Chapter 82

"Nyahahaha~..."

Unfortunately, though, it seems someone else is going to get to her before I can.

Kuroka shuffled in from the side with a light, airy giggle. I could tell she had just very recently woken up, as her smile was loopy, her entire posture was droopy, and her clothes were barely hanging onto her body.

"There there, Rose-chan~! It's okay, big sis Kuroka will make sure you're all well and ready for darling, nyah~!"

She leans down next to the fallen form of the former Valkyrie and pats her on the head as she speaks, while I just cross my arms and raise an eyebrow her way.

Okay. Maybe not very recently, then?

I should have known; this is the cat, after all!

"You were listening in on us, huh." I accuse her of the obvious.

To which she doesn't even bat an eyebrow, sending me a side-eyed glance filled with mirth, her smile, though still a bit loopy, widening.

"Nothing like that~..." Kuroka cooed, almost whining, as she explained, "I just woke up and followed you two ready to ask about what's for dinner, when you suddenly hit poor Rose-chan here with that, nyah~!"

Her smile slowly turned into a smirk before she added.

"Gotta say, I'm surprised you acted so quickly with her, darling~..." She trailed off, clearly seeking an explanation of some sort out of curiosity.

I roll my eyes at her obvious probe but indulge her, I have nothing to hide after all.

"Now just seemed like the best time, right after another big event, probably gonna be some downtime in between them, like usual." I explain rather plainly, "Plus, she hasn't been here that long, and she's been great to have around. I thought it'd be a good idea to reward her," my neutral expression morphs into a deadpan, "...and you know she wouldn't try to ask me out herself."

Kuroka has the gall to chuckle, "Right. Poor Rose-chan here is what the internet would call a 'turbovirgin'."

I walk over to them, snorting, "Hey now, don't talk like that as if you weren't one yourself."

Kuroka's smirk grew wider, "Was, darling, was." She looks at me, her eyes narrowing sultrily as her robe slips down her body ever so slightly more, "Hmm, and I wonder, who do I have to thank for that, nyaahh~?"

Always the temptress, huh?

Without even giving it a second thought, my hand raises and falls, slapping Kuroka across her ass.

Despite, or maybe due to, her incredibly loose-fitting robe, I could see the way her plump rear shook and jiggled from the force of my blow.

"N~Nyah~! Mmm~...Darling~..." Kuroka moaned out breathlessly, arching her back just a bit as her thighs started to rub together.

Meanwhile, I just sighed internally, holding back the admittedly very tempting idea of tearing off her robe and breeding her right up against the wall.

…But Rose was right there and still very unconscious, so no can do.

Later though. Most definitely later.

Instead, for now, I smirk right back at my shortstack catgirl, "Never stopped being turbo-horny despite that, though, did you?"

Kuroka licked her lips, her tails swaying from side to side as she uttered back with a sexy undeterred smirk, "Mhmm~! Only for you, darling~..."

…Fucking hell cat, why do you have to make it so hard to resist at the worst possible times?

I reached over, hooking a finger under her chin, lifting her head so our eyes met.

"Not now you…" I uttered, dangerously, "Rose is right here."

Kuroka's rear shook slightly back and forth, her tails wiggling about back and forth in indignation, "...But she's unconscious, nyah~!" Kuroka nearly whined back.

My gaze swept down to the unconscious Rose.

Whose face looked eerily similar to the pedals of her nickname, a deep bright burning red.

Then I looked right back into Kuroka's eyes and raised a singular eyebrow once again.

"...Hmph~! Nyah~!" Kuroka pouted, crossing her arms under her bust, intentionally pushing her mounds up as much as possible.

Honestly, her robe is so far down her cleavage that I'm shocked her nipples aren't exposed by this point.

She practiced that, didn't she? There's no way you just pull that off without knowing the exact area to stop and hold the cloth up.

I couldn't help but roll my eyes again at her antics, "Don't think I forgot about you, or Shirone either, kitty…" I take her chin in my hand, prompting her to perk up.

"Nyah~? Mhmm~!"

She perked up even more when I leaned down and took her lips with my own.

The kiss doesn't last longer than a moment, however, before I pull away, leaving her to let out a whining noise as I look back into her eyes.

"I've got…ideas," I murmured breathlessly, "for stuff to do with you and your sister. So, don't you worry! I fully intend to reward you both as well…"

After a moment of Kuroka looking at me, she gave me a shuddering breath before wrapping her arms around my neck and pulling herself up enough to kiss me back.

This cat, though, couldn't be satisfied with just a chaste kiss- of course not.

She pushed her essentially half-naked body right up against mine, and she pressed her lips against mine.

Yet at the same time, she rubbed herself against me, making damn well sure I felt the softness of her chest as it pressed against my torso, the curve of her leg and thigh as one of her feet popped up and her leg wrapped around one of my own.

Not only that, but she wasn't satisfied with a short either, oh no no no!

She drew it out as much as she possibly could, before slowly, ever so slowly, she drew back and away, a very light smirk across her face.

"...I'll make sure you remember that then, darling~, nyah~!" She winks and pats my cheek.

…Okay, so, look, I tried. I tried really hard, but not even I could stop the massive boner I got after all that.

Kuroka though, the little fucking cat, pretended to not even notice it as she turned back toward the downed Rose.

"Nyah then~!" She kneels next to her, "Don't you worry, Rose-chan~! Just like I said earlier…big sis Kuroka has your back~!"

I blinked as it finally settled in that she did say something like that right when she came up, didn't she?

Huh. It must have gone right over my head.

…Poor Rose.

"And, you know what?" She says to Rose's still very unconscious body, "I'll even phone a friend for double the help!"

Uh oh.

I feel slightly bad consigning Rose to this, but…only slightly.

Not going to lie, but if I am going to take her out, it would be kind of annoying if she freaked out at every moment of the date.

But if there is anyone who could help remedy that beforehand, give her the confidence boost, or just, you know, the patience to deal with it…it'd be Kuroka.

And her mystery friend here.

Well, she isn't a 'mystery' to be fair, she's one of the only friends Kuroka has I'm pretty sure.

Much to my surprise, yet also amusement, before Kuroka began to do any such phoning, she turned toward me…

And shooed me away!

"Go on, nyah nyah~!" She waved me off, "Give us a little time, darling, then I'll have her all nice and ready for you!" She exclaimed with a mischievous smirk.

I can't say I much liked the way she said the latter part there.

"Until then, though…" Kuroka continued, smirk growing cheshire, "You're not allowed to see her, so shoo, nyah~!"

Kuroka continued, waving me away with her hands for a few moments, where I just stared at her, amused yet exasperated.

Finally, I shook my head and sighed, and I took my leave, leaving Rose to her fate once again.

"Nyahahaha~!" Kuroka cackled in triumph, though it didn't take long for an additional sound to be added atop her voice.

The beeping of an old school phone's buttons being pressed, the ringing, and the click of it being answered.

"Oh~ Suza~chaaann~!" As I walk further away, that's the last trailing thing I hear from my catgirl.

Turns out I was right on the money; it was Suzaku, huh?

It's been a little while since I've seen her, hasn't it?

Though that reminds me, there are a bunch of people I haven't seen in a while that I probably should check in on.

Personally. Not with clones.

I stop in the middle of the hallway as a thought occurs.

…I should also probably check in on them, not only because I haven't seen them in a while but because of what just happened, huh?

That thought made me facepalm, hard.

Of course, I couldn't go do whatever quite yet; a battle just took place in the ocean next to Japan that probably could have destroyed the country if it spilled over!

Hell, I'm shocked I haven't gotten several calls yet, actually–

Wait. Where the hell even is my phone?

I start patting my robe pockets…but it's not there.

Ohhh. Fuck. Is it somewhere in the Atlantic right now?

Wait, don't tell me I left it on the bridge!?

Yeah, wait, I did! I sat it down on the railing after calling Dulio!

Surely though, if it was still there, Rose would have picked it up when she grabbed me, right?

Ugh, damn it. That was my second phone, too, and I'm about to be on a third in less than a year.

The old me would have fucking killed the current me over this, heh.

With a disappointed sigh, I pick my pace back up, heading straight for the door.

I suppose I'm going to have to do this the hard way then.

…And that's going to be on top of the stuff I'm going to have to do already, like telling Ama and whoever else needs to know my getting back the broken Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi and trying to figure out where exactly I'm going to take Rose.

Well, I already have an idea for the former, anyway. Let's just say I'm going to try something…different, compared to the times I've taken the other girls out.

For now, though!

Who should I head off to first, probably…those that would be immediately concerned, right?

Like Uzume, Inari, the fox girls…

A quick equivalent of a sixth sense side glance found me feeling that Uzume was not even in the building, so no need to go have that conversation with her.

I take a cursory glance downward, finding my raging hard-on still bulging out of my robe.

…Especially while I'm like this.

So, I'm thinking I hit up one of Inari's shrines, drop the equivalent of a divine email, then visit my fox girls to tell them the news and work off some steam…then Takamagahara for Ama to tell her about the sword.

Maybe visit Gramps after for the same, or, shit, maybe I can drag Ama down to see Grandma while I am at it?

Though I guess that depends on whether or not she's doing her job…or locked up in her room.

Again.

Well! One way to find out!

~ A New Sun ~

It's only now that I'm here that I realize something kind of important.

I've never actually been to Takamagahara properly.

Like, yes, I was here before technically, but I only ever saw Ama's room…that's it.

I don't think I ever could have imagined all of this.

The best way I can describe it is, essentially, a mountain made up of a sea of pure white clouds, within which an ancient Japanese city was built.

Except, unlike muted grays, browns, and so forth that usually made up such old places, this city was made entirely out of marble white, bright scarlet reds, deep popping oranges, and flushed blossoming pinks, all wrapped up in the glossy white mist that is the clouds, which seemed to sparkle and glitter gold all on their own.

Additionally, everywhere you looked, where there was architecture, there was, at the bare minimum, an attempt to pair it with nature.

Thus, as many houses and buildings as there were, there was at least one, though usually thrice, as many trees of all kinds.

From normal green trees to sakura trees to the maple and cherry trees, so many trees, so many colors…

Which was then all itself spaced with patty fields, of all things, filled with glittering golden crops, the purest water I think I've ever seen, and encircled by the greenest of grasses, all tiered within the clouds just like everything else.

Even the pathways weren't spares, little or large, alleyways or highways. I could see them even from this random part of the city I ended up in, each crafted like they were a part of a zen garden, made out of cobbled white marble or slate.

Then there's the sky, a pure ocean of molten golden light like that of the distant surface of the sun brought close.

Despite how close it feels, it doesn't hurt to stare up at it, and it spreads not only directly above but out into the horizon, seemingly wrapping the entire area up in a nice cozy blanket.

This is all wrapped up by the feeling of overwhelming divine power, Holy Spirit Power, as it pushes down and across the cloud-swept 'land', infusing it to its very core.

It was in everything, and I recognized it, this specific power, before.

When in the Shinkai of the Human World, the golden sky feels the same, just less overwhelming.

Takamagahara is the sky within the Shinkai.

Fitting.

Also, just like the Shinkai, but to a far more ludicrous degree, the colors here are far more overwhelming.

It's to the point where staring at it all starts to make my eyes throb, forcing me to look up at the sky instead.

Utterly insane, it wasn't like this at all when I was in Ama's room that one time, so what gives!?

Speaking of, that's actually where I should be right now.

That's where I was trying to go.

Not here! I don't even know where here is; besides that it's Takamagahara!

But when I tried to beam myself in, I sort of got…knocked away. Does that make any sense?

It's more like I hit something, got deflected off, and 'landed' here, somehow.

I wasn't even aware that was possible with that kind of teleportation. Did I hit a ward of some kind?

Hnn. Maybe. The only way to tell would be to walk up the 'mountain' here on foot and find Ama's Palace.

Well, I'm assuming it's up top, at least. That'd make the most sense to me anyway.

Though once again, the only way to find out is to start walking.

I'd ask someone for directions otherwise, but, oddly enough, there isn't anyone on the streets.

Yeah, I know, it's really odd. The home of millions upon millions of gods, I'm in the middle of one of the bigger paths, and there's nobody around.

Now that I'm looking at it and thinking about it, it's kind of eerie.

And I can't sense anything either, because the air here may as well be Holy Spirit Power itself.

I let out a sigh and started walking.

…Scratch that, there's nobody around. I started running. I booked it like I was Rose about to be late for a bargain sale.

All the while, I thought of the short series of events leading up to this.

Inari's Shrine.

I popped in, chucked my donation into the box, and sent off my prayer, telling her in brief what had happened and that it was fine now.

I didn't get any response, though. Not even an automatic response fox.

At the time, I didn't consider it odd. Inari is very busy normally, so of course, she wouldn't be able to get back to me right away.

Also, I was very horny, and kind of in a rush to head to my next destination.

Urakyoto.

That went exactly as expected. Yasaka wasn't even shocked at this point that I got into another big fight, though she hid her worry and relief well behind her teasing and horniness.

Kunou though? Not so much. The poor girl was kind of freaked out.

Apparently, they felt the fight going on from within the city. Due to their connection to the leylines, they could feel the disturbances Dulio and I were causing…Yasaka more than Kunou, of course, but that only ended up making Kunou more freaked out because she couldn't get a full picture.

I made it up to them both by making them unable to walk for the rest of the day in a couple of hours.

You know, now that I'm thinking about it more clearly, that doesn't sound like a gift, does it?

Ah well. They both looked blissed out of their minds by the end of it, and I no longer had an embarrassingly large bulge poking out of my robe.

I'm going to call that a win.

Though right now, seeing as Takamagahara looks empty…I feel like I should have paid more attention to the fact that Inari didn't respond to my prayer.

And that Uzune is suddenly gone again.

Or, hell, maybe this is normal for this realm, and I'm overreacting. Who knows!

Man, what a way to be introduced to the realm at large.

I won't lie; my rush toward the top of this place…at first, I didn't think I was making any progress.

The longer I ran, the higher I 'climbed,' everything kept looking the same.

It was almost aggravating. Sure, it was all gorgeous, spotless, pristine. But at a certain point, it all sort of blurred together, a field of everything yet nothing at all.

Moments passed into seconds, passed into several minutes of me blasting upwards at my top speeds, and right when I was about to give up and try teleporting in once again.

I felt something.

Divine presences. Deities, the Kami. At last.

A lot of them.

I came to a screeching halt, as rather my vision of the distance became muddled by swathes of hundreds of thousands of people, every single one of them a deity, with their unique presence.

All filling the streets, all trying to seemingly gather around something in the distance.

A great Palace that, upon looking at it, felt very familiar, like I had seen it somewhere before…

It kind of looked like the Kyoto Palace, design-wise, but no, from somewhere else, maybe…the Yomi Palace?

Yeah, yeah! That's it! It's the Yomi Palace, just painted over in different, heavenly colors.

Fucking. Finally!

Now then, time to sneak past a couple hundred thousand gods or so.

Well, actually, before that.

I should try and find out what the hell is going on; they all seem to be talking…no wait, bickering at each other about something.

I shut down my presence, my aura, and my powers, blending into the natural and ever-present divine power within the air as I stalked toward the back of the crowd.

I have to get far closer than I'd like to get anything discernable, however, there are just so many of them that all their voices sort of string together into one mass of sound.

I make a quick hop from building to building, ending up on one submerged in the back of the mass crowd, and look down upon them from it.

Only then can I finally make out bits and pieces of what some of them are saying.

"...insolent buffoons…"

"...highest insult…"

"...trespassers…thieves…"

They are very, very mad about something.

I'm trying to piece together about what, but I'm not going to lie, being so close now…I can say they all sound and sort of look kind of the same.

And I don't mean that in a racist way! They all do! Hell, they're all wearing the same robes, stupid old traditional ones, as if that's supposed to help beat those allegations!

Thankfully, unlike my run, it doesn't take long for something to happen and for me to get something more.

In this case, someone in the sea of divine mobs gets really angry, his voice gets louder and more defined, and I can actually hear him.

"Who cares who they have? That God has trespassed against us! They attacked Great August's son in our territory! Why should they pay anything less than their blood, you pathetic, traitorous coward!?"

At that deity's enraged shriek, several dozen more raised to counter him, creating a ripple effect that seemed to spread, causing a vicious outcry of sorts to pour from the entire crowd as a whole.

Meanwhile, I had pretty much one thought.

Oh…fuck. This is probably really bad, isn't it?