In a forest on Narukami Island, Yuuko walked slowly, his brow slightly furrowed as he pondered and muttered:
"From what I can see, the Abyssal Monsters that have appeared here in Inazuma are only the hound-like ones."
"No other varieties have appeared, only differences in size."
"The difference between Abyssal Monsters and ordinary monsters is that Abyssal Monsters are wrapped in black aura, and that black aura can affect people."
"Hmm, that black aura doesn't work on me, so I can ignore it."
"Furthermore... the movements of the Abyssal Monsters don't seem chaotic; it's more like some being is commanding them..."
Thinking of this, Yuuko frowned tightly.
The deeper he investigated, the more he realized that the sudden attack of the Abyssal Monsters on Inazuma was not a coincidence.
It all seemed as if the Abyss was carrying out some kind of mission.
Thinking up to this point, Yuuko shook his head:
"If only these monsters from the Abyss could talk, I could catch a few to interrogate..."
Regardless, the top priority right now is still to clear out the Abyssal Monsters around Inazuma first.
Suddenly, Yuuko sensed a familiar aura ahead.
He raised an eyebrow and quickened his pace toward the source of the aura.
Soon, he arrived in front of the figure and asked, "Yae Miko, why are you here too?"
The pink-clad figure was slightly stunned for a moment, then spread her hands and said:
"Why else? It's because I have to investigate these annoying monsters that suddenly appeared."
This pink figure was none other than Yae Miko.
Yae Miko paused for a moment, then said to Yuuko:
"Since Mr. Yellow Fox is here, does that mean Mr. Yellow Fox intends to help as well?"
Yuuko nodded: "I have nothing else to do anyway."
Afterwards, Yuuko asked again: "So, have you found anything in your investigation? What exactly is the goal of these monsters?"
Yae Miko rested her hand on her chin, pondered for a long time, and then spoke:
"We haven't found much information yet. The only thing we know is that the targets of these suddenly appearing Abyssal Monsters are possibly the roots of the sacred sakura tree..."
"Their attacks are very systematic: one part distracts, while the other part attacks the roots of the sacred sakura tree..."
"The sacred sakura tree is the target?" Yuuko showed a look of surprise.
The sacred sakura tree, that is the Guardian Divine Tree of Inazuma.
It has protected Inazuma for countless years, and it is something extremely important to Inazuma.
The Abyssal Monsters' target is actually the sacred sakura tree... At this moment, Yae Miko sighed again:
"Alas, I was originally presiding over the Sacred Sakura Cleansing Ritual, but these annoying Abyssal Monsters forced me to interrupt the cleansing ceremony."
"But now that we've investigated, we found that the monsters' target is related to the sacred sakura tree again. It seems we've gone in a circle and returned to the starting point..."
"It looks like we have to continue with the cleansing ceremony..."
Hearing this, Yuuko said in surprise: "Sacred Sakura Cleansing Ritual? Isn't that for purifying the thunder sakura tree? What does it have to do with the sacred sakura tree?"
Yae Miko explained helplessly:
"The thunder sakura tree is actually a branch of the sacred sakura tree. Purifying the thunder sakura is essentially purifying the sacred sakura tree."
"And wouldn't you know it, just when it was time for the cleansing, these annoying monsters popped up and started attacking the sacred sakura roots everywhere."
Yuuko was silent for a moment before speaking: "In other words, the appearance of these monsters might be related to the Sacred Sakura Cleansing Ritual?"
Yae Miko nodded:
"Based on the intelligence we have, there seems to be no other possibility. The goal of these Abyssal Monsters is to attack the roots and branches of the sacred sakura tree."
"In that case, we really must complete the Sacred Sakura Cleansing Ritual as quickly as possible."
After speaking, Yae Miko sighed softly, then looked solemnly at Yuuko and lowered her head:
"So, Mr. Yellow Fox, could I ask you to lend me a hand? The cleansing ceremony must continue, but at the same time, I need Mr. Yellow Fox to help eliminate the interference from those Abyssal Monsters."
Facing this request, Yuuko considered it for a moment, then nodded.
His original intention was to eliminate the Abyssal Monsters anyway, preventing Inazuma from suffering their harm.
Now that it involves the sacred sakura tree, such an important Guardian Divine Tree of Inazuma.
Naturally, he must work even harder to eliminate these monsters who have designs on the sacred sakura tree.
Just like that, Yuuko set off with Yae Miko.
Their shared goal was to continue the cleansing ceremony of the Sacred Sakura Cleansing Ritual while eliminating the Abyssal Monsters.
Their next destination was the beach north of the Kamisato Estate, where the goal was to retrieve the subjugation object located there.
Then, taking the subjugation object, they would head to a small islet north of Narukami Island.
They would go underground there and use the subjugation object to purify the thunder sakura tree roots located beneath the ground.
Along the way, Yae Miko suddenly said curiously:
"How rare. I didn't expect Mr. Yellow Fox to get involved in this matter."
Yuuko nodded: "After all, I have nothing to do, and I quite like Inazuma. If I just stood by and watched Inazuma suffer a disaster, I wouldn't feel right."
"Is that so." Yae Miko nodded, without much further doubt.
After all, having gone through the Vision Hunt Decree incident recently, she could tell that Yellow Fox held a certain fondness for Inazuma.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have spent so much effort to get rid of the Vision Hunt Decree and restore peace to Inazuma.
Yae Miko had also suspected whether Yellow Fox was a resident of Inazuma.
But because she lacked information and worried that private investigation might displease Yellow Fox, she did not look into it further.
At this moment, Yae Miko smiled and spoke again:
"It seems our goals are aligned—we are both acting to protect certain things."
Yuuko thought for a moment, then nodded with a smile:
"In a sense, yes, we are both protecting things that are important to ourselves."
Yae Miko sighed: "Yes, I want to protect Inazuma, and likewise, I must protect that person well. That's why I cannot allow Inazuma to fall into disaster."
Hearing this, Yuuko was silent for a moment, then smiled and said: "It looks like you really value that person."
During the Vision Hunt Decree period, Yuuko had heard Yae Miko mention "that person" a few times.
It seemed that this person must be very important to Yae Miko.
Yae Miko shrugged:
"Of course. Who doesn't have something they are devoted to? Doesn't everyone persevere in order to protect what is important?"
"That's true." Yuuko nodded.
What Yae Miko said was indeed correct.
For Yuuko, there were also many important things in Inazuma, which is why he chose to protect it.
Whether it was the Little Fox, or the neighbors in the street who had minor flaws.
They were all important motivations driving Yuuko's actions.
At this moment, Yae Miko showed a look of doubt and stared strangely at Yuuko:
"Speaking of which... I feel like the aura Mr. Yellow Fox gives off has changed somewhat."
Yuuko raised an eyebrow and said, "Is that so? It must be your imagination."
"No, the feeling you give off has definitely changed. Could it be the Divine..." Stopping herself there, Yae Miko shook her head and said:
"That was just nonsense on my part. Please don't mind it."
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