Taking a breath, Fukushu now looked up at the castle of the kitsune. He had many questions that needed answers and his father was the only one who could answer them. Needless to say, he was not looking forward to this conversation.
After retrieving Abolith from Circe's Amusement Park, the nine tailed kitsune had paid a visit to Darren. Fukushu hoped the teenage boy fron the future would have knowledge of this kitsune civil war. Regrettably the Catalyst did not, meaning Fukushu had only one option remaining. Tatsu.
Before departing for the mortal realm, Fukushu had left both his sons in the care of his parents. For the infant Raiden, he felt his mother Shizen would be a perfect caregiver. For the future Raiden though, he felt his father Tatsu would be most suited for this role. Tatsu was the Lord of the kitsune, with Raiden being the future heir. It made sense for Tatsu to watch the boy, to begin training him to rule over his people. Tatsu afterall had done so with him when he was a boy. Those early lessons taught the ferocious nine tail discipline, taught him to be a warrior, taught him how to be a leader. The lessons were difficult yes but, they helped build character. This is what Fukushu believed his father would now do for Raiden. Instructing Darren to remain in the throne room, Fukushu proceeded towards the rear of the castle. With luck, Tatsu would be well on his way to teaching his grandson the way of the kitsune warrior.
As Fukushu now gazed over the rear of the castle, he found himself taking in the meadow and lake that existed behind them. When the castle was constructed, it was built to give the royal family a magnificent view. Rolling green meadows dotted with beautiful trees and a crystal blue lake gave the family a picturesque view that brought back memories of his own childhood. The nine tail had spent many an early lesson with his father here, taking his first steps into becoming a formidable warrior. He expected to find Raiden engaging in these same lessons, instead all he could hear was laughter.
Puzzled, Fukushu now made his way towards the lake, his eyes growing wide in confusion as he watched his father and son. Tatsu and Raiden were laughing, the pair gazing out across the pond as they held fishing poles in their hands. With their feet dangling into the waters of the lake grandfather now taught grandson the simple joys of fishing in the calmness of nature. For Fukushu this was completely out of character for his father. The stern and mighty Tatsu giggling like a school boy as the pair reeled in fish.
Raiden turned, the black and red kit grinning ear to ear as he now stood. "Dad," he said happily. "Look at the fish I caught with grandpa!" Fukushu paused, noting the large catfish in his sons hands as well as the state of the kit. Raidens furry legs were soaked, puddles of water forming around his feet as he beamed up at his father. "Very good," Fukushu replied, his voice almost robotic in his confusion. "I need to speak with your grandfather. Why don't you say hello to your friend the Catalyst inside. I will join you shortly." Raiden nodded, still smiling as he raced back to his grandfather, squeezing him in a tight hug before sprinting towards the castle. Now alone with Tatsu, Fukushu watched as the celestial now stood, his wet fur now drenching his robes from the knee down with the same joyous smile plastered on his vulpine face. Just the sight of the usually stern Tatsu appearing so happy completely befuddled the none tail warrior. "Is this your idea of training?"
Tatsu smirked, his eyes filled with a type of joy Fukushu had rarely seen in his 800 years of life. "Fishing seemed to be a most appropriate form of training son," Tatsu smirked. "It teaches patience and your son seems to enjoy it." Fukushu frowned, finding this joyful Tatsu to be a ludicrous parody of himself. "I don't recall you doing such things with me when I was a boy," he replied incredulously.
Tatsu chuckled, a mirth filled smile cracking across his vulpine face as he raised a furry golden eyebrow. "That is because I am your father Jiro," he grinned. "It was my duty to raise you. As a grandfather, I'm allowed to indulge in a more carefree relationship. The task falls to you to raise your son." Fukushu scoffed, a sour look on his face as he glared at Tatsu. He always cringed when either of his parents used his birth name, he had changed it to Fukushu after growing his second tail. That Tatsu would be focused on fun and games with the future heir to the kitsune throne was infuriating, and perhaps a bit unfair in his opinion.
"It surprises me how much the boy reminds me of you," Tatsu smiled. "I remember how happy you were as a boy before..."
Fukushu watched as the smile on Tatsus face faltered, the joy in his eyes washing away as sadness seemed to overtake it. Tatsu didn't need to finish his sentence, father and son both knowing exactly what was on the celestial kitsunes mind. "I know," Fukushu said softly. That was all that needed to be said, both father and son were the only two present when that tragedy occurred. "I regret what I must now ask," Fukushu sighed, and for a moment the bitterness of the last few years vanished. Fukushu and Tatsu needed to speak as they once did. Tatsu nodded, his face stern and serious as he awaited Fukushu's question.
"What can you tell me of the Asaya clan?"
"The Asaya clan," Tatsu stated, shocked to hear the name. "They are gone. The last one died centuries ago when you were a boy."
"How did they die?"
A pained and shocked look now crossed Tatsus face. He had never discussed this with anyone, those kitsune who were involved had long since passed into the afterlife. The entire subject was something he did not wish to dwell upon. In his millenia as ruler of the kitsune, he considered it one of the darkest times. Now though, he was being confronted with it. "Ages ago when we resided within Japan," he sighed. "There existed numerous kitsune clans. While ours was seen as the most powerful, others were viewed as near equals."
"Such as the Asaya clan?"
"Yes," Tatsu nodded, the kitsune lord sighing heavily. "Still, considering your mother and I were acknowledged as celestial kitsune, none opposed us. That is..."
"Until Raiden died," Fukushu finished, the two nine tails both wincing in pain. The death of Fukushu's older brother Raiden and Tatsus oldest son was still traumatic for the pair. For Fukushu he had been a child, younger than his own son, no more than a six year old boy by kitsune standards. For Tatsu, the loss of a child, his first born son, devasted him. Neither one were ever the same after that.
"After Raidens death your mother was inconsolable," Tasu sighed. "Yomi and Hikari were little more than newborns, requiring far more attention than you. I found myself doing my best to comfort her as she cried herself to sleep,.Unfortunately it meant I could not comfort you as I should have."
"I do not feel slighted for how things were handled father," Fukushu stated. "But I need to know about the Asaya clan." Tatsu nodded, taking a breath before he continued.
"With your brothers death our rivals sought to exploit a weakness," he said. "The Asaya clan was the second most powerful clan. If the son of a celestial could die at the hands of humans than how could they possibly lead? I was called a false God, your mother...was called far worse."
Tatsus face now darkened, the memories of that time now seeming fresh in his mind. "In hindsight I can not blame the Asaya clan for doing what they did," he said. "If I had been in their situation I would have done the same. But, I wasn't in their situation. The Asaya clan threatened to destroy my clan, kill what was left of my family. I would not let that happen and the actions I took have haunted me since."
Fukushu now listened as Tatsu imparted his tale of the kitsune civil war. The Asaya clan aligned themselves with several smaller kitsune clans, looking to overthrow Tatsu and seize power. Over the next few years Tatsu, along with the sixth wielder of the Dragons Tongue, Isamu, waged a bloody and brutal war. In his grief and rage, Tatsu would destroy all who he deemed a threat to his family. "The war was costly and brutal," Tatsu sighed. "Before the war, their were over 2 million kitsune within Japan. When it ended, our population was less than a million. We lost many warriors, including Isamu. That was how Akane came to be the seventh wielder. She was Isamu's apprentice and at the time the youngest wielder of the Dragons Tongue, before the Catalyst came to possess it. And it is the reason i have dedicated my time since to keeping our people safe. To atone for the blood spilled by my hands."
Fukushu nodded, surprised to hear how his former master Akane had come to possess the Dragons Tongue. He had always respected her skill, viewing his old master as a big sister. He had never realized though she was a survivor of a near genocide of his people. "You ask of the Asaya clan," Tatsu said. "So now I wish to know why you wish to learn of one of the darkest periods in our peoples history?"
"One of the Asaya clan still lives," Fukushu replied. "A kitsune who claimed to be of the Asaya fought Abolith. I have little no inclination to believe this to be false." Tatsu paled, slightly before nodding. If this were true then their enemies had acquired a powerful ally. As the two nine tails stared at one another, they worried of the future of the kitsune.