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Running through the Unlost Woods is a gashadokuro.
The old leaves crunched underneath the youkai’s white slippers as they rushed through the dark and wooden landscape. Their grayish purple clothes waved behind them, and surprisingly the skull on top of their green hair clung onto them well, despite the quick speed.
With merely nothing stopping the youkai’s footsteps, and determination in their green eyes, one thing is for certain they didn’t seem too happy.
Once again, Tsubakura defeated Sese. That troublesome shrine priest, always winning each battle with that same punchable smirk they wear. Just simply thinking back to it made the green haired huff in annoyance.
But right now, Sese’s current focus is to find Sukune. If there was anyone that could help them, the haniwa is the first to reach out to.
As they rush closer and closer to Sukune’s home, Sese suddenly bumps into something- or rather someone.
A harsh “oof” can be heard escaping the energetic youkai, landing on their back as they rub their shoulder with their skeletal arm.
“Watch where you’re going, will you?” A voice scolded, with a slight growl in their words.
Sese quickly opened their green eyes. They swore they recognized that voice from somewhere. Glancing up, they finally notice someone familiar.
Standing with their black ponytail waving ever so softly, and their seven tails curling almost defensively, Yaorochi stared down at Sese with not even a glimmer of amusement in their face.
“Ah- Orochin!!” Sese gasped, quickly getting up as they took a few steps away from Yaorochi, brushing the dirt and grime off their clothes in the process. “Sese didn’t know you were here!”
Yaorochi simply watched as Sese recollected themselves. “I didn’t know overly energetic youkai were here either,” they commented sarcastically, already wanting to be left alone.
The orochi’s words fell on deaf ears, as Sese quickly looked around to try and find Sukune. As expected, the haniwa was nowhere to be seen.
“Where’s Sukune?” the gashadokuro asked, almost desperately as they scanned the forest with their eyes.
“Not here, for starters,” Yaorochi simply answered. The orochi’s low energy tone of voice was a polar opposite compared to Sese’s vibrant one.
Sese glanced back at Yaorochi, a suspicious glare on their face. “But you see Sukune every day, right? They would tell you if they’re going anywhere, right??”
“I overslept this morning. Even if they did tell me, I didn’t hear them.”
“Then- can I go in Sukune’s home to see them?” Sese asked, a fruitless attempt to pass Yaorochi, which only left them with a sharp “no.”
Yaorochi’s counter arguments made Sese suddenly stomp their foot in frustration, some of the dust scattering from the force. “Just tell me where they are!! Why are you hiding them from me?!”
The childish outburst made Yaorochi glare a bit, struggling to keep their patience. They speak up again, the sharpness in their words increasing within each second. “The only thing I’m hiding is my wrath towards brats like you. If you don’t leave me alone right this second and–...”
The orochi then pauses, slowly leaning away from the gashadokuro. What are they doing, lashing out at some kid like this? They sighed through their nose, now noticing Sese shaking in fear.
If they keep scaring the poor kid like this, they’d have to deal with Sukune.
“... my apologies for my behavior,” Yaorochi started. They were struggling to say those words, but it was certainly better than nothing. “Since I’ve woken up, I haven’t had anything to eat. I suppose you can say I’m looking for Sukune too.”
Sese’s anger quickly subsided, replaced with curiosity. They tilt their head to the side. “Don’t you have food at home?” they ask.
“Sukune doesn’t like it when I eat without their permission.”
“Then why don’t you eat their meals?”
“They didn’t leave any meals today. They must’ve forgotten this time.”
It feels like Yaorochi has a counter argument for everything. A thoughtful hum escapes Sese as they cross their arms and brainstorm for ideas. After a few seconds their eyes lighten up.
“I know!” Sese then gets out a bone, holding it up to Yaorochi. “Eat this! It’ll calm you down!”
Yaorochi made a face at the bone waving at them and took a step back. “I’m not eating that,” they rejected, causing the spirited youkai to pout in defeat.
There was a pregnant pause between the youkai, leaving Yaorochi feeling awkward from the gashadokuro’s company and Sese feeling gloomy. The orochi pressed their lips together, creating a thin line.
“Well, I do believe I have places to be, so-”
“Wait!” Sese suddenly called, running around to face Yaorochi again. The poor black haired had to hold back a sigh. Sese isn’t done with them yet, it seems.
“If Sese can’t find Sukune, then Sese needs your help!” they announced, pointing at Yaorochi to punctuate their sentence.
Yaorochi paused, the skeleton’s words echoing in their head and an unamused glare crept onto their face. “My help? Why would I bother helping someone like you?”
“Sese got defeated again, and they need an opponent!”
“By Tsubakura, I assume? I heard Sukune complain about them the other day.”
The guess made Sese nod eagerly. “Yes, them! They’re so strong, and annoying, and mean, and... and they get away with defeating me every time!”
A quiet chuckle escapes Yaorochi, smirking just a bit. “The Senri Shrine is hated as usual, I see.”
“I want you to fight me! I need to prove to myself that I'm not weak!” Sese suddenly declared, making sure their words stuck.
Yaorochi paused after the declaration. Is Sese doubting themselves? The last time the two of them fought was when Sese absorbed all the souls and became stronger. Obviously they wouldn’t have the same strength now, but there was definitely some improvement since then.
And seeing them doubt themselves like this was almost pitiful.
With a sigh, Yaorochi kneeled to Sese’s height. “Well for starters, you’re not weak. You may not be incredibly strong, but you’re not weak.”
The sudden gesture made Sese pause. They certainly didn’t expect anyone to do this, especially not Yaorochi. What the hell are they doing? This is totally not them at all, reassuring someone like this.
The silence from the youkai made Yaorochi continue. “We fought last winter, remember? You were quite strong then.”
“But Sese’s souls escaped, and Sese’s weak again…”
“That’s not entirely true,” Yaorochi simply corrected, “you have potential, and you’re certainly getting stronger each day. It’s hard to notice your progression unless you keep track of it in some way.”
Sese remained quiet for a moment, letting Yaorochi’s words sink in. “... orochi?”
“You aren’t losing progress when you lose. It’s natural to feel defeated when you lose day after day, but keep pushing forward,” Yaorochi continued, before they awkwardly look away. “Or at least that’s the words I overheard some humans say. Take it for what you will, or don’t.”
Sese stops to think about Yaorochi’s lingering words. Had they been getting stronger without realizing it? The idea definitely lifted their spirits a bit, at least.
“Do you still want to fight?” Yaorochi asked, their voice cutting through the train of thought. Sese’s eyes widened a bit. The word “fight” caught their attention almost instantly, like a dog when it hears “treat.”
With a beaming grin, Sese nodded enthusiastically. “We can fight?! Then let’s go, let’s go!” They hopped up and down, already eager to start firing their skeletal danmaku.
Yaorochi couldn’t help but smirk at Sese’s cheering. It felt unnatural for the orochi to act this way, but those thoughts quickly subsided. “Alright, I suppose I will humor you. I did say I would be your opponent whenever you’d like, after all.” With this, Yaorochi moved one of their tails to slowly reveal the Tasouken, a long bladed sword too powerful to be wielded by normal humans. “But don’t assume I’ll go easy on you. Nothing gets past my blade,” they warned, putting a sharpness to their words.
Sese giggled excitedly, taking a few steps back before they flew up. Seeing Sese take their stance made Yaorochi slowly glide up as well.
The gashadokuro raised their boney hand. “A Corpse in Search of Themself, Sese Kitsugai! Ready!”
The orochi raised their hand as well, although with much less energy. “Descendant of Orochi, Adagumo no Yaorochi. Ready.”
After those words, the forest was now filled with bullet fire.
… And after a few spell cards, Sese was eventually defeated, floating down onto their knees. They tried to catch their breath with hoarse gasps, their clothes and body littered with scars from the bullets.
“Sese lost, once again…” the youkai admitted in defeat, feeling depressed again.
Watching Sese land, Yaorochi slowly lowered themselves as well. Despite their victory, they also took some pretty good hits from the danmaku. “I’d say you’re getting stronger bit by bit,” they commented, sheathing their sword.
Sese didn’t respond as much to that statement, only pouting in failure. The pitiful sight caused Yaorochi to sigh. “Don’t let your defeat get to you too harshly. I did warn you that I wouldn’t go easy, yes?”
Even if that was the case, the gashadokuro was much more focused on the fact that they lost yet again. “I knowww… but Sese still lost…”
Yaorochi remained quiet for a moment before they had an idea. “Well, due to the rules of this realm, I suppose I have to give you an order,” they began.
“Keep training. Don’t let defeat demotivate you from achieving your goals. I know it’s discouraging to feel like you aren’t making any progress, but I can see that you are.” Yaorochi continued, before they sigh and hold out their hand to help Sese up. “If it makes you feel any better, I could also help you train.”
As Sese grabs Yaorochi’s hand, they think about what they heard. An inspired twinkle in their eye slowly grew. Beaming with joy again, they take it to get up from the ground. “Thank you orochi! You helped Sese a lot!!” They cheered happily.
The now starry eyed youkai runs past Yaorochi as they shout, “let’s battle again soon!” And from there, the orochi is alone with their thoughts, watching as Sese disappears within the trees.
Alternatively, Yaorochi would question themselves about what just happened, but it seems to have ended on a good note. Although they would most likely be challenged to fight Sese more often, it might not be the worst thing that could happen.
Yaorochi couldn’t help but smile as they thought back to the encounter. And with that, they continued to search for Sukune.