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Sabitsuki Kaibutsu darted through the forest, her nimble body easily dodging and sidestepping the measly attacks waged by disrupted Youkai and fairies. It seems the quakes that had roused her attention deep within the Underground were even more severe here, on the surface, causing much distress among the populace. With the manipulation of a simple spell card of her own, Sabitsuki dealt with the threats easily by reflecting their shots back.

Ahead of her, a flicker of light, and a beam of energy rushed through the forest, KOing several hostiles in her path. A few seconds later, she joined her companion, Yuuka Kazami, further up the path. The tip of the Gardener's closed parasol was sizzling, burning away the excess residual magic.

"Yuuka! You didn't have to hurt them like that! My spell card was working fi- wait, how did you get ahead of me?? I took off running and you were way behind me..."

"You're too slow." The gardener replied casually, carrying on deeper into the forest. "I still question why you sought out my help, or rather, why I headed that list." Sabitsuki trotted up behind Yuuka, walking beside the taller woman. "Because, I know you're strong...and...I didn't want big sis to worry about me. She hasn't been feeling well, you see, so I told her that you were accompanying me, that way she wouldn't wor- huh?" The two stopped in their tracks when another Youkai made her presence known. It was a rabbit, brandishing two Danmaku-glowing hands, demanding their names.

"Noisy little runt. My name is Yuuka Kazami, Flower Master of th-"
"O-Ochiba~!!" Sabitsuki ran forward a few steps, closing the gap between herself and the rabbit. There was a gentle smile across her face, much like she would have had in her childhood. "I haven't seen you in such a long time... How have you been, old friend?"

"Ochiba...?" Sabitsuki was taken aback by her friend's hostile reaction. "It's Sabitsuki... don't you remember me? Damage the forest? What are you talking about? Who told you that??" Her questions flew from her mouth without thought, confusion swirling through her mind. She took another careful step forward, although Yuuka remained stationary, bemused by the event. "She doesn't appear to be in the mood to talk, Miss Kaibutsu."

Undeterred, Sabitsuki continued. "Ochiba, we've come here to help! Haven't you felt the earth heave? It's like the whole world wants to scream, but no one makes a sound... We've come here to put a stop to it, if we can."
"And we will, regardless of this whelp's interference. Allow us passage, or make peace with whatever god you follow." Sabitsuki turned back, appalled by the gardener's coldness. "Yuuka! She's my friend, I refuse to attack her...!"

Sabitsuki recoiled, lifting a foot as the rabbit's danmaku struck the ground before her. "What's wrong with you?!" She felt betrayed. Even though she hadn't seen her friend in such a long time, surely Ochiba hadn't forgotten about her...right?

Yuuka, on the other hand, was done playing games. Regardless of Ochiba's own threats, Yuuka moved forward, closer to the rabbit. She leveled the parasol with her as magic began to gather at its tip. "I gave you your chance, vermin. I'll make it quick."

"YUUKA STOP!!" Sabitsuki lept for the gardener, grasping the parasol and pulling it aside; a single bolt of magical energy burst from its tip, although redirected away from anyone. The Magnum Spark flew 'harmlessly' into the forest, impacting and splintering a collection of bamboo trees. Yuuka gazed down to Sabitsuki, annoyance in her eyes. "Yuuka...I will not fight her..."

"You have no choice." Yuuka gripped Sabitsuki's clothing, easily prying the mirror Youkai away from the parasol. "Ochiba, we'll stand together!" Sabitsuki struggled against the gardener's grip. "We stand alone."
"But she's still my friend!" Yuuka shoved Sabitsuki aside, causing the girl to roll backwards onto the ground. "Then you're a fool." The gardener leveled the tip with Ochiba once more, repeating her previous motions. Sabitsuki pulled herself to her feet, pulling a spell card of her own from her dress. It shined brightly as Sabitsuki prepared for battle...

"This cannot be the only way!!"

Yuuka laughed at the rabbit's attempt to trick the duo. "Please, do you really think such illusions will fool me?" She moved her aim towards Ochiba once more, although instead of firing the collected magic, she instead used it to prop open the parasol to act as a shield to guard against the dagger danmaku.

As Yuuka defended, Sabitsuki released her spell card. "Light Sign: Refraction!" Small spaces of reality in the forest around them began to distort and shine brightly, soon becoming large screens of of seemingly clear glass. Each pane had a slight curve, each one different than the last. The danmaku released by Ochiba, as well as that reflected away by Yuuka, would pass through these panes, each pane causing the bullets to change shape and fly in different directions. Daggers could become bullets, bullets could become orbs, orbs could become a laser. This created a wild, shotgun-like spread of multicolored and multi-shaped danmaku, all aimed generally outward from Yuuka and Sabitsuki - the only downside is that the pattern was completely random, as the screens themselves would move constantly, so there would be times that the spread became wide and thin, and easily grazed...

"Yuuka!!" Sabitsuki called out, as her hands began to glow. The gardener, whom was preparing to fire another shot from her now-closed parasol, turned to look at Sabitsuki. "Tag!" Sabitsuki ran in front of Yuuka from the side, sliding and catching the parasol with both hands, swinging under it and into the air. The movement not only propelled her upwards, but it also forced Yuuka's aim away, once again causing the Magnum Spark to rocket past Ochiba. "Damn it, girl..."

Sabitsuki held out her hands, using the same magic from her spell card to create a series of static light screens in front of her in the air. She landed and quickly bounced off the first screen, to the next, and so on, using them like stairs to reach Ochiba and while taking care to dodge the rain of orb-like danmaku that hailed down.

Unfortunately, that's as far as she had planned. Nearing Ochiba and realizing she had no proper way to attack the rabbit, Sabitsuki merely balled up a glowing fist, striking at the rabbit with a simple punch that was slightly infused with light magic. "OCHIBAAAA!"

... Meanwhile, the refracting stairs caught much of the orb-like danmaku, turning them into various bullet types, and leading towards Yuuka. The gardener sighed, and opened her parasol once more, bringing it up above her head. The hail of random danmaku impacted her shield uselessly while she waited for a chance to safely move.

After the blow connected, Sabitsuki released her own spell, causing the light screens to shatter into dust. Falling to the ground, she landed and rolled forward, only to fall straight into the path of Ochiba's next attack. The display was dizzying with the spinning hearts, causing her much discomfort and confusion as she tried to graze the quicker blue bullets. A few of them caught her, burning her clothes and bruising her skin. She cried out as her knees began to buckle, when suddenly, she wasn't standing anymore.

Yuuka had moved quickly to rescue Sabitsuki from the path of the oncoming danmaku. She may not be as agile as the smaller woman, but that didn't mean she couldn't act. While moving Sabitsuki to the side, the gardener released a wave of magic towards the bamboo trees around Ochiba, causing them to splinter violently and rain down like spears.

With the spell card at its end, Yuuka released her grip from Sabitsuki. The mirror Youkai fell to her hands and knees, her body still aching from the hits she took. "Now will you let me act?"

"Yuuka, I...I'm sorry..."

The rabbit had began to stand again, defying the wounds already inflicted upon her. Yuuka marched forward toward Ochiba, her parasol gripped tightly in her hand like a sword. Ochiba raised a section of bamboo, at first using it to prop herself up, then aiming it at Yuuka like a makeshift spear. Yuuka responded to this by raising her empty hand and snapping her fingers, creating a disturbance in the life energy of the bamboo spear the rabbit held, causing it too to explode into fine splinters. The gardener's stride never hesitated. She barred down on the rabbit like an predator moving in for the kill...

"Your bravery is admirable, Rabbit, but foolish. You pose no threat to us at all, especially in your current state. Do you really wish to visit the Sanzu so soon?" Yuuka stood before Ochiba, confident in her greater power versus the wounded rabbit. "There's something bigger going on than you know. And surely, you must realize that if we were to destroy the forest, we would have been doing so already upon our approach?" Yuuka held out her hand, summoning an amount of earthen magic into the ground. The forest floor began to stir as dozens of pure white flowers began to bloom in a circle around Ochiba, and even on the broken bamboo shoots. They would glow with a gentle light as they began to release a healing pollen into the air. "We must get to the bottom of whatever is causing these disturbances, for they can even be felt far into the Underground itself. Your involvement is inconsequential."

Sabitsuki stood up, holding a bruised arm. "It's true, Ochiba... I live in the Underground now, and the quake was powerful enough to nearly destroy my home. Whatever is causing these earthquakes is strong, and if we don't stop it now, more than the forest will be in danger...so please, let us pass..!"


((Hmm...in retrospect, would Yuuka saving Sabi like that count as Death Bombing, like in Imperishable Night? xD))