Kaguya's daughter

Chapter Eight: Ninshū

The next day, Nanami woke up very early, being careful not to wake up the two brothers. She couldn't manage to sleep for most of the night. She had found it really awkward to sleep next to Ashura and Indra. But she guessed she would have get used to it from now onwards. She opened the door as silently as she could and closed it as soon as she had stepped out of the room. She then tiptoed her way downstairs through the hall. She decided to go outside as she was still uncomfortable at the idea of intruding in a home that was not hers. However, as she was crossing the main room she realized she wasn't the only one to be awake.

"Good morning Nanami. Did you sleep well in your new room?" The sage asked her gently.

Nanami immediately stopped in her tracks at the sound of his voice. She turned around to face him. He was sitting on the ground before a small table.

"Good morning to you too. Yes, thank you I slept well. But I like waking up early." She answered politely.

The sage smiled slightly. "I've fond someone just like me then. Well, Indra is not the kind of person to sleep in late, but as for Ashura he always has trouble waking up in the morning."

"I see." Nanami simply replied.

The Sage smiled at her again.

"Would you like a cup of tea?" He offered her.

Nanami hesitated. It would certainly sounded rude to refuse, even though the sage was someone very kind. She had never drunk tea before. So out of curiosity she said yes.

"I would love to;" she said before approaching the table with slow and light steps.

"Wonderful, please have a seat," he said, gesturing for her to sit across him.

"Thank you."

The Ōtsutsuki man then took an empty cup and poured some green tea into it before handing it to Nanami.

"It is hot so I would not want you to get your hands burned," he warned her.

"It is fine. Thank you."

The cup was hot indeed, but it did not burn Nanami's hands. It was actually warming her up. So she kept the cup in her hands.

Silence filled the room as Nanami was not very good at making conversation. She stared at the green liquid inside her cup, the steam going into her face. It was not something unpleasant for her. She could see her own reflection in it. It sounded strange. She had never seen it before. Her big white eyes, her straight white hair and her white porcelain skin.

"Hagoromo-Sama, can I ask you a question?" Nanami asked in a low tone, almost in a melancholic voice, still staring at her reflection.

"Of course, go ahead."

Nanami waited a bit before speaking again.

"What happened to Obaasan? And where did she come from?"

Obaasan, this word definitely sounded strange to Nanami.

The sage seemed to be surprised by her question. His face became immediately solemn.

"... Kaguya, I mean your grandmother was..." The sage let out a small sigh as if he could not find the right words. "She had become obsessed by power. From a goddess that was worshipped because she had put an end to the endless war that plagued the country she became a demon feared by everyone."

Nanami did not move an inch as she heard those words. She still could not understand how he and his brother had come to seal their mother away. Of course, she trusted her brother's word, but she needed to hear it from the sage's mouth.