Chapter 33: One, Weird Festival

Disclaimer: I do not own Highschool DxD but think for a second if I did. Would this story ever be created if I did? Would someone else think of it and write it? Or would it be never see the light of day because I would be too busy spending the money I get from DxD sells and royalties? The world may never know…Oh yeah, I own the OCs. On to the chapter!

Speech – "Hey, I'm Pierce."

Inner Speech – [Neat]

Thoughts – 'I'm dead.'

Spells – "Jumon"

2 Days Later

If there was single there I have come to appreciate since reincarnating into a new world, it's the fact I can wake up in the morning and do whatever the hell I want for the remainder of the day. No school, no job, no real responsibilities to handle as I wake my groggy consciousness from the sweet abyss that is sleep. …I like waking up and having lots of free time, okay? It's awesome. (Besides the task my parents gave me to do around the house when I was younger anyway).

'And with Chi, those physical tasks were usually done in a heartbeat.' I commented internally as I sat up from the bed and stretched. Sure you can say being on an emissary team is a responsibility but it's still my choice to do it. Sighing in contentment at the multiple pops coming from my joints, I idly looked around to my lodgings that I've slept in for the past three days. It was a large room with tatami mat flooring, multiple diving panels, a living room that connected to a kitchen and a small library (it even had its own miniature garden in the backyard). 'They sure know how to take care of their guests, I'll give them that.' I leaned back against the bed frame, approving of the Shadow Leopards hospitality and felt the figure sleeping next to me shift. A mop of lush brown hair was seen as Maven sat up; yawning into her hand as her gaze met mine. "Morning!" She blankly stared at my cheerful greeting before resting her head on my shoulder.

"Morn…ing." Chuckling as she finished that between yawns, I wrapped my arms around her as she snuggled into my embrace (She likes to do that a lot).

"Sleep well?"

"Mostly, I could I done without Jade resting on my face in the middle of the night though." The familiar, who was lying on one side of the mage's pillow, for her part didn't react and just got into a more comfortable position before putting her head down. I smiled at the small stink eye Maven gave Jade.

"Sorry, she does that a lot. I've been trying to break her out of it."

"At least she wasn't in the room like last time." Maven said and I groaned.

"For the love of-that was one time! And I didn't know she was in the room, I thought she went out somewhere to play or something!" I swear you have your rabbit in the same room as you make love one time and they never let you live it down (now that's a life lesson there kids).

"Whatever you're into Pierce, I'm not judging. A little heads up would be nice though." I gave a mock glare at her teasing smile. Our relationship had improved quite a bit over the three months that were spent in the Olympus. Having weeks on end to tutor me in depth on magic history, taking dates around the mythical Greek Heaven, or just talking about her experiences in magic school and my early life adds up pretty quickly (She was really curious on how I learned to use Chi, more than Melissa funnily enough, and was surprised to hear I just stumbled across it one day). I tried to go slow when it came to a physical relationship, partly since we have plenty of time to get to know each other and mainly because I didn't want to want her think I only wanted to be with her for her body. I may be shallow but I care what's on the inside as much as the outside.

'That and if I ever plan for her to met my mom then she's got to be a cut above the rest…God I'm such a mama's boy.' I watched as Maven separated from me and stood up from the bed, her beautiful bare form completely exposed. She, like a lot of women in the supernatural world, wasn't shy when it came to her body and more than once flaunted it to get a reaction out of me. I had no shame to admit that it never failed to. She grabbed two towels from a stand resting on the side and threw me one.

"Come on, it's early but it's better if we get ready now." I nodded at the suggestion and followed Maven into the shower. Freshening up and helping watch each other's back…twice, I left with a wide smile and she shook her head when seeing it.

"You're insatiable you know that?" Maven said while rubbing her hips and I raised a brow.

"Oh really? Funny, I didn't hear any complaints; maybe they were drowned out by your moans-Hey!" Maven's face turned red as she pinched me on the side.

"Jackass."

"Tone-deaf."

"Pervert."

"Now hold on, I 'am no pervert! I just respectfully appreciate the female form."

"…That's exactly what a pervert would say!"

"I rest my case." I kept walking, seeing that I won that argument. I ignored the deadpan Maven was sending my way. We made our way to the main house in the castle, greeting many of the Shadow Leopard maids and soldiers that we passed. We eventually reached the main hall and saw that everyone was already eating.

"Morning." I lazily waved my hand, getting "good mornings" from the team and Melissa's family members.

"Good morning, I was wondering if I had to go wake you guys up." Melissa smiled up at me from her seat, returning the small kiss I gave her.

"What do you mean, I'm always on time…and I forgot to bring my bed from Olympus." Those things were made from dreams I swear. She chuckled and I took a seat, Maven seating down with me.

"Good Morning Pierce-san!" I looked down at the seat next to me, a small girl with short brown locks and a cute face was giving me a cheery smile. I smiled back.

"Morning Himari, you slept well?"

"You bet! I almost didn't because of how excited I was about today but then I realized that'd be counterproductive."

"Yeah, I get what you mean. I always had trouble sleeping the day before a field trip or when my family went on a trip." I said while reaching for some rice and Himari tilted her head in confusion.

"What's a field trip?"

"You know, when you go do something with your class outside the classroom…You guys do have schools here right?" I was pretty sure Melissa mentioned that they had a school to tutor young Shadow Leopards. She confirmed my question but they apparently aren't allowed to bring young Yokais outside the city in fear that they'd attract the wrong attention, either from humans or the supernatural. Yokais were real careful with their younger generation until they reached an age they can go out on their own. "Well, a field trip is basically what it sounds like. You go outside with your class and do something that's either important to the subject your learning or to learn something new. It's quite fun for many students where I come from." Himari's eyes were practically shining by the end of my explanation.

"I want to do that! That sounds awesome! Mom, can my class do something like that!?" The young Shadow Leopard turned towards her mother and jumped up and down in excitement. Himari's mother was a beautiful woman with shoulder length brown hair, a lithe frame and she was always sporting a calm smile. Her name was Jin and she was also a teacher at Himari's school (that must be fun for her).

"While that does sound lovely, I think we should wait after the festival to starting doing these "field trips". Besides, the elders would have to approve it." While that brought her slightly down, Himari quickly perked up and turned back to me.

"What else did you do in your school? You know, besides these field trips?" I smiled at her incredibly curious tone. I couldn't help but like the kid, she took the majority of my jargon and rambles serious even when I'm trying not to be (most people tend to figure out not to take me serious after awhile). I started to talk about other events like holidays, pride events, and pep rallies. I got strange looks when I spoke about ditch day, food fights, and dedicating a whole week to wearing odd outfits.

"Shouldn't you be worried about that?"Adrian asked Himari's mother but she waved her hand.

"Oh it's all in good fun; I doubt he means any of it. He's just entertaining her."

"…" Everyone snuck glances at each other at that and chose to keep eating. Halfway through my explanation on senior prank day, Fusao along Melissa's parents entered the room and greeted us.

"It's still early but it's better if we get there now to set up our section. Is everyone ready?" He got a round of acknowledgments and turned to walk out. We followed the Head Elder out of the castle and I noticed that the city was oddly quiet; the only ones in sight were soldiers or the occasional maid.

'I guess someone has to stay behind and watch the fort.' I thought as we followed Fusao to the center of the grounds and he drew in the air. A Youjutsu spell appeared, enlarging to the side of person and hanged in the air. The Head Elder and Melissa's parents walked through it first, followed by Melissa and Maven. I followed a hyper Himari and her mother through the spell and after a quick flash of colors, found myself in an alley. Slightly confused by our location, I walked towards the exit of the alley and saw a wide street. Countless Japanese people walked along the street with wagons and horses, vendors littered the area and Minkas were the main houses seen. A massive palace rested at the end of the street, protected by high walls and large gate. Melissa smiled at my curious gaze.

"Welcome to the Capital of Japan." She waved her hands to reinforce the point and I heard Vargas awed voice.

"So this is Kyoto…" The Holy Sword User scanned the area with a critical gaze and smirked. "My grandfather was right, it is impressive."

"You've never been here in your travels?" I asked and he shrugged.

"It was never on the way so we didn't bother." Everyone soon arrive through the portal, giving their own thoughts on the capital before following Fusao. The festival was apparently happening in the Kyoto Gyoen, a huge park that surrounds the Imperial Palace. The leader of the Yokais and the Shinto Gods placed a barrier around the grounds that wards away normal people and increase the size of the park (though from what I've heard it wasn't necessary).

"Um, this seems kind of redundant since the Shinto Gods personally put up the barrier but how does the Emperor feel about this?" I asked, curious on how the ruler of Japan felt that his park was being used for a festival (we didn't look up any information on them because they weren't like the Sultans and how they had Froid hiding among them).

"This has been a long standing agreement between the Shinto and the Imperial Family. The leader of the Yokais also lives here and she predates them even, being bonded with the region's Leylines before the Imperial Family was formed." Fusao explained as we walked to the palace and Ren snorted.

"And you try telling the reason you're in power in the first place "no". Amaterasu-sama is kind and patient but she does demand respect."

"…" I chose not to respond to that, remembering my first meeting with the overworked Sun Goddess. We eventually reached the front gate of the palace and was met with a guard. Fusao gave him a scroll and we watched the guard read it before he yelled for the gates to be opened. Giving back the scroll with a quick bow, we walked inside the palace. Lush trees flooded our vision with a tranquil river flowing to the side and a large Torii could be seen down the path. There was nobody around-

"Hey Fusao!" Scratch that. I looked over to see an old burly man walking over; he had short brown hair and a cherry smile. From his dense aura, I could tell he was a Yokai and Fusao bowed in greeting to the man.

"Hello Banri-san, it's good to see you again." Banri laughed.

"Always with the formalities, I wished you'd lightened up a little." Banri turned to us and smiled. "To those that don't know I'm Banri! Me and Fusao go way back so if you need anything just ask."

"Hello uncle Banri." Mayumi bowed to the man. "We just arrived so we haven't the chance to enter the barrier yet." He quirked a brow at that.

"Oh? Then you can come through my gate, my clan is mostly done setting up and we can outfit you all now." We followed Banri to the Torii I saw from earlier and watched as he stepped through it, disappearing. Probing it with Spiritual Energy, I sensed the portal and entered with everyone else.

We found ourselves in front of a large temple; a group of people were standing in front of the entrance. Well…calling them people would be a bit of a stretch. Everyone was sporting a different aspect of a certain animal on their body. One person had the ears and tail of a dog, another had the skin and eyes of a snake. Two people standing guard had the blacks wings and head of a crow, they were wearing hermit clothes.

"You okay there Pierce?" Maven asked as I blankly stared at a group of people sporting fox ears and tails walking out of the temple wearing high end yukatas.

"…Oh what a weeaboo wouldn't do to be in my position."

"…What?"

We were led along by Banri to the temple, taking a side path inside. Like all buildings when it came to magic, it was larger on the inside and a grand hall rested within the temple. Many Yokais were walking around, either stopping at certain stalls that had food or playing games. Banri led us into one of the side halls and we were greeted with a room that had an assortment of clothes. He told us to pick something we liked and to get back to him when we did. We spread out, looking at the options given to us. While there was a number of clothes like suits, noble dresses, and armor to select (I guess there isn't a formal code for the festival); I chose to keep it simple and go for the classic look. Grabbing a black yukata with gray lining, I brought it to Banri and stopped at what I saw. The old man had small round ears on top of his head, fur around his eyes and his nose was now pointed, like a dog.

"You're a Tanuki?" He nodded at my question.

"I am. Have you found the clothes you want to wear?" I handed over the yukata and he nodded in appreciation before calling out. "Bashira!" I watched as a little girl with brown hair and hazel eyes timidly walked up to me, her Tanuki features showing she was one as well.

"P-Please hold s-stil-." Bashira bit her tongue and blushed, hanging her head low in embarrassment. Following her instructions, she waved her hand and sent Youjutsu symbols my way. The symbols landed on my body and covered it a warm glow, fading a second later to show I was wearing an exact copy of the yukata I picked. I rolled my shoulders to find it fit perfectly and Bashira handed me a necklace with a small talisman on it.

"What is this for?" I asked as Bashira retreated behind Banri.

"That is a Wear Stone. That yukata isn't actually made from clothe but from Senjutsu, with a mental command you can disperse and summon it on your person whenever you want." Banri explained that his Tanuki clan was famous for their tailorship, they can create a great number of clothing with Senjutsu and give all their costumers Wear Stones. They can go to any Tanuki tailor to add more clothes and they can also had magical effects to outfits if they're willing to pay a certain price. "Consider that Wear Stone free of charge since you're with Fusao but the next one you'll have to pay. I got to make a living too you know!" Banri laughed and I nodded in understanding. Everyone soon finished their shopping and we exited the Tanuki temple, Fusao promising to meet up with Banri later.

"What do you think?" Melissa asked as she twirled around, showing off her own outfit. The Shadow Yokai chose to wear a red and gold kimono while Maven wore a black yukata similar to mine. I shamelessly marveled at how both outfits accentuated the great figures of both women.

"10/10!" They chuckled at my honest answer and I gave an amused smile to Vargas, who was gazing in awe at the light blue kimono Samantha was wearing. "Careful, you just go that outfit. You don't want to smear it with drool already."

"Shut up…"

"Come along." The Head Elder said and we followed him to a Grand Shrine in the middle of the park, countless number of Yokai slowly filing in. The inside was like an auditorium (besides the seats) with a podium in the center. Standing near the back while Melissa's parents and grandfather walked to the podium, the lights started to dim. A woman walked up on top of the podium and the crowd of rowdy Yokais slowly got silent. The woman was incredibly beautiful. She had light brown hair that reached her lower back, a gorgeous figure that was hidden by her Miko outfit and shining gold eyes. I glanced at her fox ears before pausing on her tails. All nine of them.

"That's the leader of the Yokais and matriarch of the Kitsunes, Kyūkan." Melissa quietly revealed who the woman was and I answered with a small nod. Kyūkan started to give a speech on her gratitude on everyone's arrival and the pride she felt on the unity of the Yokai faction. Not being able to hold my curiosity, I activated Chi Vision to see what the Yokai Leader was packing and was floored by what I saw. Her Chi was massive, that I was already expecting. It's what her reserves are connected to that made me pause. Everything. It was connected to every person, every brick; hell every inch of dirt in and outside this Shrine.

'Leylines.' Remembering what I knew from canon, Yasaka was connected to the "spiritual power" flowing from all of Kyoto and used it to gain a near limitless amount of energy. 'There must be a catch to that…right?' I mean really, the amount of energy at her disposal in theory surpasses the amount Chief Gods like Zeus and Odin could wield at a time. I was so busy trying to figure out how something like that works that I almost missed "their" introduction.

"Joining us for the 13th festival since the unification of the Yokais and our patron protectors, the Shinto Gods!" Kyūkan finished speaking and a miniature sun appeared behind her, illuminating the now dark Shrine. Squinting my eyes because the light, it soon faded to reveal four beings now standing next to the leader of the Yokais. Smiling at the seeing the Sun Goddess and her advisor again, I observed the two other Shinto Gods. One was a graceful looking young woman with blond hair, black eyes and was wearing a high end kimono. The other was a towering man with a full beard, a rugged face and a long nose.

"Who are those two?" I asked Melissa and she looked at the one's mentioned.

"She is the Shinto Goddess of Fertility and Prosperity, Inari. He's the leader of the Earthly Kami, Sarutahiko. They're both Principle Kami." I heard Aindrea snort.

"What a flamboyant introduction, the Shinto really don't know subtly." I gave the Olympian Demigod a blank look.

"Because having a mountain that reaches out into space is subtle?"

"At least it serves a function."

"A function that now endangers the kingdom they've built on top of it which by the way is a very big hindsight."

"…"

"Don't give up so fast now, that's no fun-"

"Shhh!" Adrian shushed my retort, forcing us to focus back on the event. Amaterasu stepped forward and smiled out into the crowd.

"I've very glad to be here once again, every festival brings me joy to see that peace between factions is possible and the celebration that comes from it shows that it's worth the work to make it so. I still remember the age of discord; of the years spend bringing the leaders of different Yokai clans together to build a true land where Yokai can be in peace…It's unfortunate that it still isn't so." The Sun Goddesses' words through the crowd for a loop and murmuring started to spread. That did little to shake Amaterasu however. "There are still Yokais out there that can't rely on anyone but themselves to protect their families and clan. Some still prey on other Yokais for their powers like their animals…some have no choice but become animals to survive." The murmuring stopped. "We've failed those Yokai." The mood of the room became somber as she finished and Amaterasu took a deep breath. "But that's why we celebrate right? To appreciate what we've accomplished, to show that promises of peace weren't empty and that they came true. This a time to be happy with all those that fought for peace and not let what could be weigh on our minds."

Even without my sensing powers, I could see the mood of the crowd visibly increase and watched as Amaterasu's smile became a full blown grin.

"So drink, play, fight even for this is a time for of celebration. When it's all over we go back to work and once every Yokai has a place to call their own…then three days just seems a bit too short, don't you think?"

The Shrine shook. I laughed heartily as every Yokai in the room cheered from the Sun Goddesses words and smirked over to a dumb struck Aindrea.

"That subtle enough for you?" My smirk stayed even as the Demigod glared at me before he turned away with a huff. He would forever deny the respectful look that came onto his face that day. Kyūkan stepped forward and stood next to Amaterasu, a proud smile on her face.

"Let the Yokai Festival Begin!"

The Shrine's shaking this time was just as profound as the first time.

5 Hours Later, Shadow Leopard Temple

I zoomed by multiple tables, setting down plates of food for the customers to eat and made a full circle back to the stand. Melissa was hard at work accepting new Yokais into the restaurant and sending them to their respective seats.

"Shadōsutēki for table 3, Shadōpōku for table 12 and a Shadōunagi and Shadōribu for table 9!" Ren's voice came from the back and dishes appeared on the table. I scooped them up with both hands and moved to give them to the respective customers. Finishing with the first two tables, I set down the last dishes in front of Banri and Bashira.

"Thanks kid." He said and the younger Tanuki also gave a timid thanks.

"No sweat." I petted the young girl on her head with a fond smile. "Ren said this was on the house for helping us with our outfits." Banri grinned.

"Well don't mind if I do." The elder Tanuki digged in and I was called when there were more dishes to give out. Balancing the dishes on two hands like a master waiter, I got to all the customers seating down and came to see even more arrive.

"Damn this place is popular; your dad sure knows how to cook." I said while leaning against the counter, Melissa organizing the money given by the patrons.

"Yeah, he's never been good at combat or leadership so he branched out and found his talent in cooking. In my entire clan's existence, we never knew Shadow Beasts could be cooked and eaten until he tried it!" Melissa gave a proud smile to her father's accomplishment. Apparently, he got in trouble the first time he showed the Elders what he's done and they threatened to kick him out for such disrespect…until they tried it and fell in love with the food.

'I just wish it didn't look like crap.' I stared down at a dish made from a boar found in the Shadow Zone, the meat blackened like coal and shadow smoke coming out of it (It tasted great, make no mistake, it just looked weird as hell).

"Watch your head." Maven's voice rang out, making me slightly duck as the mage floated over my head with a hoard of dirty dishes. They entered the kitchen to be washed and more dishes came out to be delivered so I got to work. Another hour of this passed until the rush died down and the numbers became manageable by the other Shadow Leopards. Melissa spoke a little to her father before walking over to Maven and I.

"Thanks for the help guys, I really appreciate it." She smiled in gratitude and Maven waved her hand nonchalantly as mine were rubbing her shoulders.

"It was…no problem…happy to he-ah that's the spot." Maven sighed in contentment as I gave my patent Chi massage, working out the kinks in her lower back. While the mage mainly used telekinesis and flight to help out, she still moved around for a couple of hours. She didn't have enhanced stamina so I said yes to giving her a massage (not that I would ever say no). Melissa was stuck helping her father with the first rush as she was still being punished and we offered to help until it was over. Adrian and the others offered to help but Melissa didn't want to hold back everyone from the festival. Ren came from the back and patted us on the back.

"Well done, we're usually swamped until the first day is over but thanks to you all, we finished in record time! Thank you."

"It was no trouble, but can we…" Ren laughed at the obvious message I was trying to make.

"Go ahead, you've earned it. You too Melissa." The Shadow Leopard in question practically jumped in joy.

"Does that mean I'm finally fre-I mean, not punished?"

"Yes, I think you've been tortured enough. I'll speak with your mother so go have fun-" Ren didn't get to finish as Melissa hugged him tight and gave him a big kiss on the cheek.

"Thanks dad, you're the best!" Melissa then grabbed both of us by the arms and dragged us to the entrance.

"I still expect you to help tomorrow! Hey! Do you hear m- Melissa!" Ren's words became fainter as we covered more ground and soon, the temple was far in the distance. It was already night time by the time we finished, the busy streets illuminated by lanterns and fire stands. Melissa didn't waste time and hopped to different stands left and right, buying anything she could. Not even 10 minutes passed before she returned with a bunch of food, candies and a hat that made her look like a Kappa. I watched in amusement as she munched on her snacks without a hint of shame.

"…Are you going to share any of that?" She stopped for a second to give me a long look before resuming her feast. Yeah, I thought not. I looked around at the waves of Yokai passing us on the street and asked. "So what are we doing first?" If Melissa's face wasn't covered with food from her reckless eating then I probably would have taken her serious.

"You guys are going to love this." We followed the Shadow Leopard through the streets of the festival, walking by multiple large temples before reaching one that was densely packed. Large groups of Yokai were waiting at the entrance of the temple, two women kneeling at both ends of the door. I noticed in surprise how both women had cat ears and two tails swaying softly behind them.

"Nekomatas?" I said and Melissa nodded in confirmation.

"This is their temple. I came here every Yokai Festival and their performances are a highlight every time."

"What do they do?" Maven asked as both Nekomata's stood up and grabbed both handles of the door before opening them.

"You'll see."

Choosing to stay oddly cryptic on the matter, we followed the crowd into the now open temple and took seats into what looked like a show. The stage was massive, taking up half a football field in size (the same could be said for the seats) and we took some seats in the middle. It took a couple of minutes for the crowd to settle down and when they did, lights appeared on the stage. A tall beautiful woman with black hair and a white kimono walked out. She was a Nekomata if her cat ears were any indicator and she bowed to the crowd.

"Welcome to the Nekomata Temple. Thank you all for coming to our humble show; I hope you enjoy it and the rest of the festival afterwards." Giving few words, the Yokai stepped off the stage and we waited for it to start. We didn't wait long before another group of young Nekomata's came onto the stage and stood at the ready. The leading Nekomata shot her hand up and a wisp of white flames came out, the other Nekomata's following suit. The white flames were bright, illuminating the purposely dark stage and I watched as they turned into different sized cats. The cats landed next to their respective women and after giving a show of acknowledgement they…started to dance.

I watched in wonder as the cats made from ethereal flames moved along with their dance, peaceful music coming from an unknown source. The dance of the Nekomatas became faster as time passed, along with the music. The cats soon started move erratically and some seemed to be swinging at the women yet they continued to dance, dodging every "attack" gracefully. They didn't stay in one spot either; they traveled across the stage and never made connect with another dancer, fluidly dancing around another. More than once did they change partners, swapping different sized cats and adapting to a new dance style.

"…" The entire crowd was silent as the dance seemed to reach its climax; the Nekomata's dancing in a circle and the cats slowly closing in on them. Then, they leaped at the dancers and just as they were apart to collide with them, the cats turned into white flames once again. They gathered their hands together and the flames gathered in a huge ball above them. Then it exploded and went outwards into the crowd. I frowned and started to draw on my Chi, intending to cover us in a dome but Melissa's hand grabbed my arm. I glanced over to see her giving me a look that said "it's okay". I stared for a second before I let my Chi die down and allowed the white flames to overtake us.

As much as I trusted Melissa, I still braced myself for the burning but it never came. What did come was an overwhelming feeling of calm. The flames wrapped around me, encasing my body in a warm blanket and I could feel what little fatigue I had slip away. Happy memories flew through my mind; spending time with my parents, meeting the team, going on all kinds of odd adventures, learning new abilities and spells, etc. A smile made its way onto my face as old memories I had from my past life also slipped their way from the deep and the whites flames receded. The crowd was also in a state of bliss, quietly basking in the sensation given by the purifying flames. I internally chuckled as Maven and Melissa were sprawled on their chairs, looking completely content. The Nekomatas bowed to the crowd before walking away.

I clapped. It traveled more than it should because of the complete silence and woke some Yokais from their daze but I kept clapping. I was alone in my show of appreciation for the show but that got the dancers to stop nonetheless and soon, another person joined my clapping. Like a domino affect, the entire crowd was soon clapping and some even yelled praises and thank yous. The Nekomatas looked at each other before smiling and bowing at the crowd once again.

The applause only got louder. Watching the dancers leave, we got up from our seats and made our way out the temple. Melissa gave us a victorious smirk.

"So was I right? Or was I right?" I rolled my eyes at her antics and Maven pinched her cheek.

"Alright miss I know everything, what else you got?" I asked, excited for the next thing and Melissa made a confused expression before turning to Maven.

"Maven, you've been here before? I had no ide-" The Shadow Leopard laughed as she dodged the mage's staff.

"You're both jerks!" Our laughing didn't help the reddening of the mage's face. Melissa started taking us to all the temples she remembered from the childhood, stopping here and there to enjoy the smaller stands. She took us to multiple temples, one was the Tenju Temple which was pretty much a valley inside that has Tenju flying around and singing stories. Another was the Kodama Temple that many small, mouse like Yokais running around and catching one gives you a prize. After exiting the Yamachichi Temple, Yokai who were famed dentist (go figure that) I realized something.

'No wonder this festival is three days and three nights long, you couldn't go through half of it without that much time.' Even after spending three hours exploring the park, we've only gotten through four temples. From what Melissa said, there were dozens of them and some were so big that it was practically another city in them. 'Though she said those are run by noble Yokai clans so they should be rare.' I idly thought as the girls were standing in front of an Ungaikyo, a mirror like Yokai that shows the past of someone related to you. I passed a stand that had a Yokai that looked like a blacksmith before Tyrfing spoke up.

[Hey Pierce, wait a minute.] I stopped and looked down at my space ring. [Can you take a look at those oils?]

[Oh not this shit again…] Dainslef groaned and I wryly smiled, agreeing with the Demon Sword. Like any good sword owner, I maintained weapons and polished then regularly. I've done that to the sword Dylan gave me all those years ago and that extended to my current Demon Swords. I do it pretty well, using high end oils and techniques. Dáinsleif doesn't care what I use when it comes to cleaning him as long as I did a good job but Tyrfing is another story. The guy/sword is very selective on how I polish him and what oils to use. He's the pickiest sword I've ever met (it took me asking Athena for some sword oil from Hephaestus to shut him up). The blacksmith Yokai didn't react as I looked over his items and picked up one of the vials.

"May I?" Asking for permission, the man nodded and I took out Tyrfing. Dipping a single drop on the Demon Sword, I rubbed it along the surface and it hummed.

[Ohhhh, that's not bad. Nothing like that Smith God's stuff but not bad.] Tyrfing seemed to like it so I bought a couple of vials from the Yokai, who was staring at me heavily as I placed Tyrfing back in my space ring. Ignoring the greedy aura rolling off the Yokai, I walked back to the girls.

[Hey, can I get some of that?] Dáinsleif asked but Tyrfing humphed.

[No. Buy your own.]

[Wh-you didn't even buy them!]

[But I did ask.] Tyfring said righteously and Dáinsleif cursed. Leaving the two swords to bicker, I saw a massive shrine at the end of the street. It had tall walls surrounding the shrine like a castle and many Yokais avoided getting close.

"That's the Shrine the Shinto Gods are currently residing in." Melissa followed my gaze and explained what the shrine was for.

"So Amaterasu is in there?"

"…Pierce, no." Melissa deadpanned and I gave her a confused look. "I know what you're thinking and no."

"What? What am I thinking?"

"We are not going to bother the Chief Goddess of the Shinto Gods Pierce." They both said at the same and I pouted.

"Oh come on, I just want to go say hello. It couldn't hurt."

5 minutes later

'Okay, that kind of hurt a little.' I rubbed my head as the gates to the shrine slammed shut, leaving me to walk back to the girls in shame.

"I didn't know what you expected, meeting Amaterasu-sama like you did before was an incredibly lucky chance." Melissa said while shaking her head and I groaned. All attempts I made to enter the shrine were blocked by the guards of the Shinto Gods. They said the Gods, especially Amaterasu, were busy organizing events to come for the following days and couldn't be bothered. They gave me a waiting list to know when I could meet her but with how long it was I'm pretty sure the festival would end long before I get my chance.

"So what do you want to do now?" Maven asked while I observed the high walls of the shrine, seeing how easy they were to scale. The only problem was… "Pierce, I taught you magic and unless I did a piss poor job, there's no way you didn't notice that barrier."

"I see it." I grumbled. The shrine was protected by a dense and powerful barrier, easily within the same league as the ones used on Olympus. My magic has gotten much better these last couple of months but God made barriers were still beyond me.

"…But that's not going to stop you is it?" The mage sighed at my grin. "So what's your plan?"

"I'm working on it." I walked around the wall, noticing every nook and cranny that could be used to get inside. Finding nothing I could use, I refocused on the barrier and found something interesting. It had a strong, sunlight attribute to it. 'So Amaterasu put it up huh?' I walked closer to the walls and placed a hand on it, feeling a warm wall pushing it back.

Then the sigil on my forearm glowed. Before I could think on what that could mean, the feeling of resistance disappeared and my hand came in contact with the wall. Blinking as I felt around for the barrier, I took a step forward and placed both hands on the wall.

Then I jumped up. Landing on the high wall, I looked back at the two shocked girls and wildly smirked. Seeing if they could join me through the barrier if I was holding them, it didn't work and I had to go in alone. I laughed at their worried faces.

"Oh don't worry, I'm just going to say hi and come right back. I promise." Giving one last goodbye, I hopped down from the wall and landed on the front grounds. Hiding behind a small shack near the gate, I activated Chi Vision and scanned the Shrine/castle for my target. It wasn't hard when I felt the massive aura in the shape of a blazing sun. 'Damn and I thought Apollon's aura was impressive.' Amaterasu's aura was even brighter then the Olympian Sun God's. Coating myself in Touki, I ran across the grounds. Muffling my feet as best I could, it seemed to work as any guard I came close to didn't hear me. While I would comment on the lack of skill these guards had, I remembered who they were "guarding" and chose to keep going (actually, if a being that could threaten the Shinto Gods arrives then it's the guards that would need protecting). Jumping over a platoon of guards doing patrols, I landed on the roof of a building and saw my target.

'So that's where she's at.' I watched the large shrine in interest. It was the shrine I saw from the outside and I could feel Amaterasu's aura at the very top. It had another, separate barrier surrounding it and it felt different from the one protecting the walls. It was a mixture of different attributes, not just sunlight. I rubbed my chin in thought. 'That may be a problem.' I didn't know if my sigil could get me through that barrier since the Sun Goddess had help making it (probably). '…Oh well, no time like the-'

"Who are you?" A child like voice rang out to my left, causing me to jump slightly and turn to the voice. I came to face to face with a young girl. She had long blond hair done in a ponytail, yellow pupils and a very pretty face. She was wearing a yellow shrine maiden outfit. Surprised since I didn't sense her coming close, I saw that she was waiting patiently for an answer and cleared my throat.

"Hi, I'm Pierce. Your friendly neighborhood roof walker." I outstretched my hand but she didn't take it, choosing to observe me. "This is usually the part where you give your name." Que more staring. She did nothing for a second so I looked back to the Shrine and thought on my next course of action.

"So you're Pierce-san…" The girl finally said something and I quirked a brow.

"You've heard of me?"

"Something like that." The girl vaguely answered and turned to look at the shrine. "Are looking for Amaterasu-sama?"

"I am, it's just…I didn't get here the normal way."

"You sneaked in?" She asked bluntly and I nodded. "…What do you want with the Chief Goddess?" I shrugged and spoke honestly.

"I was going to say hello and ask if she wanted to go join the festival. Seemed kind of weird to come to a festival and not take part." And knowing that overworked Goddess, she probably really wants to. The young girl stared me up and down for a minute before turning around.

"Follow me." Not giving me a chance to refuse, she jumped down from the roof and I followed after her. Following the deceptively fast girl, we made it to the back of the shrine and she beckoned me to a sliding panel. Opening it, I saw a pathway that led up and the girl went up first. It was a tight squeeze but I eventually reached the top and came to an attic like space. I had to hunch down to get to the middle of the room and girl was waiting there, pointing to a hole in the floor. I didn't need to look through it to know who was below us.

'Well that was convenient.' I peeked through the hole to see the sitting form of the Sun Goddess of the Shinto Pantheon. Amaterasu was sitting behind a desk, the entirety of it covered in sheets of paper and the Goddess of rifling through them. Noticing that the panel was detachable, I took it off from its place and moved it aside. I stuck my head through the ceiling and observed the room. It was a typical noble's room with tasteful furniture, a large bed and a beautiful patio that had a great view of the festival below. Amaterasu's gaze never left the pile of papers on her desk.

"Pst."

"…"

"Psst."

"…"

"Psssttt!"

"…" She flipped a page over.

'Oh for the love of-' "Hey!" I yelled, hanging half my body out of the ceiling and she sighed.

"I heard you the first time." Amaterasu deadpanned and I huffed.

"Then answer the first time." I jumped to the floor, Amaterasu smiling in amusement as she stared up at the ceiling.

"Are you coming down or are you going to stay up there?" A minute passed of nothing before the blond girl jumped down as well, an embarrassed expression on her face.

"Hello Amaterasu-sama." The girl bowed to the Sun Goddess but she crossed her arms in response.

"What are you doing out of your room Yasaka? I believe your mother said you were to stay there until she said so." Amaterasu scolded the young Kitsune on her course of actions, leaving me to process what I just heard. The image of an incredibly beautiful and busty woman overlapped with the young girl in front of me. One thought came to my mind.

'Issei you lucky son of a bitch.' He's going to have not one, but two sexy nine tailed foxes in his harem. My envy became even stronger when I saw how the young Yasaka in front of me was as flat as her future daughter, signifying Kunou's guaranteed "potential".

"Pierce?" Amaterasu called out to me, bringing me back from the sea of envy. Yasaka was now kneeling on the side, looking guilty. "What did you want?"

"Oh not much, just came to say hi and ask how things are."

"Why didn't you pray at one of my shrines for that?" Amaterasu quirked a brow and I blinked.

"...You know, even if I had thought of that, I probably wouldn't have done it."

"Why not?"

"That sounds too easy. Imagine if people learned I took the easy way out, my reputation wouldn't survive!" The Sun Goddess chuckled and Yasaka tilted her head.

"What kind of reputation is that?"

"One I worked hard for."

[No, he really didn't.] Dáinsleif commented.

"You stay quiet!" Amaterasu shook her head at my antics and how Yasaka asked who that was. Saying "that was one of the voices in my head" didn't clear her confusion.

"I've been fine Pierce, thank you for asking. Nothing been's really happening in Heaven since the whole thing with Shiruku; besides the usual." Her eyes became sadder as she looked at me. "I also heard from Athena about your brush with Shuten, I'm glad you're okay."

"She told me, thanks for asking." Athena told me long ago about the Sun Goddesses concern, that was one the main reasons I thought to come say hello. We settled in a comfortable silence before I turned around. "Alright, let's go."

"You're leaving already?" Amaterasu asked, her tone indicating she wanted me to stay a little longer but I gave her a strange look instead.

"Yeah...we are leaving." The Sun Goddess furrowed her brows at my word play before she got it. She shook her head.

"I wish I could Pierce but I got work to do." She lifted the papers in her hand to make the point across and I walked around the desk. I picked one of the papers up.

"Permission to host a Sumo tournament from the Kappas, needing guards for the noble Yokai center, daily trimming for the Onikumas...really?" I deadpanned and Amaterasu gave a wry smile.

"I can't join the festival until I've answered every form, it's the job." From how high the stacks of papers were, she'll be lucky to be finished by the second day. I grabbed the Sun Goddess by her shoulders and gently placed her to the side. Under the confused gazes of Amaterasu and Yasaka, I picked up her ink pen. My hands became blurs as they filtered through the papers and staring giving random answers to all the questions. Losing count of how many "yes", "no", and "hell no" I gave, the last paper was neatly placed in the person high pile. Dusting my hands, I turned to Amaterasu with a satisfied face.

"Shall we?" The Sun Goddess blankly stared at me, then at the papers before returning to me.

"...Okay." Yasaka did a double take.

"Good woman!" I grinned and turned to the young kitsune. "You want to come along?" Yasaka perked up at that before giving Amaterasu a nervous look.

"Can I?" The Sun Goddess shrugged.

"I'm not your mom, you can do what you want. She will be pissed though." That didn't faze Yasaka as she cheered and walked with us to the entrance. Sensing a pair of guards on the other side, I jumped up to the hole in the ceiling and waited for them to join me before closing it. We took the tunnel all the way down and came out where we originally entered. I stopped and turned to Amaterasu when I realized something important.

"Wait, aren't you in control of this shrine?"

"I am."

"So can't you just teleport us outside?"

"I could."

"..."

"..."

"...Hm." Seeing she made no move to do so, I turned around and started to lead the way back to the others.

I selectively ignored the mischievous giggles coming from behind me.

Outside the Shrine

Melissa stared at the walls of shrine, munching on a small pie as Maven read a scroll on the history of Yokai culture. They've been waiting for the past 10 minutes for Pierce to return and the worry she had from earlier started to resurface. Melissa peeked over to the mage when she lightly bumped her shoulder.

"Stop worrying so much, it makes me nervous too."

"I'm not worried." Melissa argued but Maven gave her a blank look.

"Melissa, that's the third apple pie you've bought from that toad Yokai and you don't even like apple pie." The Shadow Leopard stared down at the pie in her hand and realized she was right, it sucked. "If he was in trouble then there would have been some sort of commotion. Even if he does get caught he's personally met Amaterasu, she'll get him out of trouble if there is any." Melissa thought on the sound logic and relaxed, seeing how little danger Pierce could be in. She gave Maven a smirk.

"I guess we're one for one now, I got you next time your worried over something dumb Pierce does." The mage snorted.

"That won't take long." Melissa laughed. The Shadow Yokai observed the Shrine for a second before turning back to Maven.

"So you really don't think Pierce will reach Amaterasu?"

"Oh, I have no doubt he'll be able to meet her but there's now way he'll be able to convince her to join us. She's the Chief Goddess of a pantheon and one of the main organizers of the whole festival. She has to be pretty busy." Maven gave a perfectly logical argument and Melissa smiled in response.

"You want to bet on money on that?" Maven made an odd expression.

"Melissa, Pierce has done some pretty out of the ordinary things but I think he's met his match here."

"I'm not hearing a no."

"...What are we betting?"

"If I win, you have to take over my shift tomorrow with my dad. If you win, I'll give you two bottles of that sake my uncles makes." Melissa offered, remembering the mage's reaction to her uncles special brew. Maven's eyes brightened.

"Dea-" Before she could shake on it Pierce hopped over the wall and walked towards them. Two more people in tow. One was a young girl with blond hair, a yellow kimono and regal eyebrows. The other was one they've seen earlier today at the beginning of the festival. Both woman gaped at the Shinto's Chief Goddess walking up to them, bowing shortly after.

"Hello there, you must be Maven-san and Melissa-san? It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Hi, I'm Yasaka!" The young girl gave a cheerful but equally respectful greeting.

"..." Pierce chuckled at their shocked state.

"Well come on, let's go." He started walking back to the main road, Yasaka and Amaterasu following right behind him. Maven and Melissa watched them walk away in silence.

"...Maven."

"...Yeah?"

"The restaurant opens at 7:30 tomorrow."

The Shadow Yokai's laugh as Maven tried to glare a hole through her smiling face echoed throughout the noisy festival.