Chapter 369

"Rules?" I asked as I went through the motions of stretching my arms.

"Hmm, same as always, however, I wish to see what you have learned." Scáthach hummed, summoning her spear.

"Sure, but keep in mind that I'm still a bit inexperienced with it." I brought out my Zanpakutō.

"Then you had better learn quickly." She flashed a feral grin, and I realized I was in for a hard time. "If you impress me, I will lay with you afterwards."

Well…. consider me properly motivated.

"Hadō #1, Shō" I held up my finger, pointing at her.

She blinked, flicking her spear up to slice through the invisible force that was shot/went/flew for her face. "Interesting, what other tricks have you learned?" She took a step forward and shot towards me.

Her spear snaked towards me, moving unnaturally to intercept my vital spot even as I took steps to avoid it. I was forced to bring my Zanpakutō down to deflect it, lest I get stabbed through the stomach.

Her back foot dug into the ground and she followed up with a powerful thrust forward. The air at the tip of her spear distorted with the force, causing a boom to erupt with the singular movement.

"Bakudō #8, Seki." I quickly chanted at the point of contact. Her spear tip collided with my spell, the repulsive force fought with it for a moment before her spear was deflected once more. "Bakudō #21, Sekienton." I followed up as soon as I had the opening.

The spell that Yoruichi had used those weeks ago. Like a smoke bomb that was set off, smoke burst outwards, enveloping us within the blink of an eye.

I wasn't stupid enough to assume this would hinder her in any meaningful way, but it would obscure my next move.

With a burst of Shunpo – even if it was still somewhat lacking – I arrived in front of her and she was genuinely unprepared for my sudden speed. It was enough that she immediately went defensive, her spear crossed in front of her chest to block my incoming strike.

The moment my sword made contact with her spear, the smoke around us was blown away, sweeping up and around us like a hurricane.

My Reiatsu erupted outward, flowing into my strike and I saw Scáthach lift off the ground and get sent hurling backwards. She caught herself in mid-air, reorienting her body to land on her feet even if they dug into the earth, cracking and shattering the ground where she landed.

She raised an eyebrow at me, a wide grin forming, she planted her left foot forward and reeled back her arm, throwing her spear right at me, another sonic boom accompanying her attack.

"Bakudō #44, Sekisho!" I quickly casted a barrier in front of myself.

The invisible wall that sprang up vibrated once her spear collided with it, sending ripples across the surface, a noticeable tension that was being tested. And nearly instantly her foot kicked the butt of her own spear, cracking the invisible shield and piercing through it with the additional force.

I jerked and spun my body in an awkward way to avoid the spear as it sailed right past me and I took that moment to Shunpo a distance away. Nearly tripping, I used Shunpo again to move out of the way of her spear that slammed into the spot I was just in. Once, twice, her spear followed me with each movement, while I was dodging handily, she was also keeping up with her own efforts.

"You may be fast, my student, but your movements are predictable." She laughed as I nearly fell over myself again, dodging a spear that almost pierced through my eye.

"Hadō #4 Byakurai." I twisted my body, pointing my finger at her to fire off a bolt of pale lightning. It was easily several fold stronger than what it should be, perhaps due to my innate affinity with Lightning.

It was her turn to dodge, twisting her body to the side to escape the attack. "If this is your best, my student, then this Scáthach will be left wanting."

You know what?

Fuck it, lets try something.

"Bakudō #1 Sai." I casted the most simple binding at her. Something meant to force her arms behind her back. It lasted not even a tenth of a second before she broke it, but it disrupted her movement for just as long. "Bakudō #4, Hainawa." An ethereal rope shot at her, binding her hands. "Bakudō #30, Shtotsu Sansen." Three triangular beams of light shot forward, pinning her in place before she could remove my second binding. "Bakudō #9, Hōuin." An orange-colored tendril with a spiraling yellow pattern erupted from my palm and enveloped Scáthach again, adding another layer of binding.

"Bakudō #16 Hitsugi, Bakudō #36m Akushuu no Fukaku, Bakudō #37 Tsuriboshi." I quickly threw out several more binding spells to envelop her. None of them were particularly powerful and I knew for a fact that they wouldn't hold her very long, if at all, I was sorta thinking she would let me bind her to see what I would do.

Either way, I didn't want to disappoint.

I held up my palm towards her, gathering a significant amount of my Reiryoku. I actually hadn't tried this spell out as it was one of the new ones Yoruichi gave me, but what better time than now? "Hadō #88 Hiryu Gekizoku Shinten Raiho!" The lightning swirled in front of my palm, ready to actualize, but I felt something twitch/move/flow wrong and realized I may have made a mistake.

The spell imploded on itself.

All the power I gathered was sent backwards and I felt myself rocket away from the ensuing explosion, bouncing off the ground a few times before coming to a stop.

I noticed a shadow hover over me. "Oww." I whined, as Scáthach poked me with the butt of her spear.

"That was certainly impressive." She seemed humored by my situation. "I did not think you would defeat yourself so splendidly."

"Completely intentional." I said, moving my arm up to block the sun beating down into my eyes. "I had to give you a handicap somehow."

"A handicap I need is it?" She snorted, pushing her spear into my gut. "You are brave to say such a thing when you are at my mercy." She poked me a few times to prove her point. "And it was foolish of you to attempt a spell you have not mastered in our battle. Training wounds are expected, self inflicted wounds from foolish endeavors are not. I am not pleased that you almost harmed yourself in such a way."

"I've seen it used once, and I had experience with other similar spells, I thought I could at least get it to cast properly." I admitted to a small miscalculation on that end. Obviously, I needed to practice the higher level Kidō spells in a more….tame situation as they were clearly much more volatile.

Her spear was shoved into the ground near my head and she sat down on top of me. "I will tell you my thoughts otherwise. Those spells you showed me were interesting with unique effects I did not expect. I will have you give me the source to look into so I can understand them better, however, they will be a boon to you, that I am sure."

"Yeah, I thought so as well. And those were mostly the lower level spells. I recently got my hands on the higher level stuff but….I still need to practice them as you can see."

She nodded and continued. "Yes, and the method you used to move quickly was very interesting. It took me by surprise, however, you are clearly not an expert in it yet and it is not without its flaws."

"Also noted that. I've been practicing it a lot and I'm much better than when I started."

"Good, more practice then." She patted my chest. "I will always be here to assist you, my student."

"I know." I couldn't help but smile towards her despite the situation. "I know I can always rely on you."

She hummed happily, a small smile forming on her face. She swung her leg around so that she was straddling me. "As the victor, I will claim my prize." Her hand grasped at the zipper on my pants, and there wasn't a single protest from me.

@***@

"Are you two done playing?" Yasaka waved her tail from where everyone else was sitting and chatting. Jinn, Artoria, Raikou, and even Rin joined her.

"I thought you were busy?" I slid into the seat next to her and Jinn, Scáthach taking an empty one opposite.

"I snuck away for an hour or so." She chuckled. "And thank you for yesterday. It's been stressful so knowing I could relax and have a small break knowing Kunou was safe was a big relief."

"Don't thank me for something like that, I'm always happy to help with our daughter." I nudged her.

"Of course." Her tail wrapped around me.

"How is everything going on your end?"

She let out an exaggerated sigh, slumping down onto the table. "As well as expected. Medea's been wonderful with the project you set her on, and I genuinely mean that. Hades sent over some of those ancient Greek heroes awhile ago, just after you left, and they've been training my people to fight as an army and not just as a mob."

"Mmm, Mordred and I have joined with them for joint exercises as well." Artoria chimed in. "The knights under my command have not known war on a large scale, thus the experience is beneficial for them as well."

"It seems like that's a common notion among people here. I can understand it, large scale war when everyone is essentially superhuman at a minimum is….odd."

"Normal tactics will have to be revised." Raikou nodded too.

"We've already started making plans. Nurarihyon joined in on that, as we brainstormed strategies and even some of the Greeks helped out. We're….stumbling in the dark, but we'll manage something by the time we're ready." Yasaka replied. "But enough about that, I'll have to deal with that in a little bit anyways. What're you doing?"

"Probably heading to Remnant after this, I need to talk to Salem." They knew about that already, so I didn't need to overly explain. "By the way, where is Izzy and Venelana?"

"Both are busy." Yasaka shrugged.

"Speaking of Remnant and Salem." Jinn spoke up. "I may have…..gone there to talk to Salem a little bit." Jinn stated looking a little…..guilty.

"….did something happen?"

"I may have threatened her a little." Jinn looked down, mumbling the words. "Please don't be mad."

Ah, was that why she went to Remnant then?

"Jinn…" I leaned over, wrapping my arm around her. "There is very little you can do to make me mad. If you felt the need to go there, I assume you had a good reason." She looked like she didn't want to go into details, so I wouldn't press.

If it wasn't anything harmful, she's allowed her secrets.

"Do you want to come with me?" I offered.

Jinn shook her head. "I'm good here."

"Actually." Artoria interjected. "Rin and I would like to accompany you to this Remnant if you wouldn't mind."

"Oh?" I blinked in surprise. "I thought you were still running around Skyrim. Getting bored over there?"

"It's great, honestly. The College is amazing and I've been learning a bunch of spells. Not to mention I've been making a ridiculous amount of money by searching old tombs and stuff. But…" Rin trailed off.

"You want some variety?"

"If I have to see another giant Spider or Zombie, I'm going to flip my shit." She said with a completely serious look.

"….the last barrow we excavated….Rin set it on fire."

"I am done with Giant Spiders." She iterated again.

"Noted." I couldn't blame her either.

"Besides, I want to learn a bit more about Aura and Semblances, I think….I think I may be close to getting my Semblance. I've felt this way for a little while now." She muttered. "But I'm not too sure."

"For some people it's a gradual thing, some it's spontaneous. If you think something's coming, then it probably is." Jinn chimed in. "There's really no exact science to it, it's slightly different for each person. And there may be an argument made for Remnant itself helping facilitate it quicker with other Aura Users around. A sort of….synchronization, if you will." She paused, looking thoughtful. "Something to think about."

"Regardless, you're more than welcome to tag along. I assume you'd want to check out the cities and stuff not come with me to see Salem."

"I see enough of your love life as is, so no thanks." She said dryly.

"That's fine, I can drop you guys off near Vale. I know some people there that can get you legal identities easily enough."

"Yes, your criminal associates?" Artoria looked at me.

I shrugged. "They're not bad, but yeah."

"And isn't he also a criminal there?" Rin pointed out.

"…..It depends on where I am." Pretty sure I'm in the clear for Vale by this point.

"Right." She snorted.

"I will also come." Scáthach stated. "I enjoyed my time the last time I wandered there. I find myself wanting to return."

"Raikou, do you want to come too?" I felt like I could answer this question for her, but I didn't want to exclude her either.

"Do you need me?" She tilted her head.

"Other than just wanting you by my side, there's no pressing concerns." I shot her a warm smile.

"Then I would rather stay here, master."

I nodded, and didn't argue. She carved out her own little source of happiness here, I didn't want to pull her away for no reason. Who would have thought she'd find enjoyment with helping children in school. She'd been with Kunou and the other children her age so much that she's basically a teacher's assistant and one of the staff at this point. And everyone there absolutely loved her and I couldn't blame them one bit.

"What about me?" Yasaka whined.

"Yasaka, do you want to come?" I asked, rather sarcastically.

"Yes!"

"Uh huh."

"But I can't." She slumped back down. "Actually, I quit. Let's grab Kunou and run away somewhere fun."

I gave her a sympathetic pat. I knew that she's under a lot of stress right now, but there wasn't really much that could be done about it.

"Should I ask the others?" I looked around.

"I wasn't kidding, they're busy. Venelana is hosting some social function for the next couple days and Izanami is visiting another Death Deity for certain reasons she didn't clarify. Neither seemed like something they could walk away from." Yasaka clarified.

"Shame." Well, I shouldn't be gone too long, a few days or so. "Anyways, I was going to head over soon, why don't you all get ready and grab anything you need."

"Sure, I got a few things I wanna grab before I go, give me like twenty or thirty minutes and I'll be back." Rin quickly got up from her seat, heading back towards the house. The others similarly followed suit to make any final preparations.

[***]

"Ladies." I offered them a portal off to Remnant.

"Thanks, Schweinorg. You'll meet back up with us, right?" Rin asked.

"Sure, just give me a little while to talk things out with Salem. You got everything you need otherwise, or the right money to buy stuff." I nodded.

"Alright, see you over there." She waved, talking through the portal.

"I wish you luck." Artoria stood on her tiptoes, giving me a quick kiss, before following after her.

Scáthach instead grabbed me and brought me in for a deep kiss, a little smug smile was all she left afterwards before joining the others.

I waved my hand, closing that one and mentally calculating another to the Grimm Lands where Salem resided.

"Have fun." Jinn cheerfully waved me goodbye.

"As much as I can given the circumstances." There was a chance that Salem and I went separate ways and I admit it gave me some anxiety.

"No sad." Jinn pouted, grabbing my hands and putting them on her butt. "If you're sad, just think about what you can do to me when you get back."

"Well, that will certainly cheer me up." I leaned in, giving my wonderful Genie a kiss as well.

"But seriously." Jinn leaned in. "When you get back, my Butt."

"You are a lewd Genie."

"It's your fault." She puffed up.

"And I'll continue to take responsibility." I gave her a little swat on her behind. "Behave." I added playfully.

She gave me one last wave and I walked through the portal, the light of day instantly turning into the twilight that was the Grimm lands.

At this point, I was more than used to the?????????????????

The Grimm noticed my presence, but the smart ones once more kept their distance and the lesser ones were cowed once I let my Reiatsu descend upon them. The useful trick that I picked up in my time among those Shinigami.

Just the weight of my Spiritual Power pushing down on everything around me as I let it flow outward.

On a side note, I'll needed to test how effective a Zanpakutō was against Grimm.

But that thought was pushed aside as I reached Salem's castle. The same gothic and menacing appearance didn't strike fear into me, but one of anticipation, because a woman who made me feel such turbulent emotions sat behind its walls.

Pushing the doors open, I entered unceremoniously.

"So you've come back once more." Salem looked down at me upon her throne.

"Why do you sound surprised?" I questioned, looking at her with a smile.

"Only the foolish venture into the Grimm Lands, and you seem to do so on a mere fanciful whim or some other inane motion about courting me. I merely question when this nonsense will cease and you will depart for the final time."

"You underestimate what I would go through just to see you again. A merely inconvenient trip through the Grimm Lands is nothing in comparison." I returned to her. She's always like this after I come back, expecting the worst. "Something you should know about me is that I'm an extremely selfish person. Once I get something, I never want to let it go. If something is mine, then I will keep and treasure it forever."

Seeing her huff in mock annoyance was always so adorable.

"But that's always been your decision to make." I took bated steps towards her throne and she seemed to sit straighter as I approached. "And I want you to know everything about me. If you don't mind, I'd like to tell you about my life and where I came from."

"Oh, you're finally going to reveal where your community of Magic users hides?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Salem, I'm not from Remnant."

[***]

A/N

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