章 52: Chapter 52: The Green Light
After much struggle, Takekawa Kuma finally reached Natsuki's room, only to find all the samurai he'd stationed to guard her lying dead.
Not good! He rushed inside, bracing himself for the worst—and what awaited him defied belief.
His beloved Natsuki was entwined intimately with another woman—a miko he didn't recognize—in an act so intimate that it left him speechless. It was something he'd always fantasized about yet never dared to do himself.
Takekawa Kuma's first instinct was to cry out, "Stop! Let me join you..."
But as realization dawned on him, his second thought struck like lightning:
M...my god... I've been cucked by a shrine maiden.
-
"Natsuki..."
Sensing someone had approached, Yae Sakura swiftly pushed Natsuki away, hardly believing that an ancient woman could be so audacious.
However, there was no time for reprimands as she turned to face Takekawa Kuma—the intruder who had burst into their room.
Yae Sakura had seen him before when she delivered Natsuki back last time. He looked completely different now: his eyes were bloodshot, horns protruding from his head—a fallen warrior transformed into a demonic being.
His strength had multiplied several times over, yet despite this transformation, he remained merely a formidable opponent.
As Yae Sakura observed Takekawa Kuma, he too scrutinized the newcomer who dared enter the chamber of his beloved woman.
Had it been any man with Natsuki earlier, Takekawa Kuma would have flown into a berserk rage. But finding instead another woman—one even more beautiful than Natsuki—suddenly made the situation seem not entirely unacceptable.
If both belong to me, he thought, then surely nothing else matters.
He gazed at Yae Sakura standing before him in her red-and-white miko attire, twin ears atop her head resembling those of some unknown creature.
"Who are you?" Takekawa Kuma asked warily, hand resting on his katana. "A yokai... or perhaps a half-demon?" His intuition screamed that the woman before him possessed extraordinary power.
"Neither of those!" Yae Sakura declared. "I'm a miko—a priestess dedicated to slaying yokai! And with that... Takekawa Kuma, you can go die now!" Without wasting another word, she drew her blade, unleashing a wave of Sakura Sword Force.
"Shadow Moon Slash!"
Seeing Yae draw her sword, Takekawa Kuma reflexively unsheathed his own katana.
A black blade force collided with Yae's Sakura Sword Force, instantly reducing everything in the room to dust as the house began to crumble around them.
"Not good!" As the ceiling threatened to collapse on their heads, Yae abandoned any concern for Takekawa Kuma. She stepped back twice, scooped up Natsuki with one arm, and used her sword energy to pulverize the roof above them.
Holding Natsuki close, she leaped into action, bounding across rooftops in mere steps.
Takekawa Kuma followed hot on her heels. "Let go of Natsuki!"
In mid-air, he unshouldered his massive bow and loosed three arrows at Yae Sakura. These arrows carried a blood-red demonic aura, transforming into three python-like serpents that lunged towards her without hesitation—showing no mercy despite Natsuki being held by Yae.
"Falling Cherry Blossoms Slash!" Faced with the charging demonic pythons, Yae tightened her grip on Natsuki while wielding her spiritual blade—the Spiritual Blade: Sakura Blossom—with her free hand.
With five swift slashes, she summoned five waves of sword energy, annihilating the demonic pythons before they could reach her. The force continued unabated, hurtling straight towards Takekawa Kuma.
Yet Takekawa Kuma seemed prepared; he grabbed his bow and immediately began to run.
The sword energy waves demolished houses in their path with ease, but Takekawa Kuma managed to evade them all.
"He actually fled..." Yae Sakura watched speechlessly as Takekawa Kuma made his escape without even sparing a glance backward. She had expected him to fight fiercely for Natsuki and herself.
"Natsuki, stay right here," she instructed, her gaze fixed on Takekawa Kuma's figure disappearing into the distance at nearly a kilometer away. The buildings obstructed her view intermittently, making his silhouette flicker in and out of sight.
"Understood." Natsuki obediently remained atop the roof.
With Natsuki secured, Yae Sakura focused intently on the spot where Takekawa Kuma had vanished from sight. By the time she caught another glimpse of him, he was already nearing the horizon—almost beyond reach.
But it wasn't quite too late...
"Shuryu Slash!"
Locking onto Takekawa Kuma's last-known position, she blurred into motion... reappearing directly behind him in an instant.
"How is this possible...?"
"Farewell! No wait—I mean never see you again."
Yae Sakura materialized behind Takekawa Kuma, swiftly delivering a fatal blow with her Spiritual Blade—a single strike that severed his head clean off.
His lifeless body crumpled to the ground without a sound.
Just as Yae Sakura was about to deliver a few more blows before leaving,
Takekawa Kuma's headless corpse suddenly began to move again. Then... something akin to tree roots burst forth from his body—a grotesque sight indeed.
Slowly, Takekawa Kuma transformed completely into a monstrous being, half-man and half-tree.
The creature extended vine-like tentacles directly towards Yae Sakura.
"Is this your trump card?" she mused aloud. "Well... it seems rather ordinary."
With a single flick of her blade, the tentacles were instantly severed by the force of her sword presence alone.
As the monster regenerated its vines once more, Yae Sakura gripped her Spiritual Blade with both hands and raised it high...
"Slash!"
She brought down the blade with immense power, unleashing a colossal wave of Sakura Sword Force that cleaved the monster cleanly in two—from top to bottom. The halves fell apart symmetrically, divided without even the slightest fraction of an inch out of place.
"You think you can come back now?" Yae Sakura drawled, approaching the fallen remains of the monster.
Suddenly, several more vines erupted from the ground, reaching for Yae Sakura's feet...
"Sword Presence of Intent to Kill!"
In response to the emerging threat, Yae Sakura's aura exploded with potent sword energy, pulverizing all the approaching vines at once.
Staring at the lifeless husk of the tree yokai before her, Yae Sakura produced a fire attribute cannon. She unleashed a barrage of shots upon the monster's remains until they were thoroughly reduced to ash. Only then did she lower her weapon.
"What a satisfying end," she declared, her voice echoing across the desolate landscape.
Returning to Natsuki's side, Yae Sakura summoned Higokumaru as well, now that her mischief was done.
Perched atop the tenshukaku of Yuhara Castle, they gazed down at the ruins below. The castle lay utterly devastated, with barely a soul remaining among the living.
"Natsuki," Yae Sakura asked, avoiding mention of past events, "what do you plan to do from here on out? Rebuild Yuhara Castle?"
The thought of rebuilding seemed insurmountable... Most warriors and soldiers had perished. While replacing foot soldiers might be manageable, training even one samurai required years—decades, even—and untold resources. Recovering their former strength would be no easy feat...
"No," Natsuki shook her head resolutely. "I couldn't possibly accomplish it. Let Yuhara Castle... remain in the past." As a frail woman, she knew all too well how unrealistic such a dream would be.
"So then, what are your plans for the future?" Yae Sakura inquired gently.
"I'm not sure," Natsuki replied hesitantly. After a moment's pause, she continued softly, "Would... would it be alright if I stayed by your side?" She lifted her gaze, pleading with her eyes as she looked up at Yae Sakura.
"Huh?" Taken aback, Yae Sakura stared blankly at Natsuki, completely caught off guard by this request.
"Following me won't be necessary... However, I can take you somewhere where you should have no trouble living." Though Yae Sakura was slow-witted, she could grasp that Natsuki had somehow developed a dependence on her.
But Yae Sakura couldn't possibly stay by her side forever—and neither did she want to burden herself with such responsibility indefinitely.
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