3rd Pov:
Jouryuu's wings flapped through the winds of Mato, high above the sky, beyond the poisoned clouds. The soft and cool wind blew against her body like a gentle blanket.
Jouryuu's eyes pierced through the clouds as she sensed life below, but it wasn't the ones she was seeking.
Her main focus was on the humanoid Shuuki shown to her by Xicor on the TV he shared with them. Their abilities were small to their knowledge, with only seeing one in action, but that was enough for them to be useful to Kuusetsu and a possibility for the Shuuki to evolve, if that's even possible.
As she flapped through the sky she brought a hand in front of her before opening and closing it, still feeling the aftereffects of her and Xicor's spar.
Each spar was fun.
Each spar was productive in helping her learn how to use her power.
She relies heavily on her hand-to-hand combat while enhancing parts of her body with her power.
Xicor forced her to utilise her power, something she hadn't considered, such as using the ground as a weapon.
A tactic like that was unheard of for her, in nature she is a warrior and very much prefers close combat and honour but when being pushed to the brink of defeat, you will be forced to adapt and forget your morals to survive and win.
Even after the spar and now, her mind is continuously coming up with different ways to use her power to its fullest potential.
Jouryuu then brought her hand to her chest, faintly feeling her heartbeat quicken slightly at the prospect of another spar with him.
"What is this strange feeling" She muttered to herself, her cheek tinged red.
The feeling was warm to her.
It was comforting.
It was something she didn't understand.
At first, she banished this feeling away from her mind but it would always return back and in greater force.
She shook her head and focused back on her task as she tilted her body down and descended to the edge of a cliff, overlooking Mato's vast rocky and snowy terrain, where various craters lay scattered with one of them destroyed. Snow and frost had spread across it like some virus.
'This is the spot where those usurpers were last spotted' She thought as she scanned the destroyed land.
Her eyes scrutinised the area as the scene she saw on a screen replayed in her mind. Her wings spread wide before she leaned forward at the edge and fell with her wings gliding her down to the centre of the crater.
She walked around aimlessly, trying to find even a single clue about where that humanoid Shuuku could have gone.
But no matter how much she looked, it was pointless. There was nothing, not even a single strand of DNA from that individual.
But an idea hit her.
If she could manipulate the rocks she interacts with by creating a body with one, could she see what they experienced by transferring their essence into her brain rather than her body to heal it?
With that idea in mind, she walked over to the destroyed wall that the humanoid Shuuki fired a beam through.
Jouryuu kneeled to one of the fallen rocks from that wall before picking it up and pressing her forehead against its surface.
Both she and the rock were illuminated by a white light as the Jouryuu saw everything, as if she were there but only in spirit.
She watched the humanoid Shuuki's action, ensuring she could gather anything useful that the bird didn't catch.
Only after that did the Unihorn and the humanoid Shuuki retreat that she returned to reality.
She slowly lowered the rock to the ground before standing back up with grace as she faced the direction they had gone.
Faint traces of purple and brown mists began to appear in her vision, and they travelled in the same direction she saw her targets go. They weren't the only ones but they didn't concern her.
'Is this a side effect of having the earth's essence entering my brain, I can see the traces of everything that has stepped through here after a while' She thought, the discovery let her mind wander from her task.
"They headed west" She mumbled before spreading her wings wide and ascending into the sky. Her body turned into a blur for normal people, her gaze never wavered from the wind crashing against her.
The Shuuki below looked up too late to see her but they would see the air being pushed back from her speed.
Jouryuu followed the traces for a while before they froze at a pointed cliff. The tall goddess softly landed as she surveyed the area.
Below her was a forest of Mato trees with peaches ready to be plucked from the branches they grow on with a few already on the floor, awaiting to be eaten and have their seeds be transported elsewhere.
Jouryuu kneeled to the ground as her hand hovered over a drawing carved into the floor of rock where she stood.
It was the drawing of Yuuki's, slave form, face.
'Are they interested in that boy? Would he be a link to them?' she thought as she placed her hand down on top of the drawing, absorbing the essence into her brain.
The scene played out perfectly but what surprised her was that this humanoid Shuuki wasn't alone, there were others.
One was a voluptuous woman with horns around her head like a crown, Yuno Naon.
And the other was a petite woman with short mint green hair and pink eyes, she had a single horn on the left side of her head and black markings under her eyes, Koko Zenibako.
She observed them closely the way Koko licks the cuts off of the one she was tracking. The wounds were healing at a surprising rate but it was less than her way of absorbing the ground's essence to heal her body.
She was curious to know what the other ones' abilities were but she never showed it. She was brought back to reality as the misty traces continued west though they diverged slightly off course.
Jouryuu flew high in the sky, her gaze observing the traces for quite a while as she lost track of time. It was only after a loud boom that she woke up.
Shaking her head, she searched for the source. Down below her was a fight at the entrance to a large mountain, close to the border of Mato.
Two Demon Defence Force members versus Koko and a special Shuuki that almost resembles a bear mixed with a human.
Facing Koko were Shushu Suruga and Sahara Wakasa and they were breathing heavily from exhaustion with several marks across their body and various rips in their clothes.
Shushu stood about 40 feet tall and Sahara had an orange aura around her that sparked now and then.
Jouryuu remained as high up as possible with her presence as low and as possible to avoid being detected.
"Found you" She muttered to herself.
Crossing her arms, she watched them fight though it would seem that the fight would be in Koko's favour as her ability allows her to heal herself by excreting a kind of slimy substance out of her body, not only that but it makes her invulnerable against physical attacks.
Perfect for someone with hand-to-hand combat.
Not only does she have a useful ability in close quarters but her Shuuki seems to be quite durable as no matter how much physical force they apply to the Shuuki, it would not be damaged or exhausted, a living tank.
Jouryuu's gaze shifted to the mountain as she could sense multiple presences inside clashing against one another with the strongest in the centre of the mountain.
The fight grew more destructive and primitive in Jouryuu's eyes. She turned and flew off back home at a higher speed, back home.
Xicor leaned against the walls of the open bath, with his arms propped against the edges of the bath. The warm water reached his chest as steam escaped from the surface of the water.
His eyes were closed with satisfaction as a contented sigh left his nose. He lay the back of his head against the floor, soaking in the stress-relieving water.
After a while, he slowly opened his eyes to view the ceiling of the bath. It was replaced by the system's window, alerting its host of the unused template he had yet to use.
'Ah, that's right, I still have that roll to do' He thought as he immediately rolled it.
―――――――――――――――――――――
[Rolling Template]
[...]
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[Kokichi Muta Template]
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[Kokichi Muta Template: 0% ]
[Cursed Technique: Puppet Manipulation]
[Speciality: None]
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Xicor raised a brow at that, 'Puppet Manipulation aye? I could use the construction technique to create the puppets and let them roam free in the human world to cause chaos if I'm out there'
Just as the system was dismissed, another replaced it.
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[Warning: Template contains Heavenly Restriction, to prevent the host from obtaining the Heavenly Restriction the template will be sealed until the host acquires a template to combat the Heavenly Restriction]
[Templates such as Toji Fushiguro and Maki Zenin would not be received because they do not contain a cursed technique]
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'Well that's a shame but better for me since I don't want to have a weak body' Xicor thought, closing his eyes as the system disappeared.
He savoured the warm sensation that enveloped his body as he sank deeper into the water. His relaxed state was woken up by movement in the water not too far from him.
Opening one eye, Xicor saw the breathtaking form of Shikoku swimming gracefully towards him with a soft smile plastered on her face. Her bow was gone as her hair was let down.
Her body was smooth and petite yet despite that she had an appeal that drew out any man she desired.
And her slit red eyes were locked onto Xicor, she narrowed her eyes and licked her lips as embers of lust grew within her actions.
She twisted her body just enough for her backside to be more noticeable as well as showcasing the side of her chest.
"I see that you're getting comfortable without me~"
She said, her sultry voice ringing out in Xicor's mind.
Xicor shrugged as a playful smirk grew on his face, "Sorry, it was too comfortable for me to wait"
Shikoku chuckled before swimming over to his side as she made herself comfortable by pressing her body against his side and having his arm wrapped around her like a blanket. The purple-haired goddess rested the side of her head on his shoulder as her hand drew lines on his chest.
"No complaints there~" she mumbled where only he would hear before looking up at him, "though it's even more comfortable with you here"
Shikoku closed her eyes as a contented sigh left her nose. Xicor rested his face at the top of her head while planting soft pecks on her.
Shikoku's smile grew as she leaned further in. The silence of the bath was warm and comforting, like everything outside didn't exist.
"Shikoku, Xicor" A monotone voice rang out in the bathroom as a series of steps echoed through the room, ruining the peaceful atmosphere.
Opening their eyes, they saw Jouryuu walking toward them with Kuusetsu and Rairen behind her. Shikoku raised a brow at them, intrigued to have three of her siblings come to her and Xicor.
"I have located the usurpers, but the Demon Defence Force is engaging them as we speak" Jouryuu reported, her eyes glancing at Xicor.
A pleased smile grew across her as she rose from the bath, "Excellent work, Jouryuu"
Grabbing hold of Xicor's hand, she guided him out and into the changing room as they dried off and changed back into their normal clothes, savouring every intimate contact they could have before leaving.
Shikoku in her black kimono with gold accessories and a red bow to decorate her hair.
And Xicor in his martial arts garments and a black haori.
Shikoku's snakes fixed up any imperfections as she walked out with her consort beside her.
She faced her three siblings as a wide smile grew on her face, "Let's show the humans that Mato is not for their taking" she declared before hopping up onto a stone statue that resembled a plant as she struck a pose on it.
"Prospate Humans, the gods have descended" she declared.
"So what do you think? Perfect for a god's descent? She asked.
"Not very dignified to have much effect" Jouryuu said.
"You looked cute big sis!" Kuusetsu cheered, holding up a big flag with Shikoku's face drawn on it.
Rairen remained silent, not bothering to entertain himself with wasteful speeches when he could come up with them on the fly.
"You need more practice if you want to perfect it, doing it in front of a mirror wouldn't do anything" Xicor said as Shikoku's face flushed with embarrassment.
"I told you not to mention that to them!!" she yelled as she leapt down on Xicor with him screaming in fear.
Inside the centre of the mountain, it was blinding with dust covering most of the area, rubble and large boulders fell from the roof and walls due to the hesitation of Tenka Azumo about killing the humanoid Shuuki who was Aoba Wakura, Yuuki's sister.
Aoba fired a beam from her mouth that connected to Tenka's form. As a result, the whole area became unstable and collapsed. The Unihorn and Kyouka, who were battling not too far away, were caught in it as well.
Yuuki, who remained unharmed with only patches of dirt from the battle, was tied up in hair from Aoba. His body was immobile and his mouth was covered to prevent his pleas from falling on deaf ears.
Once the area began to become more visible, Tenka came into his view as she weakly staggered forward. Blood flowed down her forehead as well as various wounds around her body.
Her clothes were torn and several burn marks were seen on her. Tenka's legs wobbled for a second before falling to her knees and onto the ground.
Yuuki tried to make his way over to check her condition but his sister beat him there though she too sustained a wound on her shoulder.
"Why didn't you kill me when you had the opportunity?" she questioned.
Tenka weakly looked up at her as a fond smile spread across her lips, "Because Yuuki would resent me... for life and... I didn't want to kill my sister-in-law"
Aoba rolled her eyes at this woman's delusions, "Quit it with the sister-in-law stuff"
Kyouka dashed in front of Tenka, blade pointed at Aoba, who remained still and unbothered.
Kyouka didn't ask for Tenka's condition as it was obvious she was in bad shape and not in combat condition.
Unihorn leapt down behind Aoba as it walked forward, ready to continue the fight against someone from the distant past.
Aoba raised her hand to stop him, her eyes never leaving them, "I'm willing to let you go but Yuuku stays and we will not change our minds about destroying the Omnyou Agency"
Kyouka did not flinch in the slightest, "I refuse"
"Aoba!" a voice called out through tension.
Following its source, they spotted Koko riding her Shuuki after losing to Shushi and Sahara. As they came to a stop, Yuno slithered out of the Shuuki's body and fell onto the ground.
Breathing heavily, they reported their losses. All the Shuuki they got were slain.
More voices called out as the rest of the Demon Defence Force came here and began to regroup. They all positioned themselves next to Kyouka, Yuuki and Tenka.
The air was thick with tension as both sides stared at one another, waiting for someone to make the first move.
The tense silence was broken by a massive boom as the ceiling in the centre of the room was blown open revealing a bright light casting behind two figures.
One was a tall, dark-skinned woman with pure white wings and white hair. In her arms, held in a princess carry was a petite woman with purple hair and red slit eyes.
The gods have descended.
Shikoku raised a hand to the stunned crowd below, "Greetings, give a warm welcome to the gods"
Without another word, Jouryuu dove into the ground on top of Yuno's and Koko's position as a cloud of dust was kicked up, blinding everyone while pushing anyone too close back.
Once the dust settled, it revealed both girls were held up in Jouryuu's hands.
"They have very useful abilities that we will be using so sorry for the kidnapping" Shikoku said playfully, like the chaos around her was nothing.
They stared at her with wary expressions, abilities and weapons ready to be used. Aoba was moments from bursting forward but Shikoku's next words made her stop.
The goddess's expression brightened as she looked behind the crowd, "There you are, I was wondering what took you so long, seems to you took the long route"
Just as they registered her words, a suffocating presence made itself known to them as they all stiffly turned to face this threat.
"Sorry, I just wanted to make an entrance for myself" the person said lightly.
His eyes scanned the crowd of people before landing on Kyouka, who stood frozen like a statue. Her hands shook as her grip on her blade loosened every second she gazed upon the person.
The person she thought was dead.
The person she had been hoping to find in this hellish world.
"Xicor" she whispered out but it was clear enough for everyone to hear.
A big smile grew on Xicor's face as he raised a hand to wave at his childhood friend, "Hey Kyouka, been a while"