Chapter 143 - Night Of The Inugami

Ceres's POV:

This is somehow going even worse than I expected.

Because, it would appear that the boy—Hotaru—has something weighing in his head that's preventing him from channeling his chi.

If this were regular Yako-nin training, like what I'd received…

He would already be dead by now.

As newly christened adults, we're made to compete and fight with one another, here, without mercy. Which is why being here doesn't exactly bring back the greatest memories. But, even so, there's no other method I know of that would unlock his latent chi abilities.

Tchh. How annoying!

What a weird twist of fate, that I should end up as somebody's teacher.

It's getting dark, though. Which means the Inugami will soon be out prowling through the jungle, as if my day wasn't a big enough pain already.

Thing is, it's possible to defend oneself from an Inugami, with enough training. However, it becomes exponentially more difficult when you add villagers, that also require protection, to the mix. Inugami are crafty, always seeking ways of getting through your defenses, which requires one to be constantly on their toes in a fight against them—they'll see that you're defending someone, and immediately start taking advantage of that fact in order to get at you. It's the reason why our main strategy as Yako-nin is to kill or at least scare roving Inugami, before they make it anywhere near the village, since, otherwise, it would only make our job of dealing with them that much harder.

"It's getting dark. We should make camp," I say to Hotaru.

"What about my training?"

"Finished. We won't be able to make any progress today. Not until you resolve this conflict within you."

"B-but how do I do that?"

I sigh, seeing the desperation in his eyes. "That is one question...even I cannot answer. I know you're determined to grow stronger...but a strong mental barrier, such as this, may take you some time to undo."

I turned my back to him, heading into the jungle to start collecting some firewood...

"And what about you, sensei?"

I stopped, turning back to him slightly.

"Did you also have a 'mental barrier,' once?" he went on to say. "Something that also made it difficult for you to gain control of your chi powers?"

Did I have a mental barrier of my own…? Hmm.

It was a sobering question, conjuring back many painful memories about how a naive child was molded into a heartless killing machine; how, as I thought about it more, my own whatever mental barriers must've been dissolved away, long ago, from as far back as the time I witnessed my friends being slaughtered…

On that night, the moon was full—bathing the slumbering dark trees in glowing pale light.

I was hunched, with Mina and the others trailing behind closely; all of us moving in closer, stealthily, toward a sound of howls we'd heard earlier into the night, our path taking us through the jungles surrounding the Killing Field.

Whispering to the others, "I've heard that the Inugami come here to feast on the corpses of Yako-nin that died during their training."

I saw Mina shiver, out of the corner of my eye.

"That's disgusting!" she said out loud—prompting us to all remind her to 'shhh!'—proceeding, after, in a quieter voice: "even worse, it's so disrespectful to the dead. Since without a proper burial, their souls will never rest."

"Nonetheless, the corpses lining these woods lure Inugami away from the village. So, it's seen as a necessary evil."

We kept going until we reached the central clearing, where a handful of dark shapes stood, howling up at the moon, their heads stretched upward on eel-like necks, waving and wobbling in a sort of bizarre, ritualistic dance against the giant moon.

They were the Inugami—my first time seeing them, but it matched the descriptions I'd heard.

Also known as 'Moonkin,' they rest in their caves all day and emerge at night, to hunt and scavenge for food. Whereas us Kitsuna are otherwise known as 'Sunfolk': those who harvest and toil in the heat of the day to eat, then sleep at night. Or so it has been described by the ancient records.

We had all brought weapons with us—I, my family's traditional bladed fan weapon, given to me as soon as I could wield it; the others, wielding sharp-edged farming sickles.

Oh, how foolish we were…

To be crouched in those bushes, watching our species' greatest adversary with eyes so filled with wonder, thinking such measly armaments would be enough to defend ourselves with.

We were all but children—most of us barely scraping our early fifties—so we could not possibly know the folly of our actions…

Nor, the price we would all soon pay.

…

Ceres decided to build their camp in holed out trunk of a tree they found, around a small hearth of twigs and rocks, to better conceal themselves. Albeit, the space was rather cramped—such that the two brushed elbows, with little room to move about, listening to each other's breaths.

"How am I supposed to sleep like this?" Hotaru complained.

"You shouldn't sleep tonight."

"What! But eight hours of sleep is important for a growing young man's health!" he said, grinning to himself. "Besides, you'll be able to protect us both whileI sleep...right?"

Ceres looked at him with a piercing glare, making him clench his teeth in fear.

"Here—" She handed him a knife from her side hilt, which he shyly took. "If you stay within close quarters, this should serve you well."

"Are you saying...I'll have to fight?"

"Mhm. Almost guaranteed. Chances are, the Inugami can already smell you, and have singled you out as easy prey." 

Her glare aimed toward Hotaru intensified, made even more striking by the curtain of moonlight falling upon her face. "They can smell fear, and know that the prey who feels the most afraid...is the easiest catch."

Hotaru nodded, shivering, as he fearfully held up the knife.

…

Hotaru's POV:

I wanted this, didn't I?

I wanted to be put in a dangerous situation, like this, since the minute I set foot in this world.

Although, now that it's happening…

I'm absolutely terrified!

As someone who grew up in a nice city, with low crime, I've never had to fear for my life like this before! Not with a weapon...up against something that howls at night.

Ceres is about to leave the tree we're holed in, until I grabbed her arm.

"You're not gonna leave me, are you?!"

"I'll just be climbing the tree, to get a better view of the perimeter."

"No you WILL not!" I shriek, covering my mouth with my hand in surprise. "Huh? Since when did I have a voice this high-pitched? Almost like a—"

"A Kitsuna," Ceres says blankly, kneeling, to take her place beside me again.

"You're not...serious...right?!"

She just stares at me for a moment, saying nothing, and I swear I'm about to lose my mind if she doesn't crack up, or smile, or ANYTHING else that might prove she was only making a cruel joke.

Instead...I receive an explanation:

"This island is full of mysteries, Hotaru-san. However, one thing known for certain is that, by consuming the crops that grow in the island's mana-infused soil, humans and animals alike will undergo a gradual transformation."

"Transformed!?" My voice cracked, lightly toned beyond recognition—for God's sake, I sounded like somebody's little sister asking for a push on the swings!

"Mana is essentially the same as chi, but in its raw form, as a force that exists within nature. Much of which ends up in our water supply that, in turn, becomes the water we drink and use to grow our crops. Meaning, your change into a Kitsuna was always inevitable; likely only further sped up by your attempts at controlling your chi."

"No way!" How could this be happening? And all this time, without anyone: not Ceres, or even Mina and Lulu mentioning a word about this to me!

I felt betrayed. Stabbed in the back.

Worse still…

I felt a furry tail brush against my back.

As I grabbed it, realizing it was my own, I couldn't hold back my scream.

"Fool!" Ceres snapped in a hushed voice.

She quickly moved over, behind me, to hold a hand over my mouth.

Oh, shit! I screwed up!

In my panic, I'd forgotten all about that other thing I should be panicking about!

I could hear a bunch of growls, approaching from outside, as Ceres hurriedly stomped her foot in the small fire to put it out.

She whispered, "they're mostly blind, but have a strong sense of smell and hearing."

Okay! Sure. That's potentially useful info.

However, if that is the case—then why the HELL are you talking so loud all of a sudden?!

"It's safe, because only you can hear it."

Huh…?

I glanced over my shoulder at her, and our eyes met.

"See?" she said, though her lips were unmoving. "I am communicating directly into your thoughts, with my chi abilities. This way, we can talk safely, without drawing the Inugami."

"And you can hear what I'm saying too? Wow…!"

Through our telepathic link, her voice was crystal clear as, unlike a sound I was hearing through my ear, it seemed to radiate from directly inside my head!

Not gonna lie, but…

This is really fucking cool!

However, it also raised a new question...

"How can I respond, even though I can't control my chi properly?" I asked.

"Because you're becoming one of us."

A Kitsuna.