Onihunter Yuna 2

89 The Leaders of the Oni (Side Story)

"Yuki-chan. It's nice to see you," enthused Sachiko, who stood next to a table, whereupon a tea service was. Her torso was wrapped in a kimono, but her insect abdomen was its usual black.

"Hello, Sachiko-sama." Yukiko humbly bowed to her mistress.

"My goodness, don't be so formal, child." The mantis raised a sickle in front of her mask, chuckling.

"I want Tirr to learn from the beginning how to behave." Kira grinned broadly as she poured two more cups of tea.

"Well... then show him to me."

"Yes, Sachiko-sama." The blue-haired turned to the door. "Come in."

First Tirr squinted carefully through the door frame. He had something of an outcast child as he stood there, looking uncertainly at the room. His eyes slid across the table and then across the body of the strange creature. Timidly he entered the room with his big feet.

"Come here, child. You don't have to be afraid," Sachiko assured him.

"Hello, Sachiko-sama," greeted the oni. He squinted at Yukiko, who stared at him and nodded. Tirr quickly bowed and almost banged his forehead on the tabletop. Shortly before that, he remembered that he should destroy nothing and paused. Both Kira and Sachiko giggled.

"He's really cute, Yuki," the leader said.

"Come on. Sit down," Kira said as she sat down. The other two followed her prompt, Tirr carefully pulling the chair out and sitting down on it. Waiting for confirmation, he looked at his discoverer.

"Please, drink." Sachiko pointed to the cups in front of them. Yukiko nodded, grabbed her cup by the handle, led it to her mouth, and took a sip.

Tirr had watched her doing so, and in his turn grabbed the cup by the handle. The filigree porcelain crunched and broke between his fingers. The cheeks of his human form blushed and he held his breath. "I'm sorry," he mumbled. The blue-haired woman gritted her teeth as she looked at his hands.

"Strength. A very powerful gift," noted Sachiko. "Tell me something about you, Tirr."

He stared at the porcelain rump on the tablecloth. "I break things."

Kira brightened as she and Sachiko looked at each other and laughed. "This is completely normal."

He looked up. "For real?!"

"Of course. Every oni has to learn how his power works. Until then, things break." With the tip of her claw Sachiko lifted her cup to the mask and sipped on it. "Yuki-chan froze everything that touched her body for weeks. I couldn't put her in the tub because the water froze. And clothes were constantly splintering on her skin."

"Sachiko-sama," the blue-haired whimpered.

"It is true. The important thing is that nobody gets hurt."

"Exactly," said Kira. "And otherwise I'm still there."

The mantis nudged her. "If you are here. You've been on the road the last few years."

"I know. But there is so much to see in the world." The healer sipped her tea. "I would love to travel abroad, but Yoshiro is against it. The war has changed him."

Yukiko remembered. Yoshiro was enlisted during the Second World War to fight for the imperial army. He never talked about this time, but from the tales of the two women here at the table, he returned as a changed man. He had allegedly always been a pacifist, but after the horror of the war, this behavior became even more acute. And this was true for the whole of Japan. After the Second World War was lost, the whole country changed into a peaceful nation. It was like Japan followed the example of the oni.