Clang!
An iron door swung open, and dazzling sunlight spilled in, bringing a trace of life to the gloomy room.
Inside the room, a woman in an iron cage looked up. She looked utterly bedraggled, and the dried blood scabbing her face lent her an eerie air.
Surprise flickered in her eyes when she saw who had come, but she quickly regained her composure.
Looking at the boy covered in blood and steeped in a murderous aura, she sighed deeply, shook her head, and said weakly, "What a bunch of idiots. They even dared to abduct a jujutsu sorcerer."
Igarashi Amaha raised an eyebrow. She actually knew about jujutsu sorcerers. He walked over and asked with interest, "You seem different from that bunch."
"That bunch?" The girl was puzzled for a moment before she understood. The people he meant were probably the girls who had been abducted just like her. From the look of things, their chances of survival were slim now.
"Are you here to silence me?" the girl asked.
Igarashi Amaha chuckled and answered without hesitation, "Yeah, that's right. It'd be a hassle if word of what happened here got out. I don't want a Special Grade hunting me down."
"Ah, seriously. If it weren't for you, I probably could've made it out alive." The girl spread her hands as if complaining. "Hey, make it quick. Don't make it too painful. I wouldn't like that."
Igarashi Amaha crouched down, bringing his face up to the middle of the cage, and suddenly said, "Now I'm curious about your name."
The girl waved him on impatiently. "All right, all right. What's the point of asking a dying person's name? Just get on with it. Don't you know how agonizing waiting for death is for a girl in the bloom of youth?"
"Come on, tell me. I might let you go," Igarashi Amaha said with a hint of deviousness.
"Huh!? Really?"
"Really."
The girl immediately sat up and introduced herself brightly. "My name is Zenin... uh... ah..."
Squelch!!
The girl's eyes widened as she stared in disbelief at the boy whose hand had plunged into her heart. She was about to ask something, but a searing, burning sensation cut off her voice.
Boom!!!
Purple-white flames spread along Igarashi Amaha's arm, reducing the girl to ashes in an instant.
He shook his hand and scratched his head apologetically. Looking at the pile of ashes inside the cage, he said regretfully, "Oh dear, sorry about that. I suddenly didn't want to know your name anymore."
With that, he slipped both hands into his pockets, stood up, and walked out, muttering, "Troublesome surname, troublesome woman."
When he returned outside, it was nearly noon. Dazzling sunlight shone through the clouds onto the earth, making him squint. As though suddenly remembering something, he glanced back at his shadow, then up at the sun hanging high overhead, and smacked his lips.
"Mm, the sun really does feel nice."
Igarashi Amaha began walking slowly toward the center of the village.
Next, all that remained were those women and children...
"Aaaaaah!"
Wails.
"Aaaaaah!"
Screams.
"Aaaaaah!"
Sobs.
"Aaaaaah!"
Defiance.
"Aaaaaah!"
Roars.
"Aaaaaah!"
Despair.
Rumble!! Rumble!!
Explosions.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!!
Burning.
"You... heaven will punish you, you devil."
"Heh, if there really is such a thing as punishment, then I am your heavenly punishment!"
"Aaaaah, no..."
On August 15, 2000, in a remote village west of Shibuya, all 23 men, 33 women, 16 children, and 10 elderly residents died at 9:43 a.m., Tokyo time!
"Waaah, waaah!"
Wait.
Igarashi Amaha walked behind a patch of rubble and effortlessly lifted a massive stone slab, revealing a cabinet underneath.
Inside a hidden compartment in the cabinet, a swaddled infant was crying loudly.
"Tch... what a hassle."
Squelch!!
The crying stopped abruptly.
All 23 men, 33 women, 17 children, and 10 elderly residents of the village died at 9:45 a.m., Tokyo time!
As Igarashi Amaha looked at Kitano Village, now reduced to ruins, a complicated look flashed through his eyes. Hopefully, it won't be discovered too soon...
He picked up a pack of cigarettes from the ground, feeling a little nostalgic. He had nearly forgotten that he used to be a heavy smoker himself.
A small flame rose from his finger. He lit a cigarette and took a deep drag.
"Phew..." He walked to a high spot and slowly sat down. Looking at the corpses strewn everywhere, he joked, "Hmm... I guess this counts as a smoke afterward too, hehe."
Early the next morning, on a hillside, Igarashi Amaha sat cross-legged beside a wooden grave marker. He said nothing, simply staring intently at it.
An unknown amount of time passed, and the sun sank in the west before Igarashi Amaha finally moved to rise. But just as he stood, he quickly sat down again, as though he had noticed something.
"Fuck, my legs fell asleep."
He stood up stiffly and stretched his body. Looking at the grave marker, he said softly, "Don't worry. I'll find that cursed spirit. I'll use you to kill it myself."
As he spoke, several flames sprang up around him. Their terrifying heat made even the surrounding air cry out.
He turned and gazed deeply into the distance, toward Shibuya. Igarashi Amaha's expression turned vicious as he murmured coldly, "I hope you'll come soon too. Don't keep me waiting too long."
The sun rose in the east and set in the west. Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
Beside a winding path west of Kitano Village, Igarashi Amaha lay on a huge tree branch, leisurely munching an apple. This was the only route to Kitano Village. If that person came, they would have to pass through here.
He idly snapped the fingers of his other hand to pass the time, rubbing his fingertips lightly together and occasionally producing flickering flames.
Vroom!!
Just then, the roar of a car broke the forest's silence.
Igarashi Amaha glanced up and took one last, reluctant bite of apple flesh before slowly standing. He looked at the luxury car speeding toward him in the distance, then at the apple core in his hand.
He raised his arm slightly, then hurled it into the distance.
Whoosh!!
It whistled through the air.
Splat!
The apple core struck the windshield with perfect accuracy, shattering into a mass of powder that completely covered the glass.
The impact startled both people inside the car.
"What the hell?" Without thinking, Yokoyama slammed on the brakes, stopping the car in its tracks, then quickly looked back through the rearview mirror. Sato, startled awake, wore an expression so dark it looked as though it might drip water.
"What happened?" The icy voice made Yokoyama's heart jolt.
"Y-young miss, it seems... someone threw an apple core."
"An apple core!?"
Yokoyama immediately got out to investigate, but the moment he saw the person ahead, he froze.
His lips trembled as he murmured, "H-how is this possible?"
"Tch." Sato clicked her tongue irritably in the back seat, stood, and got out. "Hey, what exactly hap... what... what the hell... how is this possible!!??"
Sato's pupils contracted sharply as she stared in disbelief at the boy munching an apple in front of the car.
When Igarashi Amaha saw the woman get out, he politely raised a hand in greeting, smiling with narrowed eyes. "Yo, long time no see, Sato."
Please support me in any way you can. I'd be endlessly grateful.