Master of all spirits

Chapter 8

Chapter 8:

The next day, Kana woke up. She had no idea of who she is, where she's from, or where she is. Haruhi opened the door to find the awoken Kana. "Oh, you're awake. Come, let me take you to change. Then, we'll go to the hall." said Haruhi. "Oh..." Kana was speechless. The Seven Flames Clan's servants helped her to bathe, change clothes and fed her. After everything was done, Haruhi led Kana to the hall. Arika, Tarashi and Kaoru were already waiting. "Come, my dear. From today onwards, you shall be part of our clan, the Seven Flames Clan!" said Arika. "Seven Flames Clan?" repeated Kana. "Who am I?" "You are, my dear, Haruka. Your life partner will be Hiroshi. Come here, Hiroshi, this is Haruka, your life partner. Teach her well and take good care of her. Love her the way a partner would. Just like Kaoru and Haruhi." said Arika. "Hiroshi..."repeated Haruka. "Yes. Hiroshi." murmured Arika. "Teach her the art of killing." "Yes, sir." Hiroshi bowed and dragged Haruka out of the hall. Kaoru's expression was blank. Arika grinned. "If you regretted bringing her here, it is already too late. Furthermore, you cannot disobey my orders and you have no will nor you have the strength to do so. Obeying me is the wisest choice you made. Very good." said Arika. "Yes. Be a good boy and sink deep into the darkness of the Seven Flames Clan." said Tarashi. "Yes, Master Arika, Lady Tarashi." replied Kaoru.

 

Archery, Gunsmanship, Swordsmanship, Martial arts, explosives and many other useful skills are taught. "Whoa, looks like Haruka is having a hard time," said Kaoru. "yeah, you were capable of doing anything. Even if I ask you to jump up a three feet, you'll be able to. I'm afraid her talents will be limited when she's ready." said Haruhi. "That's right." said Hiroshi. He was standing behind Haruhi and Kaoru. " Hiroshi!" gasped Haruhi and Kaoru. "What are you so shocked about? It's just me. Haruhi, you're lucky you have such a talented life partner." said Hiroshi. "Weren't you also a human? What's not fair? Humans union with humans. Demons union with demons." said Haruhi. "Hmph." Hiroshi went back into the training room to train Haruka. Arika saw a cloud of black haze hovering above Ukiyoe Town. That ominous cloud was not his doings. True, the sky is still dark. But the black haze hovering above Ukiyoe Town is too much of a sky. Demons from other regions are now interfering with Ukiyoe Town's demons. How troublesome. "Kaoru, Haruhi, come here for a second." called Arika. "Yes, sir?" they replied. "Look at the city. Isn't that black haze hovering the Ukiyoe Town?" asked Arika. (Their headquarters is in the mountain near the border of Ukiyoe Town). "Yeah, I guess so. What are your orders, Master Arika?" said Haruhi. "I think this is caused by the Shikoku demons. Kaoru, you knew the leader in the past, Tamazuki." said Arika. "Go and stop the cause. Don't do anything rash. If Tamazuki tried to fight you, kill him!" "Yes, sir!" replied Kaoru and Haruhi. As Arika aired a new order, Kaoru and Haruhi decended to the Ukiyoe Town, once again. "Whoa, this is worse compared to the last time we were here," said Kaoru. "Yeah, let's check it out." said Haruhi.

Kaoru and Haruhi strolled around to see if any foreign demons are within the Ukiyoe Town. After two hours of seraching, they planned to give up searching and report to Arika. Then, Tamazuki appeared before them. "Nura...Rikuo...long time no see..." said Tamazuuki. "Who are you?" asked Kaoru. He had no idea it was Tamazuki. The very first opponent he fought long time ago. "Who am I? Has your head gone haywire?" said Tamazuki. "I am the leader of Shikoku region yokai, Tamazuki." "Tamazuki?!" gasped Haruhi. "What happened to you? You seemed different. Where's the Nura Clan?" said Tamazuki. "They vanished," said Haruhi shortly. "Vanished?" repeated Tamazuki. "And who are you?" "I am Haruhi. Arika Haruhi. The Nura Clan was wiped out." said Haruhi. "The first leader died, after the third head faced problems and he couldn't conduct his duties." "Rikuo...you dare to neglect your duties?!" Tamazuki raised his voice. The sound frequency wave shook the trees and caused the birds to fly away in flocks. "Rikuo, Rikuo, Rikuo. I am NOT Rikuo. Iam Kaoru. Arika Kaoru!" said Kaoru. "Eh? Did you change your name?" asked Tamazuki. "No!" barked Kaoru. "Whatever it is, what is the leader of Shikoku yokai doing here, in Ukiyoe Town?" asked Haruhi. "Oh, I came here to see Nurarihyon, actually. This was an order from my father. Never would I thought that the Nura Clan have been dissolved. Even the head himself had died. This is too bad." said Tamazuki. He turned to leave. "Well then, I have nothing left to say. I'm returning to Shikoku." "Wait! Weren't you the one who caused this black haze above?" asked Haruhi. "No, of course not. I didn't do anything." replied Tamazuki. "Oh...okay then, be careful on your way back," Haruhi smiled at Tamazuki. When Tamazuki was gone, Kaoru said, "If this wasn't caused by Tamazuki, then WHO did it, I wonder?" "I don't know. Let's rest for a while. Then, we'll continue." said Haruhi. They sat under a shady tree beside a riverside. The surrounding was cool. Then, they saw another demon that does not belong to Ukiyoe Town. "Catch it!" yelled Kaoru. Kaoru and Haruhi pulled out weapons and chased in down the road. They finally cornered him into an alley with a dead end. "Was it you?" asked Kaoru. "You look surprisingly like Nurarihyon," said Haruhi. "Of course, I am the sibling of Nurarihyon, Nurariyon. Where is the idiot brother of mine gone to? Isn't he supposed to be in this town?" said the demon."NURARIYON?!" yelled Kaoru and Haruhi. "What the hell?! That old man also had a sibling?" said Haruhi. "Nurariyon, I'm sorry to inform you, that, your brother, Nurarihyon is no longer here in this world. He has ascended to the other world," "Wh...at...?" Nurariyon was very shocked. "He passed away already? Hmph, so his life span have been shortening day by day. It was his fault that he fought with Hagoromo-Gitsune four hundred years ago!" "No, he was killed," said Kaoru. "Killed? By who?" asked Nurariyon uninterestedly. "By the Seven Flames Clan," replied Kaoru. "From where? Which region?" asked Nurariyon. "The border of Ukiyoe Town. Go and take revenge if you want. First, tell me, why is that haze doing up there?! Keep it to yourself! You're making the city suffer!" said Haruhi. "Heh, what I care about them! I'll destroy everything my brother has created!" declared Nurariyon.

"Destroy everything? Including the city itself?" questioned Haruhi. "Do you know that black haze is a deadly attack to all demons? Of course, only your family is immune to it. Same goes to Kaoru, isn't it?" "Huh? Me?" asked Kaoru. "What on Earth...?" But Kaoru was ignored. "The Nura Clan had disappeared, therefore, everything connected to the Nura Clan is totally gone." said Haruhi. "Now, you have to follow us back. You have done something that angered Master Arika." said Haruhi. Kaoru dragged Nurariyon back to their quarters. "Where is...this? It looks so creepy...Is this your house?" said Nurariyon. "How rude!" Haruhi whacked Nurariyon's head. "This is the Seven Flames Clan's Headquarters. Welcome...to Hell!" Arika greeted Kaoru and Haruhi's return. "Ara, welcome back, both of you. And who's this?" ssaid Arika. "The culprit responsible for the black haze above Ukiyoe Town, I presume?" said Tarashi, heading towards the crowd gathered in front of the entrance. "Where's Haruka? Is her training ended?" asked Haruhi. "Yes, although she not as good as Kaoru here, she still can beat into it." replied Arika. "Just perfect. She will be the innocent but fiend character type in our clan! Isn't that great? I'm a super genius!" "What is so bad about this place?" asked Nurariyon. "Oh, this place has a really bad history. Do you want to know?" said Arika. "This place was once the dominant for the fearful, merciless, army demons, the Rasetsu Army. They bring many rumors and stories. Once they place a curse on you, there's no turning back. You will be serving them until the day you leave this world. You will heed them as your 'Master' " "Eeew! Gross!" exclaimed Haruhi. "Yeah," agreed Kaoru. "And how did you know about them? They were an extinct yokai community, right? Was it because you were captured and cursed?" Arika flinched. "N...NO WAY!" he yelled. "Okay, okay, you don't have to shout that loud!" said Haruhi. "And this is Nurariyon, Master Arika." said Kaoru. "Nurarihyon? Wasn't he dead?" asked Arika. "No, Master Arika. This is Nurarihyon, the sibling of Nurarihyon." replied Kaoru. "Once again, Nurariyon, welcome to Hell!"

 

Kana, the going-to-be-asssassin, Haruka? what becomes of Hiroshi? Why is the black haze hovering above Ukiyoe Town?! Nurarihyon's sibling, Nurariyon's the culprit? What is the meaning of this? And what does Arika wants with 'Haruka'?!