Chapter 6: Sakura Festival

"So what is my duty, then?" I tilted my head. "To take on the role of the next saint, and keep balance? Is this how the previous saints came to be, too?"

"No. saints aren't chosen randomly; only those who have overlooked death and dedicated their lives to this world can be nominated as a saint," Moye denied. "Every century, one saint would emerge, and by the time the invasion happens, they would be ready, exactly on time."

"This century, however, has yet to see the ascendance of a saint. Coincidentally or not, the invasion is also happening much sooner, in just three months," Moye sighed. "Sorry to drag you into this, but as my descendant, I'm afraid that duty must be yours."

"Does that mean I have to die to seal the passage?" I asked.

"No. You can't seal it off. Only a saint can," replied Moye. "Your task during the invasion is to kill an entire army of Crimson creatures, including their Archmaster, so the portal's powers wear off."

"How many would be in that army?" I asked, perhaps calmer than I should be.

"No less than two hundred thousand. Each is equivalent to... let's see... double the Cerberus Keeper's power."

Okay, screw my calmness.

"You're telling me to-" I started, but Moye cut me off.

"Your best bet is to start training now," Moye told me. "From now on, I'll seal this sword. You will have to use another sword, a normal one, to fight."

"Yeah, thanks. That makes it a whole lot easier."

I spend the rest of the time before the festival training the two moves from Shichiseiryu, Sorahoshi and Ryuseigun, with a normal titanium sword in the style of the Moye sword.

"You have a disadvantage, compared to many others local to here," Moye said as I slashed at a dummy. "Your spirit... let's just say, it's not the best. All it does is it helps you recall and awaken family skills - which is good, but it doesn't directly help you in duels. You also never trained your spirit until now, compared to many who train at the age of five."

"Now you're making me sound like an anime protagonist with no skill."

"Well, here's the 'but': you have solid kendo foundations, and you've been through a lot more actual battles, so you have more tactics and skill than others."

"Thank you, I suppose," I said as I got into position for another strike.

"Kitano Shichiseiryu, Sorahoshi!" I yelled, charging straight at the dummy with my first move.

"That's enough for the day," Moye stopped me. "You might want to try your father or your brother's swords."

"Right," I went back and picked up the two swords.

"Alright, here we go," I held my father's Earthen Broadsword, and held it in front of me. It was terribly heavy. "Come, spirit!"

"Oh-ho! I can speak again!" From the sword came my father's familiar voice. "How've you been, son?"

"I've been good, but I've got more work now," I gave a wry smile. "Okay, now for my brother."

I then put my father's sword on a rack on the side and picked up my brother's rapier.

"Yes! Ken, you freed me?" said my brother from his rapier.

"No, nii, I just called you out."

"Thanks anyway. Where's dad?"

"He's over there. You two can have a chat," I said.

I left the blue rapier on the rack with my father's sword for them to chat about the chaos after I came to this world, and went to sleep.

I woke to the sunshine the second day, earlier than usual; the sun rose from behind the mountain. I, too, will rise and shine, I thought to myself.

I grabbed the three swords, as well as my new titanium one, and headed for the festival.

When I arrived, the scenery was very much like the spring in Japan. There were cherry blossoms everywhere, and the ground was tinted with a lively pink. The only thing that seems foreign is a stone circle with unrecognizable patterns.

"One would suppose that this is where the festival is held?" I said to myself.

"That's a good guess. Indeed it is," a man came over and put his hand on my shoulder. Surprisingly, it was the receptionist from a few days ago.

"Morning," I turned to him. "I hope you've been doing well."

"I have. The stuff you sold me made lots," he smiled brightly. "The guild ranked me up for it. I'm now the manager of this particular branch."

"Congratulations."

"All thanks to you. Good sir," he whispered to me. "I'm betting the prize money from this all on you. You gotta win."

"Don't worry," I told him, but I wasn't so sure about people's skill level here either.

A good thirty minutes passed, and the festival officially began.

"Welcome, welcome! To celebrate this wonderful day signaling the bloom of spring, we are now hosting the Sakura Festival!" An elegant woman announced. "To our spectators, I give you my warmest welcome! To our competitors, I wish you the best of luck!"

The classic lines carry across even dimensions, huh?

After getting called, on one side of the stone circle stepped the man who I sold the core to the other day, wearing gloves with spiky knuckles. On the other side stood a blue-haired man with a bow made of tungsten.

"Nanguu Enten, from the South," The red-haired man put his fists clasped in front of his chest and bowed slightly.

"Kumoya Clan tier-five disciple, Yuminaka Tadashi," The man with the bow plucked his bowstring in salutation.

Both of them then closed their eyes, and a concentration of Qi, or soul energy, emitted from their bodies. The pattern on the stone circle lighted up, and a translucent barrier surrounded the two fighters like a glass dome.

"Everything you now see is only their spirit energy. If they die in the fight, they'll only fall unconscious for at most three days," Moye said in my mind. "In fact, that's the only way to win other than having your opponent forfeit."

"Here I go!" Enten let out a roar and charged towards Tadashi, who swiftly dodged and fired an arrow from his plentiful quiver. Enten blocked the arrow and laughed in excitement.

After a few rounds of trading hits, Enten was breathing heavily, and Tadashi was out of arrows. Both of their eyes narrowed, and they closed their eyes simultaneously.

This is it. The final round.