0014.

The 30th of October.

Aboard the Sōryū-class submarine, building no. 8126, SS-511, Ōryū.

“Neee~!”

On the floor in specially outfitted sleeping quarters, the happy Nene rolled around, the roll of bandages wrapped around it haphazardly. Whether or not Nene was simply playing around or trying to escape a coffin of bandages is unknown as Noa yelled, “Oy, we’re low on bandages so quit playing around! Throw this damn aradama outside already!”

“Like I told you so many times already, Nene is my pet and my family’s guardian, you eternally flat-chested girl,” Manaka quipped.

“Eternally…!?” Noa growled as she angrily pulled at the ends of the gauze she had tied around Suzuran’s wounded leg which had been cut open by a sharp rock when she collapsed to her knees after falling out of zenkyou shoujin. Noa hardly even paid attention as she glared at Manaka (“Ow, ow, ow, ow! Noa-chan, I know we’re low on bandages but that doesn’t mean you have to tie it that tight!!” squealed Suzuran as she tried grabbing Noa’s sleeve to get her attention.)

“Please don’t blame Nene, Noa-yan,” Alice said as she picked up Nene and helped remove it from the confines of the bandages. “After all, I’m using most of them.” Indeed, while she was able to keep utsushi up for the entire fight, she still suffered numerous bite wounds all over her body from where Yomi’s aradama chewed through her utsushi to gnaw on her skin below. They also tore through her clothes and ruined her bra and as a result, she was forced to resort to using a great amount of the available gauze as a makeshift sarashi around her chest as there were no replacements.

However, both Noa and Manaka glared at Alice like she was their greatest enemy as both girls were certainly not as well-endowed as Alice was. They stared at Alice, trying to burn holes through her; Alice herself, meanwhile, hardly paid them any attention (or it was more like she was oblivious to their anger). Suzuran, on the other hand, declared, “Maaan, that sure was a surprise! To think that GreenMan-san was Alice’s grandfather!”

Noa snapped back to reality as she assented, “Yeah, that honestly was something…” While they have yet to meet the man himself, this was as much as they were told by Alice herself.

A crew member then popped their head into their quarters and said, “My apologies to bother you while you’re resting but Mr. Blackbourne would like to see you two.”

Suzuran and Noa looked at each other before shrugging. They got up, their swords strapped to their waists (Kazuyuki had returned Noa’s okatana to her after he had set Suzuran to rest upon first arriving in the submarine), and followed the crew member. They walked through the submarine as Suzuran joked, “This is quite the taxi (lol).”

“It is a pleasure to finally meet the two rebels.”

The two girls stopped as the crew member bowed once before disappearing down the hallway from whence they came. Off to the side, one of the doors opened up and an aging man stepped out. His graying crown belied his age yet he still had an extremely sharp gaze to his blue eyes. It was enough to send both girls into battle stances. The old man held up his hands in a placating gesture as he said, “Oh, don’t worry, I’m only here to talk with you. After all, it would be better if you learned everything while you still have time.”

“Are you…?” Suzuran began.

“Are you GreenMan?” Noa asked.

The man chuckled as he ran a hand through his hair. “Well, GreenMan is an alias I created for myself to keep my presence on the down low but my true identity is—”

“Oswald Blackbourne! He is the mastermind behind the creation of S-Equipment and my grandpa, desu!”

“Oh, no!” Oswald sighed dramatically as he covered his face with one hand, his other wrapping around his granddaughter. “You spoiled the surprise, my dear granddaughter!”

The two then shared a full hug, spinning around in circles, much to Suzuran and Noa’s confusion (and Manaka’s disgust as she had followed Alice and was leaning against the wall behind Suzuran and Noa). From within the room, a voice said, “Oy, Gramps, I get that this is the first time you’re seeing her in a while but please, we have other business to attend to.”

“Ah, yes, indeed, I suppose,” Oswald detached himself from his granddaughter and beckoned the girls inside the room. He then sat himself in one of the sofas, waving for the girls to do the same. “Alright, I’m sure you’ve already met him but this is—”

“Kazuyuki Yanagi!” Suzuran exclaimed, raising her hand. “I know him! The adopted son of Nanae Origami and the older brother of Maihime Tendou, he is the world’s first known male Toji! He uses the mythological-class okatana, Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi, and has perhaps the most decorations of any Toji in history, aside from his sister!”

“Hoh?” the boy breathed, raising an eyebrow. “Where did you get that information?”

“My mother!”

“Ah, I see,” he replied, nodding. “Indeed, that woman would be privy to that level of classified information.”

“The only okatana here that has even an inkling of a chance against Kazuyuki-kun’s is Manaka’s Nenekiri Maruyama, as a legendary-class,” Oswald stated. “Let’s see… Hmm, it seems all of your okatana are at least fairy-class. That’s a relief.”

“Fairy-class…?” Noa mumbled. “Ah, right, the okatana classifications.”

“Indeed,” Oswald nodded. “While I'm sure you girls already know this, they go from rumor-class, story-class, fairy-class, legendary-class, and mythological-class. Most, if not all, of natural okatana like Kazuyuki-kun’s fall into either the legendary-class or the mythological-class.”

“What did Alice mean when she said you were the creator of S-Equipment?” Noa asked.

“Oh, that? Well, just take a look.” Oswald got up from his seat and showed them an operating table where he had set one specimen of S-Equipment out.

“Whoa…” Suzuran gasped. “So you created this yourself?”

“Not by myself; I certainly had help.”

“More importantly, why is a foreign engineer working with Mokusa? Surely you’re entirely American, Blackbourne-san?” Noa questioned.

“Just call me Oswald. The reason why is because my family, especially I myself, have been watching the Origami family very closely.” He tapped the ‘helmet’ of the S-Equipment which took the shape of a powered exoskeleton with vials of yousai acting as ‘muscles’ before continuing, “Shortly after the Pacific War which devastated the navies of both Japan and the US due to not only the war against each other but the interference of aradama, joint development between the US Army and the Origami family began for the purpose of creating S-Equipment, something that would allow us to use yousai for military purposes. After all, if left untreated, it would birth more aradama. However, the research was stalled when hardly any progress was made… until we had a breakthrough fifteen years ago.”

“Fifteen years ago…?” Noa muttered.

“The Great Disaster of Tokyo Bay,” Suzuran guessed.

“Indeed. Following the Great Disaster when she rose to become head of the family, Nanae Origami performed a systematic purge of the traditional forces and began streamlining the organization.”

“… Streamline?” Suzuran tilted her head in confusion.

“Well, as you know, in the past, yousai gathered from defeated aradama were divided into smaller pieces and spread across the lands to be enshrined in various parts of the country,” Alice explained.

“This was done to purify the yousai over time as, when separated, it has a harder time conglomerating back into aradama,” Manaka added. “However, thanks to Nanae’s streamlining, all of the yousai have fallen under the control and management of the Origami family.”

“As a result of that, the level of technology in development suddenly increased and the S-Equipment was finally completed. It was truly thanks to Nanae Origami that this technology was brought about.”

“Nanae Origami did that?”

“Mhm, however, as a normal scientist, this is a technology that should not exist,” Oswald continued, rubbing the helmet with his index finger. “Concentrating the yousai under their administration and the resulting technology it brought about… Now, I wonder where she could have gotten that idea from.”

“Don’t tell me…!” Suzuran stammered, her eyes widening.

“The aradama inside of Nanae?” Noa inquired

“That’s what we suspect, yes,” Kazuyuki said, speaking for the first time since his comment about Suzuran’s mother. “That’s why I decided to join the organization… especially considering what that woman did to my real mother.”

“…?” Both Suzuran and Noa seemed like they were about to ask for more but were interrupted by Oswald.

“That isn’t important at the moment. What’s important is that I formed the Mokusa organization with the interest of a certain person who was also suspicious of the Origami family.”

“A certain person?”

“You’ll meet her later,” Kazuyuki quipped.

“Ever since then, we in Mokusa have been silently sharpening the blade of rebellion in the shadows, waiting for the day that we can openly resist her.” Oswald then turned to Noa. “Your mother, Manami Hiiragi, was among the people I sought help from.”

Noa widened her eyes before smiling. “I see.”

“Truly, I am glad to finally meet you, the daughter of our savior.”

“Yes, yes, Gramps,” Kazuyuki interrupted. “We’ve got all of the sentimentalities out of the way. We have to talk about what to do from now on.”

“Ah, yes, of course,” Oswald said, dramatically flourishing his arms wide. “In any case, thanks to the assistance of your mother, our preparations slowly reached completion and we were gearing up to finally strike… however, your… let’s see, straightforward actions nearly ruined all of our plans.”

“Don’t sugarcoat it, old man,” Manaka scolded. “It’s basically all her fault everything’s gone to crap.”

“Shut it,” Noa retorted. “I only did what I needed to do to advance my objective.”

“Now, now, it wasn’t all bad,” Kazuyuki said. He reached into his pocket and produced a vial which contained yousai. “This is an ampoule of yousai that I extracted from Yomi after cutting her down. With this, the principal of Minoseki can analyze it in detail and we can finally connect that woman to her crimes of unlawful human experimentation.”

“With that finished, our mission would be complete, desu!” Alice added.

Noa put her hand to her chin as she thought for a moment. “What’s wrong, Noa-chan?”

“No, it’s just… How deep does the blade of rebellion against Nanae Origami go? For one of the principals of the Five Traditions to be in league with this organization…”

“Oh, it’s not just the Minoseki principal,” Kazuyuki laughed. “Except for that horny lesbian in charge of Renpu, all of the other principals are in league with us, at least, below the surface. After all, you can’t openly rebel against that woman with no damning evidence.”

“Is that so…”

“Anyway, we’ve already talked for quite a while,” Oswald said, clapping his hands. “We should call it quits for the night. We should arrive at Notojima soon. For now, get some rest. You’ll be able to get an even better good night’s sleep when we land.”

“Oh…? I’m back here…?” I asked myself.

I found myself seated on the stairs of Kibitsu Shrine, halfway up for some reason. Apparently, I was just staring at the sky when my consciousness returned to me. Suddenly, a cheery voice came from my side, which strangely sounded like the voice I heard when I had forced myself into zenkyou shoujin. “Oh, welcome back! They say that boys can change in three days but I suppose that saying can apply to girls too!”

“Master.”

The girl scooted over and wrapped one arm around me. “Yeah, I like your face now! You’ve resolved yourself. Anyway, you holding up alright?”

“Yeah… I think so.”

“Cool. So, you have a plan in mind yet?”

“Well… It might not be as good as the plan my friend has in mind but it’s better than nothing! I’ve decided that I’m going to do my best and follow the way of the sword that my mother taught me.”

“Oh yeah, I like that! Wish you were my daughter!”

“Oh, Master, please, enough with the jokes.”

“Ahaha! Well, good, good! I can feel you too! If it was for my dear friend, I would certainly also not hesitate to give half my life.”

“I guess this is something I inherited from you, Master.”

“Oh, yes, indeed. In any case…” She then drew her sword as she always did when I entered this plane of existence. “Come and draw, Suzuran.”

“But of course, Master!” I withdrew my blade and entered a standard seigan stance. “I’m definitely going to get a point from you today!”

0234.

A five-star ryokan owned by the Five Traditions located in Uenohara.

“… Man, I can’t sleep.”

Fuyuka Takamiya opened her eyes and got out of the futon she had laid out for herself. With the successful escape of Suzuran Arisugawa and Noa Hiiragi and their rendezvous with Oswald Blackbourne, the first phase of the plan was complete. For now, the rebels would need to remain in hiding on Notojima, one of Mokusa’s safe houses. Fuyuka, meanwhile, still has her duties as Honami Mitsumine’s body double to complete, however, she was allowed a moment’s respite upon being checked into this ryokan. “Madame Principal certainly is being a bit too nice. An entire room all to myself and I’m allowed to temporarily relieve myself from the disguise?”

Fuyuka slid open the fusuma to let in the night air as well as the light from the moon. With that illumination, she reached into her personal effects and pulled out a mirror. While she had observed her own face before going to sleep earlier, she once again scrutinized her visage. “I know it’s part of my mission but sometimes, I honestly cannot believe that this is my real face,” she muttered self-deprecatingly, observing how her naturally silver hair caught the moonbeams and how her rose pink eyes glittered mysteriously. She returned the hand mirror before looking out at the night sky. “But still… The sky here certainly looks different than it does back at Osafune.”

Just as she was about to sink into deep thought, her phone rang. “Hmm? Who could be calling me at this hour…?” She then looked at the name and widened her eyes. Interesting… For her to initiate contact first! She picked up her phone and changed her voice to that of Honami’s. “Hello? What’s up, Sayuki-chan?”

“Honami…?”

“Yeah, it’s me! You called the right number. What’s going on?”

“Oh… I just wanted some advice from you…”

“Oh!? Yeah, yeah, sure! Hit me up! What are you struggling with?” Fuyuka smirked to herself as she thought, Oh, this might be the key to winning her over to my master’s side!

“Well…”

Fuyuka listened to Sayuki’s story.

………

………

2202.

A secret operating room located somewhere within the Special Sword Administration Bureau’s HQ.

Sayuki Asahina found herself laying on an operating table. She was still dressed in the standard Renpu uniform, having not even been given permission to shower or change. The cute bandage that Honami had placed on her that morning was still on her face, protecting the cut she had there. Her blank stare focused on the white ceiling and the lights, shining so brightly that they were threatening to blind her. She could hardly bring herself to focus on Azusa’s words.

“Sayuki… You are the greatest vessel I have ever found.” The mad principal held up an injector pen, the same kind that Yomi Satsuki used to power herself up during the so-named Engagement at Kansui Park. “This is the result of the monumental research that Nanae-sama ordered Renpu—no, entrusted me—to complete. Once you are granted this power, your viability as a vessel will be complete; you will think of nothing and you will feel nothing. You will simply become a Toji that strikes down Nanae-sama’s enemies.” She brought the injector up to Sayuki’s neckline after roughly pulling down her collar. She then stopped momentarily, narrowing her eyes in disgust as she took note of the bandage on her face.

Sayuki mustered the courage to say, “Nothing…?”

Azusa grabbed Sayuki’s chin and turned her head to the side, ripping off the bandage on her face. Sayuki’s eyes widened slightly at this and just when Azusa was about to inject her with the substance, she slapped her hand away, knocking the injector pen out of her hand. She sat up with a start and looked at her hands as if wondering what she had just done. Azusa stared at her in shock. “Sayuki…! What are you doing—?”

“I…” she said. “I don’t want to be a puppet anymore…!”

………

………

“Ever since then, I’ve been running…”

… Now this is an incredible shock, Fuyuka thought. Now Azusa Hachimiya is without a tool. I can definitely use this opportunity to retrieve her! “Okay. Where are you right now?”

“I think… Kanai Park.”

“Okay, do you have enough energy to run to Uenohara?”

“Mhm… I think so.”

“Okay, I’ll meet you there. I’m currently resting in a ryokan in Uenohara. With jin’i, you should get here within half an hour.”

“Okay…!”

Sayuki then hung up and Fuyuka put her phone away. She stood up and walked outside of her room, her beloved okatana, Kankodori Shionsakai, in hand. “Kazuyuki-sama, your shadow brings you good news!”

0240.

“What did you say!?”

“As I’ve repeated to you already, the Elite Guard cannot assist in your search for Sayuki Asahina,” Maya sighed, maintaining a strong tone of voice.

“In the first place, our primary job is to guard Nanae-sama,” Suzuka added. “Exactly where in our duties are we authorized in helping with the internal matters of your Renpu Girls’ Academy?”

“It is precisely because it is for Nanae-sama that you incompetent fools should help!” Azusa growled. “Sayaka is the most suitable person to be Nanae-sama’s right hand! She isn’t unlike you incapable buffoons who couldn’t even capture the traitors with a fully equipped force! I order you this instant, Elite Guard! Bring back Sayuki immediately for Nanae-sama’s sake!”

Suzuka narrowed her eyes and opened her mouth to speak but was stopped by Maya’s arm. “Once again, Principal Hachimiya, I apologize but we cannot assist you.”

“Shidou, you insolent wench!”

“If I may, Principal Hachimiya, is it not you who is bringing great strife to Nanae-sama right now?” Suzuka inquired.

“Ngh,” she groaned. She glanced over at the person in question, who was seated in a chair and facing the screen, not even paying her any attention. Azusa clicked her tongue and turned around, leaving the command operations room. After closing the door behind her, she stamped the floor. “Those damned nitwits! They’re just freaking afraid of being replaced by Sayuki!”

“Principal Hachimiya…”

Turning her head, Azusa saw Yomi hobbling toward her with the help of a crutch. She was still dressed in the standard hospital gown with bandages wrapped around her right eye and most of her arms. “Yomi… Hah, look at you. Unable to control all of that power, you’re now in this sorry state yet you claim to be a member of the Elite Guard? How utterly pathetic. You’re merely a prototype that Nanae-sama simply took pity on. Learn your place, trash.”

“If you still require my power, then here.” As if she was completely unaffected by the slew of verbal abuse, Yomi simply held out her hand.

“‘If I still require your power’, you say!? You damned brat!” Azusa’s hand flew at Yomi’s face, slapping her hard enough to knock her off of her feet. “The ‘power’ you’ve given me is nothing but incinerated garbage in comparison with Sayuki’s! Yet, you were the one chosen by Nanae-sama… and now you dare believe that you can look down on me!? Don’t forget; as long as Sayaka is around, you brats are no longer needed!”

Yomi simply lay on the floor as Azusa then stormed off and from behind a pillar separating two windows from each other stood Yume, who had overheard everything. “Maaaan, the old pissant grandma is hella mad,” she sang, squeezing a tiny plush toy she usually carried around (another one of Kazuyuki’s gifts) and listening to the funny sound it made. “But still, to think that pawn decided to run away… She didn’t seem like much when I first met her…” Yume thought back to the first time she had met the girl when Azusa introduced her directly to Nanae, boasting that she would win the National Swordsmanship Tournament (Yume still found it funny how after that claim, Sayuki proceeded to lose in her very first match). “Hmm… I just had a thought! Maybe I should go catch her~!” She put her hand over her mouth and giggled; if this was an anime, her mouth would twist into the shape of a cat’s and one would be able to see cat ears and a tail swinging pretentiously.

0328.

It was certainly way past the time for children to be awake.

It was certainly way past the time for Sayuki Asahina to be awake.

After she had finished the phone call with Honami, she had quickly dashed from her initial hiding place all the way to Uenohara, what would normally be an almost thirteen-hour walk over about sixty kilometers, in less than half an hour. As a Toji with masterful control over jin’i, a feat such as this was child’s play. Continuous running would still be an exceedingly tiresome experience so Sayuki was currently trying to catch her breath behind a convenience store. She had no idea how long it had been since she had arrived here.

It was only after her heart rate dropped that she began reflecting on herself. “Why…? Why did I do that…?” She still could not understand why she had slapped Azusa’s hand away and she was surely even more confused at the fact that she had immediately fled from her, breaking out of the window with her sword in hand. “It’s just… I’m sure if that got inside me… I would cease… to be me…” Sayuki turtled into herself as she tried making herself as inconspicuous as possible in the dark alleyway.

“Sayuki-chan!” Sayuki jerked her head sideways as she heard the voice she heard over the phone. “There you are!” Honami ran to her and gave her a hug. “Are you okay? You haven’t been hurt anywhere, have you? Oh wait, you lost the bandage I gave you…”

“N-No… It was…” Sayuki’s voice trailed off there as she wrestled with whether or not she should tell her that Azusa had torn it off of her.

“Oh no, it’s nothing,” Honami ensured her. “Don’t worry, it’s healed up quite nicely! It won’t leave a scar.”

“I-I…” Sayuki started.

“No, no, it’s okay. You don’t have to tell me anything more.” Honami simply hugged her close, hoping to use her tranquil heartbeat to calm Sayuki down. Suddenly, a loud grumble cut through the air. Honami laughed quietly, “Are you hungry, Sayuki-chan?” Sayuki wordlessly nodded, as if ashamed to verbally admit it. “Haha,” Honami giggled. “Well, it’s not like convenience stores will allow junior high students to buy anything at this hour…” And I can’t rely on my connections either; that will compromise me. Oh, I know! “I should still have some…” Honami dug around her yukata which she still had on from the ryokan and pulled out a batch of cookies (she hoped that Sayuki wouldn’t be able to tell because these were cookies Fuyuka made herself; while there wasn’t much of a difference in taste, there was a difference in quality).

“Cookies…!” Sayuki said excitedly, albeit with a rather deadpan expression. “Thanks.”

“Mhm, no problem!” Honami said, settling down on the asphalt. “I did tell you about my sister yesterday, right?”

“Something about her liking the bandage designs…?”

“Yeah! Anyway, I love my sister but maaaan, can she be the most selfish prick in the world sometimes! At this point, I’ve honestly straight-up asked her if she just enjoys annoying the heck out of me.”

“Mhm…”

“Well, thanks to that, my sister will absolutely never call for help, especially mine, even when she’s in deep trouble. I don’t get it but I suppose that’s her way of punishing herself for always being mean to me or something…” Honami then snapped her fingers. “Oh! That’s not what I’m here to talk about! Anyway! The point is, you can absolutely seek help, Sayuki-chan! I’m here for you.”

Sayuki then found herself in an embrace. She immediately thought back to her failed mission when she tried apprehending the traitors at Kyouko’s apartment. Suzuran Arisugawa too had shown her a kindness that she had never received before. “I…”

“Sayuki-chan, I~. Found~. You~!”

Immediately, Honami, with Sayuki still stuck to her in a hug, leaped back as much as she could in the narrow alleyway. She glared at the newcomer, the youngest member of the Sword Administration Elite Guard, Yume Tsubakuro. Of all the people to find us…! How did she manage to track her down to here!? Of course, she kept her thoughts separate from her speech as she lilted, “You’re… from the Elite Guard!?”

“Now, I think it’s about time for the little runaway to come home!” Yume sang. “The old pissant grandma Hachimiya is waiting for you~!” In response, Sayuki snaked around Honami as if trying to hide behind her. Yume took this as a show of resistance and spread her arms. “Oya? What’s this? Do you not want to go back?” Yume twirled around on her toes as she continued, “Oh, whatever can I do? This is quite the problem~! Hey, oneesan, what do you say?”

Run.

All of her instincts were telling her to bolt away this instant but she couldn’t do so if Sayuki had no intention of running in the first place. She squeezed Sayuki closer as if insisting through her body warmth that she is safe here. “… I choose to take her away,” Honami declared.

“Oh? Ohh? Ohhh??” Yume said, widening her eyes. “I see, I see! I thought you didn’t have any spine but it turns out you do, eh!?” Yume clapped her hands. “Alright, I think I’ll have some fun! Okay, how about this? Let’s play a game of hide-and-seek! I’ll count to ten and if you can keep yourself out of my sight for ten minutes then you win! If you don’t…” Yume bared her teeth in a mad grin.