Duality (DxD) (Part 1)

Ch 197 - Foxes In The Underworld (1)

It was early in the morning and everyone had already had their breakfast. It only took one day for everyone to understand and make a new routine. Waking up, showering, changing, eating, everything was fluid. A flow to it exactly like there was back home and Jin helped Koneko who was new to it all.

Mittelt was happy to go with Sona to a noble tea party. Ready to enjoy her fun with Rias and Akeno.

Aika, Kunou and Koneko had already left for The Great Gremory Library, a place where Koneko and Kunou would relax in silence and where Aika would study. Researching magic, the history of the Underworld and the history of the supernatural universe.

Everyone had something to do and that included Jin, who was standing before the Sitri residence with Hinata and Taiki. They were both overexcited, spinning around ready for their outing. An outing in the vastness of the Underworld. Quickly a blue light enveloped Jin as he shrunk into his small nine-tailed fox form. Looking up at Hinata and Taiki.

Jin: Ok. Off you go. But no running into stores this time!

Jin said as Hinata and Taiki smiled, doing something that Jin couldn't help but marvel and sigh at. It was something he had never seen Hinata and Taiki do before. Something incredible.

In gusts of wind, they jumped on it and scampered away at amazing speeds, jumping on the air that span around them, frolicking on it, airborne and with the air currents on their side.

Jin: {*Sigh* Maybe this was a bad idea.}

Jin said as he had never gone so fast in his small fox form. He had never used his stepping technique in his fox form. All of this was new, but if he didn't start now, Hinata and Taiki would be soon out of sight. So in a jump and a quick run after them, a small fox seemingly jumped on air and continued to run up on air as if running upstairs. Speeding off for Taiki and Hinata who were running much faster than any car could travel. Much faster than any commercial plane could travel.

Quickly Jin tried to catch up to them as he looked at Hinata and Taiki looking at the new world from above. Exploring a town like Kuoh, of course, you would do it on the ground and explore every corner of it. But the Underworld was so large, there was no way they could explore it all in one summer. So the next best thing was to explore it all from above. Seeing the amazing sights within a cloudless sky.

Jin was quickly closing in on them and anyone that had good enough eyes would have seen foxes running on air. But what Hinata, Taiki and Jin were doing was vastly different.

Jins technique for running or walking on air was to use his own energy, moving his energy through his legs using Senjutsu. That's what allowed him to move so fast using the technique, moving his energy through his legs and condensing the energy below his feet to step on it. Stepping on energy to move around in the air. He didn't have wings like other supernatural species, so this was his only method of moving in the air.

Besides jumping through the air like a giant brutish green creature.

However, Hinata and Taiki moved through the air very differently from Jin. They moved through the air very differently from other supernatural creatures and had very different powers from their supernatural Kitsune counterparts. Where Kitsune could manipulate magic to create blue flames, what was known as Fox Fire, Divine Foxes could do something similar. They could manipulate magic to not only create Fox Fire but also manipulate the air around them, the earth beneath their feet and even the water around them.

They could manipulate the magic in these elements to perform feats such as running on air. Boosted and propelled by it. Not restricted by its resistance. Divine foxes could create burrows much more easily and walk on water. Though Hinata and Taiki were young and manipulating each element to even the slightest degree was as hard as learning how to use Fox Fire all over again. To some, different elements were much harder. It's the reason Hinata and Taiki didn't walk on water the first time they saw Jin, they couldn't.

It's why they seemed to pounce and fly in the air now. They had been training for 20 years to do so.

With such training, their aim to explore the large expanses of Takamagahara, they were now soaring through the air above the Underworld. Even with the manipulation of the air around them, Hinata and Taiki felt the perfectly cool air ruffling their fur. To explore the world, and other realms in such a way surpassed the dream they had in their previous life. They never could have thought they would get the chance to explore such breathtaking views. The Underworld was a land steeped in both beauty and foreboding mystery. The skies they pounced and frolicked in deep with endless violet colours. An ethereal glow that radiated from the very fabric of the dimension itself.

Below, Hinata and Taiki admired the world they were now exploring, looking down at the landscape in all directions, in awe of the Underworld and the Devil's creation. They pounced high above jagged mountain ranges with sharp, claw-like peaks. They looked at the occasional castle, slowing down to admire their ancient dark stone and menacing presence. Flying and pouncing down into deep valleys they jumped up and out into dark forests. Flying high back into the sky, twisting as they yipped. The forest trees shimmered faintly with magical energy. In shadows, unseen creatures of the Underworld watched two foxes quickly pass and one small fox struggling to catch up.

Jin didn't know how many borders they were crossing, he definitely knew within the first 30 minutes they were past the Sitri border. It didn't seem like Hinata and Taiki had a plan on where to go, the freedom to explore was all they lived for. They had sped past forests and vast plains, fields of plants with otherworldly hues. They even passed some of the few clouds in the sky, something Jin had to slow down passing as he committed it to memory. He found something beautiful and it was definitely worth the gap between Hinata, Taiki and him increasing. He couldn't risk forgetting where somewhere so perfect was.

They passed above the occasional river of molten lava, veins of fire with a bright orange glow. Rivers bubbling at such heat of the Underworld, dark environment spewing the fires of hell.

Hinata and Taiki went closer to the floor, flying through the sprawling cities and rising architecture. Gothic structures made of black and crimson stone stood to impress them once again, no matter how many times they saw it, the creations of another world would always stand to make them awe.

From time to time, Hinata and Taiki would pass other supernatural beings flying through the sky. Where devils spread their wings to glide effortlessly through the air, Hinata and Taiki shot past them like bullets. Throwing them all off balance the their trails of spinning wind. Even creatures that weren't Devils but monsters were thrown completely off balance as Hinata and Taiki shot by. Their wings were unable to stabilise themselves in the chaotic winds two foxes made as they passed. People couldn't even tell Hinata and Taiki were coming towards them until they passed. They approached silently, but the winds behind them were powerful.

One little fox expressed its apologies to every Devil and monster that was thrown from the sky by the chaotic winds.

Jin: I'M SO SORRY!

Jin said shouting as he shot past. Trying to catch up with Hinata and Taiki as he moved just as silently, but without the chaotic winds behind him.

Passing an attractive young man with light blue eyes and green hair. A man's hair slicked back.

???: Was that... a talking fox? Chasing two other foxes?

The man said looking back as he had lived a very very long time, yet had never seen something such as that.

The small fox running so fast, despite looking like he was running with four left feet.