Editing CubexCursedxCurious:Volume9 Chapter2 (section)

===Part 6===

After a while, they reached the forest's limits and arrived at a wide open space. Before them was a pond roughly the size of a school swimming pool, filled with clear and pristine pond water. In front of the pond was a small shrine with a miniature torii roughly the size of a fox god Inari statue. There should be no question that this is the place described by the priest.

There were currently no signs of Chihaya and Isuzu. Haruaki's group hid themselves among the trees growing behind the pond, holding their breath for the two girls to appear. Then&mdash;

(...They're coming!)

A glasses-wearing delinquent shrine maiden with dyed hair, dressed in a t-shirt and a hakama whose side slits offered glimpses at her thighs. In contrast, there was also a black-haired shrine maiden dressed impeccably in her shrine outfit. Chihaya yawned from lack of sleep while Isuzu smiled serenely. Without noticing Haruaki's group in hiding, they slowly walked out of the forest.

Grabbing the collar of Fear who reflexively tried to rush out, Haruaki continued to bide their time. Pouncing on them right now could very well cause them to flee into the forest again. At the very least, they should wait until the two girls reached the front of the shrine.

Just as the two shrine maidens arrived before the shrine, the surroundings suddenly became incomparably bright. Haruaki narrowed his eyes and half-involuntarily looked up at the sky, filled with the warm rays of the sun.

The world was being shrouded by a gentle glow. Covering the sky was a kind of ambiguous color. As though seeping out from the edge of the heavens, the color of brightness was gradually filling up the originally dark sky. Under the cover of the forest, the view of the light source was obscured. Even so, this was undoubtedly the New Year's first rays of dawn. The start of a brand new year.

Splash! The sound of water prompted Haruaki to shift his gaze away from the dreamy beauty of the sky. He was instantly stunned.

Chihaya had picked up a bucket that was probably kept by the side of the shrine. Scooping up water from the pond, she poured it over her head. Exhaling "phew~", she used her fingers to wipe the water droplets from her glasses.  The ice-cold pond water drenched her entire body. Her hair clung to her face. As always, her thighs were visible from the slits on the sides of her hakama, with beads of water sliding down her bare skin. The t-shirt with its rolled-up sleeves was also clinging tightly to her body, displaying the curves of attractive bulges. More than that, something beneath became overly visible&mdash;

"...Haruaki-kun, what are you staring at?"

"I-I'm not staring at anything!"

The voice from behind caused Haruaki to avert his gaze frantically. But if he did not watch, how would he know when to initiate the ambush? In any case, he tried his best to prevent his gaze from focusing on one point, then slowly he turned his head to observe Chihaya's situation&mdash;Another sound was heard. The sound of friction from the hakama.

Chihaya stood upright in one spot, gently reaching forward with both arms. Straight in front of her were the shrine, the pristine pond and the gradually rising sun. As though offering a dance to these three entities, Chihaya began to move her body. On her face was a lack of expression that transcended solemnity.

Tracing out circular steps, she turned her body towards the right and to the left. Crouching, getting up&mdash;Although this series of movements was performed without haste, a unique atmosphere of tension still exuded from the focus displayed by her limbs.

A shrine maiden's perfected dance that one could not help but watch with bated breath.

Was this sense of mystery due to the location? Or because it was during the dawn hours? Or perhaps some other reason? The dance's tempo gradually quickened. Despite not changing very much in actual speed, the differentiation between forceful and gentle movements served to emphasize the contrast between motion and stillness.

Chihaya danced, simply continuing to dance silently.

The pristine and cold water turned into droplets and scattered from her hair, arms, fingertips and body, glistening brightly under the special rays of the rising sun. Her red hakama fluttered slightly, making noises similar to leather-soled sandals<!--雪駄--> as it brushed against the ground. She repeated these movements without pause&mdash;

Time passed without noticing.

Suddenly, everything stopped. Chihaya exhaled and stood up. Isuzu, who had been watching her dance with a smile all this time, took out and handed her a towel from the bag that Chihaya had entrusted to her before starting the dance. While using the towel to wipe away the sweat and the water droplets, Chihaya also took the cellphone that Isuzu handed over next and began to operate it in a bored manner. Only at this time did Haruaki's group finally realize she had stopped dancing. The period of fantasy and mystery had ended. Finally, they remembered what they needed to do.

"N-Now is not the time to be mesmerized... Everyone ready?"

'Ready anytime!'

"I don't mind starting the operation but what do we do exactly?"

"I really don't think we can make them do what we want through a a calm and peaceful discussion... Looks like a little force needs to be used, more or less. No matter what, it'd be a problem if we let them run away again.'

"Yeah! Anyway, in order to prevent them from running away, let's show them how terrifying we can be. Once they begin to think: 'We can't possibly win~ Please forgive us~', it'll be okay. I guess we could all rush out and surround them at once&mdash;Hmm, then Kiririn and I should circle over to the other side of the plaza, then make a entrance like that very active fishing girl in a certain action game, swinging out with a whoosh just like that."<ref>'''Fishing girl''': a reference to 
Umihara Kawase(海腹川背), a series of platform games starring the titular nineteen-year-old Japanese school girl. The games are characterized by worlds filled with birds and fishes with gameplay defined by rope physics.[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umihara_Kawase]</ref>

"I don't really get what you're referring, but I can imagine it roughly. Let's do it."

"If they throw another flash grenade, things could get very tricky... Let's hope that we finish it quickly without wasting too much time. Anyway, don't be too violent since we're indebted to the priest's kindness."

I know that! Fear pouted as though saying that. Then everyone in Haruaki's group exchanged glances with one another, nodded and started the operation in one go.

Fear and Konoha jumped out from behind the trees where they were hiding and made a mad dash forward. A beat later, Haruaki rushed out after them as well. Kuroe and Kirika called out:

"Mode: «Chaotic Tadamori»!"

"«Tragic Black River»!"

Extending their hair and belt respectively, the two girls traversed the plaza in front of the shrine by entangling their respective weapons to the branches of trees on the opposite side. Jumping after a short running start, they simultaneously shortened their hair and belt respectively to pull themselves to the opposite forest, instantly traveling to behind Chihaya and Isuzu.

"What... Why are you guys here...!?"

"Oh dear~"

Chihaya was greatly shocked while Isuzu surveyed their surroundings calmly. It was too late already. The two of them were completely surrounded by the five members of Haruaki's group.

Grim expressions on their faces, Fear and Konoha sprinted side by side, making a beeline for Isuzu. Give it back right now! Fear's eyes were filled with such rage as she transformed the Rubik's cube into a wheel of torture&mdash;namely, the «Breaking Wheel of Francia». Continuing to dash quickly, she threw the wheel using the immense momentum of her fearsome charge. However&mdash;

"There were many of these wild spirits who would not obey, sometimes they were persuaded, and even then if they still would not obey, they were removed by force. As a result, the stones, trees, all the grass and weeds, and even each and every leaf that spoke like humans speak, so that it was so noisy then, obeyed the order to be silent!"<!--norito again-->

Instead of dodging the torture wheel, Isuzu simply chanted a passage. After that&mdash;

Just in front of Isuzu's body, Fear's wheel was silently deflected.

"!?"

Of course, Fear had not gone all out, but even so, the attack was blocked too effortlessly. Fear showed an expression of surprise while reaching out to catch the wheel that suddenly flew back from her pulling its chain. Immediately, she transformed it into a hatchet for close quarters combat. Meanwhile, Konoha had already circled over next to Isuzu and performed a palm strike towards her head with a mighty shout. But just as Konoha's palm was about to touch her, it was silently stopped.

"Hmm... The air became like a shield...?"

"It's named the wordless wall~ In order to drive away the rioting spirits, the plants went silent while the gods ruling Japan descended from heaven~"

"Really, thank you for the concise explanation...!"

Konoha withdrew her palm and distanced herself from Isuzu&mdash;Or rather, she pretended to do so but was actually performing a sweeping kick against Isuzu's legs, but this too was blocked by the silent wall. This defensive shield apparently surrounded Isuzu's entire body. Just as Konoha clicked her tongue&mdash;

"But sticking to defense alone will not bring any improvement to the situation~ Well then&mdash;And heavenly reeds were cut into bits, and splintering like needles, while instructions were given to read out the great purification ritual!"

Isuzu swung her arms forcefully. Greatly alarmed, Konoha swiftly leapt from her original location and swung her karate chop in midair. Although Haruaki could not see anything tangible, Konoha appeared to be facing some kind of attack. Warily, Konoha entered a defensive stance and said: "Fear-san, please exercise more caution... Just now, something resembling needles of air were flying towards me. Although warning signs can be seen through careful examination of distortions in the air, carelessness must still be avoided."

Fear was originally showing a surprised expression after seeing Konoha's movements. At this moment, she made a grim face and readied her hatchet. Isuzu looked like she had the ability to control natural phenomena such as wind or air. Despite looking totally harmless, she was actually an opponent that required great caution to face.

However&mdash;It was not completely hopeless. Fear's voice must be returned, by all means necessary. Even if it meant resorting to a little underhandedness.

"Sorry, but we have to catch you... «Tragic Black River»!"

"Fufufu, time for the mischievous plan of shrine maiden bondage~"

"Kyah... Hey, let me go now!"

While Fear and Konoha were facing off against Isuzu, Kirika and Kuroe had extended their hair and belt respectively, entangling Chihaya's arms. Chihaya thrashed her limbs about madly then reached her hand into the bag she had received from Isuzu, intending to take something out. Naturally, her attempt was thwarted. Haruaki tackled and pinned her to the ground, preventing her from moving. Using this opportunity, the hair and belt tied up Chihaya's body, wrapping many layers over her. Almost caught up in the process, Haruaki frantically jumped away. Had he ended up tightly bound to the shrine maiden in the wet t-shirt, his life would be in danger next.

Noticing the situation on that end, Isuzu frowned:

"Oh dear~ How troublesome, Chihaya-sama has been..."

"Hold on, why are you guys suddenly capturing me!? What did I do? Release me now! My being a curse expert has nothing to do with you guys!"

Chihaya was sitting on the ground like a prisoner, roaring angrily while the only intimidating things remaining about her were her voice and facial expression.

"I don't care about the curse expert issue right now...! That said, I still hope you'll stop doing that! Anyway, hurry up and return the voice that she stole from Fear! Then we'll talk!"

Nevertheless, Chihaya's reaction was different from imagined. Making an expression of utter bafflement, she asked in return:

"Wha...? Voice...?"

How odd.

"Hey... Do you actually not know? That girl&mdash;Isuzu&mdash;what she's done."

"Like I would know. What are you guys talking about? What voice? Why would I ask her to do that? How would I benefit from her doing that!?"

"But in actual fact, Fear can't talk anymore!"

What on earth? Chihaya was in the dark? Speaking of which, back when Isuzu kissed Fear, Chihaya was apparently roaring: "What the heck are you doing!?" In that case, was this really something that Isuzu had done on her own accord? But for what purpose?

"Hey Isuzu, you imbecile! Are you really responsible for one of them losing their voice? Answer me now!"

"Please allow me to say in fear and trepidation... That is the truth~"

Isuzu nodded and answered with calm composure.

"Y-You imbecile... How dare you do something so outrageous without my permission...!"

"Let me be clear, we have no intention of hurting you two. Also, we've promised the priest&mdash;your father&mdash;already. In any case, please order that girl to return the voice."

"Wha? Tsk... Oh I see, so that's what happened. That guy told you about this place. Damn it, totally useless, this pisses me off... Everything is pissing me off!"

"You can be pissed off for all I care, but please heed our request. I don't suppose you enjoy being tied up for something you had no part in, right?"

"Duh! Hey Isuzu, I don't care what it is, just hurry up and give it back!"

Chihaya roared loudly while shaking her bound, upper body. She seemed to be truly angry about Isuzu doing something incomprehensible. Nevertheless, Isuzu still said:

"Please allow me to say in fear and trepidation, Isuzu doesn't want to return it~ Because it's in Chihaya-sama's interest~"

"How... is it... in my interest!? It's all because of you that I'm in this current state!"

Chihaya's eyes, filled with anger, glared at Isuzu. Isuzu simply cocked her head in a dilemma. Hand poised for a karate chop, Konoha used this chance of silence to interject:

"If you are absolutely unwilling to return it... We will resort to seizing it back by force."

"Please excuse Isuzu, but Isuzu has no intention of losing~"

"Oh my, is that so? Cursed bell. Rather, please allow me to address you directly as 'a mere cursed bell.' Even if you perform more unbelievable spells, I have no intention of losing to a mere ornament like a bell. I am a weapon. The demon blade in opposition to the House of Tokugawa. Could you understand if I phrase it that way?"

"Oh dear... Muramasa? That would truly..."

"Furthermore, this child here is a cursed cube of torture and execution. Although no match for me, her familiarity with blood and battle is surely more than yours at least. If you still think you have a chance of victory after hearing these words, then your confidence is truly considerable."

Konoha's deliberately chosen words were simply a threat of course&mdash;In other words, a bluff. The two of them were essentially limited to direct attacks and would probably have trouble breaking past Isuzu's defensive wall. But if bluffing could eliminate the battle, it would make things much easier.

"Wha... For real...?"

"...It's the truth. Although I've no idea how powerful Isuzu actually is, these girls are really strong. And they have all sorts of secret moves."

Hearing Chihaya's groan, Haruaki added to the bluff on the scene. Chihaya bit her lower lip and looked towards Konoha and Fear in front as well as Kuroe and Kirika behind.

"And the other two are clearly no ordinary people either...! It's obvious that one cannot win against five! Hey Isuzu, that's enough from you, obey me now! An imbecile like you can't possibly defeat them. Or are you fine with being destroyed? Say, have you forgotten that I'm currently a hostage!?"

"No, that fact is not forgotten~"

"Then could you stop chatting leisurely!? Who knows when this weird hair and belt will start strangling my neck!? If I feel any pain, you should best prepare yourself, I'm gonna make you suffer a hundred fold!"

Then the conversation ended again. Chihaya's stare and Isuzu's conflicted smile faced each other silently.

Finally, Isuzu shrugged lightly.

"It really can't be helped... And Chihaya-sama can't be left in that state indefinitely. Very well, understood, you may have it back~"

Isuzu sighed but before Fear actually recovered her voice, they could not afford to relax. Watching Chihaya who was still bound, Isuzu approached Fear with lively footsteps. Fear scowled and typed with her free hand that was not holding the hatchet.

"Uh... 'Return it, yes, but you're not gonna use that method again, are you?' Yes~ For an ordinary person, all it takes is simply skin contact and Isuzu can return it immediately simply by thought alone. But for people like you girls, the voice can only be extracted directly from the throat~ So returning it requires following the same steps~ So here goes!"

"...!"

Isuzu embraced Fear and forced a kiss on her lips. Fear stared with wide-eyed surprise as though she were saying "At least let me prepare myself first!", waving the cellphone in her hand helplessly. Despite surprised, Konoha remained standing right behind Isuzu with her karate chop ready, instantly able to attack if anything happened.

"Mmm! Mmm..."

"Muugo... Mmmph..."

Fear's body shook violently. After a while, she finally pushed Isuzu away forcefully. Then&mdash;

"Mmm... Puhaah! Th-That's enough from you, Shameless Shrine Maiden Number Two! J-Jeez, is this really necessary? There must be other ways, right!? If that's the case, I'll curse you! I'll curse you for a lifetime!"

Perhaps due to lacking in oxygen or other reasons, Fear's face was all red as she swung the hatchet strenuously and threatened Isuzu. However, she suddenly halted in her movements and cocked her head in surprise.

"F-Fear! You're able to speak now!"

"Ohoh! Ah~ Ah~ Ooh~ For real! I'm cured!"

Hand to her throat while performing vocal exercises, Fear suddenly shook her silver hair and looked towards Haruaki. However, her happy gaze only lasted for an instant before she curled her lips malevolently:

"Fufufu... How brave of you, Shameless Shrine Maiden Number Two! How dare you do something like that to me? Truly unforgivable! Completely and utterly unforgivable!"

"Excuse me~ Please allow me to ask in fear and trepidation... What do you mean by 'number two'~?"

"Number One is that girl who's tied up over there, because she's the shrine maiden who's shameless in appearance! In contrast, you're the shrine maiden who's shameless in behavior, so obviously you're Number Two! Anyway, the name doesn't matter right now, what should I do? How should I deal with you...!?"

"Hey Fear, calm down. Anyway, you've got your voice back already. Isn't that wonderful?"

"Although not everything is said and done... This does count as a conclusion.  How troubling, what an absolutely ridiculous commotion."

"Ugh! Crap, I forgot to take a photo just now. Clearly it was an excellent shutter chance..."

Exhaling in relief, Kirika and Kuroe also gathered around. Konoha shrugged:

"I do agree that we're not done with the talking... For example, why did you do that? Simply as a prank? If that's the case, forget it, but we still need to discuss the matter of the curse expert."

"Hey Cow Tits, I'm not gonna forget it just like that! How could this be settled just by dismissing it as a prank!?"

"Oh dear~ How troubling, it looks like they still won't let you and Isuzu off. Chihaya-sama, what should be done~?"

Isuzu turned her face. At the same time, Haruaki also looked at Chihaya, who was looking extremely displeased. Gruffly, she whispered:

"About that... I don't really care what you guys wanna do, but could you untie me first? Say, I just wanna hurry home and get changed right now. Achoo!"

"Oh, Isuzu remembers now. The key reason why Isuzu finally compromised was due to worrying about Chihaya-sama catching a cold if this continued~ Isuzu hereby begs everyone~"

Due to too many things happening, they had forgotten.

Chihaya was still dressed in the drenched shrine maiden outfit and the see-through t-shirt. On top of that, she was being tied up by the belt and hair&mdash;How should one put it? The sight was extremely questionable. It really felt like a scene that would surely be used in Kuroe's deck of dark karuta cards had there been a Japanese-style version.

Naturally, the instant Haruaki saw Konoha smile and extend her fingers, he immediately closed his eyes to avoid disaster.

But regrettably, or rather, completely predictably&mdash;

In spite of his efforts, Haruaki was still unable to escape the disaster known as the Immorality Blocker.