Chapter 564: A new discovery made by the Youkai.
Scathach, Ruby, Siena, Pepper, Lacus, and Luna were sitting on a mat in front of three individuals.
The first was a middle-aged man wearing a kimono with a neutral expression. His name was Otsuki Yoichi, Haruna's grandfather, as well as the grandfather of Hana, Vlad's late wife, meaning he was also Ophis's great-grandfather.
A former war hero, the former commander of the Hyakki Yakō that Haruna now commands.
Scathach could tell the man was completely on guard, even if he didn't show it.
But Scathach wasn't worried about that. It would be foolish if the man wasn't on guard, given Scathach's reputation in this country.
Even though they were in an alliance with Clan Alucard, Victor himself, they were not Victor. They were here using his name.
Scathach observed Yoichi with a raised eyebrow:
'An expert, huh, and to think I've never met him in my travels.' She smiled internally.
Just as Scathach was watching the man, the man was also watching the woman warily.
'The woman responsible for the Crimson Nightmare...' He broke into a cold sweat. He could clearly feel it; the woman in front of him was strong, ridiculously strong.
'The rumors are not enough to describe the real thing.' In Youichi's view, even though she was sitting there and doing nothing…
The woman's presence was enormous, and he felt as if he were in the presence of a giant.
Scathach herself saw no need to hide her 'base' power. She knew that power also served as a form of negotiation. Haruna and Yoichi knew that as well; therefore, everyone in the house was tense toward her.
The other male was the nine-tailed fox who escorted the group to this location.
Hashimoto Genji, a nine-tailed fox and the former subordinate of the goddess Inari.
And the woman who sat in the center as if demonstrating her position was Otsuki Haruna.
Unlike the two tense men, the nine-tailed fox was sitting in the seiza position while peacefully drinking tea. She didn't even seem affected by Scathach or the tense mood.
Unlike the last time the girls saw her on the broadcast in an outfit that looked like a modern kimono, she was now wearing a full traditional kimono, following the same black and gold color themes.
Her face was lightly made up, nothing too exaggerated, just enough makeup to hide her fatigue. After all, after she got back from the meeting, she needed to do a lot of things and receive the resources her ally gave her, taking a toll on her even if she was a supernatural.
Her dark black hair fell lightly across her face causing a rather elegant scene.
Nobility, kindness, and strictness, Haruna seemed like the perfect 'Yamato Nadeshiko.'
After drinking some of her Tea, Haruna started the conversation with her eyes still closed.
"Scathach Scarlett, I would appreciate it if you didn't frighten my generals unnecessarily."
Immediately Yoichi and Genji felt a shiver down their spines and looked at Haruna in shock.
"..." Scathach raised an eyebrow in amusement.
The monotonous silence from before suddenly turned into a tense silence.
The Scarlett sisters and Luna looked at Haruna with shocked looks.
'She certainly has a backbone.' They couldn't help thinking.
On the other hand, Ruby looked at this situation with a strange expression, like she was feeling some Deja Vu.
'Isn't this similar to what happened with the first meeting between Victor and my mother?'
"What do you mean?" Scathach played innocent.
"I don't deny that a weapon capable of doing so much harm to a Seraph is frightening, but… I highly doubt that demons have the ability to make many such weapons." Haruna opened her eyes and looked neutrally at Scathach.
"If it was that easy, they would have won the war by now." As a Commander and a Faction leader, she had first-hand experience of how making important items that waste large amounts of resources was not good for the Faction as a whole.
"So, because of that, I said not to frighten my generals unnecessarily." Haruna closed her eyes and took another sip of her tea.
"..." Genji was slightly embarrassed since he knew this line was also meant for him.
But he wasn't to blame; Scathach's words carried weight, a lot of weight, and Genji, unlike Haruna, was present the day Scathach did what she did.
Scathach had the same face, but inside, she was very pleased with Haruna's performance.
'No wonder Victor likes her so much.' Few beings weaker than Scathach could do what Haruna did now.
Scathach could count on her hand how many beings had the 'guts' to face someone stronger and remain with their head held high.
The courage, the determination needed to do what Haruna did must come from the depths of her being.
You have to be born with that disposition.
Even Yoichi and Genji couldn't do it, they might not show it, but they were afraid and wary of Scathach.
Fear was not bad; only it could point out your own weaknesses and thus be able to overcome them.
But when one lost themselves in the feeling of fear, they were no longer worthy in Scathach's eyes.
And just like the two, Haruna was scared, but at the same time…
Her excitement, her responsibility, and her very disposition made her own fear insignificant.
Haruna was honestly happy that someone like Scathach was in front of her. From the bottom of her heart, she hoped to be able to 'spar' with the woman. She wanted to see for herself the strength of the one called the strongest female vampire.
And that disposition was what differentiated Victor and Haruna from the rest.
Scathach was sure now.
Haruna was the same as her disciple, and the nine-tailed fox was the same as Scathach herself.
And this confirmation made Scathach even happier.
'Seriously, from the moment Victor showed up, she started finding gems like it was easy.' She licked her lips a little and looked at Haruna with blood-red eyes.
That outward gesture looked like the woman wanted to 'eat' Haruna, in the literal sense of the word.
And that made Genji and Yoichi even more alert.
But they were far from the truth, and Scathach just genuinely wanted to 'polish' this obsidian stone.
Scathach didn't say anything about Haruna's deductions since the two women knew that wasn't necessary.
Haruna just brought it up so that her general, Genji, wouldn't think too much about it.
"Before I start, I have to ask something."
"… You have my full attention," Haruna commented while still taking another sip of tea.
"Did you find an alternative medium for your energy?"
Genji and Yoichi flinched again.
'Does nothing escape her senses?'
Ruby raised an eyebrow. She knew the disadvantages of the Youki, an energy that could only be used in a specific location was severely limited, but it had not been a problem before. After all, the Youkai, as well as the other species known as Dragon and Spirits, were not united.
A fact that changed when Haruna appeared, and as a 'faction' recognized by the great factions that were part of what amounts to the 'UN' of the supernatural world.
That kind of limitation was deadly.
"...." Haruna stopped drinking her tea and opened her eyes.
Eyes as dark as the void itself stared into blood-red eyes.
Haruna placed the teapot in front of her and followed the traditional tea ritual of her house. As soon as she finished, she said:
"How did you notice?"
"I am very sensitive to energy, and that energy I have felt once in the past," Scathach answered honestly.
"...May I ask where you felt this energy?" Haruna was a little curious.
"The world tree of this planet, Yggdrasil."
"..." The three foxes opened their eyes slightly. Who didn't know what a world tree was? Without it 'supporting' the planet's existence, civilization could not have been created.
"I felt this energy, but it seems to be subtly different from the world tree." Scathach's eyes focused on Haruna, and she could feel that feeling again.
It was soft, but it was definitely there.
"... Even though you are in front of me, I feel as if I am looking at nature itself."
'The feeling isn't heavy like that woman, but…it's still the same. I assume that the quality is inferior because it is not a being that originally uses this energy?'
"I assume this energy is not an evil energy like Youki."
Haruna nodded her head:
"Indeed, this new energy is neither good nor bad; it is neutral, and it all depends on the user's disposition."
"… Hmm." Scathach's eyes gleamed slightly:
"How did you discover this energy?"
Hearing the woman's question, Haruna replied, "I can't say how we discovered this energy, it's a secret of our faction, and even though you are our allies, you are no exception."
"..." Scathach didn't say anything or express anything since she understood Haruna's caution.
"All we can say is that these energies are called 'Senjutsu' and 'Ki'."
"..." Lacus, Pepper, and Ruby just raised their eyebrows when they heard that name. Immediately, they thought of a certain ninja with blond hair and a certain alien who could destroy planets.
"We use nature's energy as a medium, and through it, we can use our resistance as a means to control nature's energy."
"The amount of energy used depends on the user's proficiency and stamina."
"We call this energy Senjutsu."
"When we came to understand Senjutsu, we discovered another energy that uses our own vitality as a medium."
"We call this internal energy Ki."
"Two discoveries, huh… It looks like you really benefited from the deal made at the meeting."
'The effects are similar and completely different from the anime' The Otaku brains of Ruby, Pepper, and Lacus can't help but think inwardly.
The three girls were overly excited about this information but did their best to remain silent.
Haruna just smiled softly since she was also surprised by this development.
She already knew that she needed to find an alternative to the energy her people used, and because of that, she gathered the Clan of Oni, dragons[RyuJi], and foxes.
The three great Youkai Clans gathered in one place to discuss measures, and it was at this meeting that the leader of the Clan of Dragons spoke about the 'Dragon veins'.
A fissure that covered the entire planet and the potent energy that passed through there.
Dragons were never able to use this energy for their own benefit, and they hid the existence of this discovery.
When Haruna arrived at that place, as a nine tails fox, she immediately felt a connection with that place, a neutral and powerful energy was passing through that cave.
It took a lot of trial and error, but Haruna managed to 'understand' how that energy worked.
She needed to sit down, meditate, and completely calm her heart, and only when she reached that state would the energy be able to enter her body.
And the moment that energy entered her body, she could feel her own vitality.
She instinctively knew how much life she had and how to use that vitality for herself.
But, of course, nothing came that easy, as the very nature of Senjutsu wasn't compatible with Youki.
Youki was an accumulation of negative energy produced by humans, and Youkais absorbed it to strengthen themselves, 'japan' itself due to the death of a monster in the past was a good place for this type of energy.
So it was perfectly common for the two energies to come into conflict. Haruna was the only one so far who managed to 'control' the two energies a little.
But she still had a long way to go.
"…I assume the downsides to these energies are great."
"If you use the 'Ki', which is essentially part of your vitality, without discipline, you can burn your entire lifespan and die. Control is necessary."
"Even Youkai, who, like vampires, are essentially immortal until they are killed, are no exception."
"Senjutsu, if used in a turbulent state, can damage your body internally and, in the worst cases, even your soul." Haruna thought solemnly of the greedy dragons that tried to use that energy when Haruna reported her findings.
'What a waste. They were good soldiers.' However, she didn't feel sorry for those dragons and just regretted losing resources. After all, they were Ryuji Clan dragons, they were strong, and their breath could cause chaos on the battlefield.
They were useful.
She was content that at least her personal dragons didn't suffer at all since they were obedient.
"A state of absolute calm is needed to use this energy."
Otsuki Clan's techniques had similar concepts, and she needed to maintain absolute calm and coolness on the battlefield.
Only then could she exercise the sword techniques she learned from her father.
"The two energies complement each other. When using senjutsu and incorporating it into your body, your vitality will not be so impaired if you use Ki."
"Essentially speaking, Senjutsu is the beginning of the art, and Ki is a sub-art derived from Senjutsu itself, but instead of using nature's energy, you use your own vitality."
Haruna closed her eyes and smiled slightly.
'The possibilities of techniques using these arts are endless, but the requirements of learning this art are quite strict.'
Scathach knew that smile, and she remembered seeing that same smile on Victor's face when he wanted to surprise someone.
"Unlike other energies, Senjutsu and Ki can be trained by everyone as long as they meet the requirements I mentioned earlier."
Scathach and the girls opened their eyes wide.
With a smile very much like a fox, Haruna spoke:
"Now, Scathach Scarlett, shall we continue the negotiation?"
.....
