Hidden

[Council Chambers, Floating Island of Takamagahara, Hidden Dimension]

Murmurs broke out among the Amatsukami as soon as Kagutsuchi finished his speech.

Being at the lower level of the podium in the chambers made Kagutsuchi uncomfortable.

He couldn't identify those hidden behind the shimmering curtain-like force field and he felt that he was talking to a wall.

Kagutsuchi was used to being on the other side. He often sat on the upper levels, leaning on the balusters, hidden by that same curtain, watching the others present their proposals.

"Amateru, Tsukiyomi, Susanoo, our heads of council, shall begin with the questioning or assent first," a voice echoed from the top.

Kagutsuchi gazed at the above holographic board registering the key votes live.

A moon symbol lit up. Tsukiyomi supported Kagutsuchi's proposal.

A cloud symbol lit up. Susanoo also supported him.

"I have a question," Amateru's voice echoed from the top. "Arahabaki will yield a shrine. Which shrine is it?"

"Monkyakujin shrine," Kagutsuchi replied.

"The one in Omiya of the Musashi plains?" Amateru asked.

Kagutsuchi gulped and answered as steady as he could. "Yes."

"Susanoo, are you going to allow it?"

Kagutsuchi rolled his eyes at Amateru's question.

Of course, Susanoo will allow it. He wanted to kick Arahabaki out of his shrine but couldn't because he was weaker. Both had equally volatile tempers, and both didn't get along.

"Why ask? It's a yes," Susanoo's gruff voice echoed.

"We renamed Monkyakujin for a reason," Amateru argued.

"Don't pull 'we' in. I never agreed. Then for that reason, why don't you change the name of Hahaki-Kami in that little shrine in the Ise shrine to Monkyakujin then?" Tsukiyomi asked.

Gasps rang out across the chambers while Amateru remained silent.

Every Amatsukami in the council room knew the small shrine positioned southwest of the inner shrine at Ise shrine in the dragon-snake's direction.

Hahaki was the nickname given to Arahabaki. Calling Arahabaki a Monkyakujin is a slap on his face. No one in their right mind will do that except for Amateru.

Even Takemikazuchi, the often targeted victim of Arahabaki, remained silent, Kagutsuchi thought.

"Assent two. Veto one. The floor is open to questioning."

Kagutsuchi's proposal passed through the first phase of acceptance.

The second phase of acceptance will be harder. Passing it requires a majority of all attending Amatsukami to agree.

Kagutsuchi hated the questioning process of the second phase. He thought of it as an exhaustive interrogation process of questioning, which left no stone unturned.

"I have one for Kagutsuchi-sama," one spoke up respectfully. "Why a special interest in this newcomer when he could easily enter the yōkai registry? He wasn't Japanese in his human life and not accustomed to our ways."

Kagutsuchi replied. "He has a great fire element as his energy wave."

"More destroyers?" Another whined.

"We got too many destroyers," one more added. "Like Ōmagatsuhi, Yasomagatsuhi, and then one human soul, which became Tenjin—"

"You idiot, Tenjin is now in charge of human scholars. He looks after study and examinations."

Sugawara no Michizane, now Tenjin, an ancient, held a certain notorious reputation, and a well-known legend among the Amatsukami before the humans revered him as the Kami of scholars.

Sugawara's death in 903CE, Earth date, unleashed a monstrous spirit filled with so much of pure unadulterated fury at the injustice of the imperial court in the old capital of Heian.

His furious and restless spirit even foiled Yomi-no-Kuni's attempts at shearing his soul.

The seething anger of Tenjin overflowed to the human world, throwing Japan into a period of drought and plagues.

No doubt, Yasomagatsuhi had a part to play in Tenjin's disasters. No one knew how and when their acquaintance begun.

"Because we assigned Tenjin, as a former human, to the humans to distract him from going on repeated rampages."

"The humans seem to love Tenjin, though. His shrines outnumber some of ours now."

"I will advise against taking this new human soul in," Omoikane's voice echoed out of the blue.

Kagutsuchi stared around the chambers as the whispering grew louder and louder.

Omoikane hardly objected to proposals. Known for his foresight and intelligence, the Amatsukami respected and valued Omoikane's words. Kagutsuchi's proposal risked being rejected since Omoikane spoke against it.

"One, there is an issue with the Xitian council over his marker, Kyōkō of Yasu Mawari," Omoikane continued.

Kyōkō of Yasu Mawari, the official Takamagahara name of Kanghui, which Kagutsuchi hadn't heard in a long time. Few will remember that name, for Kanghui kept to Kyushu and remained low profile. Some were already asking each other who it was.

"Oh? Tell us of the issue," another unseen one behind the curtain said.

"Xitian wants Kyōkō for breaking their Mirror of Truth."

Kagutsuchi rubbed his temples in frustration as the noise of many voices talking increased.

Most of the Amatsukami preferred to remain conflict free with their neighbor since time immemorial.

"This is a serious charge," a voice spoke up, and the rest hummed an agreement.

"Why do all of you fear Xitian?" Yatagarasu's voice echoed loudly over them, silencing the dissenters.

"If Kyōkō, a no name primeval being, can break it, they better not let our recently awakened Ōmagatsuhi near their precious Youdu. His bad luck aura alone can radiate far enough to cripple their systems, not only their Mirror," Yatagarasu continued, making the crowd who broke out in spurious laughter.

"To avoid conflict with Xitian," Omoikane said. "Don't forget, she has considerable influence over Konton, Tōtetsu, Kyūki, and Tōkotsu. They created chaos for Xitian. They can draw us into a war."

Kagutsuchi heard about the four beings with devastating powers. In the Xitian sphere, they called them Huntun, Taotie, Qiongqi, and Taowu.

He furrowed his eyebrows in thought of Kanghui hiding her powers. What was Kanghui up to this time? Was he playing his hand with trouble itself?

Kanghui kept a low profile in Takamagahara when she came.

All Kagutsuchi knew about her was that she was a fugitive from Xitian, like some of the primeval beings who came to Takamagahara, with a penchant for mingling with the Jomon like the Mishakuji, Arahabaki and even Yamata no Orochi.

Kagutsuchi's eyes widened as he thought of the Jomon, like Yato and Arahabaki, hanging around Kanghui.

The warning signs were all there - the Jomon never entertains those weaker than them, especially Arahabaki.

"How many times have we grown in power by taking in a traveling yet powerful primeval being? Imagine if we denied Taishakuten and his brethren entry based on the conflicts between him and his faction? Or even Bishamon fleeing from persecution? Much less someone of a lower significance?" Yatagarasu asked as the crowd grew silent again.

Taishakuten and Bishamon were not indigenous to Takamagahara. Yet they contributed to the growth of Takamagahara's power despite a few misunderstandings. Wars of the past between other factions would have pulled Takamagahara in and led to their extinction as a faction, if not for the other migrant primeval beings.

Kagutsuchi kept silent while he watched the curtains with the shadows moving. Yatagarasu's support made him more wary of the celestial crow, which ingratiated himself into their society over millennia.

No such thing as free help. From Yatagarasu's reaction to a mention of familiarity with Jinwu, Kagutsuchi figured out that they don't work with each other.

"And in which case, why are you agreeing to the request of the weak? Avoid trouble with them? They should avoid us," Yatagarasu spoke out as his words garnered a growing support which generated the current assent rate displayed on the holographic screen.

The Amatsukami threw more and more votes into the category of Assent. 40%. 49%.

"Yes! Hear! Hear!"

"Definitely. Why do we always have to give in to them? Just because we are smaller?"

"We should take this fellow in, no threat, easy to control."

"ASSENT."

"ASSENT!"

The voices grew louder, repeating the words until the chant for support rolled into one thunderous voice while the hovering holographic screen displayed that the majority of 72% were in favor of Kagutsuchi's proposal.

The voice announced, "the majority granted Assent. Kannazuki ceremonial requires the applicant to present their sword in nine months."

***

[Hidden Dimension, Gateways]

Kanghui stood on the top of the whitish silica sand dune watching the winds lifted the shimmering sand particles and scattered it with impunity across the barren land with the gateway structures.

Her eyes surveyed the vast white land, searching for something, and her head lifted to the skies, scanning for intruders. She pulled out her dagger from her hilt, as the sand reflected the reddish glow from the eyes of the serpent entwined around its handle.

A quick lift of her dagger and she drove the blade of her dagger downwards with one violent thrust into the dune. The significant force sent a whitish cloud of dust whistling up into the air on impact, and swirling around her, forming a tornado.

The dune quavered and collapsed as the swirling of the sand grew rapid, forming a tornado-like movement as the sand slid under her feet, drawing her into the growing crater down to a gargantuan, dark, and round granite platform.

On the platform was a large intricate engraving of a large slim seven-pointed star with its endpoints stretched to the edges of the circular ground.

In each space within the large seven-pointed star was a hieroglyphic symbol of a long lost language.

The middle of the seven-pointed star bore an engraving of seven serpents facing seven directions with their tails entwined around each other, representing each element: wood, water, metal, earth, fire, air, and aether.

The dagger in her hand shuddered free of her hand, flying towards the centre where the tails entwined. It levitated above the tails as the reddish aura flowed from the eyes of the serpent like a waterfall, pouring into the lines of the engravings, which cracked loudly.

"Kanghui has returned," whispers of several beings flowed from the cracks.

Kanghui closed her eyes to the familiar sounds. It's been a while since she returned.

"Come to us," they called out to her, beckoning her to open the portal.

She could make out the voices of Huntun, Qiongqi, Taotie and Taowu amongst the many beckoning her to enter.

The lines on the serpents burst open, revealing the darkness below, swallowing Kanghui whole into its fold.