Chapter 2224: Stealing the Show

Feeling more content than she had in a long time, Hanzo released an unrepentantly adorable, "Munyaaa..?" before stretching her body and sitting up with a dazed expression on her face. For the briefest of moments, she had completely forgotten she was supposed to be participating in a Gift Game. Instead, she just stared blankly at Tomoe and Okita, her cat-like ears twitching atop her head as she slowly pieced everything together.

With the towel having fallen from Hanzo's head, Tomoe took the opportunity to check the petite ninja's temperature. She had cooled down a lot, but, even after sleeping for the better part of an hour, she was still a little warm.

"You shouldn't get up just yet. Your fever has yet to break."

Despite her words, Tomoe brought out some apple slices and a cup of green tea. She spent a lot of time with girls possessing animalistic tendencies, and, more often than not, green tea with ginger or mint were their go-to's in terms of drink preference. Altria, in particular, enjoyed her tea with a hint of catnip sprinkled in. She apparently enjoyed the way it made her tummy flutter.

Though the gears in Hanzo's mind were spinning like high-performance servos, the expression on her face was a perfect mask of calm mixed with slight caution. She wasn't unaccustomed to playing the part of a child, so, seeing how Tomoe and Okita had lowered their guards, her mind was racing with thoughts of how she could kill them and complete her mission.

Extending her hands in a tentative, sheepish manner, Hanzo accepted the tea proferred to her by Tomoe, muttering, "Thank you.." in a meek tone. The ears atop her head lay flat, and, though she was very nearly 500 years old, she managed to give off the impression of an innocent, ostensibly harmless youth on the cusp of adolescence.

Unfortunately, at least for Hanzo, Vahn had given the girls accessories that allow them to know the true intentions of the people around them. Hanzo was exceptionally gifted in the art of masking her emotions, but, unless she could manipulate the flow of fate around her body, the accessories joint-manufactured by Vahn and Da Vinci would invariably give away her intentions.

Feeling the band on her right ring finger vibrating ever-so-slightly, the corners of Tomoe's smile became indiscernibly cramped. She didn't know how old the girl sitting before her was but it made her uncomfortable knowing a 'child' wanted to kill her. It wasn't going to prevent her from lending a hand, but it was still disheartening when the people you helped were willing to betray you. It was one of those things that just felt wrong..

Though she had noticed the subtle changes in Tomoe's expression, Hanzo could only guess at the white-haired woman's thoughts. All she knew for certain was that Tomoe had helped her, so, taking advantage of her kindness, Hanzo downed the entire cup of green tea before voraciously devouring each and every one of the peeled apple slices. Then, with traces of gratitude in her doe-like eyes and an expression of childish naivete superimposed on her face, she asked, "Where is this..?" in the same meek tone as before.

Exhaling through her nose, a motherly expression of exasperation marred Tomoe's smiling face as she extended her hand to caress Hanzo's head and say, "Don't take things too far. We know there is nothing wrong with you. That Elixir I gave you can resurrect the dead, regrow limbs, remove curses, and treat every ailment imaginable. That includes ailments that affect the mind, so, please, drop the act."

While resisting the urge to slice off the hand that was caressing her head, Hanzo silently shifted her ruby-eyed gaze between Tomoe and Okita. She was pretty sure she could deal with the former, but the latter gave off a similar impression to the Angels found in the West. Her current form appeared to provide her some degree of protection, but, based on what her instincts were telling her, Hanzo knew the dark-skinned woman wouldn't hesitate to cut her down if forced.

Exhaling a sigh of her own, Hanzo moved her head away from Tomoe's hand as she asked, "What do want from me? If you expect me to betray my Master over something as mundane as medical care, you're severely mistaken. I may have lived my entire existence in the shadows, but I'm not a traitor."

Raising her brows, a mixture of amusement and genuine concern appeared in Tomoe's equally red eyes as she unhesitantly replied, "We helped you because we wanted to. Though I would prefer it if you stop trying to assassinate or steal me away, you're free to do whatever you please once you're able to move freely. Just be more careful in the future, okay?"

Pulling out another golden apple, Tomoe placed it onto Hanzo's lap before rising to her feet and adding, "Good luck." in her characteristically motherly tone. Then, alongside Okita, she made her way towards the massive, vault-like door that led to the chamber containing the Model Omega. Hanzo followed their departure with her eyes, but, instead of attacking, she ultimately ended up shaking her head before grabbing the apple, taking a bite, and sinking into her shadow..

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***Player Tomoe Gozen of the Sage Dragon's Hearth Community has managed to awaken a Model Omega. Space has now opened to those with the ability to access it.***

Hearing the announcement broadcast throughout the entire Game Board, a smile developed across Amaterasu's face as she immediately placed Susanoo in charge of the effort to besiege the Akuma Community. At this point, her Community had already managed to blockade the planets belonging to the Roc and Saurian Demon Kings, but, due to their scorched earth tactics, they had been unable to destroy them.

Now that space was open, Amaterasu had a lot more options.

Manifesting within the center of the Game Board's Sun, Amaterasu quickly expanded her Authority through it. Moments later, she had absolute dominion over the massive ball of plasma and gas. This gave her a sudden and intense urge to unleash a series of solar flares towards the planet belonging to the Sage Dragon's Hearth, but, feeling that she had already offended Vahn too much, Amaterasu set her sights on the various offensive and defensive satellites littering the surrounding space.

"Model Omega? Such toys are completely meaningless in the face of true power. Now, people of the Little Garden! Bear witness to the majesty of a Goddess possessing a Sun Authority..!"

With most of the external displays shifting their focus to her, Amaterasu manipulated the Sun to transform into an impossibly large fox with nine, flaming tails. Unlike a traditional kitsune, however, it had relatively tiny, dragon-like horns protruding from its head, as, like all constructs formed from a Sun Authority, Amaterasu's 'True Form' was also a Pure-Blooded Dragon.

Unleashing a radiance that caused clouds to dissipate and oceans to boil, Amaterasu was about to unleash her rage and indignation on the nearest planetoid when her instincts compelled her to look in the direction of the planet belonging to the Sage Dragon's Hearth. She hadn't been able to sense it in her base state, but, now that she was a Pure-Blooded Dragon, Amaterasu was vaguely aware of the tyrannical aura that Vahn was keeping contained within. It caused a cold yet imaginary sweat to break out across her body, but, at the same time, she also felt a growing sense of excitement..

"Vahn Aldrnari Mason..you really are a beast beyond compare.."

Though Amaterasu's words had been muttered under her breath, the murmurs of a star-sized fox weren't exactly discreet. Everyone in the Little Garden had heard her, and, as a result, a seemingly endless surge of power flowed into Vahn. Compared to the amount he already possessed, however, it was surprisingly minuscule..

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Sensing the focus of hundreds of billions of people spontaneously shifting to him, Vahn actually felt a little guilty about the illusion he was using to obscure him and Nobu. He could feel their desire to know more about him, so, after a moment of silence, he forced the half-conscious Nobu to look up at him as he said, "It's time.."

Though she was currently in a dazed state, a predatory smile developed across Nobu's face as she traced the razor-sharp nail of her index finger across his exposed chest and mused, "Go and steal the show.."

Nodding his head in affirmation, Vahn manifested clothes to cover Nobu's body before surprising quite literally everyone as he rose from his throne and allowed her to take his place. She was still a little tired, but, thanks to the illusion he had created to cover the entire throne room, the version of Nobu that everyone saw was the confident, slightly terrifying woman that had pursued Hanzo like a possessed demon.

While the Little Garden was practically exploding due to the unexpected development, Vahn took a moment to stretch his body and pop his joints before gazing at the ceiling overhead. A part of him was tempted to smash through the very foundation of the planet, but, considering he had basically just transferred ownership of the Sage Dragon's Hearth to Nobu, it wouldn't exactly be appropriate to destroy part of her ceiling. Instead, he teleported directly into space, a relaxed smile developing across his face as he, very briefly, allowed the tensions of his body to relax in zero-g.

Feeling even more people directing their attention towards him, Vahn inhaled a 'breath' formed from the energies contained within the void. Once his lungs were completely filled, he opened his eyes to reveal shimmering golden pupils that were squarely focused on the massive fox staring at him in the distance. He could feel the fear exuding from the very core of Amaterasu's being, but, as he had already promised her the consequences of her actions, his body began to swell as he quickly took on a form resembling a bipedal dragon with taloned feet, four arms, golden scales, and several sets of wings.

By the time Vahn had finished transforming, the planet he had previously been sitting at the center of could now fit in the palm of one of his hands. He could feel the attention directed towards him shifting from curiosity to a mixture of fear and awe, but, thanks to the self-actualized nature of his existence, he was largely unaffected as he exhaled a breath of fiery golden breath, fixed his gaze on Amaterasu, and said, "We are Vahn Aldrnari Mason, the Sagon Dragon Emperor and God of Infinite Possibilities. Amaterasu Omikami, the time for your judgment is nigh."

Though she had been stunned by Vahn's transformation, Amaterasu's vulpine expression morphed into one of vexation and fury as she bared her teeth and growled, "We..we are not afraid of you..!"

Instead of shaking his head, Vahn actually nodded in response to Amaterasu's words. This left the spectators feeling confused until he began gathering energy in his palms, stating, "You will be." in a voice that spread through the Game Board and the Divine Realm in equal measure..

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As the scene of two star-sized entities facing off against each other was pretty difficult to miss, Wu temporarily ceased her destruction of the Forest of Owls. The blazing inferno she created was still rampaging, but, instead of empowering it further, she allowed it to roam freely she joined Sarina in staring at the heavens, asking, "Is that Vahn? And here I thought he was going to sit on his ass the entire game.."

Understanding Wu's confusion, a conflicted yet resigned look developed across Sarina's face as she explained, "Once this Gift Game has reached its conclusion, the Sage Dragon's Hearth will develop into an Alliance known as the Aldrnari Empire. Vahn intends to spread his influence throughout the entire Little Garden. I can't go into too many details while we're in the Game Board but I can reveal that Nobunaga-sama is one of the Eight Empresses he has selected to help govern and watch over the Little Garden. I believe her official title was something along the lines of 'Far Eastern Empress' or 'Empress of the Far East'.."

Furrowing her brows, Wu couldn't help feeling annoyed by the fact Vahn hadn't informed her about his plans. She understood why he had kept it a secret, but, now that they were a couple, she wanted to be a part of everything he was planning. Her pride wouldn't allow her to be kept out of the loop when even someone as 'weak' as Sarina was kept informed..

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(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Hanzo is cherishing her final life xD..','Amaterasu be like, "I have become error.."','It's okay Wu-chan. You can always Journey to the West and become one of the Empresses there xD..')