[Senkumo Saga: Book of Blossoming]: Cyclical Karma

Like a lotus blooming above bloodied water, Tsukiakari found her chance to blossom in the Battle of Kyoto. Her first major victory in the field inspired the men and women under her command, who used to gaze upon her with excited, but skeptical eyes. Now, they looked upon their war goddess with intense wonder and undying affection.

They were no longer following her simply because Bishamon told them to do so. Tsukiakari had gained their trust. She saw this for herself as she marched through the moonlit aftermath of the battle, watching her soldiers roar and cheer like prideful lions.

She stopped and looked around at the celebrations in fascinated elation. She was completely surrounded by nothing but sheer happiness. The men roared and howled wordless songs of their victories into the sable, star-dazzled sky. The joyous faces of young women were soaked in tears as they embraced their loved ones.

On top of it all, the Senkumo had suffered fewer casualties than they expected. Out of two-hundred fifty men, fifty-six were wounded in the main battle, but were due to make steady recoveries. Only six were actually killed in action.

Tsukiakari spotted Taeko’s face in the near distance and steadily slithered her way through the deafening crowd towards her. Though the casualties were few and far between, they were all Tsukiakari could really think about in the moment. The battle may have been over, but she felt as though her job wasn’t.

Once Tsukiakari broke through the crowd, she found herself stepping on the soft grass of a small park rather than the wet, paved roads of the street. Taeko and Mayumi stood beneath the umbrella of a large oak tree down the center of the park. The two of them stood before the bodies of the six who died in battle, while three nurses began to cover the bodies with white sheets. Tsukiakari stopped, standing alongside Taeko and Mayumi as the corpses were covered.

“Even a decisive victory comes with a cost…” Taeko remarked with a heavy sigh.

Tsukiakari stepped forth. Sensing she wanted to see the bodies, the three nurses bowed their heads and moved out of her way. One at a time, Tsukiakari folded back the sheets to unveil their faces. Four of them were young women in their early twenties, their cheeks stained with congealed blood and dirt. The other two were boys in their late teens, their faces bruised and swollen beyond recognition.

“Gekko," Mayumi worriedly called out.

Tsukiakari stood and ordered, “I want their bodies cleaned and their weapons buried with them. We’ll lay them to rest on the way back to base. I won’t have this warzone be their grave. We’ll find somewhere beautiful for them. Somewhere comforting.”

Tsukiakari’s expression was affectless, but she exuded an aura of numb, empty loss. Of course, knowing that their sacrifice was not in vain, the war goddess’s chest tightened with melancholic pride. She was proud of those six soldiers, even in death.

Still, the emptiness lingered. Seeing their faces, she understood that death would follow in every failure and every victory. All she could do was be the embodiment of what they died for. Taeko patted Tsukiakari’s shoulder, pulling her out from her troubled thoughts.

“You said it yourself, didn’t you? A Senkumo lives forever,” Taeko said. “Let me handle our dead. You should be with the men, Gekko.”

“That’s right,” Mayumi agreed. “Don’t you have some sort of victory speech to make or something? Perhaps a toast of sake dedicated to our victory tonight?”

Flustered, Tsukiakari stumbled over her words. “What? No, I should…I mean, I…”

“Stop being shy, already! It’s time to claim the real victory of the night," Taeko encouraged as she pushed Tsukiakari towards the street.

Her cheeks red with embarrassment, Tsukiakari looked back at Mayumi and Taeko, who both gave her their thumbs-up of approval. She took a deep breath as she prepared to face her troops. This was it. She could feel it. She had won true loyalty. She thought of what to say to her men, which words would be best in stirring their fiery spirits. The more she stood there contemplating, the longer she took to take that first step onto the pavement. How would she address the dead, or the wounded? How would she encourage them to keep fighting by her side?

As it turned out, no words were necessary at all. Tsukiakari suddenly felt two hands take hold of her wrists and yank her onto the street. Startled, she looked up and saw two teenage girls each holding on of her wrists, their faces brightened by sparkling smiles. In seconds, Tsukiakari found herself surrounded by all of her soldiers, each of them applauding and cheering for her. The women in the group were especially attached to their new war goddess.

“Lord Tsukiakari, you must be tired after all that fighting! You should come with us!” suggested one of the girls that grabbed her. “We’ll feed you, if you’d like!”

“You guys don’t have to do all of that for me! You’ve done more than enough tonight," Tsukiakari replied, overwhelmed by the barrage of praise and affection.

“I can braid your hair for you, Lord Tsukiakari!” the other girl excitedly sang. “It’s our thanks to you, my lord!”

Taeko and Mayumi giggled as they watched Tsukiakari get sucked into the crowd of her adoring soldiers. They were expecting she’d have to give a heroic speech of sorts, but were all too amused when they saw she would instead be pampered to death.

“Mayumi, remind me to brag about being her friend when we get back to base,” Taeko snickered.

“Oh you’re going to have a field day with this, aren’t you,” Mayumi giggled in response.

Then suddenly, a cute little voice whispered, “Boo.”

Mayumi and Taeko jumped in fear, instantly swaying their heads back towards the voice. It was a seemingly unamused Ebina.

“Ebina," Mayumi and Taeko shouted, appalled at her deliberate scare.

“If you’re going to brag about this, I deserve some pampering too. Is that clear, Taeko,” Ebina asserted, pointing her index finger at her.

“Oh, come on! I pamper you well enough, don’t I,” Taeko defiantly argued.

Ebina growled. “Is that clear or not?”

“Yeah…I hear you…” Taeko sighed. “Ebina…”

“Yeah?”

“Since we’re back in Kyoto, I think I’m going to go back to Mom’s place.”

Ebina’s broke eye contact with Taeko and released a heavy sigh. “Oh…”

“I just wanted to make sure you knew, okay?”

“Yeah, you should do that,” Ebina said with a nod.

Satisfied, Ebina smiled and patted them both on the back before walking away, disappearing as silently as she approached them.

Taeko caught glimpses of Tsukiakari through the thick, celebratory crowd. Her smile slowly wilted as she watched the soldiers toss Tsukiakari up into the air and catch her in their arms. Over and over, they threw her up towards the sky as if they were trying to launch her towards the moon.

It all moved so slowly for Taeko, so much so that she could almost focus on Tsukiakari’s outer strands of hair, enwreathed in the moon’s light. The war goddess’s expression had gone from shocked to elated, with a powerful smile brightening her blushing face. Mayumi caught Taeko gazing at the celebrations with an unusually grave expression.

“Taeko…is something wrong," Mayumi asked, the question escaping her lips before she could even think.

Taeko sighed. “For some reason, Mayumi…my heart sinks for her.”

“Why’s that? It’s a joyous occasion, isn’t it? She just won her first battle. All of the troops truly adore her now. This is what she’s been working towards for the past six years.”

Taeko’s brows arched downwards. “I know. That’s exactly what I’m worried about.”

After a night of thunderous celebration, the Senkumo broke down their camp in the early morning. As the men were loading their equipment and taking down their tents, Tsukiakari noticed a particular someone’s absence. She immediately looked for Mayumi, approaching her as she helped load firewood onto the wagons.

“Hey, Mayumi, have you seen Taeko," Tsukiakari asked.

Mayumi swiped her hands against each other, dusting off the dirt on them. “Taeko? I think she mentioned she was going to visit her mom’s house. I’m surprised she didn’t tell you.”

Tsukiakari bit her lip in frustration. “What the hell is she thinking?”

“Well, she didn’t take her horse, so I’m assuming it’s pretty close to here," Mayumi said. “There are some old huts in the backwoods around here. Maybe she went there?”

“Thanks. I’m going to go look for her.”

Tsukiakari hopped on one of the spare horses and trotted down the grove. From there, she circled around the hill until she reached the woods, the scent of rain still permeating from the soil. The clouds that rained over the city the previous night were slowly tugged along by the wind, revealing the naked, blue sky. Birdsong echoed around the woods from every direction as monarch butterflies circled around Tsukiakari as if she were a blooming flower.

She finally came across an old, run down house tucked between two wisteria trees. Tsukiakari dismounted her horse and hitched it to one of the wisterias, then slowly approached the house with her hands on her hip. She looked upon the house’s rotting, wooden walls, broken roof shingles, and vines leaning out of the shattered windows, wondering what possessed Taeko to come to such a place.

Tsukiakari stepped inside, surprised to find the house was still furnished with a dining room table, pots for tea, and a dust-coated rug. There seemed to only be three rooms, with the living room area being the largest. The wooden floors creaked with every step as Tsukiakari called out for her friend.

“Taeko? You in here?”

She looked to her left and found an empty, small bedroom. Sauntering through the living room, she found a double door leading to the master bedroom. One of the doors were already open. She slowly stepped inside, finding Taeko hunched over on a wooden chair in the otherwise empty room.

“Taeko,” Tsukiakari gently called out.

Taeko didn’t answer. She simply looked on at the horrific sight before her, a skeleton dressed in shredded robes. The morning sun shined upon the skeleton like a spotlight. Tsukiakari stepped forward to take a closer look. A short rope was tied around the skeleton’s neck. Whoever she was looking at, Tsukiakari determined they hung themselves from the coat hook on their wall, and then leaned forward until they couldn’t breathe anymore.

“Say hi to my mom, Gekko,” Taeko said. “Ain’t she pretty?”

Taeko’s poor attempt to add levity to the situation only highlighted how much pain she was in.

“This is your mother?”

“The one and only,” Taeko affirmed. “I couldn’t leave without checking on her first. To be honest, I was hoping she wouldn’t still be here. I was hoping someone would’ve found her, given her a proper burial.”

“I don’t understand, didn’t you tell anyone when she died?”

Taeko shook her head. “Couldn’t.”

Tsukiakari took a closer look at the skeleton, her eyes widening in horror. The top of her skull was cracked, as if she had taken a blunt object to the head. She then examined the neck, seeing little to no breakage anywhere along the front or back of the spine.

“Taeko…you said your mother committed suicide.”

“Ebina said that,” Taeko said, standing on her feet. The two stared each other down until Taeko finally broke the silence. “Our dad was a deputy for the shogunate. He…got caught up in some bullshit. Some of his friends came up with a plot to overthrow Yoshimasa. I guess they were sick of serving a shogun who just wanted to sit on his ass and do nothing as the country was headed towards civil war. Dad had nothing to do with it, but when the government found out what was going on, he got in trouble for not ratting out his friends. My dad loved his troops and he understood their grievances, but he knew a coup would've only destabilized the nation and opened a power vacuum in the shogunate. So, he convinced them to drop their plans for the coup so he could protect the shogun and his comrades at the same time. For dad, it was either getting hanged in public or killing himself at home. He chose the latter. I guess that wasn’t enough for the Ashikaga. They figured his family knew about the plot as well. So, Mom moved us out here to try and hide us from the government.”

“Would they have really killed a mother and her children, too?”

“For treason? We were all as good as buried. We had nowhere else to go. She knew they were coming for us. She knew we’d all hang at the gallows if we were arrested. Her plan to avoid this…was for us all to die together, as a family.”

“She told you this?”

“I was supposed to poison Ebina and myself. Mom was going to hang herself. She knew Ebina was too young to willingly take her own life, so she asked the elder sister to do it.”

“I had no idea, Taeko…”

“As you can see, I thought differently about the whole thing. The night came when I was supposed to kill myself and Ebina, and instead, I…I protected us. I took her and ran after that.”

“Does Ebina know?”

Taeko looked away as she wiped the tears from her reddening eyes. Her silence said everything.

Tsukiakari covered her mouth in shock. “Oh my god, Taeko…”

“I did what I had to do, Gekko. I knew our lives were effectively over. I knew we'd have nowhere to feel safe, nowhere to call home. But still...as long as Ebina was alive...life was still worth fighting for. ”

“What if she finds out?”

“That’s what I’m here for. So that never happens. I trust you won’t say a word about this either. Koike Akiyama had her back to a wall and killed herself while her kids escaped. End of story.”

“Doesn’t she have a right to know? This is her mother too.”

Taeko shook her head. “Ebina and I aren’t biological sisters. She was adopted. Of course, we all treated her like she was flesh and blood, but the difference is there. I’d argue I have more of a right than her.”

“That’s…cruel, Taeko.”

“…The truth would hurt far more.”

Having no right to speak a word of the truth to Ebina, Tsukiakari nodded and swore a vow of silence. The two gathered kindling and leaves, placing them inside the house. Since the city was rained out the previous night, Taeko poured her canister of palm oil across the house, assuring that everything would burn. She lit a fire inside the master bedroom and rushed out of the house with Tsukiakari.

The two of them stood back and watched as it burned to the ground, Koike’s remains still inside. Tsukiakari closed her eyes and bowed her head, saying a silent prayer for Koike. She overheard Taeko’s suspirations and whimpers, but found it a matter of respect not to look at her as she cried. Instead, Tsukiakari laid a hand of comfort upon her shoulder, watching the smoke carry Koike’s spirit into the morning sky.

By the time the sun rose over the hills to the east, the army began their march home. Tsukiakari observed how much energy and gusto her soldiers carried with them on that journey homewards.

The aura among the troops was far less stiff and foreboding than it was when they marched towards Kyoto. Along the way there, Tsukiakari brought her party to a stop, so they could bury their six dead in a hillock-rimmed meadow, just a few miles away from base. The sun shined brightly in the naked, blue sky above their heads as everyone formed their lines in front of the freshly dug mounds of dirt. The rainbow of blooming flowers swayed and danced by their feet.

Not a word was spoken among the troops. Everyone stood as silent as stones. Tsukiakari stepped forth, carrying three, unsheathed swords in each hand. Pure white ribbons tied to the hilts of the blades fluttered in the breeze. One by one, Tsukiakari struck the blades into their respective graves, each sword belonging to one of the fallen warriors. They served as their cherished weapons in life, and they would be their sacred tombstones in death.

Tsukiakari bowed her head, observing what felt like a few minutes of tranquil silence. Silent prayers stirred in their hearts and minds, wishing only the best journey for the dead. Though they all felt the pain of loss, their victory in Kyoto also brought them enough peace to reconcile the demise of their brethren. 

Tsukiakari raised her head, muttering to herself. “You may have passed, but you’re not gone. You’re still here among us, within us. Let it stay that way…always.”

She had been made to believe that compared to the divine, humans were profane and inferior creatures. They grew old, they grew sickly, they suffered, and eventually, they died. Tsukiakari knew what it was to bask in Heaven’s cradle of endless light, while the humans around her were destined to meet with death. After they passed, all that awaited them was deep, soothing dark.

“Let’s continue on our way,” Tsukiakari commanded. “I’m sure everyone is waiting for us.”

Shortly after their stop, Tsukiakari and her army approached the gates of the Senkumo base. That familiar chain of shouts and hollers from behind the base’s walls rang out, signaling the guards to let the returning party in. All of the men and women inside began to swarm the entrance as Tsukiakari passed through, like ants towards a drop of honey.

To the war goddess’s surprise, news of her victory in Kyoto had already reached the base. She and her men were welcomed back with thunderous applause and cheers. They sang her name to the heavens while the women showered her with handfuls of flower petals from their brown, lacquered baskets.

Tsukiakari dismounted her horse, handing the reigns to the entrance guards.

She shouted into the guard’s ear amidst the cheering. “Take her back to the stables for me!”

The guard bowed to Tsukiakari, as he would if Bishamon had made the same command. It seemed like a small and obligatory gesture, but it shocked Tsukiakari nonetheless. The guard’s bow meant he acknowledged her as a true goddess, as a lord of the clan. Her ears were bombarded by the meshed together hurrahs, but one word she could pick out from the celebratory onslaught was “Lord”.

Suddenly, the hurrahs died down into silence, and the crowd began to part, as if to make room for someone. Bishamon stepped forth, stopping in front of Tsukiakari without a word. The air grew serrated with suspense. No one knew what Bishamon was going to say or do, and his facial expression offered no hints.

His stone-face expression brightened with a smile. “Tsukiakari…you have blossomed.”

The light in everyone’s eyes as they gazed at Tsukiakari told her all she needed to know. While Bishamon bowed his head, the other Senkumo got on their knees and bowed with their foreheads touching the dirt.

“Hail Lord Tsukiakari!” the clan cheered collectively.

At long last, Tsukiakari was a goddess to be worshiped.

In two years, the Senkumo clan grew so much that the base began to get a little crowded. The Ashikaga clan paid the Senkumo a fortune for their intervention in Kyoto, as well as a substantial bonus for incapacitating Yamana and Hosokawa forces. The Senkumo gained nearly a thousand new recruits in the two years since the battle. With more money and manpower at their disposal, it was time for the Senkumo to expand.

On one sunny, summer day, Bishamon summoned Tsukiakari to his sanctuary, eager to share some important developments with the now-revered war goddess. Tsukiakari sat on her knees in front of the cross-legged Bishamon as the aroma of incense lifted into the air. Stripes of bright, warm sunlight shined through the wooden bars of the clerestory and reflected off of the golden statue of Bishamon. Both of them wore the standard, black Senkumo robes and kimono, covering their arms with its longs sleeves and donning the red cloud crest on their backs.

“I have a lot of good news to share with you today, Gekko," Bishamon began. “You may have noticed the base has been feeling a bit…tight, lately.”

Tsukiakari giggled. “Everyone is sharing a room with five other people now. You can hear snoring through the walls just about every night. Lucky you, you get to have this entire room to yourself.”

“If it’s any consolation, I can still hear everyone rummaging about on the floors below.”

“No, that’s still not as bad as the normal quarters. Nice try though.”

Bishamon stood and smiled. “Well, it won’t be like this for very long at all. I wanted to put all of these new recruits to use, so I ordered the formation of a Construction and Development team. I’ve also purchased a large amount of building materials and had them all delivered about sixty miles south of here.”

Tsukiakari gave a puzzled expression. “Sixty miles south? Why? Nothing’s down there, right?”

“Not yet, but that’s why I ordered the formation of the new team. We’re building a new base, Tsukiakari.”

“Whoa, really? A whole new base? Is it going to be as big as this one?”

“Bigger, actually. After all, this base was built with a small army in mind. However, the Senkumo clan is growing so fast that it’s hard to catch up. We’ll need much more room for all of the recruits.”

Tsukiakari smiled. “It’s going to feel more like a large town than a military base.”

“The Senkumo aren’t just a military, Tsukiakari. We’re a parallel society now, living in the underbelly of the country. In no time, we’ll be a nation unto ourselves. That’ll be our real victory.”

“So, who’s going to oversee the new base? I assume you’re going to appoint a commander for that, right," Tsukiakari asked.

“I would like for this new base to be mostly independent from my command. It should act on its own to carry out operations," Bishamon stated. “Whoever does end up overseeing it will have a lot of responsibilities on their shoulders.”

“Independent? So they’ll have a different commanding lord?”

“That’s what I mean. As of now, I trust no one else as much as I trust you, Gekko. Be prepared. I could very well name you as the lord who will oversee the new base. If that happens, I will hardly be there to guide you. You’ll be your own lord, forced to make your own decisions.”

Despite the warning, Tsukiakari seemed excited by the idea of having her own, independent base. She bowed her head to hide her grin, but her elation was as plain as day.

“Of course…” Bishamon added. “You’d still receive funding and support from this base. The Senkumo is still a united clan with a single objective. I just…well, to be honest, I don’t think I can handle managing two of these damned places.”

“You just want to get out of writing out all the administrative paperwork, don’t you," Tsukiakari snickered.

“Gods shouldn’t have to write medical, recruitment, or shipment records. It’s maddening," Bishamon responded.

Tsukiakari gave a smug smile. “You’re not denying it, Bishamon!”

“All right, all right. You got me. I want to get out of writing even more paperwork.”

“Honesty is a virtue, Bishamon. So, anything else you wanted to share?”

Bishamon’s expression grew serious. “Yes. This has to do with our victory in Kyoto two years ago.”

“Okay," Tsukiakari said, curious where this was going.

“I think your victory in that battle may have been too perfect, Gekko. News of our triumph has emboldened a few civilian uprisings across the country. Namely, the Ikko-ikki.”

“Ikko-ikki? I haven’t heard of them. ”

“They are peasants and monks acting in their own social and economic interest," Bishamon expounded. “Much like us, they are rallied around the idea of being a formidable force without a provincial lord. Such rebellions are usually squashed quickly, but things have played out differently in this case. Because of the war, the Ashikaga shogunate was severely weakened. With every lord plotting and warring against one another, the Ikko-ikki’s unity is making their revolts more effective. The Hosokawa clan has effectively taken over the shogunate and made the Ashikaga their puppets, but their dreams of ruling this country are up in smoke with the Ikko-ikki gaining momentum.”

Bishamon softly chuckled as he unfolded his paper fan and blew cool air in his face, gently swaying his long, black hair. 

“They've inherited a country flogged by war, its subjects no longer fond of the panoply of feudal lordship’s failures. The fighting, the hatred, the pain…it’s all come to this," Bishamon smugly remarked.

“So then…are we going to act on this? Tsukiakari asked. 

“The Onīn War was just an ember of a greater fire. The Senkumo clan will be answering the prayers of the daimyo. Of course, who we side with is our choice, because it doesn't actually matter who wins or loses. This may sound troublesome, but it’s actually the springtime of opportunity for the Senkumo clan. As we draw more recruits and funds, we’ll be able to accept more contracts for our support in exchange for coin and prayers. From peasant bands of rebels who rejected their sovereign, to seasoned legions of the Shogun’s lapdogs, the manpower and discipline of the Senkumo clan will be a valuable asset to them.”

Bishamon stood up as he continued to fan his face, signaling he was about ready to end the conversation. However, he suddenly snapped his fingers and turned back around towards Tsukiakari, as if he had remembered something important.

“Oh, before I forget, I asked Inari Okami to spy around for me in the Kaga Province. She should have returned today with some useful information. Please, go to her shrine for me. Follow the dirt path in the forest behind the base. It’ll lead you right to her. She’s a new goddess, so please be friendly to her, Gekko.” 

Tsukiakari bowed her head, leaning forward on her fingers and closing her eyes.
“I’ll make my way there now.”

Tsukiakari politely left the room. Descending down the stairs, she could hear the plodding footsteps of the men on the lower floors of the mansion. The halls became livelier as more members were brought into the Senkumo clan. As she walked through the halls of the lavish mansion however, there was one particular person who seemed to have popped out of nowhere with an annoyingly pure, yet devious smile on her face. 

“Hey there Gekko," Taeko cheered with an enthusiastic wave hello. 

Tsukiakari just kept walking by. Like a stray dog, Taeko followed her on her walk, never taking her fluttering eyes and increasingly obsessive grin off of Tsukiakari. 

“Where ya goin'? Whatcha doing today? Wanna go by the hot springs? Wanna go to Mount 

Fuji," Taeko asked in rapid succession. “Are we off to kill someone?”

“We," Tsukiakari repeated in shock. 

“Yep! We're Team Taeko today!” 

“Whoa, hold on! Shut up! If we're teaming up today, it's going to be Team Tsukiakari, or Team Gekko!” Tsukiakari hissed.

Taeko took a moment to think of a compromise. “How about Team Senkumo?” 

“Everyone here is a Senkumo, it doesn't mean anything if we're referring to a specific team!” 

“Hmm...Taegekko” Taeko uttered. “Ha! It works...sort of! When Taeko and Gekko merge, we become Exquisite Moonlight!”

“You're giving me a headache," Tsukiakari groaned. “All right, all rightt. Get your sword. I'll explain the mission on the way. We'll be headed to Inari's shine today.” 

“Yes ma’am," Taeko saluted with a formal bow.

Like a child going to the candy shop, Taeko delightfully skipped along the dirt road in the open and lush countryside south of Kyoto. The natural beauty of the distant mountains, leaves swishing in the wind, and the exquisite birdsong echoing in the sky perfectly masked the harsh reality that was manifesting in the country. After being given the details on their errand, Taeko crossed her arms and momentarily lost herself trying to imagine what this Inari looked like.

“Inari Okami? Hmm, I've heard of her recently. She’s a goddess of rice, fertility, and foxes, isn’t she," Taeko curiously pondered. 

“Apparently, she's fresh meat in the pantheon. She doesn't have many shrines in the area yet.” Tsukiakari added.

“Ah, I see. So we just have to confront her and see what she found out. Sounds easy enough.”

 
For some reason, despite her personal strength and the strength of the Senkumo clan as a whole...Tsukiakari worried about what was to come next. She worried about Taeko, Mayumi, Ebina, and all the others. She knew that everything was going to get a lot worse than the Onīn War. She knew the conflict would embroil much of the country at large, stretching far beyond the dilapidated threshold of Kyoto.

She shuddered as the thought of another group taking her victory and using it to further fan the flames of war. Tsukiakari proved that the feudal lords of the country could be bested by a disillusioned group of people willing to fight them. There were bound to be more and more attempts at replicating this.

“Listen…Taeko..." Tsukiakari uttered, the words slowly escaping her lips. 

“I know, Gekko. You looked like something's weighing on your mind,” Taeko quickly responded. 

“I can see the worry in your eyes. Don't trouble yourself about a thing, all right? We're family now. Plus, we’ve got two war gods on our side! Whatever challenge may come to us, I know we'll be able to overcome it. So, cheer up. You shouldn’t meet a god with such a long face."

“I...guess you're right," Tsukiakari said with a minor sigh of relief. “You can be surprisingly mature, Taeko.” 

“A sister is a jester on the outside and an oracle on the inside, after all.” 

The dirt path led them right into the heart of the forest. The cool of the green-tinted shade provided by the trees was refreshing after walking in the sun for so long. The constant hum of cicadas was like music to their ears.

“It's around here somewhere...” uttered Tsukiakari. 

“Oh, let's try this way,” Taeko urged. “New gods like to set their shrines up in cool areas, preferably with a pond or small body of water nearby!” 

 
Tsukiakari crossed her arms. “And how do you know that?” 

“Gekko! I'm not stupid! I know a thing or two about gods! I’m friends with one, after all.”

The path Taeko pointed to led them up the base of the mountain, where they did indeed find a small shrine built around a pond. Even for what they were expecting, it was a little underwhelming. Actually, it was very, excruciatingly underwhelming. It was just a small pagoda figurine and a stone slat with Inari's name carved on it, with two sticks of incense burning in front of it. The pond however, was clean and pretty, like the waters of a tropical beach. 

“Gekko, look,” Taeko exclaimed.

A small, white fox with nine tails emerged from the pond and shook the water off of its thick fur, spraying the two girls with a refreshing mist of hydration. 

 
“Is this really a…fox,” Tsukiakari asked herself, her eyes fixated on its tails.

Before their very eyes, the fox lit up like a newborn star, morphing and shifting to reveal its human figure. Its paws and claws turned into arms and legs, and most of its fur morphed into peachy, vibrant skin. The fluffy, nine tails remained, swirling and swaying behind what looked to be the body of a fourteen-year-old girl. Her furry white ears also remained, jerking in different directions to even the slightest sound of a branch breaking, or a cicada singing in the distance. 

 
Her head of thick, white hair covered her chest and most of her neck, curling around the fox-tooth necklace she wore. Her face was unmistakably youthful, free of any blemish or even the slightest unsightly flaw. The girl was blessed by bright, red eyes that captivated both Tsukiakari, and the drooling Taeko. Now fully transformed and naked, the girl, the goddess, Inari Okami herself, bowed before them. 

“Greetings, Tsukiakari Senkumo. My name is Inari Okami. I welcome you and your guest to my humble shrine. I apologize if it’s…lackluster.”

“She’s so c-cute," Taeko gushed. “Let me adopt her! Let me cuddle with her!”

Tsukiakari quickly covered Taeko's mouth with her hand. 

“No, please! We understand," Tsukiakari consoled. “Thank you so much for having us! But...how did you know my name? Bishamon only decided to send me to you today, didn't he?” 

Inari blushed, covering her trembling lips and cheeks with one of her tails as she twiddled her thumbs and fingers. 

“W-well, it's just that I've sort of...heard of you...in Heaven. Everyone says you're Amaterasu's daughter. Honestly, I’d recognize you purely by your similarities to your mother. My apologies, Tsukiakari. I can get a little star-struck sometimes.” 

“Mmmmmhmm! Mhhmmm! Mmm,” Taeko mumbled through Tsukiakari’s hand.

“Fine, I'll let you go, but no more wild comments out of you! Understand?”

Released from Tsukiakari’s grip, Taeko composed herself and bowed before Inari. 

“My apologies...that was incredibly rude of me,” Taeko lamented.

Inari nervously giggled. “No, I thought it was cute! Thank you so much for your affection! It means the world to me!” 

 
Inari turned on her heel and skipped back over to the pond. She jumped and splashed right into it, soaking her entire body in its clear water. She surfaced from the pond, wiping her eyes and nose as she stood towards the shallow end, taking handfuls of the sparkling water and rubbing her arms and legs with it. Tsukiakari and Taeko stood to her left and right respectively, watching the young goddess as she washed her body and tails.

“Inari, Bishamon told me you came here from the Kaga Province. Were you followed," Tsukiakari questioned.

“Not at all! I checked four times for anyone following me around. I have slightly bigger shrines in more populated areas, but I settled on this one because it was close to Bishamon, and because not many people come up here, besides for the locals.” 

“So then? Do you have a scroll for us to take back," Taeko asked. 

Inari blushed again, hiding her face behind her tail as the sun glimmered in her adorably sweet, crimson eyes. 

“W-well, you see, I would've written a scroll for you...but there are a lot of kanji I can't write yet. I'm very sorry!” Inari apologized with her hands clasped and head bowed in apology. 

“Damn...well, I guess that's to be expected, after all," Tsukiakari groaned. “You're still very young for a goddess. It makes sense you’re still learning how to write. So then, can you tell us what happened?” 

“Yes, I can. Please, listen closely,” Inari urged.

“Kinda hard to do that, but all right...I'll try," Taeko told herself as Inari prepared to lay down the situation.

“Right now, Kaga province is being rocked by numerous rebellions by the lower class. The province is ruled over by Togashi Masachika, who used to have a strong grip on the area, even during the Onīn War. However, since the Ashikaga Shogunate has fallen apart, there are many disaffected daimyo that are beginning to lend their aid to the Ikko-ikki.” 

“Damn it, so that's what's going on,” Tsukiakari sighed.

“The daimyo are all breaking up into factions and rebelling against their masters,” asked Taeko. 

“That's right. No matter how much he keeps quelling these uprisings, the Ikko-ikki only come back stronger and with more help than before. It is my firm belief that Kaga will form another fracture point in the country, and may set another precedent for more civil wars and uprisings.” 

 
“Do you know why the Ikko-ikki is rebelling against Masachika,” Taeko questioned further. 

“Well, they claim he hasn’t fulfilled his promise to elevate the lower class out of poverty. I think they feel that they still live in squalor because of his rule,” Inari explained. 

“When Bishamon told me about the Ikko-ikki, I thought they were a leaderless, civilian revolt. I figured they probably don’t have much in the way of official organization and hierarchy. Has anything you've seen in Kaga contradicted that,” Tsukiakari inquired. 

“Hmm...Not entirely. There is some sort of organization, but it's very loose. I searched around, and the closest thing to a leader the Ikko-ikki have is a man named Rennyo.” 

“Rennyo,” Taeko questioned.

Inari nodded. “He's currently the head priest of the Honganji temple. The temple belongs to the True Pure Land sect of Buddhism, founded by Shinran during the Heian period. I've done quite a lot of research about these two, and about the sect.” 

“I’m guessing you mean spying, not research,” Taeko quipped.

“Yep! I spied on the Honganji temple,” Inari exclaimed with a smile that exposed her small, protruding fangs.

“Tell us,” Tsukiakari demanded. “We need to know everything about our enemy. If they follow a certain belief system, the tenets of that system could serve as points of subversion. It may be the key to understanding how to dismantle the Ikko-ikki.”

With an agreeing nod and raised index finger, Inari happily prepared to go further in detail, pleased that her words could appease the yearning ears of her guests.

“Very well. Listen closely.”