Chapter 63: Incident at Mount Fuji
Night had fully settled over Mitsuwa Town.
A colder wind had begun to blow with the changing season, carrying a sharp edge that slipped through screens and under doors. Even indoors, the lingering warmth of late summer was gone. No one could get by in light clothes anymore. The air itself had turned thin and cold.
In the guest wing of the Tsuchimikado residence, Gin Tsumugi was preparing to leave.
After finishing his reading of the Senji Ryakketsu, he and Dairenji Suzuka had remained at the Tsuchimikado estate for another two days. Suzuka still had not fully recovered, and Tsuchimikado Natsume and Hirotaka had repeatedly urged them to stay longer. In that time, Gin had also personally taught Natsume the method for synchronizing with Hokuto and drawing its spiritual power into her own body.
The technique itself was not the problem.
Hokuto was.
Whenever Gin was present, the dragon behaved itself, obedient, almost innocent. The moment Gin looked away, its attitude toward Natsume changed completely. It dragged its feet, ignored commands, and acted like an unruly child deliberately making trouble for its guardian.
According to Natsume, Hokuto had become even more troublesome than before, moody, rebellious, and impossible to predict.
So Gin had no choice but to give it a proper warning.
Only then had the dragon reluctantly begun cooperating again.
As for the matter of the Senji Ryakketsu, that had gone even more smoothly than Gin had expected.
To be precise, too smoothly.
The Tsuchimikado Clan had not pursued the issue of him effectively absorbing the thousand year old treasure into his mind. Gin had attempted more than once to bring it back out, but the thing had rooted itself deep in his consciousness like a second soul. No matter what he tried, it would not move. All he could do was turn its pages inwardly and consult its contents.
Hirotaka had only given him one grave warning.
Unless absolutely necessary, he must never let anyone else learn that the Senji Ryakketsu now existed within him.
Gin understood the principle perfectly. A treasure of that level would invite calamity if word spread.
As for the reading slots previously promised to the Onmyo Agency, the Onmyo Alliance, and the Onmyo Academy, the Tsuchimikado Clan had already decided to stall them all with various excuses.
That left Gin feeling a little guilty.
A little.
The sun was setting now, spreading a dim crimson twilight across the streets outside Mitsuwa Town.
At the main gate, a modified Onmyo Agency vehicle was waiting.
Behind the wheel sat the same middle aged investigator from the Magic Investigation Department who had come to Mitsuwa Town days earlier to arrest both Suzuka and Gin.
Gin looked at the car and sighed.
"We came here on our own money and now we're going back on the government's."
There was helplessness in his tone, and a bit of bitterness too.
The man driving was one of Amami Daizen's subordinates. Gin had originally planned to slip back into Shibuya quietly, keep his head down, and endure the old man's anger later. Instead, Amami had sent someone to wait for him here in advance.
So much for a quiet return.
At least the old man had left him a little dignity. If he had sent an actual police vehicle, it would have been the same as parading Gin through the streets in chains.
Though, honestly, a Magic Investigation Department vehicle was not much better.
Beside him, Suzuka only rolled her eyes and said nothing.
She looked much better than before, but not by much. Her face still lacked color, and the aftereffects of that night had clearly not faded completely.
Tsuchimikado Chizuru, who had only just returned from the Onmyo Agency headquarters after smoothing things over in person, gave Gin a reassuring pat on the shoulder.
"Do not worry. I already handled the explanation at the Agency," she said. Then she gave him a dry look. "As for Old Man Amami, well, you know what his temper is like."
Gin could only smile bitterly and nod.
Not far away, Natsume stood with her hands folded before her, as composed as ever. Yet when she finally spoke, there was the slightest pause in her voice.
"Mr. Gin Tsumugi, I'll be waiting for you at the Onmyo Academy."
The words sounded a little too direct the moment they left her mouth. A faint flush passed over her face, though she recovered quickly.
Gin understood what she meant immediately.
It was about what they had discussed during the town festival, the matter of the White Fox Office going to the Onmyo Academy to recruit new blood.
"If nothing unexpected happens," Gin said, "I'll go."
The middle aged investigator in the driver's seat watched the exchange through the windshield with growing confusion.
He truly did not understand.
The Tsuchimikado Clan was the victim in this matter. Their sacred grounds had been infiltrated, forbidden arts had been used on their land, and Mitsuwa Town had nearly been dragged into chaos. By all rights, they should have been furious.
And yet not only were they not showing any hostility, they had even sent Chizuru to the Agency to help soften the blow and reduce the consequences.
That was not normal.
Was the Tsuchimikado Clan simply magnanimous by nature?
That explanation fell apart the moment he remembered several fierce Onmyo Agency meetings in recent years, where the Tsuchimikado Clan had slammed the table and openly rebuked senior officials over key policy decisions.
No. They were not especially mild tempered.
Which only made this even stranger.
The car eventually pulled away, disappearing into the fading light of dusk.
Only after it was gone did Chizuru withdraw her gaze and turn to the man beside her.
"Husband," she said, her expression serious now, "you can tell me the truth."
Hirotaka looked at her quietly.
Over the past few days, Chizuru had been busy running between factions, suppressing the fallout from the Taizan Fukun Ritual incident, negotiating with the Agency, the Academy, and the Alliance, and making sure both Gin and Suzuka could walk away with their futures intact.
Because of that, the questions in her heart had only grown.
Questions about Gin Tsumugi.
Questions about the Tsuchimikado Clan.
Questions about why they had mobilized so many personal connections and spent so much of the clan's remaining prestige to shield one young outsider.
The punishment for unlawfully performing the Taizan Fukun Ritual should have shaken all of Onmyodo. Without the Tsuchimikado Clan acting as mediator, the consequences would never have ended with a warning to the White Fox Office and brief confinement for Suzuka.
Chizuru had seen that clearly.
And she wanted answers.
Hirotaka let out a slow breath.
Then he said, "There is one thing you must understand first. Mr. Gin Tsumugi is someone our Tsuchimikado Clan must protect at all costs, even if it means sacrificing the entire clan."
Chizuru froze.
For a moment, she thought she had misheard him.
"What?"
Her voice came out hoarse and disbelieving.
She stared at her husband, almost wondering whether exhaustion and backlash had damaged his mind.
Sacrifice the entire Tsuchimikado Clan for one outsider?
That was not loyalty to the family. That sounded like madness.
Hirotaka seemed to understand exactly what she was thinking.
"I am not confused," he said calmly. "And this is not betrayal. If we fail to protect him now, while he is still weak, then that would be the true act of rebellion. That would be the true insult to our ancestors."
Chizuru's breath caught.
Ancestors.
The word struck harder than anything else he had said.
Her eyes widened.
"Who is he?"
Hirotaka turned his eyes toward the road where the car had disappeared.
Then, in a voice that carried both reverence and certainty, he answered.
"The founder of the Tsuchimikado Clan. The legendary Great Onmyoji from a thousand years ago. Abe no Seimei."
For a long moment, Chizuru simply stood there.
Abe no Seimei.
The name alone felt absurd. Impossible. Sacred.
Her first instinct was denial.
"How could that be?" she said at last. "How could the Great Onmyoji from a thousand years ago appear in this era as a youth not even twenty years old?"
"Why not?" Hirotaka replied. "If Tsuchimikado Yakou could reincarnate, then the creator of the Taizan Fukun Ritual could do the same."
He spoke without hesitation now.
"Zenki and Koki signed a Shikigami Contract with him and left with him. Those two Demon Gods would never mistake their master."
"You saw what happened with Hokuto. You saw the altar on the Sacred Mountain. You saw the Senji Ryakketsu return to him."
He turned back toward her.
"If he were not Ancestor Abe no Seimei, who else could move the Senji Ryakketsu?"
Chizuru's lips parted, then closed again.
She had no answer.
If news like this ever spread through the Onmyodo world, it would not cause a stir. It would cause a cataclysm.
Abe no Seimei was not merely a famous figure. He was the highest myth of Onmyodo itself.
No Onmyoji alive could hear that name without reverence.
Not even her.
Hirotaka lowered his voice.
"For now, his identity must remain absolutely secret. He needs time to recover his strength. Until then, what we must do is protect him, shield him, and buy him time, no matter the cost."
This time, Chizuru did not argue.
"I understand."
There was still shock in her eyes, but something else had taken root there now as well.
If Abe no Seimei truly walked this era once more, then perhaps the despair gathering around Mount Fuji would not remain hopeless forever.
Perhaps.
That night, inside the Tsuchimikado residence, Hirotaka and Chizuru worked together to remove the seal placed on Harutora since birth, allowing his Spirit Insight and spiritual power to finally awaken.
The boy's expression was still complicated, still resistant, still caught in the aftermath of truths revealed far too suddenly.
"Chizuru," Hirotaka said, "teach Harutora the basics of Onmyodo. I need to perform the Heavenly Divine Word."
She nodded immediately.
"Be careful."
This time, unlike before, Yasuzumi and the Tsuchimikado Onmyoji stationed at Mount Fuji would be supporting the ritual from the other side. The risk would be far lower.
Even so, the Heavenly Divine Word was still a forbidden art for a reason.
"I will."
Hirotaka stepped out into the quiet courtyard.
The room prepared for the ritual was the same as last time.
He stood within it and waited.
Soon enough, he heard it.
The voices.
Majestic and solemn incantations resounded in his ears as divine script, older and more profound than Sanskrit, appeared around him.
He recognized Yasuzumi's voice at once. He recognized others as well.
Without delay, he joined in, guiding the ritual from his side to ensure it held.
The next moment, the illusory figure of Tsuchimikado Yasuzumi appeared before him.
"Family Head."
Hirotaka bowed immediately.
Yasuzumi did not waste time.
"Has his identity been confirmed?"
"It has."
Hirotaka then reported everything that had happened over the last three days in full detail, from the Taizan Fukun Ritual and its aftermath to the final confirmation of Gin's identity.
By the time he finished, relief had appeared plainly on Yasuzumi's face.
"That is good," Yasuzumi said quietly. "If it is truly him, then there is still hope."
He praised Hirotaka for how he had handled things, then instructed him to make sure Natsume remained in close contact with Gin. It would benefit both Gin and the Tsuchimikado Clan.
Hirotaka agreed.
Then, while the Heavenly Divine Word still held, he asked about Mount Fuji.
At once, Yasuzumi's expression darkened.
"The signs are worsening," he said. "Yamata no Orochi's movements have become more violent. The toxic smoke has begun corroding the Strategic Barrier itself."
He paused, then continued in a lower voice.
"And yesterday, we found something else. Near the upper slopes of Mount Fuji. A blood soaked sacrificial site."
Hirotaka's expression shifted.
He did not get to hear the rest.
A twisted, eerie power suddenly burst into the space of the ritual.
The ancient divine script began to blacken and corrode in midair.
The Heavenly Divine Word was being eaten away.
Hirotaka's face went white.
Then blood surged up his throat.
He coughed and spat it out violently, staggering backward as the connection shattered with explosive force.
The figure of Yasuzumi vanished.
The room fell silent.
For a single heartbeat, Hirotaka only stared at the dispersing remnants of divine script.
Then horror flooded his face.
"Something happened at Mount Fuji."
His voice shook.
And this time, there was no doubt in it at all.
"Something big has happened."
.....
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