Kashimo crouched by the stream, cupping his hands to splash water over his face.
The cool water clung to his skin before dripping back into the current, shattering his reflection. Ripples spread out in concentric circles, slowly settling until two distinct silhouettes reappeared in the water. One was a man with pale hair in white robes, crouching by the bank. The other was a woman in red, standing a few paces behind him.
"You plan on following forever?" Kashimo asked.
He didn't turn around. His voice drifted over the surface of the water, laced with a hint of resignation. Fuka stood her ground, watching his back.
"I told you," she said. "I'm staying with you until you agree to take in."
The stream bubbled along, filling the silence. Kashimo didn't answer. Nearby on the grass, three weapons lay in the morning light: the erald staff, the black Soul Split Katana, and Fuka's massive zanbato. Each reflected the sun with a different, lethal luster.
Fuka took two steps forward and crouched by the water. She picked up a fallen leaf and set it adrift, swirling the water with her finger. The leaf spun in small circles before the current pulled it away.
"I'm curious about sothing," she said without looking up. Her focus remained on the ripples. "That girl. Wasn't she your companion? Why did you leave her behind like that?"
Kashimo was silent for a mont. He stared at his own reflection, the purple markings on his face shifting with the movent of the water.
"I only took her in to fulfill a dead man's wish," he said, his voice flat. "She has power now."
He paused. "She doesn't need anymore."
Fuka arched an eyebrow. It was a subtle movent, but Kashimo caught it in his peripheral vision.
"You really are blunt," she remarked. Her tone wasn't mocking. It was more of a realization, as if she had finally figured out how his mind worked.
Kashimo turned to look at her. "What's that supposed to an?"
Fuka didn't answer him directly. She held up one finger. "First," she began, her red eyes locking onto his. "It was obvious that the girl depended on you."
Kashimo remained silent. She held up a second finger.
"Second, how can you be so sure you're okay with leaving her?" She tilted her head. "You stood outside her door for a long ti before you left."
The stream continued its steady drone. Kashimo stared at her for a few seconds before his expression went deadpan. He held up a finger of his own.
"First," he mimicked her tone, "I don't have much of an emotional connection to her. I'm just weighing the pros and cons."
He held up a second finger. "Second, I'm not great with people. Her dependence on ..." He trailed off. "It was probably just the instinct of a weak person clinging to soone strong."
He lowered his hand and looked back at the water. Sunlight filtered through the canopy, dancing across the surface in fractured points of light.
"In my eyes, they... you..." He pointed at her, then at the forest behind them, before pulling his hand back. "You're all the sa. Just collections of at stitched together."
"Then why did you open the door last night and let sleep inside? Why did you heal my wounds?"
Fuka leaned in close. Too close. Kashimo could feel the warmth of her breath on his face. She slled clean, a sharp contrast to the iron scent of blood from the night before.
He blinked, leaning back to reclaim his personal space.
"I appreciate you," he said, his voice regaining its usual lazy drawl, though his gaze flickered away for a split second. "I appreciate your reckless way of fighting."
Fuka blinked but said nothing. Kashimo added one more thing. "Your skill is poor, but your style is good."
He rembered her from the night before. She had been covered in blood, beaten half to death, yet she had forced a domain expansion without a second thought. She hadn't cared that her sister was in the blast zone. She hadn't cared about the consequences. The girl was a lunatic when she fought. He liked that.
Sunlight hit the water and ward their shoulders.
"Fine. I'm not going to argue about it anymore," Kashimo sighed, sounding like he was trying to convince himself. He stood up and looked down at Fuka, who was still crouching by the bank. His shadow fell across her face. "I'll take you in."
He paused. "On the condition that you're useful."
Fuka looked up, a spark of light hitting her red eyes.
"Tell , what do you want to learn?" Kashimo crossed his arms. "I'll teach you whatever you want."
Fuka practically bounced to her feet. "Really?" She stood straight, her eyes wide with a look of genuine, irrepressible excitent.
"Really," Kashimo nodded.
"You're not lying?"
"I'm not."
"Does that make your disciple?" Fuka took a half-step closer, her voice rising with cheer.
Kashimo looked at her and waited two beats. "No," he drawled. "You're nowhere near ready for that."
Fuka's smile faltered for a mont, and then she scoffed. "You really are blunt," she muttered. "Then... teach everything you know."
She tapped her index fingers together expectantly. Kashimo glanced at her before turning back toward the weapons on the grass.
"Sure," he called back over his shoulder. "Whether you can actually learn it is up to you."
Fuka stood by the stream, watching his white-clad back as he picked up the staff and the katana. She watched him prop the sword over his shoulder and saw the erald staff catch the morning light.
She didn't know that Kashimo had already done the math. Her technique, Severing Void, was a spatial slash. In theory, there was nothing it couldn't cut. If the day ca when he couldn't handle Mahoraga on his own, he would create an opening for her. He would give her the chance to cut the beast in half.
Mahoraga could adapt to almost anything, but surely it couldn't adapt to a slash that tore through the fabric of space itself.
Kashimo adjusted the sword on his shoulder and let out a small, dry chuckle. Though, if that wheel on the beast's head managed to spin even once before he struck, he knew the ga would be over before it truly began.
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A/n: 300 power stones = 1 bonus chapter. Don't forget to vote with your power stones!!
For early access to 10 chapters ahead: p@tre~~/Demonic_Fiction (Link is in the synopsis and my profile).
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