "you said you wanted a place to stay and a place to train."

I nodded, relaxing my stance slightly.

He rubbed his chin, nodding as though coming to a decision. "I have just the place for you. However, the payment will be…"