The Invader

It was bright out in Eientei. The midday sun was comfortably warm, at least, as warm as it could be in the cold northern region of Hokkaido Island. Being out of the jail cell was nice, and the sun on her skin was revitalizing. True she was a NEET, but its not like she was completely against things like going outside the house and talking to other people. She wasn't that much of a shut-in, after all.

Eientei was a large mansion built over three hundred years by the Yagokoro family. They counted renowned doctors and politicians among them. It's position in the middle of a bamboo forest and fresh running water served as a perfect place to cook up any number of herbal remedies.

"Ah, it's Guya!"

"Guya!"

"That's right, Guya!"

"Good morning, Guya!"

"Hey, take it easy. Calm down." Kaguya said, surrounded by the short, child-like earth rabbits. They were simple-minded animal youkai. The Yagokoros had taken them in, gave them jobs and made sure they were safe. They were servants in the household of Eientei for generations. Kaguya found it hard to dislike them, as annoying as they could sometimes be.

From a distance, another rabbit seemingly looked on as Kaguya shooed the creatures. She smiled as Kaguya approached the stone steps down to Eientei's herb garden. Today, she would treat herself to a pleasant stroll and clear her head. Without warning however, Kaguya found herself tripping on something before hurtling down the rather steep stairs.

"Aaaah! Kaguya!" The Earth Rabbits cried out as Kaguya tumbled down the stairs. Thinking quickly, she summoned her Standmaku, using it's powerful arms to stop herself from completely falling to the bottom.To the astonished onlookers, it was merely a fortunate landing.

"Wah! This is terrible! Guya fell off the staircase!" The Earth Rabbits gathered round, trying to help Kaguya up.

"Gee, what the hell did I trip on? I swear I saw something poking out from the grass..."

"Are you okay, Guya?" One of the Earth Rabbits asked, helping her to her feet.

Kaguya grumbled, dusting off her jacket. She winced as she noticed the cut she had on her knee and the small tear on her skirt.

"You'll be fine. Accidents happen." A voice came from behind Kaguya.

"Who... are you?"

"You can use my handkerchief." The person standing before certainly looked like an earth rabbit, but something about her was different. She was tall with a slim figure and dressed in a business jacket and a pink skirt.

"Thanks but... err, I've never seen you here before. Who are you, exactly?"

"Reisen Udongein Inaba. I arrived yesterday. Pleased to meet you."

"Y-yeah... see you." Kaguya said. Weird as it seemed, her first step would be to see Eirin to get the cut disinfected.

* * *

"You sure are careless." Eirin sighed as she produced a small glass container and scissors from a nearby cupboard. "If we're going to sort out this whole business with PADIO its best if you didn't get yourself hurt like this."

"You're not planning on cutting up my favorite skirt, are you?" Kaguya said, recoiling at the shiny pair of silver surgical scissors in Eirin's hand.

"You've got plenty of clothes to wear, Kaguya. For goodness sake." Eirin rolled her eyes.

"Let me just... take it off then. No need to ruin a perfectly good piece of clothing."

"Well I always knew you were a bit stingy. So while Kaguya takes off her skirt, let me take your temperature." Eirin glared at two Earth Rabbits who were lying on the sickbeds. "You two should have gone in when it rained! I keep telling you!"

As Kaguya prepared to take off her skirt, she fished out the handkerchief of Reisen from her jacket's pocket. It was of a high quality silk-like material with a carrot printed on one side of it. Fully unfolding it, she noticed something had been scribbled at the back in red ink

"N-no way..." Kaguya's eyed widened as she read it.

Houraisan Kaguya,

Today you die,

By my Standmaku!

Reisen U. Inaba

"R-Reisen?" Before Kaguya could do anything else, one of the earth rabbits cried out.

"W-what are you doing, Eirin-san?"

"What am I doing? Are you blind? I'm preparing to take your temperature." Eirin said, waving what seemed like her prized fountain pen.

"Eirin-san... that thing! It's... a pen!" One of the Earth Rabbits said as Eirin continued waving around the sharp object, the ink splattering onto their clothes.

"Don't be so silly! That's ridiculous! I'm a doctor! I know what I'm talking about!" The tip of the pen looked dangerously sharp as Eirin held it in her hand.

"Kaguya! Does this look like a pen to you? Go on, have a closer look! Tell me!" Eirin turned her attention to Kaguya, lunging at her with the pen. She was fast enough to deflect it but not entirely. Eirin managed to stab it into her cheek, just barely missing her eye.

"You finally gone senile, old geezer?" Kaguya struggled to keep Eirin from plunging the sharp pen into her eye. In their struggle Eirin only managed to stab it deeper.

"She's... so damn strong! What the hell! Is... is she possessed somehow?"

"Bingo!" the voice came from behind. Kaguya recognized the voice from earlier. "You are correct. That woman Eirin is being controlled by my Standmaku!"

"I knew it... what the hell do you want from us? Money?" Kaguya said, flinching in pain as the pen went deeper into her flesh.

"A certain somebody paid me a lot of money to make sure you and your old lady both see an untimely demise!" Kaguya turned her attention back to Eirin who was in front of her, their faces nearly touching. Inside her mouth,she saw it; a small bulbous object inside Eirin's throat. Using her Standmaku, Kaguya pulled it out, revealing a slender figure staring out at her.

"Is this all your Standmaku can do? Possess people?" Kaguya's Standmaku held it by the head. It was colored red with a white stripe along its body and covering its face with what looked like a gas mask, along with two rabbit ears.

"Don't be so quick to dismiss my Lunatic Red."

"You're in no position to be threatening me!" Despite this warning, Reisen continued to grin. That's when it hit her... The hands of Reisen's Standmaku began to glow red. "Move and I'll crush its head!"

"I don't need to move an inch to kill you! Wave Sign! Luna Wave!" With that, a hail of red crystaline objects burst from Lunatic Red's hands, sending Kaguya flying backwards and allowing Lunatic Red to escape. It was like a grenade had gone off, tearing Kaguya's clothing to shreds as she lay bleeding.

"A barrage of pure energy is what just hit you! You're lucky to still be breathing. That woman Eirin too." Kaguya lay across the floor as well as Eirin, who was bleeding from the mouth.

"What... happened?" Kaguya coughed up blood. She was hurting pretty badly.

"I warned you, Kaguya! Now it won't even take a second to finish you both off!" Reisen said, pacing around the room. "If you had just let me kill you from the beginning we wouldn't be in this situation. It would've been quick. But oh no, you've got to play the hero!"

Kaguya could feel her blood boil. This was... anger. Not a new sensation, but this time it was different. Using her remaining strength, Kaguya stood wearily, fighting back the waves of pain as blood dripped from her wounds.

"I must say, I'm impressed by your resilience. Very admirable."

"I've been called disgusting, unapproachable, anti-social... I got into fights in high school. Some of those boneheads are still in the hospital. Talked some sense into some smart ass teachers, fuckers haven't been back to school since. And I regularly dine and dash if I get served shitty food at a restaurant. Yeah, I'm a piece of shit. But even I can see who the real losers are. People like you!"

"Such is the cycle of life, kid! In my opinion, ends always justify means. Evil is the loser, justice is the winner! That sound about right? Heh." Lunatic Red raised its hands to launch another attack. "Now be a good girl and just die already!"

As Reisen fired off the Luna Wave, Kaguya summoned her Standmaku. Like the fight with Mokou back in the prison, the spirit brought his arms up to deflect the projectiles and impacting with its powerful arms, the strongest part of its body.

"What... it should've cut right through her!"

"You were saying something?" In the split second Reisen had let down her guard, Kaguya's Standmaku was able to get a firm grip on Lunatic Red's throat. As soon as it had a hold, it throttled the creature violently. Reisen coughed up blood as it began to crush her windpipe.

"ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA!!!" Kaguya's Standmaku let out its battle cry, unleashing a barrage of punches, finishing off with a crushing uppercut that sent Reisen flying across the room.

"What a mess... this Standmaku of mine... it's pretty strong. Luna Wave would've killed me if I hadn't deflected it..." Kaguya got onto one knee to check Eirin's pulse. "Well... she's still alive. That's a relief. Mokou should be back soon." Kaguya said, propping Eirin up against a wall.

"Now as for you..." She was standing over Reisen's unconscious body. "We're going to talk about your master."