Where Winter Meets Summer (Rusame Countryhumans)

Forgotten Wishes Hidden in the Deep

"This is the real thing alright," he whispered as he tilted the hilt to examine it at every angle, "I'm impressed. Never did I think someone would be able to retrieve the hilt, charm or not."

"Well that's because he's not a person. He's a statue clone." NATO explained, gesturing to Five who was eyeing the small treats on the table.

"Intriguing- oh I digress," he caught himself, "I'm sure you two are here to retrieve the blade of the sword right? In that case, might I enlighten you on the origins of this weapon? Or are you already acquainted with its story?"

Upon his beckon, the servants snuffed out the lights of the room before disappearing behind the screen, into the pitch black. In this darkness, the second magatama that they had retrieved with the hilt began to glow. In fact, it was almost blinding. Occasional flares appeared elsewhere in the room and it caught Five's attention but he could never seem to pinpoint where they were coming from. The magatama's glow slowly focused into a concentrated beam of light, shooting upwards into the dark. The pair instinctively looked up, expecting to see nothing but glowing words etched in the unseen ceiling stared back instead.

"Kindred three rose in revolt but not without a price."

"Two tries it took to end the fight but one would end her life."

The room then began to spin and sway. NATO tried to steady himself but there was no use. Five, on the other hand, had felt this all before. He glanced at the Chrysanthemum, who caught his gaze and smiled knowingly. This was the continuation of the scene from under the sea.

...

"KYOUDAI, WE DID IT!"

The sound of laughter and celebration filled the small, deserted shores as three siblings lay heaving, just out of the reaches of the waves. They were sopping wet, having just crawled out of the seas where they had retrieved a filthy rock from the depths of that watery hell. At least that was what it appeared to be at the moment.

"Just you wait," the eldest of the bunch chuckled with difficulty, "This rock will be recast into a weapon fit for the gods in no time! Actually, I'm sure it will surpass the old version too!"

This rock was no ordinary rock. It was the remains of an ancient sword, forged from the bones of gods and monsters. Legends had also depicted that a piece of bone from every passing ruler in the land would be used to re-forge the blade until it was hardly just a weapon anymore. It held the legacy of all the land so when the shogun had cast it into the sea, it was only appropriate that it had caused an uproar. But now it was back in mortal hands. To the siblings, this was the key to unlocking their nation trapped within its own iron walls.

He had kept his word, the elder brother. After three months of infusing the celestial stone with the pearly glow of the moon, he had melted it with the rays of the sun. After meticulously crafting the glorious weapon, the blade was sharpened with the shearing winds on the stormiest peaks. Refined to the core, it was a tsurugi that put every other sword to shame. It was ready.

However, there was a problem. Now that they held such a powerful tool, it became clear that it would be useless without a skilled wielder to brandish it in battle. The siblings were not too shabby at the art of the sword but one tiny slip up could cleave their plans in half, at best. Hit with this realization and unable to trust anyone else with the tsurugi, they made an agreement. No one but them could use it and they would not use it until it was absolutely necessary. It would be their ultimate ace in the hole.