The Cursed Iris

Sprout 65: I Will Restore Balance

Kikyo and Shizuko were locked in an intense battle with Mizuho. Kikyo noticed that they couldn't overwhelm Mizuho because of the ghostly figure that fought alongside her. It mimicked her magic and all of her abilities.

She and Shizuko jumped away, "So is that the power of the spirit kitsune?" Kikyo asked.

"It is, but this woman has done something different, making it more twisted." Shizuko replied.

"That's not nice!" Mizuho cackled, "I have done no such thing to the Hoshi-no-Tama of the spirit kitsune. You had to have learned more than just the ocean foxes, right?"

Kikyo scoffed, Damn it, I haven't learned any other one yet, but I have learned something else. This technique is still experimental though, so there's no reason to use it, she thought.

"Hey girl!" Mizuho yelled. She then attacked them, and they didn't have time to dodge. She blasted them away with a powerful lightning attack. "Kikyo Narukami, you are supposed to be the Messenger of Inari, but you are truly disappointing me. I can't believe I praised you when I was talking to my master."

"Who the hell is this master you're always on about?" Kikyo groaned. She had heard from Ayame that possibly Mizuho and Astraea could be working for the same person, but there was no true way. She remembered Mizuki mentioning something about a master as well, they were after Katsumi; could this be a ploy to get him and Ayame?

"Kikyo, do you want to know something interesting? I've done a little research on what exactly the Narukami clan is."

Kikyo really despised that name, she felt nothing but anger and resentment towards it. She had no reason to know about what the clan was, because that didn't matter to her. She knew who she was, "I don't care what you've done. I don't care about that, all I care about is kicking your ass, getting the Hoshi-no-Tama back, and restoring balance to nature with my friends."

Mizuho smiled, This woman is even more annoying than her sister. I have to put her down right now, Kikyo thought in frustration. She pierced the ground with the blade of the Kitsu-Kukan, the blade then turned a deep shade of blue, and a massive body of water formed under their feet.

"Well done, using the Kitsumi to form this was smart."

Kikyo's body felt a lot lighter, her head felt clearer, but something about the grin Mizuho wore threw her focus off, "Well even if you do not want to hear what I have to say, I'll say it anyway. The Narukami clan are aristocrats who are related to the emperor of the previous version of Japan." Mizuho stated.

That definitely threw off Kikyo's focus, but Mizuho continued. "They can be found plotting against Empress Aimi to keep her from forming the Nastrean Federation. The clan wants nothing more than to see the death of that woman and her family, and to think that one of their clan members is helping out the enemy?"

Kikyo through gritted teeth yelled. "I just told you I don't care!" She attacked Mizuho with a powerful swing of her weapon but she dodged. Kikyo let momentum carry her, continued her attack with full force. Sparks flew as Mizuho blocked the attack.

"I've told you girl. I'm nothing like my sister, you will not lay a finger on me."

*****

Inari stared at the scroll she had in her hand with a scowl, "So my suspicions were correct? This girl is truly special," she mumbled to herself. Her scowl only grew deeper the more she read, then she came across one passage and she stood up instantly. "What is this? This has got to be an error, because if this is true, Ashihara is truly in trouble."

She nodded as she closed it, sweat still trickling down her face. She sighed, "I trust Shizuko to be able to draw her back if anything happens; if she doesn't that girl has the power to devour the life force of Ashihara."