Into the Fox's Domain

Kaito stood next to Veyron in the command center, the screen before them pulsating with encrypted information. Rin, Lio, and Yuisaka stood silently behind him, already suited up for departure.

"You're going to meet the head of Tenmangu?" Veyron's voice was hoarse, coarse with disapproval.

"Yeah," Kaito replied, his own voice steady. "Her name is Luna. Suzuka says she'll hear us out."

"She's one of the Five," Rin went on. "If there's even a chance that we can ally with Tenmangu, then it's worth taking the risk."

Veyron scowled, striding a few feet. "I don't like this. Prometheon is the biggest, maybe, but the other corporations are not saints either. You really think that some woman like Luna will just offer you a deal because her daughter has a crush on you?"

Kaito shrugged. "I don't know. But we're not going to figure that out by just sitting here."

Veyron glared at him for a last moment before he exhaled through his nose. "Fine. But you come back alive, Myojin. And if this becomes a disaster, you'd better hope that suit can get you back here in one piece with your limbs still attached."

"Understood," Kaito said, smiling. "Thanks for the welcoming send-off."

They came out of the war room, passing through the steel passages of the rebel base for the final time. Outside, the slicing whine of engines met them.

A red streaked metal hull, like the sweep of a brush across paper, hung a meter off the landing strip—a personal hovercraft. Suzuka stood next to the open hatch, arms folded, expression unguessable as ever.

"Took long enough," she remarked, stepping aside. "Get in."

The crew embarked. On board, the Tenmangu hovercraft was both command center and luxury suite. Curved glass walls displayed tactical maps and atmospheric readings, and the leather couches were embroidered in digital kanji that glowed softly in the light. Paper lantern-shaped drones floated silently overhead.

Kaito drew up alongside the window, observing as the ship lifted into the heavens, leaving the base in the distance.

"So," he said, "How long until we are in Tenmangu territory?"

Suzuka glanced over her shoulder. "Two hours at this pace. It's on the back of Neo Tokyo, where old Shinjuku used to be. Now it's a private kingdom—walled off, patrolled, and defended by a few thousand drones and my mother's paranoia."

Yuisaka poked her head up between seats. "Does she get along with visitors?"

"She doesn't murder them," Suzuka replied. "Usually."

"Cozy," Lio murmured, reclining back in her seat with her feet propped on the dashboard.

As the hovercraft soared over the wastelands and industrial freeways of Neo Tokyo, Kaito witnessed the sudden transformation. Grime stained skyscrapers yielded to pristine buildings with traditional rooftops, high-tech bastions of power. A literal steel-and-glass temple rose off in the distance—Tenmangu Tower, piercing the clouds like a monolith of ancient Japan revived in terms of modern fire.

Nestled around it were sprawling gardens, koi ponds with nanobot filters, and walls of cherry blossom trees that were unnaturally in bloom.

"Welcome to my home," Suzuka said quietly now.

Lio leaned over. "This is... weirdly beautiful. And also super intimidating."

Suzuka smiled. "That's the point."

As the hovercraft touched down on a jade-tiled landing pad beside a sprawling traditional estate-turned-corporate haven, Suzuka turned to them with crossed arms.

"You're not meeting my mother dressed like that," she said, eyeing Kaito's battle-worn gear and the girls' casual rebel attire with disdain. "Follow me. You'll be given something appropriate."

Kaito sighed. "I feel like I'm being taken to a royal palace."

"You are. Except the queen will gut you if you get anything wrong," she smiled.

Kaito then stepped out into a new battlefield—not of EXO armor and guns, but power games and politics behind silken smiles and sharpened fans.

◇

In a lavish guest suite, Kaito himself adjusted the collar of a crisp black-and-white suit. It was just right—not too rigid, not too formal. AICE's voice came alive within his mind.

"Something's not quite right here. My sensors are detecting an overwhelming level of surveillance. And a number of thermal signatures nearby. Be careful, Kaito."

He raised a brow. "It's probably just paranoid security. Chill out, AICE. Not everyone wants me dead."

"Not everyone. But enough."

Waving aside the paranoia, he buttoned his jacket and stepped out.

What awaited him outside was... unexpected.

Rin, Yuisaka, and Lio stood beneath a cherry blossom archway in fashionable silk yukatas—each with a unique touch. Lio's was boisterous crimson with gold thread; Yuisaka's shone pastel blue like the moon on the water. But Rin—Rin wore deep violet, hair tied back with silver trinkets, a small smile tugging at her lips as she saw him.

Kaito stopped in his step. "Wow. You all look amazing. But Rin…"

She raised a brow. "Yes?"

"You look. beautiful."

A faint blush rose to her cheeks. She walked up to him, fingers gently tugging his crooked tie. "Can't dress yourself without help, huh?"

He chuckled in an embarrassed way. "I guess some things never change."

Behind her, Lio huffed. "Tch. He notices Rin before me."

Yuisaka puffed her cheeks. "Why didn't he say anything about mine?!"

As Rin leaned in with a glint in her eye—one hand lingering a little too long on his chest—Suzuka marched in, hands on hips.

"Enough with the flirting! You're meeting the most powerful woman in eastern Neo Tokyo, not attending a summer festival!"

The girls groaned. Kaito let out a sigh.

They entered the Tenmangu Tower's main conference room—a breezy space filled with archetypal design beneath a dome of glass and steel. Sitting at the head of a long black-lacquered table was a woman with golden hair flowing down her back and piercing green eyes that surveyed them like prey.

Luna Tenmangu.

She was attired in a high-necked robe made of nano-threads, exuding elegance and peril with every movement. The air became strained. Even Rin, usually no emotion, shifted uncomfortably.

Kaito, though, just stared...at her breast.

"Too gorgeous to exist…" he found himself thinking, eyes unintentionally trailing—

"Kaito...focus," AICE said flatly in his mind.

"Welcome to my firm," Luna finally broke her silence, voice melodious but unflinching. "I presume you're Haro Myojin's son."

Kaito took a step forward. "Yes, ma'am."

She slowly stood up. "I've watched Prometheon growth. Sakoji's betrayal. Your little rebellion. And now here you are—his son, in the middle of a war you never started."

Her voice turned cold. "But i must ask, Kaito… Are you prepared? Or are you still just a child pretending to wear his father's coat?"

There was a silence afterward.

Kaito's smile faded. His voice hardened. "My father believed in me. He gave me the suit. He trusted me with the future he couldn't achieve by himself. I may not be him—but with my friends beside me, I'll fight. I won't back down without giving everything, until i achieve my father's dreams!"

Luna's eyes widened for a moment. She smiled. Genuinely.

"You've grown a lot." she says stepping forward, and to everyone's surprise, hugged him. Her entire demeanor changed—warmth rather than ice.

"Your father… was like family to me," she said softly. "I was there when you were born. You can call me your godmother, if you'd like."

Everyone stood astounded.

And then came the bombshell.

"In fact, Haro and I once considered arranging a future for you and Suzuka together."

"M-Mother!!" Suzuka snapped, face red.

Yuisaka and Lio nearly burst.

"Like hell!" Lio yelled. "I'd be a better wife!"

"Excuse you?! I'm cuter and less geek or stoned faced!" Yuisaka growled.

Rin was quiet, her smile erased, her head lowered. Kaito noticed but didn't say anything.

Luna chuckled. "So much passion, I sense Haro's spirit burns bright."

With a clap of her hands, she turned. "Let's continue this discussion over dinner. I've prepared a banquet in one of our temples."

As they followed her out, she paused and looked over her shoulder. "Kaito, stay behind. There's something I must speak to you about… alone."