A Love Beyond Time

The past, revelations, and the return of a once lost Sunshine

Yamada Asaemon Fuchi held a slender glass tube in his hand and positioned it over a glass dish. He tapped 4 drops of ruby red liquid into the latter before adding the same amount of clear fluid, which spread to form a perfect ring around the tiny crimson pool. Next, the 9th-ranked Asaemon deposited 4 fat globules of emerald green liquid that had a viscous consistency not unlike mucus into the apparatus, albeit at the edge.

And he waited, observing.

Fuchi's round eyes got even rounder and wider as he watched the green mucus slither across the dish, as if it was a living thing, towards the ringed red drop. The young man wondered if the slime was a living organism with limited intelligence and could seek out potential prey. Much to his horrified and disgusted amazement, he realized that it intended to contaminate or absorb (he was not sure which) the latter. He shuddered at the thought.

However, the clear ring formed a protective barrier against the slime and thwarted its efforts to touch the ruby pool. Fuchi felt he was watching a battle scene: the red fluid was the prize/castle, and the translucent circlet was the valiant guard. Needless to say, the mucus was the invader.

As he observed in utter fascination, the scientist-samurai noticed something genuinely remarkable.

The slime was shrinking.

And by the contrary, the ring was expanding.

Fuchi rubbed his eyes and looked again. Yes, he was not mistaken. The circle was absorbing the slime and breaking it down, thus eliminating the threat. Within mere seconds, only the ringed crimson remained in the dish. And it—Fuchi swore he was not hallucinating—glowed. Perhaps in triumph and victory.

The yellow-haired young man closed his eyes to collect his thoughts. Through his years of medical research at the Asaemon residence, he had never witnessed anything this magical.

Well, that was because he had never worked with anything, or anyone, from that particular realm.

Fuchi grabbed his notebook and jotted his observations. Then he turned to Keiko.

"Keiko! I believe we have found a perfect antidote for the Tensens' venom!"

The vixen, who had just finished putting away the freshly prepared medicines, went over to him and skimmed through his notes.

"That's excellent news. Seimei will be thrilled to know that. Great job, Fuchi, you're a genius."

Fuchi flushed uncharacteristically at Keiko's praise and scratched his nose self-consciously.

"Ahhh, I didn't do much. Seimei had already done most of the groundwork and separated Shion's blood sample into the various components."

He gestured at the beautifully labeled glass bottles arranged neatly on the stone table.

"All I had to do was to follow the instructions he had provided to complete the experiment. He's the true genius, not me."

While he rambled on, Fuchi realized that he had behaved quite oddly. First, though he never considered himself an arrogant braggart, he always took all praises and compliments in his stride and even basked in them. After all, he was proud of his medical achievements and discoveries, which allowed the Asaemon clan to excel in their missions. Yet now, a simple praise from Keiko is enough to make him all nervy and bashful.

Second, since when did he, the "science-obsessed, eccentric, cold-blooded psychopath" (according to the Clan grapevine, that was how most of the younger unranked members viewed him), get flutters in his system just because a pretty female was looking at him with frank admiration?

Well, since....never? For no females had ever cast him second glances, admiring or otherwise. Not that he minded, of course, for Fuchi was more interested in pursuing intellectual expansion and knowledge enhancement than those of the romantic or carnal natures.