#now with more leaves for Tengu Vibes

[occasionaltouhou]

regular touhou #8: mystia encounters the rare “Food Critic”, is baffled

[zahri-melitor]

I read two more issues, to get past the Robins fight, and...still so conflicted.

I can see exactly how, if Damian is your ultimate blorbo and you read for Damian, this story is doing exactly what you want it to do and reflecting back beloved stories.

Issue 5 is explicitly set up as a parallel to War of the Robins from Batman and Robin 2011, and even ends with Damian getting an 'I love you and here have a trophy' speech from Dick, to tie Damian back to Alfred and Dick and the layers of care in the family.

It acknowledges Damian's menagerie and comments that the last thing Damian did before leaving was check in on them. It has Goliath show up and save Damian's life.

It has intense Robin: Son of Batman vibes and the whole repeat of the 'finding yourself on an isolated tropical island and redeeming yourself'.

(I expect the whole Respawn thing to play out with very much the exact themes of how R:SOB dealt with Damian's clones once Damian clues in)

But I keep waiting for payoffs that just aren't happening.

Rose slopes off to call for help for Damian, and then Dick, Jason, Tim and Steph turn up and I'm like "oh! Rose went and called Dick, because she's looking out for Damian on the island in the same way that Dick looked out for Rose while he was training her as Ravager and in a bad place where she was hanging on every one of Slade's words and determined she needed to prove herself as worthy of her father...oh. She called Jason".

And look, I know that there's an underlying push for decades now that Jason and Rose do have a bunch of things in common and would work well together (and also hinting at whether or not they're romantically involved), but a lot of that is inferred off panel stuff while Dick was literally Rose's teacher. If you want themes of 'you don't have to be what your family expect of you' why on earth wouldn't you openly reference that?!?

In terms of who is on this island and is one of Dick's rogue's gallery:

Raptor

Double Dare (both Margot and Aliki)

Lady Vic

Brutale

Nite-Wing (seriously why is Tad here)

Blue Shrike is apparently Shrike's brother???

Is this going to get acknowledged? That a solid chunk of Dick's enemies are here and fighting Damian? That's like half the competition!

Also while I was looking all of this up apparently the Richard Dragon they're talking about is the son of actual Richard Dragon, who apparently got killed in a flashback or something in Green Arrow #32 during n52 and who apparently in that universe worked for the League of Assassins (oh god I am now tearing my hair out, RICHARD IS NOT LINKED TO THE LEAGUE. HE WAS TRAINED BY THE O-SENSEI. STOP DOING THIS TO ALL THE MARTIAL ARTISTS). Huh. Bet that doesn't stick. Richard's too important thematically any time someone wants to write a Question book to be left randomly dead.

And then there's the whole situation that there is a Tengu on this island. I just went down the rabbit hole and this is an import of the Titans villain who is just a Japanese goblin, NOT the Tengu mask that Shiva hands out to people who are trained by her and fighting somewhat under her banner (as seen in Knightsend and in the Circle of Six in Richard Dragon). Which is honestly a waste; if I were going to resurrect a Tengu for this plot, the Shiva and Richard Dragon aligned mask is far more thematic!

And plus, Silver Monkey? Silver Monkey is heavily linked to both Connor's Green Arrow stories, and Shiva (as Paper Monkey), and Deathstroke. It's War of the Dragons and Cult of the Monkey Fist and Brotherhood of the Fist. It's about death and resurrection (as Shiva almost kills Connor and Tim uses his marker with Shiva to save Connor’s life from the time he saved HER life). Is this going to be acknowledged? Because that's where I'd be playing the references by bringing in Silver Monkey.

And look I haven't seen what payoffs we get for Connor yet and there are definitely a bunch of opportunities built in; on top of Silver Monkey you have Constantine Drakon, who's defeated Connor before. Plus there's Artemis Crock, who in DC Comics comics terms isn't linked at all to Connor (she's JSA and Infinity Inc and was in the YJ98 Zandian Olympics team) but obviously has been used for archer purposes in tv and cartoon adaptions.

I keep seeing all these potential stories set up and wondering if there is going to be any pay off on them. I hope so. But also so far the story has slipped around those payoffs unless it's a direct reference to a Damian story.

Also Ra's al Ghul playing the hermit sensei meditating and in touch with the universe on a nearby island is the funniest nonsense possible. Ra's? RA'S? Taking time out to go meditate on the state of the universe? Just so he's conveniently in a place to give Sage Advice to Damian about what personal values he should work on? Pull the other one.

[destiny-in-the-universe]

RC9GN Role Swap AU

This is a very standard age/role swap AU but uh, with a twist because I'm extra like that! So, for starters we do have Randy and the First Ninja switching roles right from the get-go (as that's kind of what this idea is meant to be about-)

Also fair warning, this is an extremely long post-

But okay, let's start with the obvious- the characters that get swapped are literally just Randy -> First Ninja and Howard -> Plop Plop/Hinata. As for the rest of the canons, like Norrisville High students- I don't think they're necessarily being swapped but they might just be from a different time period hahah. McFist, Viceroy, and the Sorcerer (alongside the Sorceress) are still the main antagonists and villains because there's no way I'm coming up with entirely new enemies right now-

Now, onto Finja because he is the title lead!

His entire family, and they are a big family, are immigrants from Japan. They moved to Norrisville after a promotion at one the jobs Finja's parents work at- which leads to the move and Finja is not exactly happy to be there because he thinks Norrisville is a Speck of Odd(TM)

The closest equivalent I could find to the rest of his family still being something similar to ninjas is by, well, having his parents run a dojo- it's honestly massive tradition for their kids (and they literally have nine of them) to train at the dojo. Finja is one of the youngest in his family, so he's about to start being a freshman at Norrisville High. The weird timeline has them moving in early/mid May and classes start around September

Finja's not vibing with anything in the town, so he's kind of not really made friends with anyone- except for a boy in his block named Hinata who just decided to speak to him one day and didn't leave. Within a month or two of him arriving, Finja receives the mask and the Nomicon- making him the Ninja of Norrisville. He's not fully happy with this, but since he was thrust into the role- and it's now his responsibility, he decides to accept. Thankfully, his parents having the dojo helps him adjust with being the Ninja

Now Finja has... the shortest level of patience one has ever seen- he's a fast learner, at least, and always makes sure to do what's right but he's very short-tempered. He's also known for his disregard of following certain rules, purely out of the intent to prove his own worth. Unlike OG Randy however, he understands the lessons a little faster but still struggles at times because he's... literally fourteen but moving on-

Much like canon, McFist and Viceroy make their debut appearance on the first day Finja attends Norrisville High- and Finja has less patience dealing with a whole rampaging robot than Randy does, and that's even with the fact Randy loved being the Ninja

Shenanigans continue taking place as you would expect from the show, but at some point- we have the shift from McFist and Viceroy to the Sorcerer taking center stage and Finja is probably about to go fucking feral. I want to say that there's a parallel episode to 13th Century Ninja in this role swap AU where Finja goes back and officially meets Randy- because if I can't have mentor-mentee with canon, I will have it here!

So, then we have Randy and Howard-

Things branch off after this where Randy is quite literally, an ageless being that currently resides in the Nomicon (not that Finja's aware of this until much later-), and Howard, uh- is more gray area and I don't want to reveal too much but let's just say that Howard is permanently linked to the tengu! You'll find out what tha means later, but neither Randy nor Howard are normal- if it isn't because of the fact they're literally immortal and connected to the Nomicon, it's also since they are the weirdest flavor of queer one has ever seen

Similar to OG Finja, Randy was part of this smaller clan that would protect various towns, villages, and areas from monsters and the Sorcerer, but of course- all of it ended in tragedy. Left the sole survivor, Randy sobered out after a while but still did his part until eventually something went a little south and he was soul-bound to the nomicon he made

Leaving the rest vague because I am mean and, well, it'll all be revealed later. (today's literally become of a question of how many more au's will i be making until i get sick and tired of making them- the answer is all of them /lh)

but okay, so- the Sorcerer is much more of a threat because I will be as self indulgent with this AU as I can, and i just want this to be slightly more serious! Also, there might be more 'seasons' depending on the direction I want to take with the verse!

Though to keep going-

This role swap isn't strictly an age/role-swap! What this literally means is I might genuinely be imploring my own lore when it comes to Finja's entire family- and the fact I have to make them actual characters for this, so

I am personally of the belief that the Norisu clan are tied to back to the origins of the Ninja- (and if this purely about referencing how I do believe Randy's a descendant somehow, I have no idea what you're talking about-) but also, I sort of?? wanted to make something with the rest of Finja's siblings though I'm not entirely sure what that's going to be yet since it may contradict canon (however this is an AU and I will write this how I want to hahah)

Anyway,

Some More Infodumping + Headcanons

Finja has literally no interest in the Sorceress but due to how Sorcerer in Love works- something will likely happen anyway. The First Ninja just feels ace-coded, so he's not crushing on her; however due to plot reasons, he's kind of going to go through it anyway

Despite Hinata being the parallel to Howard, they're obviously different character-wise. Hinata worries constantly over Finja but he also acknowledges there was a reason he got chosen and, well, I have plans

Is Hinata also going to be linked to the tengu? Maybe- despite Howard being perma-bound to the tengu, this doesn't mean others can't also be linked. There's... lore for this but I have to be careful with what I say for now

I think I might do a parallel episode to Nomirandy-

We'll see what more I can come up with later to be honest! I don't have much else right now, and the constant brainrot has me wanting to write another thing soon-

[cjcroen1393]

So I've been hyperfixating on a Vocaloid Monster AU lately.

It started with me wanting to expand on the WOEFULLY underutilized concept of the PowerFX Vocaloids being "Classic Monsters" and just kind of... spiraled out of control from there. Now I have a LOT of ideas for Vocaloids, UTAUs and other vocal synthesizer characters as monsters for this AU.

So, specifically:

PowerFX:

Sweet Ann and Big Al = Frankenstein's Monsters (canon, more or less)

Oliver = Werewolf (I was inspired by this headcanon I found over at the old Vocaloid Headcanons blog and it hasn't left my brain since)

Yohioloid = Vampire (just LOOK at him!)

Ruby = Witch (I decided to round out the "classic" Halloween-style monsters with the only one that seems to be consistently female in these situations; after thinking about it though, it still fit, especially with the little star pattern in her jacket)

The ZOLA Project (based on their Carnelian designs)

Kyo = Vampire (Carnelian!Kyo has bat wings and bat = vampire)

Wil = Zombie (I actually don't know if Carnelian!Wil is specifically supposed to be a zombie, but someone said he looked like one so I went along with it)

Yuu = Werewolf (the furry, animal-eared hat and tatters/tears on his outfit scream "werewolf")

Other Vocaloids:

Aoki and Merli Lapis = Faeries (canon, obviously)

Aurum = Ghost (their aesthetic is supposed to be "a 1930s radio producer", so I thought why not make them an ACTUAL 1930s radio producer who died and now haunts the abandoned radio tower they used to work at? And yes, I know Aurum isn't technically a Vocaloid/won't be one when they're released, but let's ignore that for now)

Avanna = Witch (she gives off "magic user" vibes to me)

Daina = Kitsune (because foxes)

Dex = Werewolf (because wolves and also his voice provider made an entire song about him being a werewolf so canon)

Fukase = Demon (mostly just vibes in this case)

LUMi = Mermaid (because she's part jellyfish)

Luo Tianyi = Angel (canon)

Mayu = Vampire (it's in her aesthetic; I like to think she tries to bite people she's in love with so they'll never leave her)

Meika Hime and Mikoto = Forest Spirits (canon)

UTAUs:

Chikune Kenta = Vampire (canon, obviously)

KYE (Fuyuki Kaisei) = Dragon (he likes reptiles and also dragons are cool)

Kasane Teto = Human/Demon Hybrid (hence, "Chimera")

Kurobousuku = Werewolf (his name is literally "black wolf")

Namine Ritsu = Witch (another one based on vibes; also it would be funny for one of the few male witches in the story to also be a crossdresser)

Scott-129 = Alien (sort of canon)

Sekka Yufu = Yuki-onna (she's speculated already to be a "snow spirit" and a Yuki-onna seemed to be the most fitting choice for her)

Yuutsukoe Karasu (Kellyn Werner) = Tengu (sort of canon)

I want to do something with this idea, and I have some plot bunnies floating around in my head, but I'm not certain if I'll get around to it.

[a-hell-of-a-time-archive]

HC + trees (the main three)

Send me hc + a word of your choosing and I’ll write a headcanon relating to that word! : Accepting!

Andrealphus does not care for them, unless all the leaves are gone and the branches are covered in snow/ice. He just doesn't vibe with plants in general.

Caim, however, likes trees. More specifically, she likes to take naps in them, and they provide excellent cover when in battle. Tengu are tied to nature, specifically mountains and forests, so being among the trees is like home to her. She's also very fond of sakura trees and their blossoms.

Octavia is indifferent to them, but she does enjoy sitting under them to read every now and again.

[dandelion-wings]

I was re-reading T. Kingfisher’s excellent “Jackalope Wives” this morning and the thought of Inazuman youkai, or at least tengu and kitsune, having animal skins in the same style (which is basically selkie-style) popped into my head, and now I’m stuck on a handful of images that don’t want to cohere into an actual plot, but:

Kujou Kamaji finding a little child-sized feather-cloak among important clan things that Takayuki kept locked up, and taking it to Masahito because he doesn’t know what it is. Masahito does know, unfortunately

something vague and fuzzy about offering it to Sara and her either not recognizing it or recoiling outright--if the latter, Kamaji interpreting what she says about it as her taking the offer as an attempt to thrust her out of the family, but actually it’s that, at least in her own head, she can be a tengu or she can be a Kujou but she has no idea how to be both (this may be Takayuki’s fault. he may have justified taking it from her that way in the first place, or it may be actually true, idk. the latter fits more the vibe of the original story but I also would not dare to try and rewrite that story)

the brothers going to Yae as the youkai expert and Yae telling them, casually, that it doesn’t matter, it’s too small and wouldn’t fit her anyway, it would be cruel to force her back into that shape

(Yae possibly lying, or not, because her own history with skins and humans is that she gave hers to Ei when she was young and impulsive and infatuated, and when Ei went to put herself in a sword and leave a puppet behind she gave it back, and it’s the most disrespectful and insulting thing she could possibly have done and she’s never realized and Yae has never told her)

and then I have no idea where it goes? from there? or if it even does? but it’s circling in my head and I have work to do so I am writing it down XD;; maybe I will pick it up later, or not

[yandere-sins]

The Fox Wedding - Prologue II

Summary: You are to marry the fox spirit Kita Shinsuke after you accidentally agreed to become his wife by signing the deed to your new home. A contract is a contract, he says, but is there more to this marriage than you know? Will you be whisked away by one of the foxy twins instead, or have to marry Kita after all? Can you be with a creature that only seems tender on the surface, or will you try to run even if it might cost you your life? Choose your route carefully, you never know what these foxes are up to!

Characters: Kitsune!Kita Shinsuke, Kitsune!Miya Atsumu, Kitsune!Miya Osamu, Kitsune!Suna Rintarou, afab!Reader

Rating: Explicit Warnings for this chapter: Yandere, Kidnapping, Forced/Unhealthy Relationship, Cursing

“I think…” Atsumu spoke out loud, having watched the spectacle for a while now. His eyes were fixated on the door to the underground bunker, and a smile played around his lips as he watched Kita leaving, together with Suna, who stood guard for the longest time. From their place on top of one of the half torn-down rooftops of the abandoned village, Atsumu could overview everything, even the celebrations held in the main hall, lights, and laughter reaching his twitching ears even through the magically restored sliding doors. 

“You think…?” Osamu yawned next to him, not bothering with bringing a hand to his mouth, still unused to the human customs they were forced to uphold. He, at least, didn’t like it, though Osamu still was better in trying to conform to them than his twin.

“I think I want her.” 

If not for the cicadas around them, silence fell over the brothers as the wind was the only other thing rustling through the grasses below their feet. “Crazy. You’re simply crazy.” 

“Just think about it!” Atsumu was quick to snap back, turning to his twin as if he needed to convince him for a plan he had already decided to go through with anyway. “Are you really happy here? Happy with their customs, their orders?”

“They took us in, ‘Tsumu. They fed us and healed our wounds after you went batshit crazy trying to fight that Tengu. You can’t just take the Clan Leader’s future bride as you want.”

Again, silence as Atsumu thought about it. Not long enough to make his brother believe he actually thought about it, but he pretended well. “Okay,” Atsumu ‘gave in’, nodding. Osamu sighed, knowing his brother felt no remorse or fault about what happened, and he never had any intentions to stay in the village anyway. “Have you seen her?” Atsumu whispered, eyes looking up to the moon, full and clear on the horizon. 

“Briefly, why?” Leaning back, Osamu picked at his teeth with his little finger as he followed Atsumu’s gaze to the stars. Sitting here definitely was better than partying downstairs. Maybe at first, he had liked being in a community, but Osamu too felt the dread of having to bow your head to basically strangers, even if the two had been adopted into the fox family whose protection they were now under. 

“She’s beautiful,” Atsumu sighed lovestruck, bopping his feet up and down excitedly. All Osamu could focus on was Atsumu’s tail wagging like a common dog, happy to see its owner. For someone as sharp and cunning as Atsumu, he truly was a fool. Even more so, a fool in love now. Annoyed, he reached for the telling limb, gripping it tightly and making Atsumu yap in surprise before throwing Osamu an angry glare. The latter merely stuck out his tongue, which riled up Atsumu even more.

“At least take a good look at her then!” he hissed, standing up and pulling his tail out of his brother’s grip. “‘Tsumu, wait,” Osamu called after him, sitting up on the rooftop as his twin left. Atsumu briefly turned to look up at him, as he was already off the roof, his gaze determined. He always knew what he wanted, and that was a trait Osamu both admired and despised on him. “You can’t face her like that. You’re so ugly.”

Hair stood up as on his neck as Atsumu furiously stomped away, screaming, “WE LOOK THE SAME, YOU BASTARD!” 

With a chuckle to himself, Osamu followed casually, wanting to see how this was going to end. He couldn’t let his twin have all the fun alone either.

You could pace your cell, and you could cry, but this time, there was no one listening in to your woes. Even if you kept rattling the bars, pleaded with them to yield, nothing happened when you touched them. Kita had made it look so easy, but there was something else going on; you just knew it. Magic, that’s what it was. How pathetic you felt, knowing that not even a guard at the entrance was waiting anymore since they didn’t expect you to get out on your own.

Wondering what time it was, something in you finally gave up. Perhaps it was exhaustion, or maybe just indifference about the situation now, but you were too tired to keep on fighting your problem. Your mind felt like some kind of slideshow, but it kept showing you the same thoughts over and over. It was trying to construct something that was out of your hands, tried to give you answers for everything. But as thankful as you felt to yourself for trying, its efforts were in vain. 

There were no gaps to fill out, at least not on your own. 

“Look at her! Damn it, ‘Samu, get your ass over here!” you heard from above the window, and god, for the first time, you felt annoyance as you did not want to deal with this. Whoever was speaking probably was just here to mock you again, and you simply couldn’t deal with this now. 

Once you decided to give up your endeavors of getting out and complaining, you had settled in the furthest corner of the cell. The one that seemed the least… unappealing to you from what you could see. But now, you stood up, angry that gawkers were leering into your window just to have some fun. Nudging the previously thrown over chair - you weren’t proud, but frustration had overcome you - back to the window, you took a deep sigh before stepping up on it. You tried to look strong, hoping it would seem like you were and scare off whoever was there, but inwardly, you couldn’t help but fear what could be awaiting you.

“If you’re not helping, then leave--!”

The words got caught in your throat as you didn’t expect two piercing pairs of eyes looking right back the moment you appeared in the window. It seemed to have caught them off-guard as well, and for a split second, they flinched away, halting their movements like animals determining if they should move or be quiet.

“Woah,” the blonde fox spirit gasped, inching closer immediately. With a short, hesitance glance to the former, the second one came closer, however, not as close as the other. A respectful distance, how you found, he seemed reasonable in your eyes. Only now you noticed that they looked eerily similar, almost like twins if there was such a thing under spirits. “You’re so pretty!”

The comment was now catching you off-guard, and you leaned back in surprise, almost losing your balance on the chair if you weren’t holding on to the window bars. “Oi, stop scaring her! Get back, ‘Tsumu!” the more reasonable twin instructed, though only when he gripped his brother’s shoulder tightly did he react. Up until then, he merely stayed absolutely still, only his eyes following every movement that you did, no matter how minor it was.

“Eeh,” he mumbled. “Sorry to scare you.”

That didn’t sound like he meant it at all. 

“You should be nicer. She’s the future wife of the Clan Leader,” the grey-haired brother muttered, reprimanding his brother who seemed unfazed while he watched you. In fact, by now, he had laid down in the grass, pushing it down. This was taking on casual picnic vibes instead of your imprisonment, and you didn’t know how to feel about that.

“I’m not… I don’t want to…” you stuttered, biting your lip as you felt the tears return to your eyes, though you doubt you had any water left in your body to lose more. “I just want to leave,” you whispered, looking down helplessly, knowing they wouldn’t help you either.

“You made her cry, you Dunce,” one of the two whispered softly, and you heard an upset, “Ouch!” follow the snip of a finger.

“Who’re you calling a dunce, you… Idiot!”

There was the soft sound of a scuffle, and you looked up at the brother’s watching them trying to hit each other while also blocking the oncoming hits at the same time. As stupid as it was, you couldn’t help a small laugh falling from your lips about how bizarre and absurd this situation was, but it made both of their ears peak up out of their hair. 

“That’s better. You’re cute when you laugh,” the blonde one sighed happily, his lips curling into a smile too. “Now, do you want to get out?” he added straight away, causing his brother to give him a look that was saying, “What are you even talking about?”

“C-Can you?!” you squeaked in surprise, instantly clearing your throat and lowering your voice again. Even if the spark of hope was ever so little, it was quick to ignite in you, rattling your senses to think about all the sudden possibilities. Even if those two were the same as Kita, if they could let you out, you’d take your chance with them. “I mean- yes. Please let me out immediately! I can’t stay here, I can’t become that… person’s wife! So, please--!”

However, before you could finish your sentence, your eyes caught onto something that spread behind the two, something that could be best described as fire, though you had never seen it in these colors. A mix between blue and green, flaming up in balls and twirling through the air. By now, the two had noticed it too, their body language changing as they tensed up, getting to their knees quickly. 

“And… what are you two doing?” 

Oh, this voice you knew, and instantly, all the hope you mustered to create inside of you, vanished.

Out of the fire, unfazed by its usual quality of burning someone, Kita emerged. Also, another man - or fox - stuck his head out from behind him. You hadn’t seen him around, but while everyone’s eyes were intense, his seemed to be the most fox-like and uncomfortable to you, always reminding you that you weren’t dealing with humans. “We were--” the grey-haired brother glanced at his twin who searched for words, eventually filling in for him, “--greeting...”

“Yes! Greeting her!”

“I see. That’s very thoughtful of you.”

Kita’s eyes fell on you, and you made a point to look away and sigh, wiping the tears from your face. You’d not entertain him with your attention, you decided. Missing the deflated expression he made, all you heard was a soft snort coming from one of the people outside your window. “Why don’t you all go back to the party?” Kita demanded, even if it was spoken like a question. Hearing the ruffling of clothes as the twins stood up immediately, you sent one last desperate glance at the blonde one. To your surprise, he looked back, giving you a short, unnoticeable nod before turning and leaving with his brother. 

“Idiot…” you heard his brother scold him. 

“Idiot, yourself!” he yapped back. 

“You’re both idiots,” the unknown man exclaimed with a sigh as he followed them, sending you a quick glance over his shoulders too before leaving you behind with Kita.

“[Name],” you suddenly heard from next to you as you were too focused on looking after the three to notice Kita having kneeled down, peering right at you. If it bothered him that you jumped, having totally forgotten about him, he didn’t let it notice you from his expression. Instead, with his hand flat on the ground, he cowered down to properly look you in the eyes on your height. This gesture seemed unlikely for a ‘man’ of his stand, yet it wasn’t the first one he surprised you with. 

“Did the two of them say anything unnecessary to you?”

“If they did, I sure as hell wouldn’t snitch it to you,” you hissed back, and he closed his eyes for a moment, which you could only interpret as him dismissing your choice of words. 

“Very well then.”

Raising from the ground again swiftly, Kita’s movements stroke you as odd, impractical despite being elegant. It just gave you another warning that you were dealing with something that was hard to believe. “Wait,” you called out to him, unsure why you even raised your voice. Maybe you still hoped for answers, or to reason with him, and now was as good as any moment. But his ears perked up, and he laid his head to the side, waiting for you to talk patiently.

“When can I leave? It’s dark and cold in here… I don’t want to be here.”

For unbearable long seconds, he merely looked at you, and it stirred up the fear in you that he might say, “Never.” The time he thought things over was something you couldn’t get used to. 

“Not too long anymore, don’t worry,” was his answer, vague and dismissive. “I suggest you don’t talk to anyone anymore until the ceremony.”

Sighing, you shook your head, one leg already off the chair, and you looked after it as you decided to end this conversation on your terms instead of having him walk off on you again. “Can’t make me…” you mumbled. It wasn’t like you wanted to challenge him, but to be fair, at that moment, you also forgot that he could hear you, even if you softened your voice.

“Yet,” you heard him hiss right at you, making your head snap back outside, seeing his wide-opened eyes staring at you with only the bars separating the two of you. This time, you did lose your balance from the shock and surprise, the chair wobbling below you as you lost your halt, your body plummeting to the cold, hard ground with a groan and a whine. Your hips and lower back were aching from the shock, but when you looked back to the window with tears in your eyes, Kita was gone.

And with him, he took all the hope you had, leaving you behind in the despair of anticipation.

CHOOSE YOUR FATE

➤ Marry Kita

➤ Run away with Atsumu

➤ Rely on Osamu’s care

➤ RUN

We recommend reading the routes first before proceeding with the last option.

[littleeyesofpallas]

Bleach  -Name Games

I did Rose’s sword because it’s super cool and elaborate, but I figure I can’t leave the other Visored out to dry, even if most of them don’t have a lot going on with their zanpakutou.

In general I tried to go over the Visored’s personal names already a while back.  (I actually feel like I did a disservice by trying to cram them all into one, and looking back on it it was a sloppy assessment, but oh well...) And I’ve covered Shinji’s Sakanade in that old post and Hiyori’s KubikiriOrochi recently...  Mashiro and Hacchi never even released their swords... So, that really only leaves Love, Kensei, and Risa...

In Kensei’s case it couldn’t be more straight forward Tachikaze(断地風) is written as  断:”Sever” 地:”Ground” 風:”Wind,” and Viz rightly translates it as “Earth-Severing wind.’   The release call, Futtobase(吹っ飛ばせ) means to “Blow off” as in “to Blow on + to Scatter,” Viz called this “Blast away” which is a little off base, but has a certain double play that I’m actually super surprised they caught,  because Futtobase(ふっとばせ) and Buttobase(ぶっとばせ) are super close and Buttobase(打っ飛ばせ) is “to send flying” or “to knock down/off (their) feet” which is in line with Kensei’s brawler delinquent demeanor.  But this way “Blast off” sounds both like wind scattering something like dust, as well as a blast knocking someone off their feet.

So, the name can be taken pretty literally, but as far as references that Kubo might have been making; Tachikaze was a class of naval Destroyer in operation during the 1970s (Vietnam War), as well as the name of a specific Minekaze class Destroyer operating the 1930s(Sino-Japanese war).  In general Destroyers are typically fast moving and used as escort ships for larger, slower ships as part of a convoy.  In the case of these ships, and in the case of other media that have used the name, typically Tachikaze(太刀風) is actually written  太: “thick” 刀:”Sword” 風:”Wind,” where Tachi(太刀) is also a specific type of Japanese sword.  The name evokes a great cutting wind like a gale or a hurricane.

I think, if anything, the name might be a nod the 1970s Destroyer class ship, because of Kensei’s initial outfit having a vaguely modern miltiary style about it: Combat boots, tactical cargo pants, short cropped hair, and his sword even having a rubber grip and finger loop like a combat knife rather than any kind of traditional Japanese weapon --even though he later swerved more toward a bosozoku gimmick.  He also has a move identified in the UNMASKED databook as Bakudan(爆弾突き),  爆弾:”Bomb” 突き:”Thrust” which has a bit of a military weaponry vibe.

I also tie it to the Vietnam war in particular because in general the Visored all had specific outdated styles of dress when first introduced, which seemed super deliberate on Kubo’s part but never really got elaborated on.

Shinji’s Brit mod look, Kensei’s Vietnam War fatigues, Mashiro’s Himitsu Goranger tights, and Rose’s shoujo bishonen look all tie them to the 1970s. I’m not super sure about Hacchi’s look... He almost looks like a host?  A tacky lounge singer?? a bad prom tux???  And Risa’s sailor-fuku is kind of broadly attributable to anywhere from the 1920s to modern day. (although sailor-fuku as school uniforms have seen substantial decline as school uniforms since the open sexual fetishization of them in the 1980s.)  Also both Love and Hiyori just have a kind of slacker/mountain hick sweatsuit/tracksuit aesthetics, which aren’t exactly era specific...  Although if we assume Love’s afro is actually a punch perm that was very much a 70s-80s trend.

Anyway... that was a big tangent, but the point was that maybe Kensei’s sword is a reference to a Vietnam War destroyer ship because of the 1970s.  Kensei’s bankai adds Tekken(鐡拳) to the name, and just like the videogame series it means “Iron Fist.”  There’s really not a lot to that one.

Love’s sword is a simple yet weird one.  The name Tengumaru(天狗丸) is just Tengu(天狗) and the suffix -maru(丸) which really just serves the function of making it a name.  I would imagine the Tengu is a pretty well recognized bit of Japanese mythology, even outside of Japan by now.  There’s a neat history to them and how they got their name, and the way they look in art, and their shifting role in folk lore and mythology from antagonistic bringers of war to benevolent, if still dangerous, protectors of the mountains and nature, as well as their association with the Japanese religion of Shugendo in particular...  But none of that seems to be referenced here.  In fact there doesn’t appear to be any actual reference to the Tengu at work at all....

Love’s mask is a pretty stock and standard Oni or devil mask, and the giant iron bludgeon weapon is a stylized kanabou(金棒) which is also associated with oni imagery, but not Tengu.  If anything, the general shape and size of his giant club might be a play on the shape of a humanoid Tengu’s iconic long nose, while the long nosed Tengu’s red face might be the influence for the fire powers, but the Tengu itself doesn’t have any particularly strong direct associations with fire...  and moreover neither the tengu nor the oni seem to have anything to do with Love’s whole “love” theme in his name.

His release call is uchikudake(打ち砕け) which is just a pretty straight forward action for an iron club, “Crush.”  He uses a technique called Hifuki no Kozuchi(火吹の小槌): “Little-Mallet/Gavel of Fire-Breathing” but I feel like the “Little Mallet” bit is a reference to the Uchide-no-Kozuchi(打ち出の小槌).  In the Issun-boshi myth, where the little hero retrieves it from an oni he defeats; the magic hammer allows him to grow to regular human size.  Similarly in the myth of Momotaro, the hero obtains the mallet from the oni-island.  I only get this impression because if it’s not a reference, then it feels really weird to call a massive club “little-hammer“ as if that were a literal description.

On second thought, I forgot that tengu nose is pretty commonly used as phallic image, so it’s entirely possible that that’s the link to the “Love” theme.

Lisa’s is a real weird one though...  Her shikai is called Hagurotonbo(鉄漿蜻蛉), which is the name of the Calopteryx atrata damselfly.  And I guess the generally bodyshape of a dragonfly could be seen as reflected in the shikai being a polearm, but that feels kind of weak...  The specific kanji used here for Haguro(鉄漿) means “Iron Drink” and refers to Haguro(歯黒) “Tooth-Blackening” which was a kind of fashion trend in Japan prior the the Meiji restoration, primarily among married women of some courtly status, although it did eventually spread into general public style as well.  The "Tooth”+”Black” writing is fairly obvious, but the “Iron”+”Drink” form refers to the fact that the tooth dying concoction included dissolved iron powder.

So in Lisa’s case it’s kind of weird...  Is it just a reference to the species of black-winged damselfly?  Is it some kind of evocation of the old fashion of a married noble woman?  Her shikai is a strange blade shape that could be either an exaggeratedly broad yari spear, or some variation the Chinese Monk’s spade.  And her mask is a diamond with a cross slit that doesn’t appear to be related to the shikai form or name at all...(if anything it just kind of randomly looks like the head piece of the Zeon mobile suit, Gyan)  her release call is tsubuse(潰せ):”to crush/flatten,” which also doesn’t seem related to anything other than paddling something with the broad end of her spear.

In fact if there’s anything that actually seems to suggest a real theme it’s the random technique she has named Nijuuichijou Tonbokudari (二十一条蜻蛉下り): “21 Clauses Dargonfly Descent,” which she technically used fighting Gerard Valkyrie, but we barely really saw.  It looks like a super specific direct reference to Taika Nijuuikkajou Youkyuu(対華21ヶ条要求): generally known in English as “The 21 Demands” referring to the terms of surrender Japan made of China in their conquest of Manchuria during World War 1.  The demands were ultimately negotiated down to more favorable terms for China, minimizing Japanese expansionist gains, but the signing resulted in massive distrust between Japan and America, Japan and Britain, and of course Japan and China.

But all together these elements don’t seem to have any kind of cohesive theme behind them all...

Anyway, that’s the Visored swords, it’s really weird to think that Kubo basically had to come up with all of these names and designs at basically the same time yet the level of thought and investment in them seems to be all over the place.

[tsunflowers]

flowers top ten underrated anime part one

usually when you make a top ten list you include ten items but writing summaries takes a lot of effort for me so I only have five right now. just live like this please. someday I will post about the other five I promise

uchouten kazoku, or the eccentric family two seasons, 25 episodes, 2013 and 2017

four tanuki brothers trying to find their way in the wake of their father’s death, torn between becoming respectable members of tanuki society and the “idiot blood” that runs through their veins. they also have to deal with annoying cousins, oppression by tengu, and the possibility that they too will be killed and eaten by the human group known as the friday fellows. the protagonist, third brother yasaburou, is also under threat from the deadly affections of a tengu-trained human woman named benten who wants to eat him out of love

I think the mystery plot of “who killed shimogamo souichirou” and the family drama are both masterfully done and tie together perfectly. yasaburou is also a great protagonist. he always acts dumb but is full of schemes

the art style is unique in a way that may take some getting used to but after a few episodes you’ll almost forget that everyone has rectangle ears. the settings and shot compositions are so lively and inventive that the ears fall to the wayside

shinsekai yori, or from the new world one season, 25 episodes, 2012-2013

a group of children in an isolated village struggle with their psychic abilities and the truths behind their peaceful society as they grow up. the setting and clothing are so well designed and the animation is great as well, shifting styles at times to convey shifts in the characters’ understanding of reality. watch the first ed wareta ringo for the vibe

do not read the manga. there was some creepy shit (csa) in the novel the anime and manga were adapted from which the anime mostly smoothed over but the manga leaned all the way into

I think it has a lot of good psychological horror and a lot of something I’m interested in which is setting up rigid rules for how a society or magic system works and then exploring how people find loopholes and exploit those rules. like most dystopian fiction in this society the loopholes are built right in but the protagonists also find ways to circumvent them

there are same-gender relationships between the main characters but I think different people will have different opinions on whether those are positive or intentional gay/bi representation. it’s an enforced “everyone is bi” setting. I personally read the characters as bi and think their same-gender relationships have a huge impact on the story but as a warning no character ends the story in a same-gender relationship

kyousou giga, or capital craze one season, ten episodes, 2013 + five web shorts, 2012 + original 26 minute animation, 2011

a strange priest and his magical rabbit wife koto start a family in a mirror version of kyoto, adopting three strange and unique children. when the parents leave, their children are left behind trapped in a city that never changes. suddenly a small girl with a big hammer crashes into the mirror city. her name is also koto and she’s been going between dimensions trying to find her own family. maybe you already know where this is going from that but I really recommend you watch how it plays out

the animation, setting, and characters are all so vibrant and delightful. koto’s a charming and energetic protagonist and I love her signature weapon being a size-changing transparent hammer with floating orbs inside. I love the relationships between each member of the family as well and… I also think that mom koto (often called lady koto to differentiate them) is very sexy. thank you

arslan senki, or the heroic legend of arslan two seasons, 33 episodes, 2015 and 2016

maybe this one actually is really popular and it’s just so far from the kind of things I normally watch that I didn’t interact with the fandom enough to realize. it’s rare for me to watch a series where people go to war without using magic powers or giant robots. so I think it speaks to the quality of the story that I was able to get invested in a military story that’s largely lacking those kinds of exciting visuals

the anime is based on a series of novels by dr tanaka yoshiki, the guy who wrote the novel legend of the galactic heroes is based on. dr tanaka was writing those from 1986 all the way up to 2017, so this is actually the second anime adaptation, based on the second manga adaptation. confusing. I haven’t watched or read any other material from the franchise so I can only speak to the quality of the 2015 anime, which has character designs by arakawa hiromu and is very easy on the eyes

arslan is set in a fantasy version of ancient Persia, which I think is an interesting and underutilized setting. it follows the crown prince of pars (do you get it), arslan, on a journey to gain allies and reclaim the throne. he’s still a teen so he’s inexperienced but he has a noble heart that attracts people to him until he eventually gains a party that includes a loyal warrior, an artist and tactician, a flirtatious bard, an aloof priestess, a chief’s daughter, and an enemy soldier whose life arslan spares

I wish that the main female character in arslan’s group didn’t have a stupid design with just scraps of cloth covering her chest but nothing’s perfect. looking back there are also some unpleasant racial implications with most of arslan’s group having light skin while villainous characters often have darker skin. probably more of that would become apparent if I rewatched the show with that in mind but I’m not going to so I’m just throwing that out as a note of warning

sakura quest one season, 25 episodes, 2017

koharu yoshino is a woman who moved to tokyo to find a job but has no luck. when she finally gets a job offer, it’s to become “queen for a day” of rural manoyama village. upon arriving in manoyama, she learns that she was only hired because they thought she was someone else… but they still want her to work there for an entire year. now she lives in a small town and is tasked with both revitalizing the citizens and drawing tourists in, along with the help of four friends. it may not sound funny and heartwarming but it really is. it’s a good story about connecting and reconnecting and also the head of the tourism board wears a chupacabra mask sometimes

it’s pretty low-key and charming, similar to other anime about girls enjoying everyday life as they work passionately towards a goal, but the main characters are all adult women which is so refreshing. I don’t know if ririko was intentionally coded as autistic but for me it’s almost impossible not to read her that way. I think she’s written well and made me tear up a couple of times :( also her special interest is cryptids and ufos

[fantranslatorbychoice]

Kakuriyo no Yadomeshi Vol 1, Chapter 5 - Kakuriyo’s Capitol, Youto**

T/N: I mostly didn’t translate a lot of the names of the ayakashi/youkai, as well as the proper nouns because uhm... They’re basically nouns. It’s like how some translated manga are done. Plus it irks me sometimes when everything just gets transliterated, it kills off the vibe. But that’s just me. Links to references at the end of the post.

Also if you like this translation, you can share the link, reblog, but for pete’s sake DO NOT REPOST ELSEWHERE. I worked hard to finish this thing, it’s not like I just Google-translated this whole sh**.. 

If you need refreshers on what happened, @kakuriyo-translations​ already had the previous translations. I’m just contributing to this fandom. 

OK, here’s the stuff now.

P143 I really don't like taking naps in Utsushiyo**. I always change my sleep time, yet I keep dreaming about a memory that I hate. For me, the memory I hated the most was being inside a dark room, all alone with an empty stomach waiting earnestly for my mother everyday. I never saw my father. Mother was always out and about, leaving me at home. It's what's so-called NEGLECT. I was rolling around on the cold flooring while thinking how hungry I was, while staring up at the ceiling. The very dark ceiling was my only joy and entertainment, because I couldn't find any hope, and I didn't even have enough energy to cry. Come to think of it, there was that day when my mother didn't come home for a week. That time, a mysterious Ayakashi's voice came, and my life was saved. An Ayakashi instantaneously appeared near me, its figure came up from behind, and in the darkness only a vague form of a white Noh mask”” floated above, which I watched closely. Talking with that Ayakashi relieved me of the loneliness that I felt.

T/N: Youto, literally “Fairy Capital” or “Enchanted Capitol”.

Noh mask, what most Ayakashi wear in Kakuriyo. Noh Drama is a traditional play where characters wear masks, contrasting with Kabuki where the characters paint their faces. Think Jiyaira from Naruto. Utsushiyo, literally “The world above/surface world”. Kakuriyo is literally “Hidden world.” Aoi obviously came from the world above.

P144 Not only did that Ayakashi talked to me, but also shared food with me every day. I cannot remember what I sensed because it was fuzzy, nor what the conversations were about, even what food was given to me. It's no surprise that because the Ayakashi was wearing a mask, I couldn't figure out what its shape is. The only thing I can remember until now was that the food it gave me was delicious. More than a week after my mother has not returned, a group of adults that I've never met before came and took me away from my house without letting me take anything else. My mother never came out to greet these people from social services, so when they came back to the house, they went inside immediately to check if she was there. Upon entering the house though, the social services people did not run into the Ayakashi who used to give me food. I thought at first that I really, really wanted to meet the Ayakashi, but eventually I forgot about the whole incident. Whenever I talked about the Ayakashi, people in the orphanage I was in got spooked, and I get teased and made fun at. It seemed that the teachers and everyone else did not understand why I strongly insist that Ayakashi do exist. It came to a point that because of the Ayakashi thing, I was harmed and bullied by the children around me. Which is why I eventually kept a distance from others. This lead me to feel lonely again, in the orphanage. That is why it feels even worse when I'm alone in a crowd. It was around this time that Grandpa came for me at the orphanage and took me home with him. If my memory serves me correct, it was around the second grade. P145 I woke up in a cold sweat, and I soon realized that the surroundings were already getting dark and night was starting to fall. The memories of that time I was rocking myself on the floor without any food all came back to me. "Are you awake?" A voice suddenly spoke. Somehow, I thought it was a voice that brought back memories I yearned for, but it was just Odanna-sama's voice. Amidst the dim and dark, he was sitting on the counters and smoking a pipe. He was holding the camellia kanzashi** and twirling it around his fingers.It seemed that his red eyes and the camellia bud's scarlet color where somewhat sparkling. "Have I been sleeping?

T/N: Kanzashi, imagine a single chopstick with some flowers or something in the end, which you can stick into your hairdo. If you’ve watched that episode in Kimetsu no Yaiba where Tanjirou fought the monster that can split itself and eats young girls and swims inside solids, that one collects kanzashi and stuff.  P146 Oh, it's already evening." I woke up and stood without thinking. I felt so weak. It's horrid dream’s fault. Seeing the outside through the window, the sun has already set and I could see the lavender color of the sky. "It seems that you were having a nightmare." "What, really?" "Did you have a bad dream?" "No, I didn't." I felt like this because I saw a place that I hated. Odanna-sama, who was huffing and puffing on his pipe looked at me, immediately stood up and hid the camellia kanzashi, and went beside me, pulling my arm rather fast. Morover, I felt a sudden pain in my arm and pulled away. "Wait, let go. Odanna-sama, your long nails hurt my arm when you grabbed it." "Is that so?" I was absolutely unaware of that, Odanna-sama was really very suspicious. When he let go of my hand, I saw the nails on his hand. "I'm an Oni**, an ogre, that is the reason why they are long." Yet he still opened his hand. "Oh, so that's why. But still, what hurts hurt. Look, this part of my inner arm is delicate, that's why it still has your nail marks."

P147 As if looking at something weird, Odanna-sama started massaging the part of my inner arm that I showed to him, with his fingers. He spoke: "Humans have weak and frail bodies, with such soft flesh and skin." "Uhm, because humans aren't Ayakashi?" They probably aren't used to such things. "Aoi, what you did today deserves a reward." "What? That's... so unexpected." "About the whole affair with Matsuba-sama, the Tengu. Surely, I did not think Matsuba-sama could have liked your cooking. Come, let us go." He's telling me to go with him. My hair was still disheveled, and so is my one-piece dress from Utsushiyo, but Odanna-sama didn't mind and still invited me anyway. I wonder where we're going? It's complicated to think about it, so I thought we might be going somewhere sophisticated. "I think that it is a good idea to bring the Tengu's uchiwa fan." "Why?" "Why, she says. That uchiwa's power will protect you, would it not?" "It seems like I have no choice but to protect myself, don't I?" P148 It was disappointing. Odanna-sama started laughing and snickering, the meaning was deep within his narrowed eyes. "Because the kind Matsuba-sama gave it to you, I think it is a good habit to always bring it with you whenever you are out. For that is a special uchiwa, if you must know." "Hmph." "To tell you the truth, it is an item that can pay the entirety of Shiro's huge debt, if you sell it." "Well then.... Let's go to a pawnshop!" "Wait, wait.." Odanna-sama hurriedly followed me, and grabbed my collar. "Did you not declare that will pay for Shiro's debts all on your own? You even turned down Matsuba-sama's help. How I think of you.. has actually changed." "This uchiwa's mine, and however much I sell this to pay that debt, I still used my own power for that." I majestically cut him off with such words. I was thinking that I couldn't bear to sell the gift I received, but I will if I need to. I think if Grandpa was in the same place, he would do the same. Odanna-sama sensed it and got flustered. "Hey, wait, wait, wait, calm down for a moment." "I will definitely calm down after this." P149 "This is the Ayakashi's realm. Once you step out of Tenjin-ya, if you wander alone with no regard because you are a human girl, you will get kidnapped and eaten before you even get to the pawnshop. Please go behind me." I wondered how his attitude changed from yesterday, I was suspicious but I still looked at him. "What's that? Yesterday, in spite you saying that you're going to eat me, you extended your help with the Tengu matter. Yes, I may have a weak and fragile human body, but I couldn't just stay out of the quarrels between Ayakashi. Even though my arm can easily get wounded and just letting it be could kill me." Odanna-sama gently brushed off my bangs. After saying that, he placed his hand on my forehead. Yesterday, one of the Daruma's poocelain figurines hit my forehead and had me injured. I had some bandages attached, but that was a while ago. Embarrasingly, some of them were already starting to peel off. "Have your wounds not healed yet?" "I'm fine, the bleeding's stopped." "Ah, I see. That is good." His very different behavior from yesterday just bewildered me. And yet, I still meekly followed him from behind, holding my uchiwa. P150 We passed in front of a very large cauldron, and a splashing sound made me think of paranoid ideas, like "I'm going to get eaten". Just when I thought I wasn't going to snap out of it, ominously, we stopped. We were going to ride a ship. A flying airship. Its sails sails bear the crest of Tenjin-ya, and was decorated with paper lanterns. I could see that this magnificent ship sails a lot. I stared at the ship from its top to its lighted underside. We're going to ride this thing later? "Wow! It's high!" "We use airships as a means to travel in Kakuriyo. In Tenjin-ya, we use cruise ships and houseboats to hold banquets. This small model is called "Kaikakumaru. The small types are our latest cruise ships." "That's marvelous. I love high places, you know." "You are being childish." Odanna-sama butted in while I was staring at something unusual, in high spirits. The night wind feels wonderful, it would be fun to look down from a high place and see how vast the ground is. But what surprised me the most was that it was the first time that I saw Tenjin-ya as a whole. "Wow, Tenjin-ya is a really large inn, isn't it?" The inn was enclosed by a deep valley, thus the surroundings seem so dark wherever you look, but the facade and the main street were all lively and prosperous, and the hanging bridge over the shoreline seems passable. P151 Tenjin-ya's property was vast, and the main building's height and width are both tall and wide. Outside the main building, Tenjin-ya's land is dotted with countless buildings of various shapes and materials. From a distance, I could see that I was in the most central part. The intricate red tiles of the roofs were lighted up by the ogre fire. "Usually, the ogre fire is very flashy. But today, the inn is currently on a holiday break, so business is not as brisk." "That.. is not brisk?" Despite the inn currently on a break, there are so many Ayakashi piling up on the facade's hanging bridge towards the inn. There were those inside who were inquiring and receiving explanations. There were also a lot of Happi coat-wearing Tenjin-ya staff** as well. From above, it seems that Tenjin-ya was business as usual. The hustle and bustle makes the inn spectacularly dazzling and lovely. As Tenjin-ya goes further away from the distance, just as I was thinking of wandering around the ship's interior, the voices of three people suddenly popped up from inside. "Your bath has been prepared, Aoi-sama." "What the.. Nopperabou**?" It seems that the three faceless sisters also boarded the ship. It seems that they have happily taken me in their care.

T/N: Happi-coat - usually worn by staff of restaurants, shops, inns, dancers in festivals, etc. and has the company crest or team logo. 

Nopperabou - faceless woman youkai. P152 Just as before, the sisters carried me and took me away. "Let's have you take a hot water bath." "Let's also put on some makeup." 'Let's fix up your hair." While the sisters chattered unanimously, they then stripped me of all of my clothes and took me to the farthest regions of the ship, after which they washed me up. Well, it did feel rather luxurious. I then noticed a lovely camellia-patterned kimono, and they helped me put it on. Amidst the indigo-colored background, the deep red camellias stood out. The red obi's designs were also very intricate and elaborate, and wearing what seems to be a very expensive kimono has me into a panic. "Wait, why, why this kimono? Is it OK to wear this?" O-matsu-san explained to me as she tightened my obi: "It's nothing, that kimono is Odanna-sama's gift to Aoi-sama." I blinked my eyes in surprise. Why would that Oni give me such an expensive kimono? I was thinking of asking, but wearing a very beautiful kimono and seeing the pattern in front of a large mirror, I was so entranced. The three sisters were so moved. "Ah, that looks good on you, Aoi-sama!" "O-danna-sama will be so pleased." "That pretentiously innocent Young Mistress will groan at how beautiful and different you look." P153 "Hey, Ume, don't spoil our true intentions!" O-ume-san got scolded by O-take-san again. That Young Mistress, the Yuki-onna, the snow lady, I wonder if her presence annoys the three Nopperabou sisters. My hair was done elegantly to the side, and my lips were redder than usual. I was casually looking at myself in front of the large mirror, I was thinking that I am satisfied with everything. Of course, I was wearing a cute kimono with a lovely design. I was happy. "Do you love wearing it?" "Oh, uhm, yeah, I guess." My glowing figure and my giddy self wearing a kimono reflected in the mirror made it how obvious it was, and the three sisters kept giggling and laughing. I loved it, it was clear as day. No. But, could this kimono also add up to the debt or something? "Oh, my choice was not wrong. I thought a deep red camellia suits you." "What.. Wai.. Wait, since when did you get here?" Odanna-sama came when I wasn't aware of it, and he was looking at me over my shoulder, in front of the large mirror. I wonder if he saw my obviously eager face wearing this kimono. "I am glad that you loved it, Aoi." P154 I broadly looked at the other side of the entrance. My face was flushed and I was biting my lower lip. Somehow, I felt remorse. He came closer to my side, and from his sleeves he pulled out the camellia kanzashi. "Well then, use this for the adornment as well. Despite looking so charming, you look a bit dreary without anything in your hair." That being said, he placed the kanzashi on the left side of my hairdo. All of a sudden his large and wide-spanning hands near my face made me feel very nervous, but I didn't want to give in to this nervousness, so after a while the strength went back to my cheeks. "Here, why don't we take a look in the mirror and see?" He held my shoulders tight and turned me around, and as I tried fighting it I saw my side reflected, and saw myself in the mirror again. "See?" Unexpectedly, I realized that with any hair adorned with a hairpin, it felt as if it was a different look. Somehow, did the flower bud seem to have grown bigger? In the beginning, it looked just like a normal camellia bud kanzashi. But now it looks like it has grown a bit, and the petals have opened up. "The petals seems to move a bit. It will grow into a large, round bloom." "Oh, Kakuriyo has such magical things?" "When it reaches the end, the petals will get scattered." His face peeked from behind me as he said those words, full of deep meaning. In spite of myself, I looked at him. P155 "No kidding. This kanzashi has a countdown timer? I might lose it..." In Utsushiyo, I would have gotten a bit shocked. My whole face was lighting up, and his back was turned while giggling. I wanted to ask "What's funny?" "It seems that you love it, and that is what is more important. But once the hairpin's petals fall off and scatter, your debt must be settled too. Well, best of luck." Well that was so sudden, bringing up the debt repayment. "What the.. Isn't this like Beauty and the Beast?" "What's that? What are you saying?" "That story from France called 'Beauty and the Beast'. It's about two very different people who got married." Odanna-sama looked bewildered. Well, I didn't think that the Ayakashi in Kakuriyo would know the story of Beauty and the Beast, but even I'm not that shameless to think of myself like I'm Beauty, to that extent. But really, under these circumstances, it just feels like 'Beauty and the Beast', right? For instance, a bumbling non-human guardian who somewhat gets married, considerably. "It is good to tuck in your uchiwa in your obi**. Always handle it with care." I was groaning as Odanna-sama, in his own terms tucked the uchiwa fan into the back part of my obi, the paperplant uchiwa fan that I received from Matsuba-sama. It was styled like I was going to a summer festival.

T/N: Obi- the belt or sash wrapped around a kimono.

P156 O-matsu-san made me wear a pair of red-strapped geta sandals, and my kimono-wearing Kakuriyo style was complete. "Ah, we're almost here." "Where?" "If you come up the deck you;ll see." When Odanna-sama went to the deck, Kaikakumaru was starting to descend, and the bustling land below, studded with warm-colored lights came to view. Compared to Tenjin-ya's busy pace, this place has it on a whole new level. The central part of the area was a lot bigger compared to Tenjin-ya, and the sky is cut by a very high building, which when viewed from above is surrounded by a row of smaller buildings. The metropolis' four corners had gigantic red Torii gates, and the crossroads was cut by the main road that seemed to shine like it has encrusted jewels, and I realized that the paper lanterns hanging from the buildings below made it look as such. "Wow, this place place is amazing! Where are we?" "This is the Capitol of Kakuriyo, Youto. The building at the center is where the Ayakashi King resides." "Kakuriyo is like a country or something, so there is also a king?" "Of course. The Ayakashi King is called You-ou. In Kakuriyo, the entire country is made up of eight lands guarded by those called the Hachiyo, and it is said that those Hachiyo are connected to and governed by the You-ou. At any rate, we're already at the center of the capitol. P157 Odanna-sama had the ship stop at the capitol's harbor. It seems like a harbor because of the dark valleys and cliffs that surrounds Youto's edge, and that is where the ship was docked. The southern part of Youto's harbor have numerous ships anchored and tied up. and the sky is filled with sailing airships everywhere. "It's Tenjin-ya's Master." "This is bad, this is bad. Those from the evening news are also here." Tenjin-ya's Kaikakumaru is not a large ship, but the large, round crest "Ten" drawn on the sails were sighted by the Ayakashi near the cliffs. When I saw the gathering of a large crowd of Ayakashi, my opinion on Tenjin-ya's Odanna-sama changed: I came to realize that this Ogre god was very famous indeed. I absent-mindedly looked at him. "It seems that Odanna-sama is very famous, isn't he?" "And as my soon-to-be-wife, you dislike it?" "You casually had to push that, I see." "Well then, Aoi. If you do not wear this mask, they will find out that you are a human." Odanna-sama pulled out an Oni mask from his kimono's breast pocket. He was also wearing an Oni mask when we first met in Utsushiyo. He placed the mask on my face. Apparently, being found out to be a human can bring up a lot of trouble. Kaikanmaru then descended to the Southern Torii gate, and entering the capital through here seemed inconspicuous. P158 I followed Odanna-sama from behind in quick steps, and all around I kept hearing murmurs of "Who's that? Who's that?" Wearing this kimono and having an Oni mask on, it's impossible to be found out that I'm a human. The night was busy, with so many Ayakashi walking on the main road, and we started walking here towards the large place in the heart of Youto. The main road was lined up with magnificent stores, geta sandal shops, drapery and curtains, but the theater was  especially packed with so many people coming in and going out. A particular shop that seems to be rather famous was a large shop that had "Glass Shop" written on the shop curtains, and peeking inside the store seemed to have so many beautiful glasswares being sold. The many clients inside seem to be searching for dinnerware or whatnot. The outside of the glasswares had carvings that resemble ink scroll paintings, and the carvings had so many shapes. I've seen a lot of glasswares in Utsushiyo, in Japan, but these ones in Kakuriyo were somewhat different, they were all lined up, polished and state of the art. "Ah, this store Youto's cut glass store." "Cut glass... in Youto?" "Technology and techniques from Utsushiyo are transferred to Kakuriyo, as well as products. Recently, what you call 'glasswares' were started to be made here in Youto, and as such, dinnerware became fashionable." "Really..." Somehow, this capitol that is so Japanese had a store that gives off a Western feel, and the glasses were sparkly as well as giving off a sense of transparency, which made me feel nostalgic. P159 "I was thinking of cozying up our inn's meals with these glasswares, but the rowdy kitchen gang dreadfully detest anything new. But I spruced each room by decorating each one with a little bit of glass. I also had the long windows of the windbreakers made with glass." "Ah, if that's what you're saying, rooms such as the 'Big Camellia' do had round and large glass windows. Flying airships can be seen a lot passing by the windows. If I remember, they're changing those right now." Within the store premises, there weren't many customers and you can only see the lined up products on the storefront, but the craftsmanship of the glasswares are very noticeable.There was a fancy dish made with peach-colored glass that gives off a springtime vibe, covered with sakura patterns, which I picked up. From above the patterns resembled an intricate kaleidoscope, and the red lights of the paper lanterns made the transparent bowl shine so brightly. There were also delicately stacked green sake cups, decorated with hemp leaf designs. I took a long, hard look, I imagined that if I was going to use these glasswares, what meals would I make. Even with just that, I was already a bit pleased. If I could have my way, I would love the transparent, kaleidoscope-ish bowl. "Is there anything you like?" Odanna-sama peeped from behind me and patted my shoulder, seeing me looking eagerly at the glass bowl. My heart skipped a beat and I turned around. "I just think that they're lovely." P160 "Which one is nice? Would you like me to buy it for you?" "Wha-- Why would you do that?" This time I got startled, and I unconsciously looked at Odanna-sama and shrank a step back. I can't forget the stern Odanna-sama from yesterday, and I thought that with his dubious smile, it's now all outrageous and very suspicious. "Do not think of weird ideas. I owe you from helping Tenjin-ya yesterday, and I am only doing this as my way of saying thank you." "It's nothing, I'm good, it's not a big deal..." "You do not have to hesitate. You are guarding your heart too much." "It's because what you're saying is scary." I roughly turned away and headed for the store's entrance, and Odanna-sama was laughing behind my back. but what on earth's funny? "Wait, wait, please do not go ahead of me. Please stay by my side." As if his eyes were looking for me, Odanna-sama came up near me and I looked up at him. Despite being detached, I thought that calmly wandering aimlessly in a crowd made me stand out. P161 With his geta sandals echoing on the main road filled with bustling Ayakashi, Odanna-sama followed suit. Just as expected, everywhere I looked there were Ayakashi all over the place.I wonder what I'll do if I was found out to be a human? At the time I was thinking about it, I unexpectedly had a feeling. Everywhere I turned my head to look, the Ayakashi crossing the street seem to not care about me, and my true nature is not known. My feet stopped, and I got worried and flustered seeing Odanna-sama about to enter a dodgy shop. I wasn't used to wearing the geta, and I quickly fumbled over there. "Waii... Wait up." "Didn't I tell you a while ago that you must not leave my side? If you absent-mindedly do that, you; eventually get lost. If you're not with me by daybreak, they'll find out you're a human, and that's going to cause a huge ruckus. At worst, you will probably get eaten." As he was snickering, Odanna-sama beckoned me to come in. With its black, laquered and plastered walls, the storefront looks like a sophisticated warehouse”“. "Offal cuisine**... 'Iron Club for Oni**?'"

T/N: Warehouse -  old Japanese warehouses ( 蔵 ) have mud walls to prevent fires from spreading, like a firewall, but the facades look stylish with white paint. Some of them are now remade into restaurants and shops or whatnot.

Offal is basically organ meats, like liver, kidneys, tripe, etc. It’s not specified in the book what part was used so I just used the generic version. But personally, I think it’s tripe.

Iron Club for Oni - the Untranslated version is  鬼 に 金棒 (Oni ni Kanabou), kanabou is an iron rod that night watchmen use, but I like puns so I decided to transliterate this lol

P162 "Ah, when Oni who love offal get their food served, those that do, know that this place is high-class." "Offal cuisine..." A real Oni’s words made a heavy impression on me. The large cauldron with blood inside, seemingly filled with fresh, boiling and burbling human viscera filled my head with so much horrifying images. Could it be that I, unfortunately will be cooked in there, deliciously? "Why did you bring me to this place? Don't tell me, when you told me that you were taking me to a place that serves offal, giblets and whatnot, you were going to have me cut up by the cooking staff? Don't tell me, that you'll be having me get cooked for dinner?" After hearing me say those words, Odanna-sama started laughing. "You're saying such funny things." "I'm warning you." I got embarassed after being laughed at and I felt my cheeks burn red. "I did say I was going to treat you to some delicious food. Well, if you're that worried, come here." We went inside the restaurant, and as we waited for a bit, all of the high-end restaurant's staff started lining up. They bowed their heads politely, and the ogre's horns started to grow. P163 So this is what a high-class Oni's place looks like. The inside was a bit dark, even the atmosphere, but I could see why it was indeed an expensive place. We were taken to the second floor's most secluded room. When the window panes were opened, sitting by the window, the capitol's hustle and bustle can be seen. It was a very special room. "You can take off your mask, it's fine. This is a place that I have strong connections with. I have ensured that things will go well in here." "Really? Well, the Ayakashi haven't discovered that I'm a human, but it feels weird that I'm actually like one." Even so, as Odanna-sama said, I took off my Oni mask. I looked at it for a while, and for a little bit I understand why I looked rather scary while I had it on. "That suited you fine. You started to look like a typical ogre's wife." "Saying that this suits a girl may make her happy, but no human would think otherwise." I started to go to my seat uneasily as I let Odanna-sama's suprising praise sink in. He did say that he was treating me to an offal-ful meal, and I wonder what kind of meal that would be. "What the... Isn't that offal hotpot?" In the middle of the table was a pot, simmering gently, with garlic chives and cabbages, some ox offal and other ingredients, all looking delicious, that in Utsushiyo would be what would be famously called offal hotpot. P164 "Even the giblets in here look the same." Odanna-sama's face suddenly popped up. "Well, there's no way to tell that it's offal. That, may be perhaps, but I was thinking that I was surely disgusted seeing so much blood in that food, and I couldn't help but imagine all of the stuff I hate. Ah, but it's offal hotpot. And it's been a long time..." "You like it?" "Whaaa-  Grandpa took me to a lot of trips in Hakata, in Fukuoka, because I loved it. Those times, there were food like pork bone ramen, but we also ate offal hotpot." Back then, Grandpa took me to so many places across Japan. Particularly, we went a lot to Kyushu**, and Fukuoka Prefecture's Hakata was my favorite place. It's because Hakata was famous for their pork bone ramen and offal hotpot. "Hakata, you say? Hm.... When Shirou was a lot younger, we both went to Nakasu to visit." "Hmph. Well, I could see you and Grandpa definitely be going there, you two won't seem out of place." Nakasu is known for having so many fun spots. The riverside has so many outdoor stalls and I could remember that time during winter break, Grandpa took me there and we ate pork bone ramen on the stall's outdoor veranda. Well but.... In front of me is offal hotpot. The fragrance of the shoyu soup base just wafts in the air, and it made me decide to get the serving spoon. "So, I guess I'll serve myself. I'd stop hesitating. Because I'll eat. It's OK to eat, right?"

T/N: Spoiler alert: Yuuma-sensei is from Fukuoka, in Kyushu Island. Be prepared to read more about food lol P165 "I will make you eat, even though I told you I was going to take you to eat here." Odanna-sama's face looked dumbfounded, but I don't care. I served his portion, I got mine, I placed my hands together and said "Let's eat", with much excitement. After taking the first bite, I chewed the offal with gusto. It was beyond what I expected, and I was surprised by the taste and fragrance. "Wow, it's really good. The offal, was it roasted once?" It has already been roasted once, I could see it on the surface of the innards. It's slowly being cooked even more, in front of my eyes. “Yes, it has been scorched. It is cooked first that way, then the excess oils seem to have been added to the hotpot." "Reaally? Then let's start eating!" While reveling in the chewy texture, the melted fat in the soup dissolves in the mouth, and the mellow flavors come out. Also, the undertones of the red peppers had a very irresistable taste. "Does it taste delicious?" "Oh, yes! I was surprised. It is rather spicy, but the mild taste of the soy sauce soup base is something that Ayakashi fancy, don't they?" "Ah, yes, that is why, among Oni, and other Ayakashi, this kind of cooking is indeed a favorite." "So, as expected, ogres prefer food that have offal?" "Of course." "Then.. Is Odanna-sama's favorite food.. Offal hotpot?" P166 "Favorite?" I tried to casually ask. Before, I asked Ginji-san if he knows what Odanna-sama's favorite food was, but he said that he didn't know, and so I have no idea what Odanna-sama's food preferences were. He seemed to think for a bit. "Offal hotpot? I'm afraid to tell you... No. Concerning such things, I would strongly say that I prefer the fresh blood and viscera of young human girls." "Having to hear that from you, do you take me as a fool?" Did he said that in all honesty, or was that a whole-hearted and morbid joke? Even without laughing, he seemed to look pleased. "As for me, up to now I can only say that my most favorite thing is a lady, nothing else." "Is that.. Your lover?" "Are you interested?" "No, not really." Either I was dreaming or it's because of the hotpot. The offal with garlic and cabbages all boiling down was enjoyable. The garlic flavor was just appetizing, how much could I just eat? "Oh, so if I tell you what my most favorite is, will you make it for me?" "I have no intention to do that." "But was thinking of looking forward to that." P167 Odanna-sama seemed to have said those words with a pout. I wonder if he's saying those things in earnest. i just can't make out whatever he's saying, but I can speak harshly too. "Anyhow, for Odanna-sama, such a thing as my cooking isn't even somewhat of a great deal." "Well, isn't that harsh. But you've cooked so many kinds of food for Ginji, have you not? He kept praising your cooking." "What, really?" Him praising my cooking didn't felt like he had ill will. Moreover, hearing that Ginji-san saying that my cooking tasted good, I felt honored. Somehow, somewhat, Odanna-sama didn't seem pleased, and raised an eyebrow. "Because Ginji-san is a kind-hearted and gentle person, isn't he? Thanks to a certain someone during my wretched time in the past, someone kindly brought me food." "Food...?" "Oh, that's a secret I remembered." Hearing me inadvertently blurting out, Odanna-sama closed his mouth and seemed to have detached. He didn't ask for anything in particular. "Oh that, when I said that, what Ginji-san said about me, I already knew that about a while ago. Although, I wonder why." P168 "Have you forgotten?" "What?" "No, never mind." Odanna-sama seemed to dodge the whole thing, and just turned towards the sights of the windows, to the bustling crowds that passed by before his eyes. Might it have to do something with what I said about Ginji-san that I've already forgotten? "You haven't moved your chopsticks. It's fine to eat at your own pace, steadily." "Oh, OK." I wasn't thinking at all, I was just moving my food around. Aside from the offal hot pot, there were also other food such as sliced raw liver and some vinegared offal. The raw liver slices were very fresh, and it didn't smell that raw. I especially loved the vinegared offal, its sourness may be too strong in my mouth, but I appreciate how refreshing it tasted. I felt full from the offal. Because it was indeed delicious, I suppose that the ogre thinks that I'll do an awful job of cooking something like it. Way before Odanna-sama's time, Japanese people during the Heian Period alreay know of offal hotpot, and during this same time many prominent Oni traveled to Utsushiyo and probably brought it with them back to Kakuriyo. Whether it's true or not, I could now understand why Oni have a love for innards. "I apologize for disturbing you." While still inside that daze of eating offals, a voice came from outside the sliding doors. Odanna-sama replied "Come in" and a person came inside. In that case, it was a lovely lady wearing a beautifully styled sakura-patterned kimono. P169 The area around her eyes were colored with a red tinge, and the entire length of her eyes gave off a very strong impression. Even more so is that her wafty, scarlet hair was arranged into two buns on both sides of her head, along with some accessories. Who is this, I wonder? She is like a colorful little flower that blooms in the spring, which gives off a lovely vibe. "It has been a long time, Tenjin-ya's Master, Odanna-sama." "Ah, how are you doing, Suzuran?" "I am doing well, thank you. Suzuran has been working hard to improve her talents, althought not there yet, I am still doing my best to grow and be a better geisha." "You've grown even more lovelier. I heard that you're now famous here in the capitol." "That... I heard that Odanna-sama was visiting so I came all the way here, to see you. " "Well, I am glad to have you here." I just looked at the two, earnestly while eating some hotpot. Surely not, but could it be that Odanna-sama secretly has another lover, and that because he thinks I'm already aware of that, he's going to introduce her now? "Ah, this here is Youto's very famous geisha Suzuran. She is our head clerk, Akatsuki's younger sister." "What? So.. You're an earth spider, a tsuchigumo? No way." P170 "It is not a lie. What you said is true." I stopped eating, stared at the smiling Suzuran, and I blinked my eyes countless times. Her brother's eyes with small irises lack warmth, but here in front of me is the younger sister, all nice and lovely. "Suzuran, this is Tsubaki Aoi. He is Tsubaki Shirou's granddaughter," "Ah, Shirou-sama's..." As soon as Odanna-sama mentioned Grandpa's name, Suzuran's facial expression instantly brightened up, and her cheeks started blushing. She seemed so joyous, and yearning, yet her face seems to be in pain. "So, Shirou-sama is also here, in Kakuriyo? I.. I have to see him no matter what." "Uhm, Grandpa is..." "Shirou did not come here to Kakuriyo. It's just Aoi." Odanna-sama interrupted me talking, and Suzuran just oh-ed. My mouth just slacked. Somehow, it seemed better not to say anything about Granda passing away. "Oh, I see.. Though when I saw your face, even though he's not here, it's as if I already met him." Suzuran turned around, and fixed herself on the tatami mat, her lovely eyebrows beckoning. At that point, in my eyes, I could surmise that Suzuran is not Odanna-sama's lover. "So, in this case, Shiro-sama's daughter is, I should say, Odanna-sama's bride?" "Yes, she is." P171 "No, it isn't like that." Odanna-sama's laughing face confirmed Suzuran's question, while my grim face denied it. Suzuran titled her head on one side and looked as if in agreement. "Aoi here is a really stubborn girl. She said that she is not considering marrying me until she has paid Shirou's debt fully. Right now, she is currently unemployed." "Please saying that I'm unemployed. Also, somehow don't change the story. It isn't that I won't marry you until I paid the debt, it's because I don't want to marry that's why I am paying it on my own, that's the real reason." "What kind of condition is that? If I was offered to get married, in all honesty, I won't have to go through all that toiling and labor..." After refuting entirely the conditions I said, albeit in a childish tone, Odanna-sama sighed, and drank some wine poured for him by Suzuran. "A lady going to all that trouble under Odanna-sama, that seems to be a very unusual condition, isn't it?" "As expected of Shirou's granddaughter, she's like that." "Yes. Aoi-sama resembles Shirou somehow. This brings back memories." I stared at Suzuran who seemed to be longing for the days gone past. When our eyes met, she broke into a smile then a laugh, and I kept my laugh as much as I could. The Ayakashi who knew my grandfather all told me "You're just like Shirou." The Ayakashi that easily forgot him did, to some extent recalled him and would even attest that they knew him. P172 "Say, Suzuran, it has been a long time since you have played your Shamisen for me. Do you have the time right now?" "Yes, it is for that reason that I came here." Suzuran, with her Shamisen on her back went to a corner of the room. And then I was startled by the numerous, fluttery reflections of her obi's feathery decorations, which resembled and reminded me of spider legs. But it wasn't a frightful feeling. As the shamisen was being played, the atmosphere of a lady singing beautifully washes over us. Eating delicious food while hearing this girl play is just luxurious, and I think that at that time, the mood was uplifted. "Wah, that tasted really good. As expected, delicious food is the best, right?" "I had you accompany me here because you will finish up the delicious food prepared for you." We left the restaurant afterwards, and I was in really high spirits. So was Odanna-sama as he leisurely inhaled from his pipe just like before. I was in a situation that had me smiling. I was so glad to have been treated to delicious food. But his cold attitude yesterday reminded me to reconsider the calculations I had of him. "By the way, isn't Suzuran quite lovely? Cuold she possibly be your lover?" P173 After I asked him that question, Odanna-sama raised his eyebrows. "Lover? That's impossible. Suzuran is Akatsuki's younger sister. Besides, to me, there is a particular granddaughter's existence..." "What. You're saying that again.." "Actually, I have no other lovers." "You're lying. Wait, the young mistress, the Yuki-onna, there's a rumor that she's your lover." "Yuki-onna? O-ryo? That can't be." After saying that, Odanna-sama's facial expression delicately changed, pretending as if he was laughing at something. As expected, his attitude became suspicious, but I couldn't fathom his true intentions. "Would you like to go get some dessert?" "OK, let's go eat some." To an abrupt suggesting of eating some dessert, I whole-heartedly agreed. To avoid having to converse, I just agreed without a doubt, but inside I really didn't have any other ideas. I put on my mask and the geta that I'm still not used to, and followed Odanna-sama without any other choice. "Oh!" Again, beyond my line of sight, I had a strong feeling. I was walking a bit along the main road, and within a large crowd of Ayakashi crossing, P174 I got mixed into it. At any rate, my vision was sensitive to the Ayakashi in front of me. That sensitivity is thanks to the fact that they are alive, which is a good thing. I unconsciously stopped and looked back. At that moment, a giant fish-headed Ayakashi bumped into me, which made my Kanzashi fall into the ground. "Owww.. My hairpin..." As I crouched in a panic to pick up my hairpain, an Ayakashi child bumped forcefully on my back. Like an absolutely sudden gust of wind, the crowd parted to make way for a bunch of Ayakashi children running about. Their pretty pinwheels were whirling around making screeching noises, but I can't look at that for very long. "Oww.. They're gone now." I pushed on my hips and stood up. My Kanzashi was safe, but I was an inconvenience to have been crouching in a crowd. I looked around me carefully and started to go pale. It's because I had no idea where Odanna-sama headed to. Probably, that's exactly it, I suppose. No matter how dubious I think that guy is, when I'm alone with no other person that I know around, in an instant I feel hopeless. P175 Let alone this is Kakuriyo.This is the Ayakashi's realm. Right now I'm wearing a mask, and I could hide being a human, but other than that, in this world, I am still an outsider. "Hey, stop dilly-dallyin'!" I stood still, it was a loud yell from a red-faced bearded three-eyed man. He was holding a bottle of liquor while wavering, and was probably drunk. I fled the scene in a panic, going along the main road from side to side, until I ended in a smaller pathway with very few people. and walked on the side of the road. Within this wispy and dodgy atmosphere was a back alley. There were paper lanterns that slowly lighted the surroundings, and it was likely that because there aren't that many Ayakashi here, I won't be running into one. "This isn't good... This isn't good..." Murmuring and grumbling, with sweat dripping on my face, I was desperately breaking loose in this labyrinth-like back alley. Unfortunately, the more I walked and moved forward, the more I got lost. I was surrounded by houses that seem to have a dull, dense air around them. I stared nervously at the surroundings. Whenever a small sound pops up, it was as if there were a lot of nasty Ayakashi running around. Whether they were large or small, they were hidden by the darkness. It's good that I still had my mask on. However, along the way, I stumbled across an unexpected place. I slipped and fell on my backside, and it felt chilly. P176 "Ice?" Falling on the ground were spherical ice that seem to pile up and spread like water. I just noticed it because of that. It was a good thing that I still have the uchiwa fan still tucked on my back, so I pulled it out in a hurry. As it continued, a mysterious apparition appeared. Even though it was a spring evening, multitudes of snowballs started piling up in front of me, and I fell backwards. It was at that moment that the mask I was wearing slipped off. "It's a human..." "A human girl.. Looks delicious..." Once the mask has come off, it felt like the breaths of the Ayakashi drew nearer and nearer. Holy crap, I thought, and I stood up and started to run and flee, but because I was unaccustomed to the geta sandals I couldn't escape fast enough. Anyone who had an afterthought could have moved fast with their limbs, and I knew that I shouldn't have worn these clogs but I still did.This is bad. This is AWFUL.** "Gaaaah let go of me! You HOOLIGAN Youkai!" Spitting out those words, as if coming out of a daze, I swiped and swung the paperplant uchiwa fan thoughtlessly. Instantly after that, something unexpected happened. A strong whirlwind sprung up, and all of the Ayakashi surrounding me got blown upward. They were all yelling as they rose upwards, eventually looking like stars.

T/N: I was doing my best not to translate this part into ‘It was at this moment, I knew I was f****d.’ But that’s the feeling lol P177 In an instant, there was a strong whirlwind. Indeed, I just realized what had just happened, and I stared slowly at the leaf-looking uchiwa fan in my hand. I couldn't speak. OK, however I swing and move this fan, it seems that it creates a really strong gust of wind. "Thanks to this uchiwa, I was saved. I couldn't think of eating this now." I smiled a bit painfully as I wiped the sweat on my forehead. But, I sensed something again in my peripheral vision. It seems that no matter where I go, uneasiness follows me. I quickly turned my head when I saw a face, and hurriedly followed it through the dark back alleys, around every corner. Just as I was about to turn around a corner, I would stop and see if I'm about to head into walls. As soon as I could see who I was, I just cannot stop running and chasing. "Wah, Ahhh!" I peeked at the corner, and as soon as my face became visible, the person jumped backward. It seemed like I couldn't lose sight of that person anymore, and that person removed their straw hat. "Are you.. The Yuki-onna?" That person was Tenjin-ya's Young Mistress, the Snow lady O-ryo. Her white kimono was a bit disheveled as she collapsed into the ground. P178 "Whaa.. What're you doing? You may be a human, but you're so uncivilized!" "Hey, that's my line. You were the one who made the ice spread on where I was standing a while ago, wasn't it? But the snowballs flew off. When my mask tore off, the dangerous Ayakashi came to eat me there." "Miss. Humans here in Kakuriyo are just hoodlums, and it's a good thing that they'd get eaten. You and Odanna-sama may have gone out, but you're a thousand years too early." "So that's it..." I suddenly saw O-ryo's eyes in front of me. She was showing here true feelings in her face. She was probably jealous of me when Odanna-sama and I went out, and followed us here. "Could it possibly be that, you rode in the Kaikakumaru? By your own accord?" "How I got here is none of your business." "Don't feign ignorance. Could it be that you abandoned your post? Isn't a Young Mistress expected to be prim and proper?" My reply seemed to have shocked O-ryo. "But.. It's not like you're not doing anything!" "But I'm nothing like the inn's staff." "Don't pretend like you have no connections like that! This is why I hate human girls!" "Alright then, but I hate Ayakashi too, you know." P179 In that time, that place got filled with sounds of squawking. In the innermost part of the back alley that we were in, we started hearing hoarse yells of "Wait!" "Don't you dare run away!" O-ryo and I stopped our verbal fight.  The dark alley only has one street, and on the other side, the sounds of someone wearing geta sandals can be heard in the darkness, and it seems like a geisha was running towards us. She was wrapped in a flowing sakura-patterned kimono, and I recognized her. "Suzuran-san?!" It was Suzuran-san, the geisha. She also noticed O-ryo and I. "O.. Odanna-sama.. Is he not here?" Looking pale, Suzuran went towards us and clang onto me. She seemed to have been chased, and her body was trembling. From the farthest part of the back alley, I saw Ayakashi pointing their fingers and yelling "She's here!" I had no idea what the situation was about, but I thought that we must escape, in a bit I pulled Suzuran's hand and as if in a daze we ran towards the other side of the road. We turned toward several corners, and we hid within the shady parts in-between the buildings, and for a while we concealed our breaths. The footsteps of Suzuran's pursuers eventually sounded as if they're already far away, and already dispersed. "Are you OK?" "Yes." Suzuran replied as she nodded her head. P180 "I'm sorry, Odanna-sama isn't here. I lost sight of him." "Oh... I see..." The geisha's kimono was beautiful, but probably very heavy, and yet no matter how heavy it was, the decorations attached on the feathery obi were still intact. Suzuran running fast wearing such garb must have been a very extra-ordinary sight. "What on earth Suzuran, who were you running away from?" She was just simply perplexed, and didn't say anything. "Wait up, I'm going there too." The Yuki-onna O-ryo was following us from behind. It seemed like she came down from the sky, and with her white kimono swinging in front of me, she looked like she was fluttering as she flew down with a thud. "The Ayakashi chasing Suzuran were the Ittan-momen from the large drapery seller, Yahata-ya. They say that Yahata-ya is from the Southwest Hachiyo, they have money and power, aren't they an influential and long-established store? Suzuran, I wonder, could you have angered Yahata-ya's master?" "O-ryo san..." It seems that O-ryo and Suzuran knew each other. Nevertheless, Suzuran was still shaking. In any case, I was thinking that it was inevitable that I send the girl home safely, but she just couldn't move. P181 "I was sold." "Really?!" With a grim expression, Suzuran began talking about her circumstances. "Lately, Yahata-ya's young master whom I receive patronage from, insistently keeps dropping by, and a while ago when I went back to the geisha house, the boss that I trust so much commanded me to marry into Yahata-ya. 'That is for your own happiness.' he said. I detested it, and they know it, but they can surely get paid a very large sum of money, so they sold me off." She braced her face, and clutched her fists to her chest. "What is that, it's not the worst. The Yahata-ya's young master who spoils and pampers, is a young man from a rich family. He is famously known to go crazy over any girl he fancies. Even in Tenjin-ya, there is someone who does whatever they please." O-ryo reminded me of something I hate, and I frowned. Suzuran just kept her head hung. "The geisha house is just in front of Yahata-ya's property. I pretended to pack up my belongings, and I jumped down from my room's window. I fled as if death was surrounding me." The girl's expression was grave. Somehow, I could relate to Suzuran's situation after hearing her circumstances with regards to being stalked by a rich guy. No, it's a more complicated story than that. It's because Suzuran could lose her livelihood because of this. P182 "Oh, I see..." Our shoulders shuddered when we heard a voice other than ours, from somewhere. I thought they found us, but I saw that black kimono and the black haori, it was no other than Odanna-sama. Suzuran called out "Odanna-sama!!" considerably, and felt very much relieved to be safe. As for me, I could only say a few words. "You, where have you been until now? You left me behind!" "You disappeared! These back alleys were dizzying, and you were sitting and hiding in the dark spaces in between these buildings. Anyone who tries to find you won't find you. Rather than they finding you, I found you instead. I want you to compliment me, at the least," Odanna-sama uninterestedly retorted. I wonder if he's angry. But for sure, I got here in this place despite myself. Could it be that, he was relentlessly searching for me? Oh well, whatever it was I don't care anymore. "Oh my.. uhmm.. Alright, I'm here." No, it's not alright, there's someone else here. It's the Yuki-onna, O-ryo. She was hiding her face behind her sleeve and was about to run away in haste. But Odanna-sama has sharp eyes and found her. P183 "O-ryo, why are you here?" "Oh, that, uhm..." "I was sure that you said you were attending your duties in Tenjin-ya." O-ryou lightly and furtively watched Odanna-sama's facial expressions, and shut her mouth completely. "I hope it's not what I am thinking, but could you have abandoned your duties and came here?" As soon as Odanna-sama spoke those words, the entire surroundings suddenly got cold. The Yuki-onna's eyebrows twitched, but while seemingly agreeing, her facial expressions became unreadable. Moreover, I realized that our hair and our clothes were starting to get covered in snow. This snow lady, who threw countless snowballs at me, in an instant, why am I just shaking things off. "Well, whatever. Suzuran is here. Suzuran, since you have already escaped from Yahata-ya's gang, for the time being, it is a good idea to go to Tenjin-ya. It is safer there, and you can tell me everything that happened." As soon as Odanna-sama spoke to Suzuran, she felt relieved. That was the extent of her dreadful thoughts. "Odanna-sama, I apologize deeply." Odanna-sama spoke again, to Suzuran in a gentle voice. P184 "What are you apologizing for? You are our head clerk's younger sister. To me, you two are like two adorable grandchildren. Even though you were forced into a marriage proposal, we cannot be silent about it. Come now, let us go back to Kaikakumaru." After that, I patted Suzuran's shoulders and hugged her, and we just exchanged looks. As I nodded in approval, a low voice from the Yuki-onna came from behind. "Alright then, I guess I'm going home too." O-ryo seemed exhausted.Odanna-sama's eyes may have darkened, but I think she needs to pay for her mistakes. I was exasperated. "Yuki-onna, before we were found by Odanna-sama, were you thinking of going back to Tenjin-ya?" "You.. You shut up! You have nothing to do with this!" "Well, that was expected of you." It was like a time when a parent goes out of a room and leaves the child unattended, and when the kid quietly leaves to play hooky and wander about gets caught in the act. A while ago, the Yuki-onna was up on her high horse, as if invincible, but now she's disheartened, and her shoulders dropped. I think she looked like melting ice cream. P185 As wispy clouds drifted past, daybreak has begun. The Ayakashi's activities have ended, and in a little while the shops started closing for the day. We, on the other hand will be returning over to the Southern Torii gate, to ride Tenjin-ya's ship. "Ah, she's there! She's boarding Tenjin-ya's Kaikakumaru!" In that moment, we were definitely found out by the Yahata-ya's henchmen. Those guys seemed to have searched the entire harbor relentlessly for Suzuran, and for a very long time. Everyone had white hair, and all of Yahata-ya's guys had a human form. Each of their faces were covered with a white cloth with "Han"** written on it, making their expressions unreadable, but their impatience can be easily seen through their movements. Odanna-sama left Suzuran in the care of the three Nopperabou sisters, who came out to take her inside the ship, as instructed. Odanna-sama and I stood leisurely in front of the ship while we casually looked at the Ittan-momen. "The Ittan-momen have a strong image of being a long, single piece of cloth, but these ones have a human form, don't they?" "Ayakashi usually change their forms. Whatever Ayakashi they are, they have a human shape." "So when you say that, the earth spiders, even Ginji-san, you all have a human form?"

T/N: Ittan-momen - they’re long pieces of cloth youkai, that strangle humans. The “Han” ( 反 ) on their faces also form the words for drapery, as ittan ( 一反 ) is a unit of measurement, mostly for cloths. P186 While we were casually chatting, a powerful voice boomed out. "Tenjin-ya's Master. Please hand over the geisha, Suzuran to us. We legally and formally received her!" In the middle of the Ittan-momen stands a young man, surely from a rich family. A young man wearing a very gaudy haori. With his long, white hair flapping like a flag, his face was strongly expressing a smile. Beside him was a terrible-looking red-faced man-servant, who seems to be surrounded by a lot of underlings. The other Ayakashi in the main road, and those who were returning to the harbor to board their boats who seem to be so elegant were all going "What's that? What's going on?" and started to look at the scene. On the roofs were some guys' camera shutters going off. Odanna-sama on the other hand faced the nervous Ittan-momen, and did his usual smile. "Hey there, aren't you the young master of Yahata-ya, whom we were always under the care of? What happened to you, your facial expression has changed? Suzuran is our head clerk's younger sister, and they always have been by themselves, so I'm bringing her back to Tenjin-ya so they could be together." "How shameless! Even though you say that you're always under our care, the truth is that Tenjin-ya has never used our fabrics!" Odanna-sama's retort insulted the short-statured man-servant. P187 From the side, Odanna-sama was stealthily asked. "Doesn't Tenjin-ya use Yahata-ya's products?" "Our yukata were provided to us by the owner of Shikiidou. Yahata-ya may be old and established, but aren't their products fairly expensive?" "Ah, about that..." This was different from that time with the Tengu. Especially when it comes to a point that there is no customer-client relationship, the rivalry just gets worse. Once again, with his usual smile Odanna-sama spoke to the young master. "Moreover, young lord, Suzuran awfully seems to not like you. A marriage obtained unreasonably, isn't that selfish on your part? Hmm... My opinion is there's nothing more useless than a loveless marriage, isn't it?" "Wha... What did you just say to me?!" The young master's face showed his anger, and went to his man-servant. Selfishly, he retorted, "You have insulted me. I am declaring a war! By any means!" But to me, seeing as there is no other choice, with a smug grin** Odanna-sama replied "Well, if you say so." That is no joke. With a nonchalant face, Odanna-sama commanded Kaikakumaru’s crew to get up and sail.

T/N: Shit-eating grin is a better translation but Odanna-sama’s too pretty for that lol. P188 What, we haven't gotten in, are they going to leave the harbor? "Hey, stop! Tenjin-ya's ship!" As Kaikakumaru slowly and steadily rose, from everywhere a flood of Ittan-momen started lining up, preparing their bows and arrows, and assumed their shooting stance. The tips of their arrows were covered with an oil-soaked cloth, with pyres filled with blazing yellow enchanted fire in front of them, and the dangerous army faced Kaikakumaru and started to shoot. I was dumbfounded. With a sudden and loud gasp, Odanna-started to defend us. Standing with an expressionless and unchanging face, the arrows flying towards me were received by him with one hand, and fiercely blew out the enchanted flames like trash that gets thrown away. I think it's a flawless defense. However, several arrows hit Kaikakumaru , and the sails started to catch fire. Not just Kaikakumaru, but the other surrounding boats were reached by the flaming arrows, and everwhere the flames started rising up. The screaming and panicking voices of the Ayakashi were audible. It was terrible. It was merciless. It was inhumane! That was what I was thinking, but those guys were Ayakashi. As for Odanna-sama, he was still blowing on his pipe with a composed face. Seeing that again, the Man-servant got excited and the Yahata-ya’s Ittan-momen squad once again started to aim, towards us and prepared for shooting their flaming arrows. P189 This time they were aiming towards Odanna-sama. If this continues, I'll be in danger. "Oww!" A small burning piece fell down and grazed my arm. Instantly, I remembered in that moment the Tengu's uchiwa fan. "Fire!" The Ittan-momen squad pulled back their bows and released their flaming arrows toward us again. Without any hesitation, I leaned forward in front of Odanna-sama and deliberately fanned the uchiwa fan upwards, and I put a lot of power in fanning it. A strong gust of wind blew wildly. The flaming arrows flying towards me were all extinguished, and flew towards and beyond the Southern Torii gate. After that, the numerous human-bodied Ittan-momen of Yahata-ya were halted and then like paper were blown away. Even the ox-cart that they were using also got turned over. Only the young lord and his man-servant were left, desperately clinging onto a pillar. "Ohhh.. You defended me, Aoi!" "No, I did that to save myself." Odanna-sama may have spoken in joy, but I was just stating the obvious. I was changed, and I understood the power of the uchiwa fan. I stared at it begrudgingly. P190 "Looking at this leaf, it's an awesome uchiwa fan! I was only going to use this for serving seafood dishes, but definitely not anymore." "Yes indeed, it's good that you don't. There's nothing as precious as that treasured fan." Odanna-sama's retort definitely hit. The Yahata-ya's Ittan-momen started to pull back. "Isn't that the Tengu's treasured uchiwa fan?" "What on earth is that little girl?" I heard so many whispered voices. So many Ayakashi were gawking. At least, the wind brought the Ittan-momen down. Their young master, with his long hair disheveled by the blowing wind, and his body equally in distress, pointed at me and yelled with anger, "What did you just do, little girl? Who are you? Are you a Tengu?" "No, I can't say who I am.." Right now I am a human girl. Incidentally, unemployed. I am not a Tengu. But Odanna-sama relaxed his lips. He pulled my waist and magnanimously started to proclaim, "This is Tsubaki Shirou's granddaughter, Tsubaki Aoi. I am Tenjin-ya's master, and she is my bride!" "Whaaaat?" My face spelled "What is this man talking about?" After his proclamation, he pulled me close and from where we were standing leaped up, and with a strong force flew up towards Kaikakumaru’s wooden deck. P191 It was like riding a jet coaster, I was mentally unprepared for it as we landed. At the back of my mind, the harbor was adrift with an eerie silence. But that silence was broken by a high-pitched scream, as I was looking down my voice just exploded. "Move to port side, steer to port side..." As my consciousness fled that place, there were other Ayakashi in their cruise ships. "Oh, hell, no, Kakuriyo is doomed!" Why were they expecting Kakuriyo's demise, my head couldn't wrap around it, that some Ayakashi were so serious. "That Tsubaki Shirou's granddaughter, she is the wife of Tenjin-ya's ogre-god?" "Isn't that a tragedy?" It seems that the sudden interest can't be suppresed, it was the topic of discussion among the lowly Ayakashi while having their booze and appetizers. "Go back! Go back! The news' evening edition must be replaced!" "There's no time! We'll just hurry it up for the afternoon edition tomorrow!" The news item about a celebrity scandal seems to be catching on, and from beyong the large Torii gate, Youto's crowd was broken up by Ayakashi that look like news reporters. Odanna-sama's proclamation was a shocking target, it seems. To the Ayakashi, Tenjin-ya's Master and Shirou Tsubaki's granddaughter "getting married" was obviously horrible, scary and revolting, and it created a huge ruckus. P192 "Say, Odanna-sama, why were those Ayakashi shocked? Are you a celebrity?" "I'm not a celebrity, I am Tenjin-ya's Master. But, well, I do hold the title of a Hachiyo. Being one gives fame and power. Each of Kakuriyo's remarkable Ayakashi, there are a lot of stories when it comes to sudden marriage proposals, whether with a daughter or a granddaughter." "Hmmmph. So up until today, you were single?" Even though it was a dodgy question, Odanna-sama confidently agreed. "Well, that's it. Which is why in Kakuriyo, it’s common gossip to ask who shall be my bride. Those are what people talk about me. A powerful person, particularly an Ayakashi who holds the position of Hachiyo, news about their marriage are always a subject of public interest by the populace in Kakuriyo." "Interest.. But, I don't think anyone would be happy about that." “Haha, it's not really a pleasant matter. Surely, it is a public announcement, and because Shirou's granddaughter was involved, everyone was absolutely caught off-guard. It's probably the worst." Odanna-sama's way of speaking sounded dubious. I titled my head. "That's.. because Aoi is Shirou's granddaughter." P193 Looking at my face, with a sneering smile, Odanna-sama's remarks about Grandpa seem to have a strong impact. To Kakuriyo, Grandpa is a very influential person. Even amongst Ayakashi, he is the scariest. From the soles of my feet, a cold chill crept up, and I looked below. Yahata-ya's Ittan-momen were creating a noisy argument. They stopped, and other than being unable to wave their hands to us in the boat, they could only stare at the slowing rising Kaikakumaru in vexation. Even as Kaikakumaru’s sails were ablaze, it was still rising up. Despite that grave 10 minutes, the ship's deck still standing, the commotion that happened below, no matter how much I think about it, I still can't understand it. Odanna-sama seems to have lost interest in what happened before, and started instructing the ship's crew, who were desperately extinguishing the fires on the sails here and there, and the blazing flames of Kaikakumaru’s sails were eventually extinguished. The beautiful sunrise from the east has come. Normally, this would be a silent time in Kakuriyo. But today, Kakuriyo's capitol had an early-morning disturbance. While thinking about the myriad of things that happened today, the day started brightly as before, and I rubbed my eyes. P194 A while later, I realized what happened, and the next day, Kakuriyo's Metropolitan Newspaper reads "Bride from Hell went Haywire", among other things, I was decorated with a very typical and one-sided title. From then on, without me knowing it, I was known as the rumored "Tenjin-ya's Wife from Hell."

End of Chapter 5, Volume 1.

Volume 1 Translations by Kakuriyo-translations

Prologue               Chapter 1            Chapter 2      Chapter 3       Chapter 4

References:

Wonderful site for the youkai references

Other stuff I used to do this: Kodansha Kanji Learner’s Dictionary (you can buy here, I’m not sponsored btw). I was about to buy the older edition but then the newer one came out 2013 so I bought that instead. Worth buying since I was able to find nearly all of the words I needed just by stroke pattern alone.

Merriam-Webster's Japanese-English Dictionary (the red-covered 1996 version is apparently out of print right now). This is what I have been using for a very long time, I bought it when I was still a fetus (yes I am old so what lol), and after so many years, when compared to newer editions, I still prefer this one since its entirety is Japanese-English, the English to Japanese gloss are just 16 pages tops, so you get more Japanese words for your buck. But that’s just my opinion, maybe other people prefer the Jap-En x En-Jap IDEK.

Basic online dictionary, Jisho. Knowledge of verb conjugations  and other words are necessary since not all have entries.

If you can read Japanese, you can buy the whole set in Amazon Japan, they’re shipping worldwide now, I think.

[laughtermagick]

Okay ! So some context then I’ll ask some questions, I’m doing some world building on the larger cosmology for my world, currently I’ve been focusing on evil spirts or fiends, and I’ve separated them into the different ideas for evil based on different philosophies and teachings, I have spirits that represent Tyranny of which I’m largely pulling from abrahamic myth, your typical soul dealing devils there to represent the evil in human society ...

Neat project, my dude! I'm interested in how your demons from "Tyranny" will philosophically differ from "Corruption" demons. I’m not sure what you’re exactly looking for, but I can ramble about some Asian mythology...

The oni are extremely iconic (and just look badass) and you might also be familiar already with kitsune and shinigami... A good Googling option for more demons are the yokai. For example, the "Snow Woman" is a yokai that appears in snowstorms, drifting all ghastly-graceful, and she sucks human souls right out the mouth (Harry Potter dementor-style) until the victim's body turns ice-cold rigid.

Now, this won't be useful at all to your story, but it just makes me giggle: Another type of yokai is the kappa. It's a humanoid frog demon that likes to drown people/livestock and steal life-force from the butt. (Yes, you read that right.) Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was based on them, I shit you not. They're considered today to be more "cryptid animal" than "folklore beast," which is a troubling thought. A more useful option for you might be the tengu, which typically have wings and sometimes beaks (or abnormally long noses) on otherwise human bodies.

I think a little homage to tengu was in the movie Spirited Away with the witch Yubaba:

Some Buddhist traditions believed that a dead person's ghost could transform into a tengu with enough powerful malice. If a place/person had bad energy and got too restless without having a chinkon ritual performed (to calm the spirits), then shit got real. The average disgruntled person would become a "small tengu," (a disembodied poltergeist trying to terrorize and/or possess people) but the ones to really look out for were "greater tengu" (supernatural-powered flesh-n-blood creatures) that had been warriors, priests, or even emperors during their mortal lives. In particular, if a priest had learned how to control metaphysical power but hadn't also learned true wisdom and true compassion, then becoming a tengu was much more likely after death. Lots of possibilities with the tengu, I think, for your world-building.

As for Eastern varieties of hell, three options come to mind: Naraka (Indian/Hindu), Diyu (Chinese/Buddhism), and Yomi (Japanese/Shintoism).

Naraka is a place of darkness, torment, and monsters. It's closer to Catholic purgatory rather than Protestant eternal damnation, because after an appropriate period of punishment, souls are reincarnated back on the earthly mortal plane. It might not be forever-and-ever, but it does take an extraordinarily long time to pay your dues and get sent back up topside. Lots of hellish realms, lots of inventive tortures, just lots to do, ya know? Folklore says there's a god of death chilling on a throne next to a cronie henchman demon keeping detailed records of every living human being's behavior.

Diyu is basically "Naraku 2.0" or the "Naraku DLC expansion pack" with lots of Chinese folklore add-ons. It's an underground maze with multiple levels of depth and each layer has countless torture chambers. Some traditions say there are 10 courts of hell while others say there are 18 levels. Each specializes in a certain type of torture, and souls will die over and over until they reach atonement and finally get reincarnated. The torture is really, really elaborate and very specific to what the person did wrong during their lifetime. Think of the "Saw" movie series mixed with "American Horror Story: Murder House". The old painting illustrations of Diyu are just... a lot.

Last up is Yomi, which I like to think of as DepressionLand.™ It's not active torment, but you don't usually get to leave. If you enter alive and you eat some DepressionLand food, it's almost impossible to escape (similar vibe to European folklore about eating fairy food). The hellscape is super-gloomy, all dark and shadowy, and ghosts just wander around being stuck and miserable. Shinto religion is profoundly germaphobic and kinda obsessive-compulsive (closest things to "sin" are literal dirt and breaking taboos), so the freakiest thing about their perspective on hell is that the underworld is tainted/polluted. There's just this disgusting sense of skin-creeping, hair-raising, gut-clenching wrongness about it.

Hope this gives a few ideas to toss around! But if this didn’t get you anywhere, follow-up questions are welcome.

[kanashierihime]

English fanfiction to come

When you have too many ideas and you want to write them down even if it takes years to do it 😂.

Short abc of stories below. Help me decide priority of writing ��

AoKuro (Kuroko No Basket)

Regrets (One shot) - Warning: Major Character Death. Kuroko remembers Middle School, his young love and the world of empty sympathy that stole his love away. 

 Can We Still Be Friends (Around 8 chapters not sure)- Warning: Depression, suicidal thought - Kuroko and Aomine didn’t see each other for two years after being thrown away from the team of Miracles . Everything change when while doing his shopping he spots Aomine’s mother who asks him if he maybe could visit her son in the mental hospital. 

Wish (4 chapters) -  Aomine was bored. Everything was boring. New team, new rivals. Boredom created his life, till one day he wakes up from his nap in a cat body. Just what the hell?! 

Chrisawa (Daiya No A) 

You Get My Love  (around 10 chapters not sure) Warning: Depression, Homophobia, yips - Sawamura tries hard to blend into a team, but everyone just reminds him that he isn’t needed. The only person that actually cares about him is his mentor- Chris. He still loud and stubborn to be an ace, but then yips happened and he just couldn’t win over this. So he goes back to Nagano feeling worse than ever. He failed everyone. But surprisingly his mentor still visits him making Sawamura’s heart do some weird backflips. 

Forget ur books (4 chapters).  Sawamura was cursed as a child for disrespecting minor god. Now every time he read book he can make it real around him. So his family reminds him to read in a closed house to not affect the city in this weird magic. But one day while Sawamura is reading some of the history book no one noticed that one of the windows is open, turning the city into a place where nothing is normal. Especially not these warriors with swords ready to cut anyone in their way. 

Mirror (2 chapters) Warning: Cheating, coming out. Chris is working a doctor busy with his carrier. He has a wife but their marriage isn’t happy.  But then one day to his clinic came a young boy (who wasn’t so young) who made his heart skip a bit with his smile and nice words. 

BakuDeku (Boku No Hero Academia) 

(Don’t comment how most of these fics have P!nk song as a title, her song are just A+ okay? xD)

Trapped Mind (5 chapters) Warning: Angst, Hurt, Addiction to drug, alcohol, sex, depression, suicidal attempt, memory lost.  Izuku fell into his own trap of being a perfect hero. Katsuki not wanting to see his friends being judged to death by being just human that can make mistakes, decide to play the bad guy and till Izuku won’t get his memories back. But this task is far harder than any mission he did so far. Being hated by everyone left him trapped in a dead-end. 

Who Am I (5 chapters) Warning: Toxic parental love, Memory lost, bullying, depression.  Izuku moves to USA as a child after his accident where he loses half of his right leg. His mother is warry of everyone in his surroundings, she doesn’t want him to go back to Japan and meet with a person she blames of being responsible for his accident. But Izuku is having enough of being trapped in her arms and want to find out who he is, who he was before his mother decided to create him as a weak man.

90 Days (4 chapters?) Warning: angst. Izuku always wanted to repair his friendship with Katsuki. Wanted to laugh with him, study, going out. But reality showed that it’s not possible. Katsuki found new friends, people he likes to hang out. Their second year in UA and Katsuki b-day was the last straw to kill his heart. Seeing his friend laughing with their classmates, not being bothered by all these hugs and photos. Izuku runs away to his dorm room to cry his eyes out. And decides to go over Kacchan by the end of 90 days.

Walk Me Home (6 chapters) Izuku has autism that prevents him from having normal life. His only friend is Katsuki who seems enoying spending his time with Deku. But hearing his mom talking to his dad about her fears of him not being able to function without their help, to even find a job since meeting with people often ends with him having a panic attack. He wants to change, he wants to show his mom and Katsuki that he can be a proper part of society. But for that, he needs Kacchan help. 

Secrets (10 chapters) Warning: Child abuse, Angst, pedophilia. Deku is a vocalist in Katsuki band with Kaminari, Tokoyami, Awase. Deku is the only person who can deal with Katsuki moods and can sing the song their drummer creates. Fans and media have their fun wondering what is the relationship between them. Deku also wonders what is his relationship with Kacchan and why he can’t sing his own songs. 

Happy (around 10 chapters) Warning: Soulmate, angst, depression. Izuku loves heroes even tho he wasn’t born with a quirk, but he don’t have time to dream since his family life isn’t so happy. His dad found his true soulmate and his mom lost her mind over broken heart since for her his dad was her soulmate. Izuku from his young days must watch out for his mom, and every day he prays to not find her dead when he returns home.  Even meeting All Might didn’t make him eager to focus in hero path. He refuse All Might to be a hero, he doesn’t have time and his mom would go crazy if he would left her side. Wanting to save Kacchan was just a short thought of ending his misery. But somehow Deku ends up in UA in GE curse. And soon he finds up that his Soulmate is Kirishima. He feels how his body is changing because of it thing he doesn’t realize that Katsuki isn’t happy to find out.

Silent Scream (5 chapters) Warnings: Bullying. Izuku has troubles with speaking, so his parents showed him sign langue which find out more fun and enjoyable. But soon fun times ends when he ends up with the same kindergarten as Katsuki who wants to make him speak no matter what.  Everything goes in the far worse direction the moment when Katsuki gets his quirk. Not being able to control his new ability he goes too far with the explosion that made Izuku lose his hearing in the left ear.  (okay so it;s “A Silent Voice” but in MHA AU xD) 

Hurt 2b Human (DUNNO) Warning: angst, war, A/B/O, death. They say that Alpha ones are people that were blessed by gods. Omega were fruits of sweet desire for happiness. Katsuki was an Alpha. Japanese Solider who gonna die in Death Chamber any moment. No one knows why Japan lost the war. The only thing he knows that Russia won and now he gonna die.  Or maybe there is a hope? 

Timebomb (12 chapters) Fantasy AU. Katsuki and Deku fights with the evil mistresses who seeing that she can lose to them decide to split them apart and send Izuku to a different dimension. Katsuki roar with the grief of losing his mate. He captures his enemy to only learn that she can't bring him back. There is no way he gonna see his Deku again. But he can’t give up. He asks Uraraka for help and she creates a necklace to send him to other worlds, tho it will be random... So there he is going through 10 worlds to find his mate and return home with him. 

Dream of the Death ( 5 chapters)  Warning: major character death. Katsuki has few regrets in life. The biggest is telling his friend to kill himself.  But then by villain attack he is sent to the past where Izuku is alive. Soon he realizes that whatever he says to Izuku doesn’t go through. So he changes his tacting and go to his younger self and please him to save Izuku. 

Bonus story: Ten Times where Izuku got hit by quirk and made Katsuki ask himself of his sexuality (10 chapters) 

Haikyuu!!

Different way of love (3 chapters) Warning: Angst, Homophobia, depression, suicide, dealing with lose.  Kuroo thinks he has nice life. Good friends, a lovely boyfriend, and a dog. Nothing to complain. Till in Sawamura’s life show up his first love and things go not the way Kuroo thought it would.  Sawamura is dealing with depression, love issues, and past that can't be really forgotten. Life isn’t an easy mission.

Neko Love (4 chapters) Warning: Abuse.  Yokai had it enough of being ruled by weak humans. They started a revolution against them and won. Now people are their slaves and taste how yokais felt when humans bullied them for ages. Kuroo is a nekomata. He loves living in Sawamura household. He supposed to leave or rule over his past masters but he can’t find a strength to abuse his young master.

Tengu’s Book (6 chapters) Warning: abuse. Kuroo has the worst luck in the world. He was born with these strange powers and thanks to them he can see yokais. Not very pleasant thing to see. People usually are wary of him and are afraid of his weird looks and muttering.  Kuroo is used to being alone. Till one day he meets a tengu who gives him an offer. He gonna be his bodyguard for finding his wings. What can go wrong?

Dragon’s Heart (5 chapters) Warning: Slight angst. Fantasy AU. Iwaizumi is a dragon rider but the thing is, he seems to not being able to bond with his dragon so after his school is destroyed by Demons he searches for beasts master Sawamura who was cursed by Demons to be able to talk with monsters and was thrown from society. Their meeting is awkward. Sawamura can’t really speak human langue since humans usually avoid him and Iwaizumi can’t deal with his responsibilities as a warrior. 

Your Heartbeats (one shot) part of my Soulmate AU. Warning: Homophobia. Kuroo meets Bokuto in middle school and for the first time in his short life can feel his heartbeat. Bokuto was looking at him with the same confusion and happiness. All good vibes ended five minutes later when another player commented on how gross they were and should cure this. But does being in love is a really bad thing? Even if it between the same gender? 

Let me be drunk for now (5 chapters) Publish AU created by @bringmemyqueen  I like this idea so I gonna write something in it. Daichi has enough of his work, of people in his work. Why he seems to attract only men? Doesn’t he deserve some nice lady waiting for him at home? So every night he goes to a bar to drink and forget about his coworkers. He doesn’t know that this nice guy who keeps talking to him while drinking his beer is an author who works under Oikawa. But Iwaizumi is nice and his hands are warm when he touches him.

Where is my fun (one shot) Kenma prefers to stay home and play his videogames. It is his day off, so he has plans of not going out all day. But his friend has a different idea and god. Kenma can’t refuse him.

Bad Guy (one shot) It all started as a simple admiration. Watching Sawamura in action gave him chills. Even his old captain didn;t made him feel this way. He wanted to be tamed by this plain captain so he went to Karasuno to just see the object of his obsession, no big plans for it. Then this weird duo was screaming to him to leave their Queen alone and he barely remembered that cute glasses girl he was focused at Karasuno’s Captain that looked at him with such intensity that Terushima wanted to crawl to him and beg for something he never wanted to do before. 

That is freaking long. XD Thank for reading :) 

In MHA I wish i could write for different pairing alone fics but it just didn’t click in with me to try it. I’m still try to figure out some characters so their appearing in my fic won’t be a total disaster. (I’m looking at you Inasa xD)

[coratorium]

place your bets now, folks, here's where my money's at

reasoning below the cut for those interested (very long)

guardian taking a ritualist angle with sacrificial daggers or something seems fairly obvious, only other thing i could think of as plausible was warhorn, which also wouldnt really surprise me tbf. the thing that tilted me towards daggers instead of warhorn is that warhorn would presumably be an offhand support/ranged weapon, and it would be very bizarre for them to just drop a massive nerf on scepter before revealing a spec that would benefit greatly from running scepter (yes i consider the cd nerf on scepter 2 massive, it nearly doubled and that was the best skill on that weapon)

rev has a lot of plausible options honestly but ive been seeing rumors about rev getting a power dps spec with a tengu legend and a greatsword for so long ive wholly bought into it. thatd kick ass. rule of cool on this one. if not greatsword i would expect maybe axe mainhand, maybe daggers or pistols? definitely not rifle or longbow immediately following shortbow, that'd be weird

warrior getting a defensive support spec seems likely at this point, as does staff being the weapon best suited for that role. shortbow and maybe pistol could work if they get some kind of other spec? scepter or focus would REALLY surprise me

they have to give engi mace so all the engineers can use that damn wrench skin for maces finally PLEASE there are so many mace skins that would be good for engi but they CANNOT USE THE DAMN THINGS why do only heavy armor professions get to use maces

ranger getting some kind of big game hunter angle with rifle or pistols seems plausible as a thematic angle imo? i feel like theres about equal chances of either, just went with rifle for the blunderbuss vibes. if not a gun, alternatives id consider are offhand sword (dual wielding dnd ranger vibes), or maybe shield or hammer if they get some kind of tanky defensive spec?

thief getting focus is probably my hottest take here but heres my thought process. the nerf to boon thief in raids recently (specifically reducing the number of allies buffed by Detonate Plasma from 10 to 5) was pretty huge, but the reasoning behind it was what really confused me. specifically, they mentioned "making squad compositions more flexible". they phrased this as though they were doing boon thief a favor. the only way this makes sense, imo, is if the next thief spec is support-focused, and the boon thief change is in advance to set up for them to be viable 5-man boon support on WAY more raids than they are right now. so! all that said, focus seemed most thematically appropriate as a defensive party support tool. warhorn, shield, and torch also seem like decent options. if it's not a support spec at all, offhand sword, greatsword, and axes become more plausible options.

elementalist was tricky, mostly because they have so few weapon choices to begin with, partially because i forgot that the dual skills were weaver-exclusive and therefore would not be a concern for any onehanded weapons the new spec ends up with (can you tell i haven't played tempest in a while?). my angle here is that a lot of these weapons are technically already accessible to eles thanks to their conjures. flame axe, earth shield, fiery greatsword, lightning hammer, ice bow. they COULD double up on one of these, but for the sake of trying to make something that feels new and different, i'm going to assume that they won't. given that those 6 weapons are now off the table (including both types of bow), that leaves us with mace, pistol, offhand sword, torch, and rifle. another one handed melee weapon after weaver seems odd, so mace and sword feel unlikely. torch would be very tricky to do attunement effects with, without it all seeming like recolored fire. that leaves guns. and the idea of a Gun Wizard just appeals so much to me. pistols seem slightly more in line with it than a big rifle but i don't care, i'll take either, give me a Gun Wizard please.

mesmer was a really tough choice. i honestly am not really sure what they're trying to do with its next spec. the big dps nerfs to chronomancer make me think they're trying to push it solidly into a support niche, implying that the new spec will be a dps-focused one like mirage, and given mirage's association with condi damage, it'll probably be a power one? daggers were definitely possible, but given that we just had mirage with its "ambush" attacks, it'd be a weird time to break out the de facto Sneakiest Weapon Type. i'm guessing it'll be either a bow of some kind or a warhorn to lean into the "bard" thing that mesmers can never quite get away from. i would think warhorn was more likely if it weren't for the chrono nerf, tbh.

necro COULD get a mace... or a sword... those are definitely possible. but consider this: second gun wizard? eeeevil gun wizard? eh? eh? eh??? ...okay, besides that, shield falls too close to the defensive support stuff scourge has going on, hammer is right in the "big slow melee weapon" vicinity of reaper greatsword, and 2h ranged weapons feel too 'safe' for a class who has historically been a menace in pvp every time they get substantial amounts of ranged damage. pistols feel like a decent compromise as they're usually shorter ranged than rifles and bows are. ...sword is probably the most likely option. i just really want a death metal cowboy, okay?

u can tell im back on my bullshit because i have stared at this chart in bed for an hour now trying to figure out what the most likely number of guns given out during end of dragons will be