1st Pov Himari Azuma:
I stared up at the place I would last call home, the Azuma household. The sun shone brightly down on it, lighting every detail from the walls to the windows and the roof tiles.
I clenched my fists to calm my fear, Chief Uzens' presence here grounding me; I can push past it and grow stronger.
And hopefully get my sister back.
My gaze shifts to the ground as I recall the individual who overwhelmed us back in that cave. The overwhelming pressure he let out, and how easily he dealt with us, was something I had never experienced.
Though it wasn't the first time I had faced him, the first time was when he faced Yuuki and me, when we were training with that new form of his before he showed up.
I could vividly recall how the fight went, even when I passed out. I would have dreams of that fight, my body coated in a golden glow, that large sea serpent, and Yuuki.
It all felt too real to be a mere dream. If I could access that power again, and control it, then maybe I could finally be recognised within my family.
Steeling my resolve, I was about to take a step forward before I felt a small hand on my shoulder, catching me off guard.
"I was expecting to see you here, Himari" A childlike voice was heard behind me.
My body instinctively flinched at the unexpected contact and voice. Without turning, I addressed the person behind me.
"Hello, Granny Tobera" I said, glancing over at the matriarch of the Azuma Family, Tobera Azuma.
She was a petite youthful woman, and her appearance was that of a teenage girl. Her dark hair, with hints of green, was short, reaching the back of her neck with two small braids hanging from the sides of her head.
Her eyes shone gold holding more knowledge and experience than her appearance let on. Her lips formed a smile that was neither cold nor warm.
Her position was the previous commander before Lady Yamashiro and now she is a member of the 9th unit.
Come to think of it, there was a 4th unit previously under Lady Yamashiro's command but when I asked Lady Kyouka what happened to it, she said it, along with its territory, was absorbed into the 10th unit.
So that must mean that one half of the 10th unit's territory was once the 4th unit's.
Tobera's hand left my shoulder as she came in front of the gate of the estate and looked me up and down, "You still haven't left the Demon Defence Force yet?" she questioned.
I tilted my head and crossed my arms, "Disappointed?"
She let out a humorous chuckle, "A little, but if you show some potential, that won't be an issue"
Her calm demeanour, quickly changed to something oppressive, "Otherwise, you will no longer be an Azuma and will be thrown into the streets, where the weak shall rot"
I shuddered under the pressure as sweat trickled down my cheek. The Azumas are fixated on the stinger rule the weak, which is true, though the treatment of the weak is something I went through personally, even by the branch family.
The branch family is family-filled with in-laws that came with the Toberas and Mother's husband, with a few adopted into that branch for their unique strength.
Overall, its family that shares little to no blood relation to the other Azumas or me.
"You don't need to worry about Himari disappointing you Lady Tobera" Lady Kyouka's voice came from beside me as she placed a firm and reassuring hand on my shoulder.
"Himari has some surprises in store for you and the others"
Lady Kyouka's words resonated within me, the clear confidence behind them felt like she already knew the outcome of this banquet.
A renewed sense of determination refilled my confidence in showing that I can prove myself to my family that I'm not a burden and that I can stand on my own two feet.
"Oh~ you got a lot of confidence in her, Chief Uzen, but we shall see if you are correct or you're just bluffing, trying to put my hopes on a caterpillar who has yet to become a butterfly" Tobera said, placing a hand on her hip.
Tobera was about to take a step towards the estate before she spotted Chief Izumo standing beside Yuuki, with a box of sweets in her hands.
Chief Izumo gave a sweet smile as she presented the gift of sweets to Tobera, "Tobera, I brought some sweets for you"
Tobera briefly glanced at the sweets before a small, appreciative, smile grew on her lips, "Thank you for the gift, Tenka"
She gently took the box of sweets before her smile disappeared and she stared deeply into Chief Izumo's eyes.
"Tell me, have you found any leads on my granddaughter?" she asked casually, but I could faintly sense the feeling of concern.
Chief Izumo looked off to the side with a solemn expression, "Nothing, but I will do everything in my power to find her, you have my word"
Tobera glared at Chief Izumo with clear resentment, "We gave Yachiho in your care, back then, you promised to look after her"
She took a step toward her as an oppressive power smashed down on us, I staggered on my legs but managed to hold myself up, only barely.
"And now look where she is! I will never trust the words of someone who failed to look after one of my family!" Tobera angrily declared before taking a deep breath to calm herself down.
Emotions were something all Azumas were trained to hold back as they would just hold us back, such as attachments, blind rage and despair.
Though I guess it seems my grandmother let her emotions get the better of her.
All of it was ingrained into us, except for some of us.
"Let's go, everyone is waiting" Tobera didn't wait for us as she continued forward into the estate with the rest of us close behind.
3rd Pov:
Perched on the roof of the Azuma estate, was a crow tilting its head side to side as it curiously watched the group walk in.
A flash of red passed through its eyes before it flew up high and landed so it could view a courtyard where a different group was in the centre of the estate.
'Oh~ what do we have here, a battle royale?' Xicor's voice came through the crow's mind, leaning further to get a better view of the group.
There were a few people who didn't catch his attention but among those who did was notably, Fubuki Azuma.
The second was a woman who shared similar features to Fubuki, in hair and eye colour. The most unique part about her was that her hair fell down her back like a steady waterfall and a rectangular glass.
Maia Azuma, Himari's and Yachiho's older sister.
And the last one is a woman with a unique hairstyle that was tied in the back into four spikes; she has dark blue hair with grey front bangs.
Her golden eyes stared sharply at the entrance, waiting impatiently for someone to come through. Her right eye was covered by an eye patch.
Homare Azuma, Himari's stepsister.
Back at the mansion where Xicor and Kuusetsu currently reside, Xicor was seated in a cosy leather seat with his eyes closed before a small smile crept across his lips.
"This will be interesting to watch..." He muttered as he tilted his head up at the ceiling.
"I wonder if I could shift this into my favour?" he wondered aloud.
Kuusetsu silently entered the room, seeing Xicor's relaxed state before she floated into his lap and rested her eyes with a soft, content smile on her face.
Xicor lifted a hand as a wide blanket was created before he placed it on Kuusetsu and himself, the goddess nuzzled further into him as Xicor wrapped an arm around her in the blanket.
Back at the Azuma estate, the family in the courtyard waited and chatted with one another before the double doors leading into the courtyard were opened by the Azuma matriarch.
Tobera walked ahead with Himari and the others close behind. Her steps were light but held immense authority that silenced the conversations in the courtyard.
Tobera walked up a set of stairs as the group that came in with her stopped in the centre of the courtyard. The others gathered around as Tobera waited for everyone's attention to be on her.
Clapping her hands once, she addressed the group, "As most of you will know, we will start our annual Azuma Banquet not only to select the new head of family, but to see how far we have come as a force to be at the very top"
"Some of you may or may not have noticed that one of the members of the main family is missing; for that is an ongoing investigation into the individual who abducted her" she said as everyone shared mixed feelings.
Fubuki, ever the well-disciplined one, kept her expression neutral, but her hand tightening around her spear, said a different story.
Maia, mirroring her mother's well-disciplined attitude, kept her expression neutral as well but her lips pursed into a thin line as she tilted her head down while pushing her glasses back into place.
Homare merely crossed her arms over her chest and scoffed lightly, looking off to the side, "I was hoping to fight her after taking on Himari"
Himari looked down at the ground as her mind recalled the memories of her weakness in the fight against Yuno Nano and Xicor.
She was nothing but a burden to her, and she constantly blamed herself for allowing him to go take her.
"As of now, we have 3 from the main family and 4 from the branch family participating" Tobera said as she prepared the portal that would take them to the pocket dimension in the image of a small uninhabited island.
As she was setting it up, Maia and Fubuki paired up with 3 others from the branch family pairing up in their own group.
Himari took this time to strategise with Yuuki as his slave form would help fight against her family and it seemed it would be her strongest ability so far.
Just as the discussion was about to conclude between them, a slender arm pressed down on Himari's shoulder.
"I was hoping you'd be here Himari, without Yachiho protecting you, this will be an easy victory for me against you and I will rise to the top and be the next head of the family" Homare said with a grin.
Himari slapped her arm off as she took a step closer until they were face to face, glaring at her stepsister's eyes she declared, "I'm not some weak child that needs constant protection, I will be victorious in this banquet"
Homare simply scoffed before walking back to the steps that led to the portal with Tobera beginning a chant that almost sounded like Child's lullaby.
Fubuki and Maia entered together with the 2 of branch members following suit and another entering. Finally, Homare straddled through the portal with her hands in her pockets, not before glancing over her shoulder to give Himari a predatory grin.
Last but not least, Himari, on top of Yuuki in his slave form, flickers of gold briefly passed through both of their eyes.
"Good luck you two" Kyouka said.
"Have fun~" Tenka waved lightly with a tired smile on her face.
Both master and slave entered the portal as Tobera stopped the chanting and clapped her hands, and the portal slowly changed to a one-way window, showing an island with Himari and Yuuki overlooking it on the edge of a cliff.
"With this, we can view how things are going and bring anyone who has fallen" Tobera explained as she walked down the steps and faced the portal.
The island's cool breeze washed over the occupants of the island, the calm waves splashing against the island in a constant rhythm.
Yuuki and Himari observed the island from the cliff, waiting for anyone to catch their attention and surveying the island's terrain.
The silence was broken by Himari as she looked off to the side as her cheeks flushing in embarrassment, "Thank you for coming with me... and sorry for dragging you here Yuuki"
Yuuki raised a brow as he glanced at Himari on his back, "You're welcome but it's a bit late for saying that, we're here already and let's prove to your family that you belong in it"
Himari let a small smile grace her lips, but before she could say anything, a blur smashed into the ground behind them, kicking up dust.
Yuuki spun around in the stance he was familiar with in this form, which relied more on speed than anything else.
As the dust slowly dispersed, Homare stepped out of the dust, "Hey Himari, ready to get smashed into the ground?" she said with a predatory grin while spinning a dagger in each hand.