Decisions and Darkness [PVT]

[Senju Gaki]

Once more Juko found himself walking towards the gates of the village. Unlike last time though, this time he was taking his time, putting one foot in front of the other in a rather controlled measure. It had been just a few days since his return to the village with Takeshi and the events from that last adventure still sat somewhat uneasy with him so he wasnt exactly feeling to keen on finding himself on the way back already. However, and his hand slowly crawled back into his pockets while he was approaching the two huge wooden columns that made up the gate, the "Contract" he had been given felt like a weight that had been dropped, left and then forgotten on his shoulders. Its not like i wanted to go there in the first place! Arghh... Grinding his teeth the boy stopped for a second and stared. The gate looked big, bigger even than it seemed in his memory from the time when he rushed his way past the wooden pillars to where the Anbu Sennin had waited for him. More like where he had ambushed me, eh... there had been no mentions of exploring weird caverns and such...
For a second Juko hesitated and simply allowed the other inhabitants of Konoha to wash past him like a wave crashing against a rock. It was still early in the morning and so not many people actually passed him but with every face that looked over the boy and decided that he was of little interest his resolve steadied.
He licked his lips in anticipation. Never having been one of the best students and born with little to no natural gifts, Unlike the Uchiha or Hyuuga...., Juko had always felt like he had to find his own way to achieve greatness and strength. And if by chance it ended up costing him some of his dignity, well, then he was ready for a sacrifice. The blonde boy resumed his steps, passing through the crowd almost like a ghost. Patting his pocket with each step he finally reached the gate and, with a cautious look to his back crept through it.

Now now, Boy, where do YOU think your going? The weight on his shoulder solidified in the form of a hand and Juko froze midstep, foot still in the air. Huh. A face appeared in his peripheric vision and a man came into sight, the headprotector clearly visible in the early morning light. The man smiled and gently but firmly pulled the caught boy back into the inside of the village. Dont think thats where you wanted to go there, kid, haha. You know the rules like everybody else does, no leaving the village without a proper permit. Juko gulped and slowly turned towards the guardsman. NOW would be the perfect time to show me said permit, eh, dont you think? Er... you.... you have to let me go! Now! Shit shit shit shit... whatdoido! SHIT, quick Juko, think think think, your not going to be send back emptyhanded... Oh? Do i now? Haha and why is that? The man was still smiling but Juko could feel that he was just one wrong comment away from being carried back to the academy. Hnnnggghhh what to say... Beee...caaauuusee.... otherwise i will miss my mission! My squad came through earlier, ive slept int and i really have to catch up to them!!
The words just spurted from his mouth and with a pleading look in his eyes Juko pointed in a random direction outside of the village. I really have to catch up to them!
It was clear that the guard didnt believe Juko, but that small window of hesitation was all the boy needed for the moment. I havent been training with the Anbu for nothing after all! Dashing back inside the village Juko released the concentrated Karma in his body to disappear from sight, his body slowly turning a black streak before vanishing. Hey, wait! The man jumped after him, unaware, atleast for the moment, that Juko had already reappeared on the other side and was now moving swiftly towards his actual destination.

Boy, that was close... and i am fairly sure that he will get me if i slow down even a bit... Pushing fern and smalled branches aside the boy dashed forward, first on the ground and then after a few meters he took to the air and jumped from tree to tree. It was as dark as he remembered it to be, shadows filling the landscape like smudges of ink on a used canvas and without the company of the Anbu Sennin Juko felt his hair rise and his muscles tense up every now and then when a sudden sound in the undergrowth readed him. Focus Juko, Focus. You are not doing this for fun. You are doing this for your future and your future is eventually the villages future. This is important! But courage was a fickle thing and even though he tried hard to keep his motivation up he could feel a small core of fear, hiding in his heart.
When he finally reached the ruins the boy stopped moving and took a small break, panting and wiping the sweat from his forehead. Sure felt like it was closer last time... mustve been because of Takeshi...
Gulping again Juko decided to put on his black gauntlets. With the black hoodie that he was wearing, the black gauntlets and the many shadows on the ground it would have been nearly impossible to see him without any supernatural abilities, if it werent for his blonde cascade-like hair that was. The bright strands seemed to glow like a torch in the darkness as Juko slowly crept towards the entrance of the Ruins. Seems like nobody has been here since last time, eh? I can still see the hole in the ground where sensei's... undead things have crawled up from... The memory rose like an oily bubble to the surface of a black pond and he shivered. That was a topic he would have to open up at some other time again.
Carefully he stepped forward, following the pathway into the bowels of the ancient stony masonry. His steps echoed through the darkness.
After a while Juko finally reached the empty room with the many-eyed door where he stopped. Well. I made it, but...er... now what? How did we actually open that thing last time? His hand patted the contract again and suddenly he got an idea.
Moving his hand into his pocket he reached for the contract and opened it up before himself to see if there was anything important written in it. Er... magic doorway, open up, let me in and er... cover up? He blinked and looked at the glowing red eyes of the door that seemed to blink back to him. I... guess it doesnt work that way? Lifting the paper above his head and pointing at it with is finger he tried the most direct way. Look here, i have this contrathingy-thing. That gotta amount for something, no? So, please let me in, i need to see En.... He paused, thinking whether he actually wanted to call out for the weird demon girl that they had met before...

WC: 1214​

 

[Tomomi]

A few days earlier, the legendary duo of Sugihira Juko and Uchiha Takeshi had ventured from their village into some ruins deep inside of a wooded area of their country. Their mission during the time was unknown for the most part, but rumors say that they were investigating these said ruins due to bizarre things that had been occurring. It was only after they arrived at the ruins and began to really investigate this location in their country, that was rumored to be abandoned, was certainly not abandoned as supernatural entities seemingly decided to make their home here. In particular, it appeared from their adventure that some demonic doors that harbored eyes were blocking many of the entrances to deeper parts of the ruins in a way that almost felt like they were hiding something.

However as events turned out a few days earlier, these bizarre doors were capable of attacking anyone that tried to touch them and one of them managed to send the blonde and green haired shinobi to a cemetery that seemed to be far off from the ruins that they had been at before. Was it possibly that they had been transported to another part of the shinobi world or into some alternative universe? It was quite possible, but neither of them really could piece together exactly what happened as things would transpire so quickly from wandering in the foggy cemetery to fighting the living dead and proving through these trials that they were capable of signing a pact with Ena, the overlord of all Youkai in the shinobi world. For the elder of the duo, it was particularly easy for him to prove to the overlord that he was more than capable of signing a pact with the youkais of the world, but his younger partner in crime had some difficulties showing his worth initially until Ina showed herself and gave the boy a holy sword to fight the living dead with before vanishing as quickly as she came. Of course, this weapon had annoyed her sister, Ena, but there was nothing that she could have done to stop her sister since they were equal in power, strength, and beauty. In other words while one ruled over the Kamis of the world, the other ruled over the Youkai, but they were practically equal in every single regard. However, it was quite possible that other overlords were superior or inferior to them, but that was a story for another day.

For today, we found the younger individual of the duo back at the ruins where his fateful encounter with the reaper and Ena had all occurred somehow. Once again, he was in the same room that bore the creepy eyes that seemed fixated on him as he walked in the room and would only blink when they had to. However unlike the previous time, Juko would not actually attempt to attack the entity that towered over him and sealed the way to other parts of the ruins. No, he actually would be logical this time and show the piece of paper that was a copy of the contract that was signed by him and Ena and speak to the door asking to be allowed in as he needed to speak with the overlord of the Youkai.

Initially, the door would not respond as the eyes continued to stare at him. In this time, the little blonde child likely would be somewhat afraid and likely annoyed that nothing seemed to have worked. Fortunately for him after a few moments the eyes would seem to "roll" up like a humans would do before the door swung open violently and darkness surrounded the entirety of Juko as he was dragged past the door into a void. If the boy looked around, he could see absolutely nothing but darkness as his body was forcefully being pinned down and dragged towards its destination. However while he did travel, he could make out numerous sounds from screams to laughter to agony to frightfulness. These sounds in the normal everyday life of a shinobi were not unheard of, but these sounds that he heard would seem quite demented at times almost like they were a torment for him being sucked past the door. Sure, he could try to cover his ears or pretend that everything that was happening was not actually happening, but it need not matter what he did as he would hear all of these sounds through his journey in the void regardless of what he tried to do.
[lb2][/lb2]

It would only be after what felt like an eternity in this Hell of sounds and darkness that he would be thrown out of this void and be able to finally see his surroundings after making a loud thud as he fell onto the ground. When he got up from his fall, he would be able to see numerous windows that lined the walls on either side of him and a glass ceiling above him. If he actually would venture towards one of the windows, he would see that the structure that he was in was floating in the air, yet he could not see the sky. One could describe the rolling mass above the ground as 'clouds' but that would be too simplistic a word to really describe what is seen there, and any who have seen it know that they are not masses of water vapor. If viewed from the air, the edges of this plane can be seen, falling off into nothingness and if you get high enough you can make out the faces of the dead souls which make up the sky, but you'll never reach it. This place never would see rain and nothing would grow, it was an ugly, desolate, broken, beautiful, resplendent, and magnificent place however and it was what everyone desired and yet nothing anyone could ever want.

If he would venture out of the hallway that he was in and take a stroll outside, he would notice this circular realm of existence was cut into evenly sized segments with no physical barriers dividing them, and yet the line which separates each of them is just so obvious. Matter seemed to be produced at will and if he were to venture to the correct segment, he could have whatever it was that he desired. The segments were divided evenly amount the seven deadly sins: Wrath, Greed, Gluttony, Lust, Sloth, Envy, and Pride. Nothing from one segment is able to travel to another and this includes the demons and other entities which reside in them. Balance between them has been measured, and at the exact center of this realm is the only exception to this rule which is where Juko initially began. In the center, all allowed to do so may pass, only those worthy few reside there. The champions of their sins each live there, but at any one time only one of them is labelled the overlord. This position is tentative at best, and the others who reside there continually attempt to usurp their ruler.

This realm is Heaven to some, Hell to others, and home to the Youkai. Welcome to Tsumi and the home of Ena and the rest of the Youkai World!

 

[Senju Gaki]

For a moment the demonic door answered by showering Juko in silence, merely staring at the boy with the kind of unreadable expression that one should expect from a many-eyed door. Already Juko was contemplating attacking the door again as the eyes finally began moving, rolling in their sockets like loose marbles before suddenly breaking open to reveal the shadows hiding behind it. No, wait!!! Juko didnt manage to actually complete the sentence he had on his mind and in a last split-second before he vanished in the void behind the entrance he thought how calling to that weird girl demon might had been a bad idea after all.
Shit im drowning! The feeling of crushing weight all around him enveloped him and he could feel his body being pulled downwards, sinking at a faster rate than normally possible unterwater. A loud howling sound, like the incoming and receding waves could be heard, giving Juko the impression of sinking to the ground of the ocean. It wasnt until a few minutes in that he realized that what he could hear was in fact his blood rushing through his ears. Only then did he manage to filter out the actual sounds of his environment. Oh fffuck i shouldve stuck to the sounds of my own blood... The sounds coming to his ears now were by far more horrible. Everything from laughter to screams of pain and distress swarmed him, promising nothing good to the boy. Without noticing it he joined in the screams, screaming loud enough to feel the resonation go through his whole body.
Even as the pain of thumping on the hard cold ground he still felt himself scream, his hearing having already been reduced to a mere memory of birdcalls, rustling leaves and other pleasant sounds. Pushing his body up he rose from the stone below his feet and immediately felt a weird pain both on his head and his throat and only a questing touch with his hands revealed that he was in fact still screaming. ....AAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHSHIT! He stopped abruptly, which hurt almost more than the screaming did, and gulped down the air in whole mouthfuls.
From the corner of his eyes he could see windows surrounding him with a huge glasspane above. From his standing position he could see where the horizont shouldve ended, but instead the sky seemed to flow seamlessly into coiling clouds. Shit! Shit shit shit! That did not happen last time, why the fuck do i keep ending at random places like that! Cant people just send me a nice boat once in a while or something!? His left eye flinched and for a moment all he saw was a white sircle, as if the moon was staring right at him. He blinked rapidly and the image vanished as soon as it had apepared.
Helloho?
He did not receive any answers. Seems like its empty? How can that be, how did i end up in here if theres noone here? Er... Ena? Anybody? Takeshi? The boy felt slightly at loss for words and felt almost compelled to continue screeming, as if that had been the only reason for him to exist in the past moments.
Carefully he started exploring the place, sneaking over the mottled stony floor. I feel like an intruder here... i hope noone else shares that idea...
Still his knees felt wobbly and walking was almost painful in how exhausting it felt. As Juko passed by the windows he allowed himself to glimpse outside where an abyssmal picture greeted him causing him to gasp in surprise. What.. where.. how....
He began slowly edging closer to the walls to take a better look at the segements of this new world he had ended up in.

WC: 625​

 

[Senju Gaki]

[OOC:// Skipping all other participants due to inactivity]

Following the stony pathway Juko allowed his glance to flow over the abyssmal landscape surrounding him. As if he was wearing a leash and someone wa spulling the very same his body move forward without him issuing any commands. This... this.. i cant even describe how this looks like! His eyes flitted from one subrealm to the other, trying to take in all of the various forms and sights that opened up to him in this almost magical panorama. Sounds of all kinds were rising up all around him, turning into a gray noise of kinds. But... where... why am i HERE? Still walking forward the boy turned around to look back at the center piece where he had fallen down and for a moment his memories pulled at his consciousness. AaaaaaaAAAAAAHHHH..... no no no... Stop! He felt as if falling again and promptly followed suit by falling on his behind, or to be more precise, tried falling on his behind. Juko's hands reached out backwards to stop himself from actually injuring himself but found the space behind him where raw cold stone should have been empty instead. I, what, waitt..... Tumbling backwards he realized his body had unconsciously edged closer to the clifflike slope and was now indeed falling downwards again. Panicking Juko first tried to reach out and hold onto the walls that were passing by his eyes ever so quickly, his eyes darting up and down to see how far he had already fallen and how much more he still had to go.
Luckily for him the distance between his current position and the ground seemed to be pretty big which ment he wasnt going to splatter on it just yet. Unluckily for him however the distance was growing smaller and smaller by the moment. No, wait, i am to young to die like that! And whos gonna find me in here anyway? A demon? What about my parents? Shit and i havent even passed a single shinobi exam... i am going to die without even reaching genin?... Am i really? I havent even kissed a girl yet... Tears welled up in his face, an involuntary reaction to the impending doom that awaited him a few hundred feet, a hundred feet, a bit less than a hundred feet below.
Juko tried screaming again but found his throat clogged, his voice gone.
Takeshi-sensei! Yukio! Anyone, fucking safe me, i am not ready to go yet!!
His instinct told him that the ground was indeed coming closer now, like the feeling of someone staring at your back he felt the hardness that would soon embrace him. Nooo.....!! He croaked and suddenly Juko felt resistance well up in his mind. He didnt choose to be here like that, he didnt even choose to be part of the whole story in the first place. I am not going to die just like that! Not if i can prevent it!
Juko tried to bend his fingers, tried to make fingersigns but found his hands paralized by fear. Biting his lips he instead started gathering karma in his body, all the while forcing his shoulders to the side to turn around and get a last look at the ground before he tried to escape his death. Noooot yeeeet... He was already able to see the colored squares of ceilings and curtains on the ground, cold looking wood and stones in between and his tears were now running from his eyes upwards to take off somewhere around his forehead and free themselves into their own tumbling descent. Just when he was about to reach the first roof of dead wood Juko closed his eyes shut and released the energy with an inaudible snap.
As if the same leash that had before magically pulled him forward had now been catched by someone strong he felt his body snap back as he reappeared several feet further to the front above what seemed to be a small booth with a cloth curtain instead of a roof. Waaah.... A shout, a ripping sound, a meaty thud and then Juko slowly allowed himself to open his eyes and take a peak at his surroundings. His mind still seemed to be falling, trying to catch up to his body but atleast his flesh seemed to be safe, for the moment. Above himself he saw a darkgreen fabric in the form of a rectangle with a big tear in the middle. Did... did i make it? Did... i make it? His ability to think to himself was slightly compromised by the fall but the fact that he could also hear his own words atleast proved to him that he was still alive.
Either that or i died and simply have already been in the realm of the dead...
Ifya ment "did i break it?" thenya sur managgged thad... Slurred words came from somewhere to Juko's right and were soon followed by a light pain originating from his backhead. As his mind finally reached the same location as his brain Juko started registering more than just the cloth above him, hanging down as if disappointed that he made it out of his fall alive. A sickly pungent smell pierced his nose, pain was spreading from the back of his head and something wet was coming from the same place. His eyes widened. Blood! I am bleeding! His hands clenched into the soft and hairy surface below him. Hair? Its... warm? This isnt stone...nor wood... Gulping down Juko dared to tilt his head slightly and risk a look at the origin of the voice from before. It didnt need a lot of tilting as a moment after he had mentioned himself bleeding a big ape-like face appeared in his periphery, its one yellow eye glowing like a dull ember. Yearrh... thasnt blood, thingy... thass my glub, en'ya betta begone'a momen'... The stench was unbearable from this distance and most likely killed off quite a few of Juko's smell receptors. Shivering Juko tried to stand up but found his arms shivering and to weak to actually support his body properly. His blonde Hair was hanging in wet strains from the back of his head and immediately flopped against his back like a wet rug. Glub? W..w...what is going on here where the hell did i... right.. IN hell probably... I.. i cant... Whatever he had disturbed didnt wait for him to end his sentence. Yearh yearh... i ca'see thad...now gettoff.. Help immediately came and threw Juko forward and crashing into the wooden pole as ground suddenly moved. Midair the young seikon saw that he had been lying on the huge forearm of the creature which was still holding on to the handle of a broken clayjug. Spraying what he now realized mustve been an alkoholic drink Juko did a weak flip and slammed against the pole. Outch!
Opening his eyes he saw two huge red creatures, roughlike man-like but with inhuman proportions rise from a small wooden bench and tumble towards him. After a moment the two demons overlapped and then slowly turned into one entity that was constantly supporting its massive frame with one equally massive fist on the ground. Ey.. ye cannot jus' com'ngo like thad...who'ssna pay for th'sake? For a moment the demon seemed to trip over its own arm and as it gently stopped its fall with one hand on the wooden table Juko could swear he saw the wood break in the middle. Heh, certainly not you i guess, old drunk! Now get out of here you two, before i loose my temper! Not enough that he ruins the ceiling, you also just almost snapped my table in two you looser! A shadowy silhouette with what seemed to be two heads appeared from the side and shoved both the red ape before Juko aswell as the boy himself outside. HAH!? YE'THINKYE CAN'KE MEON!? YEA'R NUTHING BUTTA SECON'LASS IMPPP.... For a second it seemed as if the Demon was up and about to storm the small tavern like booth again as it stood up on its hindlegs and slammed both fists into the ground. Juko could feel the earth shake momentarily and closed his eyes, afraid of what might come next. I wish i wouldve died falling.... i dont wanna loose my life to the hands of a drunken monkey demon... When the ground shook again, but no sounds could be heard Juko carefully opened one eye. Before him the demon had apparently fallen over and was now snoring loudly, its one horn just inches away from Juko's chest. The boy gulped and slowly rose from the dusty ground. Yeah...i probably shouldnt stay here... RRRGHH.....RRRGHH.... Yep. Just what would be going through my head too if i were a huge stinking demon ape... Juko threw a glance at the big bodied fellow and for a moment tried to imagine what kind of life the creature mustve led prior to their meeting. Only now he noticed the long scar that stretched from somewhere on the top of the ape's elongated forehead to just below his cheekbones, crossing both the left eye and the stump of the left horn.
Gee... that looks nasty.. no wonder your mood sucks... The young seikon slowly rose again and looked to his left down the dark and dirty alley. I cant even see the tower from here anymore... how am i supposed to get back?... As if to answer his question his belly rumbled.
Then the ape rumbled. Juko immediately reacted, jumping backwards until his back met with the stony wall of the next small shack. Wha'wassat you jus'said? You'rrre from the cen'er? The single lone eye flicked open, glowing softly in the darkness of its eyesocket while the rest of the body didnt even bother to move. That... piercing look is oddly uncomfortable. No, wait. Its not odd to feel uncomfortable when looked at by a more than man-sized demon ape from hell that could probably crack my skull by accident with his pinky... Juko gulped and hoped that he somehow mistook the apes sudden attention for an actual interest in himself and carefully edged sideways, his own eyes never loosing contact with the single eye of the demon. Unfortunately for him, the eye followed him and his moves instead of staring blankly forward as he had hoped before. Yerr not'a gain, one of'm hannci... halumi.... hallunicationss? Ar'ya? A black tongue rolled out and sluggishly licked over the parched lips. Juko couldnt stop himself from staring at the finger-sized tusks that grew out of each corner of the beasts mouth.
Ans'a.. dammit... or i'll eatya... Despite the dryness of the creatures words Juko was more than willing to believe it.
He bowed immediately and raised both his palms to show that he was emptyhanded. No....er... Demon-sama... i am no...er... Hallucination? But i do come from the middle, i guess, yeah.. i actually wanna go back there too.. do you perhaps...er.. know where i have to go for that?
An odd silence spread as the demon simply stared at the boy who in turn was just staring back.
Argh.. m'head's killin' me... so wa'was that abou'cha bein' a Hanuciation? The demon released a mighty burp and moved one hand under his body before slowly pushing himself up. Really... how drunk do you have to be... argh... the worst kind of person to come across...
As i said, er... Demon-sama... Name's Shuten-kijin but ya'can callme Shuten-kijin-sama... Er... yes. Shuten...kijin... Sama... Sama. I am NO hallucination and i DO come from the center. CAN you POINT me to where i have to GO? Juko spoke slowly, hoping to ensure that the creature would understand him this time. Shuten-kijin-sama? Way to be arrogant for someone lying in the dirt, drunk and stinking...
Again the demon didnt respond immediately instead squinting at the young academy student. Ya'think'am stup'd? Yar a Hum'n.... No way yar from'e cen'er... Juko sighted.
No... really! I am! I was brought here by... Ena i think? And i really dont belong here, i have to get back! Something about his last sentence seemed to reach the thick demon's mind as it suddenly looked much more attentive than before. Ennna brought'u here? Yar really from'e cen'er? Silence, again. Follo' me...
Without giving any more information the tall creature turned around and began slowly staggering down the alley, leaving Juko no chance but either to stay all alone in the dark demon world or follow the only person that was perhaps mad enough to help him here.
They were walking for quite some time in utter silence giving Juko plenty of time to take a look at the world around him, however regardless of how hard he looked and how much he concentrated it seemed to him that his brain was simply not made to handle the actual picture he got from the demon world. On the countrary it seemed as if half of the time whenever he looked at something his brain almost instantly erased the memory as soon as he looked away again. What he did notice however was that many of the demons they came across seemed to be constantly bickering to one another and yet evaded his guide whenever possible. Probably due to the smell... nobody wants to mess with a drunk who looks like he can break a human in two... then again, most of the beings here look like that and this Ape... Shuten-kijin isnt even the biggest of them all...
It took almost half an hour of silent walking before they finally reached what had seemed to be the apes destination all along. Juko stopped next to his guide to take a look at the tower before him. That... really is the tower. How.. do i tell him that while this IS the tower, were standing before one of its walls? Theres no entrance here? Fucking idiot.. i shouldnt have trusted a drunken demon... However i probably should try to be diplomatic about it... You really did it, Shuten-Kijin-sama, thank you so...! Shutup you midget... Argh... my head still feels as if tiny kami are trying to break out of it.... but atleast im somewhat sober now... unfortunately.... Shuten-kijin turned to face Juko and once again the boy remembered how easily the demon had brushed him aside back in the tavern. Im afraid this is where we part ways. Ena-sama, please recognize me. Please see that i am still as strong, still as proud as before! Let me prove to you that i can take on this champion of yours for you! Wait what...? Let me redeem myself with this sacrifice! Wait, no no, i think you misunder... I dont care, human, fight or die!! Grunting from the sudden exertion Shuten-kijin jumped forward, surprising Juko with his sudden agility. Oh shit! Reflexes from a time that seemed to be eons old activated as Juko jumped backwards, narrowly dodging the crashing descent of the monkey. The ground exploded and showered the young shinobi with stones and pebbles from where Shuten-kijin had landed. Really, fighting me now? We almost made it... ughhhhhh Listen... i dont want to... It doesnt matter what you want, human. I WILL restore my honor! The demon stormed forward which didnt take more than two small jumps for Shuten-kijin and one of his mansized fists slammed into the ground where Juko had just been standing a moment ago. A moment later the boy reappeared behind the demon. Guess i dont have a choice then... His fingers started forming handseals and when Shuten-kijin finally realized where his prey had been and turned around Juko released a bright ball of fire into the face of the ogre-like opponent. Fire? Is that all you got Human?? Last time was by far harder! From the smoke came the silhouette of Shuten-kijin, seemingly unharmed by the jutsu. With a odd smile the demon reached up with his hand and slice open his palm on the tip of his horn. Let me show you the true power of a demon... The blood dripping from his hand was blue-ish black and seemed to be more viscous than that of a regular human but what was most shocking to Juko about it was not its color or density but rather the fact that it was slowly crawling up to the demons hand where it formed a huge katana-like sword.
The weapon was almost twice as tall as Shuten-kijin was and just by pointing at Juko its tip almost reached the boy. And now, you die. Growling with contained anger Shuten-kijin lunged forward and again Juko tried to escape to the demons back. However he had misjudged the speed of the sword and as he reappeared on the other side of their impromptu arena the blade was already coming his way. Oh no, quick! Kinetic energy spew forward from the boy in midair causing a small dent in the ground below him and slowing the katana enough to prevent being cut in two. Instead the blade merely pushed a few fingers into his side. Juko twitched and immediately felt hot liquid flow from the wound. But, atleast im still alive... Ugh? More tricks, less might...i see now what kind of fighter you are... The demon, having his weapon repelled momentarily, gripped the hilt with both hands now. Lets see you defend against this now! Juko landed in the dent that his recent jutsu had caused and immediately started throwing together handseals. Multiple barriers appeared around him, each one somewhat smaller than the one before. Hah! The katana crashed down on the first barrier, pressing not only the barriers but with them also Juko slightly into the ground. As the barrier imploded, the sword came crashing down again, tearing through the next two barriers. By now Juko was already so deep in the ground that the edge of the small crater he was standing in reached as high as his chest. If this carries on ill be dead... again! With his thoughts wavering the last bubble protecting him also seemed to waver and he saw Shuten-kijin grin. Instead of chopping down on Juko the katana came from the side this time and only Juko's heightened reflexes allowed him to duck under it as it cleaved through his last barrier. There, no more barriers! Whats going to come next, human? Yeah, i wonder about that too occasionally... His hands moving as fast as never before Juko leaped from the crater, aiming for the face of the demon. Around the fingertips of his right hand a ring of chakra was swirling, the chakram glowing in a soft blue light even as he crashed it on the swiftly arisen forearm of the demon. The chakram exploded immediately, enlargening into the direction Juko had struck, cutting through both the forearm aswell as the shoulder of Shuren-kijin. There, how about that? Looks better than a barrier, huh? The demon roared and stumbled back, black blood spurting from his arm and running down into his blade. You will REGRET THAT! I already do, dont worry! Yeah, not as witty as i coudlve been i guess.. Jukos thoughts were racing as he finally entered the offensive. Lunging forward he narrowly escaped another attempt at decapitation before slamming his palm into the stomach are of the demon. Lets see how you like that? Multiple Air bullets exploded against the torso of his opponent, each one banging like a wounded drum. Juko could feel the mighty foe stumbling backwards even more and decided to chase his one and only chance. His right foot anchored against the belt-like rope that held the demon's pink clothing he dashed upwards to the chest where he focussed all of his might into a concentrated kinetic blast that left an indentation even as it shoved Shuten-kijin even further. Panting Juko used this chance of imbalance to rise even higher stopping now almost before the demons face. No wait, dont tell me, you got a new haircut? Just kidding, eat this! Shuten-kijin tried back out of the next attack but found himself cornered against the wall of the center of the demon realm. NO! His blade tried to hit at Juko but was unable to efficiently reach him due to its immense lenght and without even looking back Juko slammed a regular Rasengan into Shuten-kijins face. The explosion of the jutsu seemed to envelop the demons head as it pressed him into the wall behind him but Juko too felt the effects of the strain on his body. His legs gave in under him and with only a weak guard around his head he dropped from the demons body to the ground, sweat leaving from every pore on his body.
Ha...ha... couldnt we... have... talked about this.... instead?... His left hand clenched around the wound on his right side he rose on wobbly legs and staggered backwards a few steps in case of a counter attack. The demon however didnt seem to be moving.
I wonder, maybe i can use him as a makeshift stair to help me start my ascent... but... going all the way up? I dont think ill be able to do that with my chakra the way it is right now. Juko fell on his backwards, glad to feel solid earth this time and wiped the sweat from his face. A read streak of smeared blood reminded him of his wound and with the help of his kunai and some of his hoody he somehow managed to bind the wound more or less. Enough for me not to bleed out immediately... Panting he remained sitting, as he waited for his strength to recover. Wha wha what!? The demon suddenly moved again, stones breaking out of the wall where his head had been burried as he twitched. His hand tried gripping the blood katana but the weapon had already disintegrated and reassumed its liquid form so instead of squeezing its hilt Shuten-kijins hand just grabbed empty air and cold wet blood. With visible effort the drunk youkai lifted his head from the small crater in the wall of the tower and looked over to Juko. Still...hah... alive huh?... Hah... You sure arent... as weak as i thought first... hah.... seems like ive lost.... again.... His head fell back into the hole. Feel free to do... what you want with me now... i cant go on living here like that anymore...
Eeh... What the hell is wrong with him... How about... instead of killing you... Juko pushed his body into a standing position which rewarded him with a small spurt of blood from his side. His body was feeling weirdly light.
Instead of killing you... you help me get out of here and we just forget about this whole incident, huh? The demon didnt answer him for a few moments and almost Juko thought that the big ape had already succumbed to his wounds when Shuten-kijin waved lightly with the fingers of one hand that was lying on the ground. The blood on it made the gesture look much more macabre than it probably was supposed to be. Whatever... come here, ill make a way for you... As Juko warily came closer Shuten-kijin reached out with his other hand and then slammed the open palm into the wall beside him. To Juko's surprise the hand didnt break the stone but rather corroded it where it touched. Shuten repeated this a few times more at different heights before he finally slammed his fist into the wall, causing the whole section to crumble.
There... you can go through there, walk up the stairs and thats oughta be it... if you came from there nothing will happen to you... Juko looked at the opening, back at Shuten-kijin and then back at the opening again. I know ill regret this..
Why... why dont you come along? I... i dont know how to say this... but.. er ive got this.. this contractthingy from Ena and...well... The boy stopped and looked at the demon, waiting for any kind of reaction. While he was indeed expecting an answer he was not expecting Shuten-kijin to laugh. A contract? Wohahaha, you and me? All of the youkai's body was rumbling with laughter now and slowly the face edged forward from its crater. He doesnt look as wounded as before anymore... i sure hope he doesnt insist on continuing this now that he had time to think about it and recover... In any case Juko prepared to dodge.
I cant say im thrilled about the idea but... youve won. I can hardly decline now... gimme that paper, midget! Somehow the demon sounded more relieved than he should and Juko wondered about this tone of command that Shuten-kijin was using. Er...yes... Reaching into his pockets Juko took out the piece of parchment which was, conveniently enough already covered on the proper side with his blood that had leaked from his wound. Shuten-kijin was still smiling his ghastly grin as he pressed a big bloody finger on the paper. There... but dont you dare summoning me just on a whim... i will fight for you... or WITH you! You got that? Also i expect regular casks of alkohol if you summon me! Alkohol. Are you kidding me? How am i supposed to get those?.. Fine... but now.. help me up there, willya? Im Juko by the way...but you can call me Juko-sama! Shuten-kijin reached for Juko and froze for a moment before erupting in laughter again. Right right, you got me there, midget-sama.. Wohahaha

With the help of the tall Shuten-kijin Juko started accending to the top of the center however due to the bloodloss he fainted midway through. The last he had seen was the bloodsmeared face of the huge youkai before he started falling again, this time however he fell asleep.
When Juko wake up again he found himself at the entrance of the ruins back in the familiar forest of Konohagakure and for a moment he panicked. This cant have all been a dream, can it? I am sure i OUCH! As he stood up he realized that his side was still hurting but had been bandaged properly. See! SEE! It cant have been a dream, now can it!? His hands reached into his pockets and with eagerness he pulled out the scroll. Blood stained one side of it and the bloody imprint of a headsized finger the other side of it. YES! WOW! I CANT WAIT TO SHOW EVERYONE!! Juko immediately started sprinting back towards the village however after a few steps he slowed down due to his injury and the memory of the demons prize for being summoned. Alright, maybe i wont show it to everyone...

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