Ink Stained With Blood (Yokai!Ichimatsu x Reader)

Chapter 11

A shudder ripped through my body as I stirred from sleep, finding myself alone in the book room. The sliding door was open and there were several stacks of books that had been organized since I fell asleep, most of the shelves now empty of their burden. Stifling a yawn while gathering my clothes around me, readjusting them as needed before shivering again from the cold, I crawled over to where my journal lay open with the charcoal wedged into the break between pages.

Glancing over my handwriting, I took a deep breath before slowly releasing it, coming to the conclusion that if my ancestral home did hold clues about what I could do to help the brothers, I was closer to Nagoya and should continue heading there to find out what I could. If that didn't hold the answer that I was searching for, then I would make my way back towards my hometown...

"I had told you that I'd be leaving soon!"

A dark voice shouted out forcefully, each syllable bitten out like a command. I stilled before looking back towards the door, flinching and covering my mouth with a hand when a figure was thrown past the doorway, the details blurred in my eyes.

"Get out of my way," Another voice yelled out, the pitch slightly higher than the first speaker, "That smell is too fresh to be an 'old scent'."

I quickly looked around the room and found a small corner that was hidden from the doorway, scrambling up and pressing myself into it while covering my mouth with both hands, my fingers trembling against my skin.

Heavy footsteps marked the intruder stopping by the door, a deep inhale rousing their attention before stepping into the room. A hot temperature radiated out from the newcomer, the sweat starting to bead on my skin as I grew uncomfortable in the heavy winter clothing.

From my hiding spot in the corner, my eyes widened as the intruder stepped into view behind the bookcase, the frayed white hood covering their head and revealing their face.

The dark lines over their cheeks were accented by a darkened area underneath their searching eyes, the bright blue hues glittering like icicles in sunlight. They swept around the room in a slow, methodical pattern, turning more towards me and fully revealing who it was.

Osomatsu, the oni yokai.

My heart thudded in my chest, fear racing through my system as he seemed to pick up on some kind of trail that only he could see, his winter eyes locking onto the ground and moving towards where I was hiding.

"You're not welcome here, Osomatsu," Ichimatsu groaned from the doorway, drawing Osomatsu's attention before he could see where I was, "Go crawling back to the cave you call home."

"Last I checked, this is my home," The oldest brother growled, the black fur wrapped around his shoulders bristling before he disappeared from my sight, "You are the one who isn't welcome here."

A loud yelp sounded as the room shook, the walls reverberating from some kind of impact. I wanted to run out and see what happened, to make sure that Ichimatsu was okay, but I knew that the only thing that was on Osomatsu's mind was finding me...and possibly eating me as a snack.

Another crash sounded further away, wood splintering from the collision as it sounded like half of the house was starting to collapse. Ducking out of my hiding spot, I grabbed my journal and the scroll that the stranger had found, shoving them both into my sling bag before ducking out into the destroyed hallway. Now able to see what the extent of the damage was, I paled when I saw a large hole in the room next to where Ichimatsu and I were staying for the night, the trail of destruction mapping out where the fighting brothers were.

I bit down on my bottom lip when a loud roar rang out from somewhere nearby, feeling the effects of the yokai fight through the floorboards as I raced towards the closest exit. My heart worried for Ichimatsu, knowing that Osomatsu was probably the strongest of the sextuplets physically, his raw strength alone enough to level the building we were in. The other brothers were more powerful in other aspects, but in a direct fight against Osomatsu...there was no contest.