"Does Yae Miko know about Ioroi?"
Mt. Yougou had twin peaks. From the Chinju Forest, one could not see the mountain where the Grand Narukami Shrine was located, yet the two places were not that far apart. Five hundred years… to say Yae Miko wouldn't have noticed would be to underestimate her far too much.
"Lady Yae said that Ioroi has been sealed for almost as long as she's been alive. Technically, that makes him her senior. A junior watching her senior act so disgracefully would be improper, so she chose not to intervene."
Victor Wang was too speechless to retort. He shook the bluish-purple liquid in his hand and confirmed, "So I just pour this onto Ioroi's body, right?"
"That's right!"
After taking two steps, Victor Wang remembered that to speak with a bake-danuki, he needed to eat a Tanuki Rice first. But Ioroi should understand the human tongue, right?
So, he merely paused briefly without turning back.
Chinju Forest was somewhat like Wuwang Hill—forever night. The great sun of day could never be seen, yet the moon and stars of night shone clearly.
But Chinju Forest was a little more alive than Wuwang Hill. There were no ghostly flames here, only stillness and eerie calm—not quite frightening. In fact, the softly glowing blue flowers and the firefly-like motes drifting in the air added a touch of ethereal beauty.
Following the path paved with stone and lined by torii gates, it wasn't long before a small, shrub-hidden side path appeared to the left. Its paving was far rougher. The main road ahead led to the Kamisato Estate, while this smaller one led toward Ioroi.
Turning onto the smaller path, the little tanuki statues that had appeared on both sides of the main road began to multiply. Each bore a different expression or pose, but their color had long faded, making it hard to tell where faces began or ended. They all looked… like bald little naked fellows.
After a while, Victor Wang finally spotted the distant figure of the bald, pot-bellied Ioroi, holding a bowl in his hand. Despite his towering size, that appearance was so comical that Victor Wang couldn't help but laugh—no wonder Yae Miko had said what she did.
And when compared to the woman standing before him—clad in a purple-and-white kimono, her flowing hair nearly brushing against her snow-pale, long legs—the contrast was even more striking. "Beauty and the Beast" didn't even begin to describe it.
Wait… that person was—
"Shogun?"
Sensing movement behind her, Raiden Shogun turned slowly. When she saw Victor Wang, her lilac eyes sharpened instantly. Though she said nothing, the Musou Isshin was already forming in her hand, as though she might strike at any second.
And indeed, in the next second, she leapt high, stepping twice in midair, bringing the Musou Isshin down upon him in a crack of violet thunder.
It felt strange, but Victor Wang dared not slack off. He blocked the blow seriously.
The strength behind that strike was far weaker than the three strikes of the Duel Before the Throne.
Victor Wang tested, "Your condition's gotten this bad?"
The only answer was a cold snort followed by another attack.
Raiden Makoto wore a purple-and-white kimono. Her hair was loosely tied; her legs were bare; she wore flat geta, and wielded a sword—but didn't seem to use it much.
Raiden Ei, however, wore a black-purple kimono, her hair in elaborate braids, long socks on her legs, and tall-heeled geta, favoring a spear.
The person before him clearly resembled Raiden Makoto, yet there was no trace of Yae Miko in her eyes. And Ioroi was still obediently standing behind as a statue. Who else in Inazuma could wield a transformation art like this?
An illusion?
A ghost?
Or perhaps Ei had realized her puppet was malfunctioning badly and decided to wear Makoto's attire to revisit old places? After all, Ioroi was a rare survivor from five hundred years ago, once officially titled "Director of Health and Longevity."
But the longer the fight went on, the more flaws this "Raiden Shogun" showed. Her lightning was purely visual—without a hint of Electro power.
Victor Wang finally concluded, "You're not the Raiden Shogun. Who are you?"
"Raiden Shogun" frowned, clearly displeased at being denied. She raised the Musou Isshin and finally spoke: "In fleeting life, lightning surges—when the shining path ends, so too does the way!"
A bolt of lightning split the sky, clouds swirling like a vortex around her. Violet thunder churned as she floated at its eye, her power surging with majestic force. She seemed ready to fight for real this time.
"Hey! You can hit me, but at least tell me why!"
The "Raiden Shogun" ignored him completely and struck again.
Victor Wang hesitated whether to go all out. In his elemental sight, the entire sky blazed purple. This time, she seemed serious.
But such an attack—he could only block it once at most. Gritting his teeth, he decided to evade first. If that failed, he'd improvise.
The ground beneath him carried him back several dozen meters in an instant.
And that grand, thunderous slash… missed completely?
When "Raiden Shogun" landed, she didn't show any follow-through from her massive strike. She immediately shot forward again like an arrow.
When the Musou Isshin's power finally sent the Wentian Sword flying, Victor Wang knew this was the true killing blow. Countless runes filled the space between him and her sword; the Musou Isshin pierced halfway through before its strength failed.
"You're definitely not Raiden Shogun. And I don't remember offending you. Stop now, or I'll tell the real Shogun someone's impersonating her—and then you'll face divine punishment."
"Hmph." Having had her full strike blocked, "Raiden Shogun" changed tactics, threatening, "I am indeed the true Raiden Shogun. Leave now if you value your life. I might still spare you!"
"I am…?"
After double-checking that the Ioroi statue still stood behind her, Victor Wang had to admit he'd misjudged. He said plainly, "That's not possible. Someone asked me to come here to help unseal a bake-danuki named Ioroi."
"Eh?! Don't deceive me! You're clearly part of some evil force invading Inazuma!"
Here we go again.
Victor Wang sighed and explained, "It's a misunderstanding. That calamity ended five hundred years ago. I mean no harm to the Chinju Forest. Lumine, Yae Miko, and I are all friends. I know the story of how you and Kitsune Saiguu dueled, and how you were sealed here by Kamuna Harunosuke. Even the Raiden Shogun herself acknowledges my existence. Once the seal is lifted, you can confirm it yourself."
"R-really? Why didn't you say so earlier?"
"How was I supposed to know it was you? Since this 'Raiden Shogun' is your disguise, then that statue behind you—don't tell me you've already…?"
"Ahem! We tanuki possess great magical power! A mere human seal could never fully confine us!"
Poof! The "Raiden Shogun" vanished, her voice now male, retreating into the statue.
"Five hundred years ago, when I dueled that smelly fox, I could transform into the entire Hanamizaka! The people back then called it the 'False Hanamizaka Incident,' even wrote it into a storybook called The Great Tanuki Drum of the Kakushigami! Surely you've heard of it!"
"Transformed into the whole Hanamizaka?!" Victor Wang was taken aback. If that wasn't a boast… and since he even named the book, then maybe Ioroi wasn't as weak as people thought—just not good at fighting.
"That surprised you? There's also Tanuki Theater of the Imperial Garden, Ioroi's Teapot, and The Tanuki Uprising of Mt. Yougou! All about me! Have people forgotten already?"
Ioroi's tone carried both pride and melancholy.
"It's because we tanuki are too good at transformation that we must use aura to recognize our own kind. Otherwise, even we might mistake each other. So, I'm quite sensitive to people's aura."
"Yours carries the same ominous scent as those five hundred years ago, which is why I mistook you for an invader. You also have a whiff of… Hilichurl about you—but not quite pure."
"…That smell isn't something I chose to have. The reason's complicated. Best not talk about it. Let's lift your seal."
"Oh, right!" Ioroi suddenly remembered. "Who sent you to help me? Could it be that the golden-haired and white-haired ones actually delivered my message?"
"…"
Well, it definitely wasn't Kitsune Saiguu.
That line stung too much for Victor Wang to answer. He silently took out the bluish-purple liquid Hanachirusato had given him and poured it over the Ioroi statue.
Nothing happened.
"What is that stuff? It doesn't work at all! Maybe have whoever sent you come here in person?"
That acting was way too unconvincing. His previous surprise had been genuine and natural—one hundred points. This one? Zero. Like he already knew what would happen.
Victor Wang shook his head. "I think… for your situation, her being here wouldn't make any difference."
"…Then it can't be helped. Until that game of hide-and-seek finds its winner, I'll keep waiting. Waiting for that stinky fox to return. She owes me far too many apologies—I keep tally of them every single day."
"…"
So, this statue wasn't created by a seal—it was Ioroi's own transformation.
He wasn't sealed by Kamuna Harunosuke after all.
Victor Wang could only truthfully report to Hanachirusato that what she gave him hadn't broken the seal.
"I see…" Hanachirusato clasped her hands before her chest beneath the long sleeves of her shrine maiden robes, fidgeting with her fingers. After a long silence, she sighed softly. "Please, would you accompany me to see Ioroi once more?"
"I don't mind. Are you sure about this?"
"Even if I can't take Kitsune Saiguu's place, even if I can't end that game of hide-and-seek, I am still the only one left who understands what she felt. The words she never got to say… I must deliver them for her."