Arrows and Storms

"Itto, go wild," Sara commanded the oni.

"Haha! Great! It's finally time to show everyone who's number one!" Itto laughed as he lifted his massive weapon and leapt into the battlefield.

"He's certainly strong. However, he's unpredictable—making it impossible to command troops or apply standard tactics alongside him. But that's also his strength. The perfect counter against Kokomi's methods." Sara analyzed the battlefield and readied her bow. "Once he starts, I'll guide him and control his flow myself. Let's see how you react."

"WUHAHAHAHA!" Itto charged the frontlines, swinging his weapon and sending everyone flying. "Come on! Come face the mighty Itto!"

Flee! An arrow shot toward Itto, but he knocked it away. As he turned, he saw Gorou.

"Finally, someone who looks like they can fight! Come, let's have a sumo match!"

"As if I'd lower myself to fight an idiot with all my strength," Gorou replied coldly, shooting another arrow. "Are you sure you're an oni and not a goat with those horns?"

"You…!" Itto raged and jumped toward Gorou, who easily leapt backward, keeping distance.

"Don't run away, coward! Fight like a man!" Itto charged after him, knocking down everyone in his path.

'As Her Excellency said, he's an idiot. But I can't let him reach me or I'll lose. His individual strength really is something else,' Gorou thought, continuing to provoke and lure Itto, leading him away from the troops into a more isolated area. Gorou knew the risk of being surrounded mid-chase was too great.

"That idiot…" Sara sighed as she watched Itto fall for the bait. "As expected, I'll need to act." She prepared an arrow, her eyes narrowing on Gorou, ready to force him to stop.

Fleee! The arrow flew over the battlefield with perfect trajectory. While Sara was confident that Gorou could avoid or block it, the shot would still interrupt his rhythm—giving Itto the opening he needed to close in.

Paf! Just before it reached Gorou, another arrow flew in from the battlefield, perfectly deflecting Sara's. Both arrows fell harmlessly to the ground.

"It seems he's quite lucky…" Sara narrowed her eyes. That her arrow was deflected by a stray arrow seemed improbable. But calmly, she prepared a new shot. "Luck doesn't last forever." She fired again.

Paf! Again, the arrow was knocked away at the perfect moment by a second one.

"It's planned?" Sara scanned the battlefield, trying to locate the enemy archer. Amid the chaos, she couldn't identify the shooter's location. "Could it have been a coincidence…? Twice?"

"Let's see…" Sara fired three arrows at once—two aimed at Gorou's escape paths, the third a decoy that would fly nearby but not affect him at all.

Paf! Paf! Just like before, enemy arrows intercepted her two genuine shots, leaving the decoy untouched.

"I-Impossible…" Sara stared in disbelief at the precision. "To perfectly read my shots and intentions—to intercept them so accurately... It's not simply about shooting them down. Someone is reading my movements entirely. Since when has Watatsumi had a sharpshooter of such caliber?"

She looked across the battlefield. "I'll force you out!" Sara aimed again, this time not at Gorou but at various commanders and key units. "Let's see if you can block these. Once I from where you deflect—I'll find your position!"

She fired, her glare sweeping across the field. "Let's see who you are."

…

Clash! Clash! Ayaka and Kazuha clashed blade to blade, gusts of wind and storms of frost colliding with every strike. The energy around them grew violent, forming a tempest that repelled soldiers from both sides. They fought completely isolated in their storm.

"You've improved, Ayaka," Kazuha observed calmly, countering her Kamisato technique with his own refined Kaedehara style, turning aside each strike.

"You too. But… how are you acting so precisely against me?" Ayaka felt something wrong. Her sword was being parried too cleanly, and Kazuha's counters were slowly pushing her back. The only reason she'd lasted this long was her Vision—unleashing Cryo bursts to disrupt his flow at critical moments.

But she knew it wouldn't hold much longer. Her stamina was fading, while Kazuha remained composed and untouchable, waiting, simply countering.

"I suppose I've practiced," Kazuha admitted.

The truth was, Allen had prepared Kazuha specifically for this. He'd sparred with him repeatedly while mimicking Kamisato swordsmanship, forging him into Ayaka's natural counter, all of it to make sure that Kazuha was able to easily overpower Ayaka without needing to gravely injure her.

"Tch…" Ayaka clenched her teeth, readying her sword once again.

…

"I'll help you, sister." Nearby, Ayato drew his blade, ready to join the fight upon seeing Ayaka's disadvantage.

Poof! Just as he stepped forward, a massive drop of water splashed down in front of him.

"I wouldn't recommend that," said a sweet voice.

A small girl with long blue hair and bright blue eyes stood smiling at him, wearing a frilly princess dress that seemed comically out of place in the middle of the battlefield.

"Who are you?" Ayato asked, not dropping his guard. Despite her appearance, he could sense strong energy around her.

"I'm Endora. But that's not important. Let's make a deal, Ayato!" she grinned. "Don't fight. Leave the battlefield. If you do, I won't do anything."

"You think I'll agree to that?" Ayato frowned at her carefree attitude.

"If you'd prefer to fight…" Endora's eyes suddenly glowed. It began to rain across the battlefield, and from the falling droplets, flocks of birds made from water rose into the sky at her command.

"An Oceanid?" Ayato's eyes widened in recognition.

"If you accept, I'll even make sure Ayaka isn't seriously hurt. I'll help her," Endora added with a pure smile.

"So you're asking me to choose—my sister's safety or the war?" Ayato narrowed his eyes.

"Hmm…" Endora put a finger to her lips, looking thoughtful. "What was the line? I had it on the tip of my tongue, but I can't quite remember…" She pulled a folded letter from her dress and read from it, nodding. "It was that…" Then she looked back at him. "Ah! It's not that choice. It's a simple one. Do you want a war that's controlled and mostly safe? Or one that turns chaotic and unpredictable with your sister possibly dying?"

"You have all this written in that letter and you're just following instructions?" Ayato asked suspiciously.

"N-No!" Endora blushed furiously, quickly hiding the letter. "This is all Endora's doing!" she shouted, still red in the face, then glared at him. "Choose now!"

"…Fine. I accept your deal." Ayato wasn't sure who was giving orders to this strange little girl—but he was certain she was dangerous. "I won't interfere."

"Great!" Endora turned toward Ayaka and Kazuha, whose battle had reached its climax.

"Soumetsu!" Ayaka shouted, unleashing her full elemental power. A giant cryo tornado surged toward Kazuha.

Kazuha placed his hand on the hilt of his sword, drawing in the wind. "Kaedehara Style: Slash!" With a precise motion, he released his own technique—cutting clean through the tornado with a swift Anemo enery and charging directly at Ayaka.

"It's my turn!" Splash! A massive water frog burst into existence between them. Kazuha's slash destroyed it—but it absorbed the blow, sparing Ayaka.

Before Ayaka could react, a huge bird made of water swooped down and scooped her into its wings, flying her off the battlefield.

"A good job!" Endora nodded, smiling back at Ayato. "As promised, I'll keep her safe and heal her."

Then she turned away cheerfully. "Lucky Ayato agreed. Big brother told me that even if he didn't, I shouldn't fight in these war actively—otherwise, she might target me." Humming to herself, Endora skipped away, paying no mind to the fact that Ayato had heard everything she'd said.

"…Just who is she?" Ayato muttered, watching the girl vanish. His doubts about the war deepened with every passing second.