For the first time in a long time, all of the Orochi members were enjoying themselves. Miyako had used Yastu no Onokoshizuchi to rip the roof off of a liquor store and had swiped several beers and mixers. Tsubasa, Miyako, and Rehko were enjoying several bottles of beer while Girochi, Korona, and Souma sipped on rum with mango juice. Nekoko had gone with Izuhara no Tamazuchi to steal candy for herself. "The time has finally come," Tsubasa announced, "for the Orochi to rule the world. With the Priestesses no longer able to revive Ame no Murakumo, there is nothing that can stop us this time." "So that means we don't have to kill Kurusugawa, right?" asked Souma. "You'd better not kill her," said Girochi. "I can't go on a date with Hime if she's dead." "When will you learn," Souma shot, "that Himeko will never go out with you?" "What'd you say?" Girochi barked. "If Kurusugawa is going to go out with anybody, it's going to be me." Souma and Girochi got into a heated argument while the other Orochi members reminisced about their past experiences. "Finally," Tsubasa sighed, "we can rest." "We no longer need to live in constant fear of Ame no Murakumo," said Miyako. "Nothing is going to stop us now," Korona grinned. "And I can get to boom things again, nya!" cried Nekoko excitedly. "We have the world at our fingertips," Tsubasa said, raising his hand to the sky as if holding a globe in the palm of his hand. "We shall destroy the world and then remake it as we see fit!" "I will no longer have to write this horrible manga that I'm forced to work on," said Rehko. "No more sleeping with the producers to get my big break," Korona sighed. "No more animal testing," said Nekoko. "Master Tsubasa," cooed Miyako, "we'll follow you to the end." Tsubasa then said, "There is one thing that I must do before the true celebration." He walked over to where Souma and Girochi were fighting and stepped in between the two. "The Third Neck will not have possession of the Solar Priestess." Girochi looked at Tsubasa with disdain. The First Neck then turned to the Seventh Neck and said, "Souma. You want the Solar Priestess for yourself, don't you?" "Yes, Brother," answered Souma. Tsubasa revealed his sword and presented it to his brother. "Then go. Find her. She does not have to suffer the fate of the Lunar Priestess." Souma smiled and took Tsubasa's sword. The purple mark of the Orochi appeared on Souma's forehead and Take no Yamikazuchi appeared. Souma jumped into the Orochi body's circular portal and turned his attention toward the Earth. With Tsubasa's power infused into his sword, Take no Yamikazuchi sprouted Take no Yasukunazuchi's wings and flew off into the clouds below. ---------- Despite the long journey, the first part was easy to traverse. Kazuki and Yukihito had long strides, so they could move very quickly without much effort. Because of their time at Ototachibana Academy and having to climb up the many stairs in front of the school building 5 days a week, Himeko and Chikane were very fit and were able to walk for long periods of time. And even though Chikane had been away for the past year, she had not existed in corporeal form for that time and her body had regenerated in just as much shape as it was before the world was remade. The plains nearby the Sea of Japan were easy on the group's feet and they easily made 10 kilometers a day. They tended to keep to the forests so that their Shinto uniforms would not attract attention. Himeko and Chikane would have much rather dressed casually, but Kazuki had informed them that the powers that the uniforms possessed would protect them from danger. As night started to fall, they set up a campfire and cooked some fish that Kazuki had bought the day before in preparation for the journey. "You know," said Yukihito as they sat around the fire, "I've never realized how nice the forest is. It's very quiet and peaceful." "It's how our ancestors lived during the ages of the gods," Kazuki said. "Before Orochi was born." "Mister Ogami," said Himeko, "you told me and Chikane about the Priestesses last year and about our duties. But there's still a lot that we don't know. How was Orochi born in the first place? What could give rise to such evil?" "That's a good question," said Kazuki. "Unlike the other gods, Orochi had no ancestors. Orochi was born from the dark feelings of humans. Those feelings are what gave rise to Orochi." "And they are also what sustains Orochi," Chikane added. "The eight followers of Orochi have all experienced some deep pain in their lives. Tsubasa killed his father and gave up his brother, the church that Miyako and Girochi belonged to was destroyed, Souma saw his father killed and was turned down by the person he loved. And me...I felt so guilty for having killed the person that I loved. I did all I could to make you hate me. But the more I drove you away, the deeper my pain became. That's the reason that Orochi has followers. Their own dark feelings are what keep Orochi alive, and they are also what allows Orochi to consume their hearts." "And the Orochi's evil only spreads," said Kazuki. "The more destruction that Orochi causes, the more hardship and pain humans feel. More dark feelings to fuel Orochi." "That's why the Priestesses exist," realized Himeko. "Only their pure hearts can silence the evil of Orochi." "Actually," said Yukihito, "from what Mister Ogami has told me, it was only one Priestess that revived Ame no Murakumo last year." "That was Himeko," Chikane said. "I had allowed Orochi to consume me, and I left Himeko to revive Ame no Murakumo by herself. But it was her own kind-heartedness that warmed and purified my heart. The love that we had overwhelmed the Orochi inside me and we came so close to defeating Orochi." "It must have been that same purity that allowed Souma to resist Orochi's evil," said Kazuki. "I only wish that he had someone that could silence the Orochi within him this year." Himeko's head turned down, knowing that she was not with Souma to purify his Orochi blood. Chikane put her hand on Himeko's shoulder and the two girls looked at each other. Himeko could almost hear Chikane reminding her of what she had said the night before, "You can't start blaming yourself for something that isn't in your control." "There has to be some way to free Souma from Orochi's control," said Himeko. "I'm sure there is." "He has the power to break free," Chikane noted. "He proved that last year. All that he needs is something to draw out the good in him." "But what about Orochi's curse?" Himeko asked. "If he goes against Orochi's orders, those dark scales will appear on his body again." "That is true," Kazuki said solemnly. "I wish that things could be different. However, we must seal away Orochi inside the Lunar Shrine if he is to leave the world in peace for the next several hundred years. And because his followers are what gives him strength..." "...then we have to seal away his followers as well," Chikane finished. "No. It can't be," said Yukihito. "It saddens me to say it," Kazuki said, the same solemnity in his voice, "but we have no choice. If we are to save the world, we have no choice but to fight our friends. Even Souma, whom is, in every way that matters, my brother." Then, Himeko said, "If there were some way to kill Orochi, then maybe Souma and all the Orochi members would be freed. If only Orochi could be destroyed." "But the only way to make Orochi weak enough to destroy is if he's deprived of his sustenance," said Chikane. "And the only way to do that is to get rid of the hate inside the hearts of his followers." "It seems," said Kazuki, "that the only way to free Orochi's followers is to kill Orochi, and the only way to kill Orochi is to free his followers." "Like the chicken and the egg," Yukihito commented. "Even if we seal Orochi away," said Kazuki, "it seems impossible to prevent Orochi from returning some time in the future." "Although..." Chikane spoke up. Everyone looked at Chikane to hear what she had to say. "Things that seemed impossible have still happened," the dark-haired girl continued. "It seemed impossible for a priestess to become an Orochi follower like I did. It seemed impossible for an Orochi follower to go against Orochi like Souma did. I'm sure that there's some way to end it all, some way to make sure that Orochi never returns. Whether it was the chicken that came first or the egg, one of them had to come first. If we know how it all started, maybe we can find a way to end it as well." "That's right," Himeko chirped. "If we put our minds and our hearts into it, we can do anything. We can destroy Orochi, free his followers, overcome our fate, and live normal lives like we've always wanted." "That would make me so happy," Chikane said, looking lovingly at Himeko. "Your confidence is admirable," Kazuki said, a smile appearing on his face. "You're right. Seemingly impossible things have happened in the past. And with the determination and love that your girls have, you might just have the power to end it once and for all." "I wonder how Souma is now," Yukihito spoke his mind. "I hope he isn't suffering too much from Orochi's evil." ---------- At the same time that the four travelers were setting up their sleeping bags and getting ready for sleep, the residents at the Himemiya estate were getting ready to turn in for the night as well. Takeshi and Rika were sitting next to each other on the bed in their large bedroom, but their restless minds would not allow them to sleep just yet. "How do you think Chikane is doing?" Rika asked. "She is a strong girl," Takeshi said. "She has always excelled in everything she's done. I am sure that she's doing just fine." "And what about Miss Kurusugawa?" "She seems like a strong girl too, almost as strong as our daughter." "But do you think that they're strong enough to complete their missions as priestesses?" Takeshi smiled and took Rika's hands in his. "I think you worry too much, Rika. As long as they take care of each other, both Chikane and Himeko will be just fine." As the couple was about to change into their bedclothes, a knock came at the door. "Mister Himemiya," Otoha's voice came from behind the door, "there's a guest here to see you." "A guest at this hour?" Takeshi said to himself. He turned to his wife and said, "This won't take long." With that, Takeshi stood up and walked out of the room. Rika sat on the bed, looking at the door that Takeshi had exited through with a puzzled expression on her face. She wondered to herself, "Why would Takeshi see a visitor at this time of night?" Due to Mr. Himemiya's rule that no males were allowed inside the mansion besides him, Otoha had asked the visitor to wait for Mr. Himemiya in the courtyard. However, when Takeshi got outside, he found the courtyard empty. "Who could that have been?" he wondered, scratching his head. Takeshi was about to walk back into the house when suddenly, a giant hand fell on top of him. The finger's wrapped around Takeshi's body and picked up the helpless man. Takeshi struggled to break free, but the cold, hard steel of the hand kept him completely immobilized. As Takeshi looked up, he saw that the hand belonged to a giant, mechanical creature as tall as the mansion. It was colored blue and had glowing, green eyes. The creature brought its other hand next to Takeshi so that the black-haired boy standing on the hand could speak to him. "Mister Himemiya," said the boy. "You know where the girls are headed, don't you?" "What is it to you?" asked Takeshi defiantly. "Allow me to introduce myself," the boy said. "I am--" "I know who you are, Souma Ogami," Takeshi said. The boy stared blankly at the middle-aged man. "How did you know that?" Then, an expression appeared on Takeshi's face that nobody would expect from a person in his position. Although trapped by a gigantic, robotic monster, Takeshi was smiling! His eyes turned from a soft brown to a menacing yellow and the hand that was holding him shattered. Instead of falling t the ground, Takeshi floated to the ground, landing safely on his feet. "I can see your mind, Seventh Neck," the man said. "You want to know where Himeko and Chikane are. You desire Himeko, and you want to kill Chikane. You can take Himeko for all I care. But if you so much as put a scratch on Chikane, you will suffer dearly for it." Souma stared at Mr. Himemiya, his eyes wide with a mixture of stun and terror. 'How did this man free himself from Take no Yamikazuchi's grasp?' Souma thought. "They went into the mountains," Takeshi said. "There is another shrine there where the Priestesses can revive Ame no Murakumo. Unfortunately, I don't know where. So you'd better hurry before they have a chance to revive the God of Swordsmen." "Why should I believe you?" Souma asked. "Because if I'm right, then the Priestesses will have another chance to revive the only one that can defeat Orochi. And you can't afford to take that risk, can you?" 'What is he?' Souma could not help but wonder. 'How does he know so much about Orochi? Kurusugawa and Himemiya couldn't have told him everything.' "You're right," Takeshi said. "They couldn't tell me everything in the short amount of time that they've been staying at this mansion." Souma jumped at Mr. Himemiya's statement. "Can you..." he stammered, "Can you...read my thoughts?" "I can sense the thoughts of every Orochi member. You'd better hurry up. If you want to find the girls, you'd better start searching now." Takeshi's yellow eyes looked straight into Souma's and the mark of Orochi appeared on Souma's forehead. Souma held his head and cried out in pain as Orochi's evil started overflowing from him. The outer shell of Take no Yamikazuchi started glowing, and then shattered, revealing the giant god's true form. Its coloration had turned from blue to red, the metal plate in front of its mouth retracted, and the creature bared its teeth. Wings sprouted from Take no Yamikazuchi's back and it went flying off toward the mountains. Takeshi smiled as he watched the giant god disappear into the darkness. "Soon," the man said to himself, "the Priestesses will be separated, Orochi will be revived, and I will be reborn." To be continued... ---------- OMAKE: Himeko and Chikane would have much rather dressed casually on their journey, but Kazuki had informed them that the powers that the uniforms possessed would protect them from danger. Himeko tripped over her own feet every now and then. "These sandals are impossible to walk in!" she cried. "Why do we have to wear sandals anyway?" "They are part of the uniforms of the two Priestesses," said Kazuki. "You will need them to revive Ame no Murakumo." "But we're not to the shrine yet. And besides, they're just sandals." "They may be just sandals, but the uniform is not complete without them." "For crying out loud, Kazuki! This isn't cosplay!" Kazuki's eyes narrowed and he said, "Keep walking, Kurusugawa. Or I will be forced to get feudal on your ass."
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