Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Kuroji closed the cover of the book they were reading to their younger siblings. The three were quite bored that day so they decided to take turns reading to each other, and the three had finally finished. It was getting to be around the time when the human village was most active, so Kuroji decided to head out. They'd been hearing some spicy rumors recently, and were hoping to find a few more. Maybe they could even find an incident to resolve…

"Gonna head out to the village, you know the rest." Kuroji said to their other siblings. By this point it was routine, so they didn't need to elaborate on anything.

"See ya." Hooaka said, as they walked into the kitchen to grab themselves a snack.

"Bye." Aoji said, following Hooaka along because they were bored.

---

Kuroji eventually reached the human village, and noticed a large commotion. " Ah, it seems luck is on our side today... " They thought to themselves. They let out a smug smile as they approached the crowd.

"What's going on here?" Kuroji asked, already trying to take control of the situation.

The chattering continued, before solemnly, a figure pushed through the crowd to approach Kuroji.

"Shit…" It was Tenkai. Kuroji could tell something was up without even looking at Tenkai. They suddenly had a slight sinking feeling, but they tried to ignore it.

"What's going on here?" Kuroji asked, trying to push back their slight concern.

"...It'd be best if we went somewhere else." Tenkai said, clearly trying to restrain tears. They lent out a hand to a confused Kuroji, who accepted, and walked off to a place where no one was standing.

"So, what did you wanna tell me?" Kuroji said. They put their hands in their jacket pockets, their go-to pose for when they didn't know what else to do with their hands.

Tenkai took a deep breath in, then seemed to almost meditate a little before speaking.

"Tsubakura and Yabusame… have died." Tenkai attempted to keep a straight face.

Kuroji paused a bit before speaking. "...Nice joke, what's really going on?"

"I wish I was joking, but this is sadly the truth." Tenkai turned their head away from Kuroji.

"Seriously, this isn't funny, tell me the truth." Kuroji became very serious.

"...I don't know what to say. I really do wish this was all fake, but…" Tenkai began to shed a few tears.

"You can stop now, I've got it figured out." Kuroji's smug attitude began to falter. Tenkai began to cry, which caused Kuroji to ditch, heading for the Senri Shrine.

On their way there, they were trying to reassure themselves. " It's all ok, this is just some morbid prank or some bad dream. Any second you're gonna wake up, and everything's gonna be perfectly fine. "

They eventually arrived at the remains of the Senri Shrine, where a group of various people mostly dressed in outfits not unlike Tenkai's were standing, alongside Jinbei and Shion, who was clinging onto Jinbei so hard their face couldn't be seen. Nearby, there seemed to be two body bags lying down, with a familiar, albeit heavily damaged hat resting upon one of them. 

"Fuck…" They muttered under their breath, before walking up to the people talking with Jinbei.

"I think we'll be able to replicate the vast majority of what was lost structurally, seeing as I still have the modern blueprints right here." A blue haired figure said. They were dressed in an outfit that made them seem like they weren't from Mugenri, let alone planet Earth.

"Normally we'd charge a fee for these kinds of things, but… thanks to some, well, ' negotiating ' from one of our employees with a connection to this shrine, we have decided against it."

"How cruel do you have to be to consider charging for such an important shrine that just lost its priests?" Jinbei asked in a stern tone, telling them to back off. Despite their child-like appearance, Jinbei could easily strike fear into people when they wanted.

"It's all in the name of business, hun~!" Another employee called out, who seemed to be dressed much more formally, albeit with an even stranger hairdo.

"...Please do not call me 'hun'. It's bad enough dealing with this, but that is just degrading." 

"Hm… Whatever you say, sweetie~!" Jinbei sighed upon hearing that, but stopped pressing because they knew that the annoying worker wouldn't stop.

"Hey… what's going on here?" Kuroji began to force themselves into  both the conversation and the group of people.

"...Did Tenkai tell you?" Jinbei asked.

"Oh that Zuifeng~! Always a snitch~!" The perky employee piped in, before promptly being dragged away by the blue haired employee.

"...Maybe." Kuroji didn't want to say anything.

"To summarize, as you can see by these ruins, there was a fire sometime last night here which burned quite a bit of the shrine, though, none of the important parts, but unfortunately… Yabusame and Tsubakura were unable to escape and perished in the blaze."

"...These games got old quite a while ago." Kuroji said monotonously, in a voice that seemed to subconsciously mimic Tsubakura's. Kuroji proceeded to kick themselves off the ground and fly away from the shrine and towards their house.

As they flew towards their house, their mind raced with thoughts, though none of them were coherent. It was simply a jumble of negative emotions only wrapped together by a single thread of denial. 

When they got home, they roughly slammed the door open, which scared their younger two siblings.

"Sorry…" They said without emotion, yet there did appear to be sincerity in their voice.

"Hey Kuro-jii, didja find any spicy rumors?" Hooaka teased, partially because they were concerned, but mainly because they were siblings.

"...I need some time alone. Please don't try to get my attention unless it's an emergency." Kuroji walked into their room, locked the door, then set themselves into their bed.

"I didn't even get to say hi…" Aoji said, feeling ignored.

"Wonder what's with them, huh?" Hooaka asked, starting to feel a bit glum. Suddenly, the two heard the faint sounds of sobbing coming from Kuroji's room. They walked up to the door and tried to listen in, but doing so only made them sad in turn.

"D-do you think they'll be ok?" Aoji said, beginning to cry due to their sensitivity.

"Y-yeah, I'm s-sure they're fine, Aoki." Hooaka chuckled, unsure of the situation themselves. They could tell something was deeply wrong, but didn't want to bring it up in front of Aoji. They subtly pulled the youngest sibling in for a hug, and the two held each other, only able to wonder what happened that would make Kuroji cry.

Chapter Text

Suzumi sighed as they unlocked the door to their apartment. They'd decided that, since it was a nice day, they should take a walk. The problem was, by they time they came home, it was already well past midnight.

"Can we please get some rest now?" Ardey said, tired and annoyed.

"Oh look at you, all impatient~! Soon, I promise." Hamee replied, lying through their teeth.

"I've been up for over a day because of you, I don't think I can wait much longer." 

"Why do you feel the need to stay up because of me anyways? Is it that you don't trust me? Oh, I'm so hurt, not even Ardey trusts me!" Hamee struck an exaggerated pose as they said this, further irritating the sleep-deprived Ardey.

"Because I know if I don't, you're probably gonna do something stupid!"

"Oh my, you being worried about me? I would've never thought to see the day come!"

"Not you, your actions, dumbass."

"Hey now, I've resisted in the past! You don't see me messing up timelines when I hop through them!"

"Not anymore…"

"It was one time, give me a break!"

"Anyways, please, sleep." Suzumi dragged themselves over to their bathroom and prepared themselves for bed, before simply hopping into their bed and falling asleep.

---

The next day, after a breakfast so late it could almost barely be considered a lunch, Suzumi decided to take another walk, this time, in search of information. They put on a dingy leather jacket they had found at a thrift store in quite good condition. They liked it, as it made them feel more "formal" and made them feel like they fit into society more.

When they stepped outside, they noticed the air appeared to be a light gray color, with a hint of blue. They wondered what that meant, but it clearly wasn't an emergency order, so they brushed it off. As they walked out on the streets of Devanagara, they noticed the atmosphere was much more tense. People seemed to be averting each other, and not many people were talking. Despite it being a rush hour, the only noises that populated the metropolis were the sounds of society continuing on its own. 

"Hmm, that's strange… Awfully quiet." Hamee said to themselves, somewhat disappointed.

"Considering the mist today is meant to be out of respect, it would be strange if it wasn't quiet." Someone nearby whispered to Suzumi.

"Respect for whom?" Ardey asked, with their voice now hushed.

"Apparently those two new Senri Shrine priests. Not much is known other than they apparently both passed away some time last night."

"Oh, that's a shame. Hopefully the worst doesn't occur and there isn't mass chaos."

"We don't have to worry in the capital that much, but the Sanctuary might be quite shaken up."

Suzumi turned around and walked back to their apartment, trying to hide all the things they were feeling from that simple conversation. When they arrived back at their apartment, they ripped off their jacket and threw it onto the couch, then sat on it.

"Oh Tsubakura-sama… I hope you died in complete and utter agony~!" Hamee said, trying not to be sad that they weren't they one to finish Tsubakura off.

"Can you not think about Tsubakura for just this once, please? You understand what this means, right? This means we're absolutely, unambiguously fucked ." Ardey asserted angrily. Losing not only Tsubakura, but Yabusasme as well, and from what was most likely the same incident…

"But… Tsubakura-sama is finally dead! That was the end goal, right?"

"Only part of it, yes, but there's still much more to this, and it's all gone!"

"Tsubakura-sama is goooone, that's all I care about~!" Hamee took out a knife and began twirling it in their hand.

"And you weren't the one to do it. Are you sure you're ok with that?" Ardey was trying to figure out how to get to Hamee.

"A little bit~! But life works in mysterious ways and has sent so many curveball wrenches in my plans that I'll take what I can get~!"

"This is going nowhere…" Ardey decided to dip to think of what to do now that two highly important figures in their plan were now out. If it was just one, they may have been able to work with it, but both of them dying really derailed everything Suzumi had.

Chapter Text

Kuroji finally managed to bring themselves out of their room. They were a disheveled mess, with half of their coat on them and the other half dangling, their hat inside-out, and cheeks red and puffy from sobbing so hard. Their short hair somehow became so tangled they might've had to cut some of it out.

"Ah… are you okay Kuro?" Aoji asked, trying to comfort their older sibling. Kuroji just stared at Aoji, unable to grasp any words to say to them. Their eyes were half-opened, still wet with tears.

"H-hey Kuro-jii, what's wrong?" Hooaka asked awkwardly, trying to make their older sibling feel better.

"...Nothing." Kuroji said after a heavy sigh. They grabbed themselves a glass of water from the fridge, then began to return to their room. They were stopped by both of their younger siblings grabbing them, which shocked them a bit.

"We're not letting you go until you tell us what's wrong, Kuro-jii!" Hooaka said, gripping tighter. Kuroji let out a small wheeze, which let Hooaka know to loosen their grip on them a bit.

"...Really, it's nothing." Kuroji said, trying to get their siblings to free them from their grasps.

"Oh come on, you never cry! Now, tell us!" Hooaka pressed.

"...I… really don't think I'm… ugh, fine… It's just that… Tsubakura…" Kuroji was struggling to get the words out of their mouth.

"Is Tsubakura ok?" Aoji asked quietly.

"...They're dead… So's Yabusame…" Kuroji attempted to take a sip of their glass of water, before Hooaka noticed and loosened their grip to allow them to take a drink.

"What?!" Hooaka and Aoji said in unison, then they dropped their sibling.

"...Yeah…" Kuroji tried to hide their face.

"H-how?! Was it… you know…" Hooaka asked.

"No, it was a fire at the shrine apparently…"

"...It was probably still them…" 

Kuroji walked away from their siblings, taking another sip of water as they did so. They once again locked themselves in their room, or at least appeared to do so. They waited for the sounds of their siblings going off to do other things, including the faint sobs of Aoji, then snuck their way out of their window. They didn't want their siblings to know what they were going to do. They didn't want to endanger them or worry them. They just wanted everything to be back to normal.

Chapter Text

Kuroji knocked on the door of an apartment. They looked at the scrap of paper they were holding.

DEVANAGARA ROYAL HOTEL

359 NORTH AURORA STREET

APARTMENT 421, LEFT SIDE

This was the address for the apartment belonging to Kurohebi. Kuroji figured their connections to Suzumi might give them an idea of where to find them. Eventually they were greeted with the towering figure of Kurohebi answering the door.

"Oh hey Kuroji! How have you been?" Kurohebi asked, a bit cheerfully.

"Eh, ok I guess." Kuroji lied. 

"Do you need anything?"

"...Do you know where Suzumi lives?" Upon hearing mention of Suzumi, Kurohebi's expression changed from slightly cheerful to serious. They began to put their hands around their knives.

"...Why do you wish to know this information?" Kurohebi slowly brought out a knife, but Kuroji simply pushed their hand down once it was pointed at them.

"Have you not heard the recent news?"

"Well, usually I'm pretty up-to-date on the news here, but today was a free day and I was feeling a bit tired so I decided to stay inside today. Did anything big happen?"

"...Tsubakura and Yabusame… have died." 

"W-what!? How? Suzumi?" Kurohebi began to freak out a little.

"There was a fire at the shrine. The current cause is undetermined, but… I have a feeling it wasn't Suzumi…"

"How much damage was there?" 

"Most of the shrine was burnt, but apparently the 'important' stuff was spared, like the lab and library."

"Tsubakura… no…" Kurohebi began to tear up upon the realization hitting them.

"Anyways, back to my question, do you know where Suzumi might be?"

"Y-yeah…" 

"Can you take me there?"

"...Okay."

Kurohebi walked back into their apartment to ready themselves up, then locked the door behind them and walked in front of Kuroji to show them the way.

Eventually, the two found themselves in a dingy, old apartment building. At least, that's how it appeared on the outside. On the inside, it was actually quite nice and home-y, even in the lobby.

The two clarified to the front desk they were going to see someone, then hopped in an elevator.

Once they reached the floor of the apartment, they looked for the number. After a few minutes of searching, they found the apartment and knocked on the door.

...No response.

After waiting a bit, they knocked again. They soon heard the sound of footsteps lightly approaching the door, before being greeted by a perky Suzumi.

"Oh Kurohebi-chan~! And Kuro-chan too~? How delightful!" Suzumi said, with a wide smile on their face.

"Cut the theatrics. Are you aware of the recent events which have occured?" Kuroji said, trying to be vague enough as to not allude to the Senri priests' deaths in case Suzumi didn't know.

"Why yes, Tsubakura-sama is finally gone~! Their wretched face no longer needs to be seen, and they will never breathe their horrid breath on this land anymore~!"

" Eugh… Anyways…" Kuroji looked over toward Kurohebi, and made a face that signaled it was okay for them to leave. Kurohebi began to leave, but Suzumi stopped them.

"Oh, can't my beloved Kurohebi-chan stay for any longer? I am your parent, after all~!"

"I… have things I need to do, and I was only showing Kuroji where to go." Before Suzumi could say anything else, Kurohebi was already gone.

"So… why are you here?" Suzumi's tone shifted to be a bit more aggressive, which meant that Ardey had taken over. 

"I want Tsubakura and Yabusame back. Do you think you can help?"

Chapter Text

"Huh? W-why…" The question took Suzumi by surprise.

"I know you've got some weird memory powers or whatever…" Kuroji was fumbling over their words because they didn't exactly know what to say. Suzumi was a bit shocked at Kuroji's knowledge, but didn't question it as they were genuinely interested in what they had in mind.

"Were you expecting me of all people to agree?"

"I knew it was a long shot, I just…" Kuroji put their head down dejectedly, hiding their face and all the despair it contained.

"...I didn't say no. I was just trying to figure out what you were thinking."

"To be perfectly honest… I'm not thinking. I… I just want Tsubakura and Yabusame back…."

"...Come in." Suzumi moved out of the doorway to let Kuroji in. Kuroji hesitated initially, but Suzumi displayed a surprisingly trustworthy face, a side that Kuroji thought felt so familiar, yet they swore they'd never seen it before. They also noticed their body appeared more relaxed.

"So… what were you thinking?" Suzumi sat down in a chair, and Kuroji followed suit. Suzumi looked directly into Kuroji's eyes with a piercing gaze coming from their near-pitch black eyes. Kuroji felt a bit uncomfortable with this, and looked away.

"I don't know… I don't know how your powers work, their capabilities, their limits…"

"Do you want me to explain, at least in simple terms?"

"Yeah, please do…"

---

After a long-winded, yet simple to understand explanation, Kuroji sat in thought.

"...Could you perhaps… rewrite a timeline so that the blaze never starts?"

"There are many problems with that, but the most prevalent are that we don't know what caused the fire, rewinding over deaths can cause some… major problems, and of course, Yabusame."

"...Perhaps rewriting so I am there, and… would it be possible to keep my knowledge of… maybe the fire, so I can prevent it?"

"...Depends on how much you alter, because…"

"We're already playing with lots of fire here, and not just because we're dealing with that blaze. At this point, I don't care what happens to me. I already gave up. I… why are you even agreeing to this anyways?"

"...I have my reasons, and they're for me to know and you to never find out."

"Alright… what do I need to do?"

"Well… we still need to gather a bit more information about what occurred. If you could also gather some information as well, we might be able to make this go as smoothly as possible. Let's… meet back in around a week, okay?"

"Sure. Maybe the funeral might be over by then."

"They usually take a long time to plan…"

"But this is a much more closed off funeral, and it's for important figureheads in Mugenri."

"Hmm… well then, how about a few days after the funeral, unless it occurs in between the original time we had planned."

"Alright." With that, Kuroji got out of the chair they were in and headed out of the apartment.

Chapter Text

"So… what information did you get~?" Suzumi asked impatiently.

"Apparently it was caused by a nearby fire from a few youkai playing around. A few of the sparks travelled quite the distance and caught on the shrine due to the dry weather and slight winds. They offered to help rebuild the shrine as at least partial compensation." Kuroji replied, twiddling their thumbs.

"Hmm… that's quite a lot of information… I wasn't able to get much, sadly… They're right, I truly am a failure~!"

"Well… it was mentioned at the funeral. You would've heard this if you didn't spend all of your time crying in the bathroom."

"Rude! I wasn't crying! I was simply expressing remorse that I wasn't the thing that killed my beloved Tsubakura-sama!"

"...Right… Anyways, you need anything else?"

"Hmm… did Tenkai and Jinbei ever explain what they were doing? Maybe Shion, Sese, and Sukune too?"

"Ah right, well…"

---

After Kuroji finished explaining what they remember being told by everyone who was there, they took a deep breath.

"Is that enough for you, huh?" Kuroji asked, a bit smugly.

"It's perfect~! Thank you so much Kuro-chan!" Suzumi said warmly. There appeared to be, although only very slightly, a hint of genuine gratitude in their words.

"I wonder if I should wear anything… because me being there would raise many questions…"

"Hmm, do you need a disguise~? A-I'm pretty good at disguises, you know~?" Suzumi winked as they said that. Kuroji suddenly remembered an encounter with Suzumi posing as Tsurubami, but brushed it off in that situation because it wasn't important.

"Shouldn't that only work for you?"

"Yes, but it means I naturally would end up having more than a few materials to work with when it comes to disguises~!" 

"Alright… Do you have any ideas on what I could use?"

"Hmm… well, let me help you out~!"

---

After hours of experimenting with various methods of disguises, Kuroji finally found one that worked for them. They wore a dark, yet lightweight and easy to breathe mask which covered almost all of their face. They wore a lightweight suit that was somewhat fire-resistant, and strong boots.

"Are you ready, Kuro-chaan~?" Suzumi asked in a sing-songy voice.

"I believe so. Let's go." The two head out of the apartment, and towards the Senri Shrine, in an attempt to rewrite history.

Chapter Text

The two arrived at the Senri Shrine reconstruction site, attempting to avoid anyone who was around. Eventually, they managed to get to the back of the shrine.

"This… feels quite strange… working with you, and trying to bring back the dead… A part of me wonders if this is the right thing to do…" Kuroji was beginning to doubt themselves and their plan.

"Oh, nonsense~! For once, I'm being perfectly honest and noble! Even if we want Tsubakura-sama back for different reasons, we're still united by the same common goal, right?" Suzumi said, trying to encourage their temporary ally.

"I guess you're right… It's strange though… and… what if it goes wrong… Eh, that's stupid." Right as the two were about to begin, a small rustling noise was heard in some nearby bushes, before a small, pink figure popped out.

"K-Kuroji and… someone who smells real bad… from what I can smell, at least." It was Shion, who was noticeably weaker and frailer, due to being hungry.

"How rude~! Commenting on a maiden's smell like that! I'll kill you!" 

"Don't get distracted."

"Jeez, I was just joking anyways! I'll deal with this little… pest and you go on without me. You don't need me to do it, just open the book. But wait a bit before you do so, please?"

"Alright, gotcha." With that, Suzumi picked up Shion, who tried to fight back, but eventually gave up due to being so weak and tired. After around two minutes, Kuroji opened the book they were given, and felt the entire world sink around them.

Chapter Text

"Argh… where… am I?" Kuroji found themselves dazed and confused, in some indistinct bushes in a dark forest.

"Ah right… I've… got to save Tsubakura and Yabusame." Kuroji put on their mask and headed towards the shrine. Immediately they noticed it was already on fire, and too large to be able to completely stop it.

"Shit, it didn't work! Ah well, better find another way." They ran toward the burning shrine in hopes of finding Tsubakura or Yabusame.

Eventually they found a hallway which led to three rooms, one of which held a slumbering Tsubakura. The fire had already almost spread there by the time Kuroji got there. They decided there was no time to be polite, so they kicked them in the side, though lightly to not hurt them. Tsubakura grumbled in their sleep, but simply turned onto their other side. Kuroji decided to give them a large kick instead. 

"Please… just let me sleep." Tsubakura mumbled. Kuroji didn't want to use their voice in case it confused Tsubakura. Eventually, a large crash happened behind Kuroji, which woke Tsubakura up.

"Hnngh… Ah! The sh-shri-!" They were interrupted by Kuroji grabbing them. Kuroji was both shorter and lighter than Tsubakura, somehow, so they struggled to carry them. Their boots masked their height issues, at least. 

"Tsuba! * cough * Where are you?" Yabusame called out distantly.

"I'm over here! But… Yabusame, why are you here?" Tsubakura yelled out in reply. They had begun to inhale a bit of smoke, but not enough to make it super hard to yell.

"Oh! I can see you! Who's that with you?"

"I… have no clue, but they're trying to help me, I think." Upon hearing this, Yabusame ran over to where Tsubakura and Kuroji were, then tried to grab Tsubakura.

"I-I'm fine, you don't need to hold me."

"No, I'm going to rescue you! * cough *"

"Seriously, if anyone needs rescuing at this point, it's you! * cough *" Kuroji realized that, if left, those two were going to argue themselves to death, quite literally. They took a deep breath, then made the deepest voice they could, trying to mask any sense of themselves.

"You two, you need to get out now! Stop your arguing and run!" Kuroji said, flailing their hands around in a way that would normally be silly, but was quite serious in that moment. They were stifling any coughs they had at the back of their throat, but it was beginning to get hard to hold them in.

"A-alright! * cough * B-but… where do we go?" Yabusame asked as their legs began to shake.

"Use your dimensional gaps, get yourselves out. Don't bother with me!" Eventually, the smoke got to Kuroji and they began to cough.

"A-alright!" Yabusame opened up a dimensional gap and dragged themselves and Tsubakura through it, then closed it quickly. Meanwhile, Kuroji had to figure out a way to get out.

"Ah shit… maybe I… no, I can get out of this." They looked at the burning walls surrounding them, thinking of what they could do, before they figured out something. It would require all of their effort to concentrate to pull off, but they had a lot of space to work with, meaning they didn't need to be precise.

They ran up to one of the burning logs and kicked it, causing it to fall down, before reversing it, which sent it upwards, giving them a small path to be able to escape through quickly. They stumbled through the path, before hearing the loud "thunk!" of the log hitting the ground. They dragged themselves up to the front of the shrine, before passing out.

Chapter Text

Tsubakura and Yabusame stumbled up to a tree, coughing and wheezing from the smoke. They were still alive and kicking, though.

"I wonder who that figure was? * cough * They seemed kinda familiar." Yabusame asked, as they sat themselves up onto the trunk of a tree.

"I'm fairly sure it was Kuroji. That voice just sounded like Kuroji trying to hide their own voice… hah… and they were certainly shorter and weaker than me, hah… * cough *" Tsubakura also sat themselves up beside Yabusame.

"Wow, really…" Yabusame's voice trailed off despite them not saying much. They looked up into the sky, before grabbing Tsubakura and sobbing into their arms.

"I don't want to die… Tsuba, please…" Yabusame sobbed as they gripped Tsubakura tighter.

"You're not gonna die. We're fine now, and the fire is almost out, see?" Tsubakura attempted to reassure Yabusame by patting them on the head.

Tsubakura then noticed Yabusame's legs were beginning to disappear, so they panicked and held onto Yabusame tighter. 

"W-we're not supposed to be here…" Yabusame said as more of their body began to fade away.

"What do you mean? This was the only place we could go, right? * cough *"

"I'm… not supposed to be here… I'm… dead…" Yabusame said, holding Tsubakura as tight as they could.

"Seriously, what does that mean? You seem pretty alive to me. This better not be you just forgetting things again!"

"I remember… we… we died… in the fire and… someone tried to stop it I think." Yabusame's legs had already fully disappeared by this point.

"Wait… like Suzumi? But… why would they?" Yabusame's grip on Tsubakura began to loosen, but Tsubakura held them tight.

"I… don't know exactly… but… we shouldn't be alive…" Yabusame passed out as their body began to fade faster.

"No… nonono… You're not leaving me! YABUSAME!" Tsubakura yelled, though not very loud due to their throat hurting from the smoke. Eventually Tsubakura held Yabusame's right arm close and refused to let go. They closed their eyes as tears streaked down their face. They waited for it to disappear.

…

But it never disappeared.

They opened their eyes, and saw that all that was left of Yabusame was their right arm and a bit of their shoulder and torso. It faded away instead of revealing any part of what would be in them. They dropped the arm due to being spooked, but noticed it was still moving. It was clearly trying to find Tsubakura, so Tsubakura held out their hand. The arm eventually found their hand, and gripped it tightly. Tsubakura began to sob, before noticing their vision was completely blocked. They wiped their eyes and noticed their hand was covered in ink. They sighed as they heard the noises of people approaching, and closed their eyes while holding Yabusame's arm tightly.

Chapter Text

"Oh, was there an intruder?" Jinbei said as they noticed Kuroji, passed out in the front of the shrine.

"It seems we've found our culprit. That made it much easier for us, huh?" Tenkai said, as they rolled Kuroji over. They removed the mask and let out a gasp.

"Kuroji? Why would they do something like this?" Tenkai asked.

" sigh And I thought that they were still trustworthy… It's a shame to see how far they've fallen despite being chosen by Tsurubami Senri…" Jinbei picked up Kuroji's body and inspected it. They found nothing that could be used to start a fire on them, and found it quite odd.

Eventually, Kuroji opened their eyes.

"Ah, you're finally awake, purple scoundrel. Unfortunately for you, you've been caught red-handed."

"W-what?" Kuroji's head, throat, and chest ached, and they felt dizzy.

"Well, you're probably still dazed, so when you come to it, you'd better explain yourself." Tenkai scolded.

"N-no… you don't understand… I didn't do this… You've got to go… find them." Kuroji was struggling to put words together, but still managed to form coherent sentences.

"Find 'them'? Do you mean the priests?" Jinbei asked.

"Yes… please… spare me… I didn't do anything for once…" Kuroji had to take many breaths in between their fragments of sentences.

"They're not lying, it's true!" Shion said as they appeared from seemingly out of nowhere.

"Alright, but... you have to come with us." Tenkai dragged Kuroji with them, who eventually got onto their feet and began to follow along.

---

"...The damage is so bad, but… nothing important was hit, it seems." Tenkai said, inspecting the wreckage. Shion was following behind, sniffing around for hints of anyone. Eventually they headed off to the left of the shrine, beckoning for Tenkai and Jinbei to follow.

"They're over here, I think!" Shion pointed towards a group of trees behind some bushes.

"You sure?" Jinbei asked.

"Positive!" Shion eventually found where the two priests ended up, noticing the state.

"Wh...at happened?" Tenkai said as they noticed Tsubakura's state, as well as the arm they were holding tightly.

" Shit… " Kuroji said under their breath. Their memories of what happened prior, or rather in the future, came back to them.

"Kuroji, are you okay?" Jinbei asked.

"Ignore me, we need to focus on Tsubakura and... there was someone else wasn't there?"

"Someone else? Now that you say that, I get the feeling I'm… forgetting someone, but I could've sworn there was only one shrine priest." Tenkai said.

"No, there's only been one priest, for as long as I can remember." Jinbei said.

"Tsubakura, are you okay? You… don't look so good. And what are you holding?" Tenkai asked as they walked up to the crying Tsubakura. Kuroji followed Tenkai and kneeled down beside Tsubakura.

"Yabusame…" Tsubakura sobbed. They could barely see anything due to the ink coming out of their face.

"Who? A-are you alright Tsubakura?" Tenkai asked. Meanwhile, Kuroji's memories once again shifted as they remembered Yabusame.

"Yabusame… the other shrine priest… that dimensional weirdo…" Kuroji muttered to themselves, trying to piece everything together.

"Who? Don't tell me you're going insane too, Kuroji." Shion said.

"Ugh… I fucked up big time…" Kuroji said, as they sat down beside Tsubakura.