Riposte

Chapter 3

You think that after 2000 years and earning your senior citizens discount many times over, you can get a good night’s rest and wake up to soft music playing while you whip up a hearty breakfast. But that never happens. This time, I was awoken by a bright white light.

“Whoa what?” I was shocked into a sitting position.

“Ono-san.” Lady Amaterasu greeted me with my surname.

“Lady Amaterasu! Please allow me to change into something more appropriate to receive you.”

“There will be no such need. I will not be staying for long.” I could not look Lady Amaterasu in the face, she was radiating such a bright white light or benevolence. It was part of her being thus that people usually could not stare her in the eyes, and kept their heads bowed. It was part of her being to command respect.

“Ono-san. Please return Kusanagi-no-tsurugi to Susanoo.”

“What? You wanted me to keep it in the first place.”

“I thought wrong. You have to return it now.”

Sensing something wasn’t right, I flicked on my magical sight. I saw right through the glamour and realised it was Susanoo in disguise. I reached for the kunai I kept on my tableside but it seemed they weren’t there. Half-panicking, I charged Susanoo and pushed him to the ground. I ran to the living room and fumbled under the couch for the sword.

Of course, I had taken precautions to hide it from prying magic users. It could be found, but the magic of it would be shielded and the finder would just take it as an ordinary sword. That was why Susanoo had no idea that it was a mere room away from him, hidden right under his nose. He probably assumed that I had hidden it outside my house, since he could not sense it there, and was obviously trying to coax the sword, or its location out of me. He probably knew that if he killed me first, Kusanagi-no-tsurugi would be lost forever. I had taken all of this into account when I got a witch to cloak it for me. By hiding it, I had effectively guaranteed myself a lifeline.

I pulled it from its hiding place. Standing up and holding it at my waist, I adopted a battojutsu stance. I grasped the sheath tightly in my left hand, next to my hip. My right hand rested lightly on the grip. I was ready for a counter-attack should Susanoo choose to pick a fight. Knowing his disguise had been discovered, Susanoo cast it off.

“Hahaha.” He laughed a throaty laugh. “I expected nothing less of the person that could take that sword from me. If you hadn’t see through my camouflage that easily, I would have been suspicious.”

“Forget about getting back Kusanagi-no-tsurugi. It’s mine now.”

“You can forget about trying to stop me also. That flimsy sword of yours cannot stop mine. You will fail and I will drag you back to Ama-no-Iwato and torture the answer from you.” Yumi’s magic rocked. Her cloak could even hide one of the most powerful weapons, one that was practically humming with magic, from the Kami. Unreal.

“You think this a mere flimsy sword?” I had to remain calm. One wrong move and I’d be severely injured and then captured.

“I sense no magical energy. It is weaker than my blade.” I noticed that at his hip, he was carrying his sword, Totsuka-no-Tsurugi. It had the fame of a great sword, being used by Izanagi. I was pretty sure it had some bonus juju that Izanagi had forged into it, even though there was no literature that mentioned such.

“When mortals take excessive pride in their abilities, it’s called hubris. I don’t know if theres a word when immortals do so.” I smirked.

He roared at my blatant taunt. And I mean he roared. He was the god who was infamous for his rage, letting it build up before vomiting out Amanozako. He immediately cast a blizzard around me, trying to freeze me. My amulet flashed cold, and frost formed on it. But the storm was no more. I laughed at his impotence, knowing well that he could not cast magic at me directly.

His face registered shock for a second before he regained his composure and drew his blade. Both hands gripped the sword lightly yet firmly. I watched closely, with his rage, he could be utterly unpredictable. I saw his forearm muscles tense and suddenly he was right in front of me. I barely managed to draw my sword and parry his overhead strike. This was the opening I was looking for.

As he was just about to go for another strike, I aimed a sidekick at his face and knocked him backwards. It was my turn to go on the offense and I swung my blade towards his exposed right side. It was a very obvious attack, no doubt he would see it, but that was my intention exactly. He took 2 steps back, just out of my range, and my blade missed. He didn’t see what was coming next. Kusanagi-no-tsurugi had the power to create winds, and that was what I used to my advantage. The strong gust of wind that came after the strike knocked Susanoo down.

His jaw dropped as he suddenly recognised the power in my sword.

“How is it you have managed to cloak the magic of the sword? It really is Kusanagi-no-tsurugi…”

“You do not need to know how I did it. You only need know that I have bested you in combat, and I am not returning the sword.”

His face contorted in rage and he roared, “I will be back.” He then drew his Shroud of Storms over himself and jumped out of my open window. I slumped on my couch and heaved a sigh of relief. I had only bested him because he underestimated my strength. The next time he decided to attack me, I doubted I would be able repeat this feat.