Abyss, Warring States era.
A basin surrounded by mountains.
By a stone-ringed campfire, Masa—dressed in a white shirt, long trousers, and sporting an afro—silently turned the fish roasting over the flames.
Beside him, Maya Natsume sat sideways on a rock, cradling her cheeks with a sulky expression:
"Wasn't the whole point to let me gain experience? Why did Shin end up killing all the yokai along the way?"
Shin Natsume, standing nearby, remained silent, as he had indeed broken their agreement.
Receiving no response, Maya grew even more frustrated and shouted:
"Hey, Shin! Say something!"
Shin continued his mute act, seemingly determined to play dead.
Seeing this, Maya sighed and turned to Masa:
"Hey, Seto-gumi guy, can't you say something fair?"
Masa looked up, his ever-glaring flat-frame glasses reflecting the firelight:
"Shin Natsume's reactions were indeed excessive."
Maya immediately slapped the rock. "See? Even an outsider agrees."
"What kind of brother steals his own sister's training opportunities?"
But then Masa added gently, "I don't believe Shin Natsume intentionally deprived you of limited combat experience. I think his concerns run deeper."
At this, Shin looked up in surprise, while Maya blinked in confusion: "Deeper concerns? What concerns? Aside from that one small yokai earlier with the hard teeth and mind reading, none of the others were even a match for me, right?"
Masa adjusted his glasses and continued:
"While observing earlier, I noticed something."
"Whenever you engaged in combat, Shin Natsume would initially withdraw, ceding the battlefield to you."
"But without fail, after doing so, he'd suddenly intervene with a look of sheer terror, as if witnessing something horrifying."
Masa pushed his glasses up again:
"These consecutive abrupt changes are highly unreasonable, so I've been wondering if the issue lies with Mr Shin Natsume."
Mr Masa folded his hands before him, asking Shin in a grave voice:
"Mr Natsume, is your Dragon Eye becoming impossible to contain?"
Maya Natsume's eyes widened in disbelief as she stared at Shin:
"Shin!"
Her anxious cry didn't draw Shin's gaze. He remained silently seated, watching Mr Masa before finally sighing after a long pause:
"Mr Masa knows about the Dragon Eye?"
"Only by reputation." Mr Masa adjusted his glasses. "The Natsume family's hereditary ability - the Dragon Eye. Legend says it grants visions of the future, though apparently with risks of losing control."
"As for more specific details, that's beyond my knowledge."
Hearing this, Maya couldn't help interjecting: "Though powerful, once the Dragon Eye becomes uncontrollable, seeing too many futures leads to self-destruction."
"That's why successive Natsume family heads have only allowed members without awakened Dragon Eyes to lead. Firstly, awakened bearers rarely live past forty. Secondly, there's fear that an emotionless master might drive the family to ruin in their madness."
At this point, Maya Natsume bit her lip lightly and said:
"Shin, how long has your Dragon Eye been out of control?"
Shin Natsume was silent for a moment before replying, "It started during the New Year shrine visit at the beginning of this year."
Hearing this, Maya's expression changed, yet she also seemed to exhale in relief.
However, Masa keenly noticed that Shin wasn't being entirely truthful.
Perhaps Shin's Dragon Eye had been malfunctioning much earlier than he claimed.
Out of respect, Masa chose not to expose Shin's lie and instead asked:
"So during Maya-san's battles, were you constantly seeing visions of her defeat?"
"What?" Maya's face darkened at this revelation. Did this mean that in Shin's Dragon Eye visions, she was so weak she couldn't even defeat random yokai?
"Shin, what kind of futures exactly have you been seeing?"
Seeing Maya's bristling reaction, Shin sighed, realising he'd have to explain properly or she wouldn't let it go.
"Maya, you don't understand that Dragon Eye activations can't be anchored."
"The Dragon Eye can see the future, but that future is uncertain. It might be one second later, one day later, or even one year later. This randomness is the Dragon Eye's greatest flaw."
"This feeling... You wouldn't understand, Maya."
Because the timing of the visions is unclear, Dragon Eye awakeners live in a perpetual state of tension. Fearing undesirable futures they can't avoid, they often overanalyse their surroundings, constantly comparing them to their visions.
This is why Dragon Eye awakeners tend to die young.
By age forty, most can no longer bear the accumulated psychological pressure and choose suicide.
However, Shin's careful explanation only made Maya's expression darken further.
What did he mean by 'you wouldn't understand'? Was having a Dragon Eye so special?!
Well, actually it was.
At this realisation, Maya covered her face in despair, adopting an expression that said she wanted nothing more to do with anyone.
Meanwhile, Masa pondered Shin's words before speaking:
"So during Maya-san's battles, when you see visions of her being defeated, that's why you intervene excessively?"
Shin nodded in confirmation.
"I see." Masa reached into his pocket and tossed Shin a small, round tin.
Shin caught it deftly, giving Masa a questioning look.
"What's this?"
"Seto's speciality. Cooling balm extracted from seafood. Helps relieve mental stress."
Understanding dawned on Shin's face as he pocketed the tin without ceremony.
Watching this exchange, Maya asked curiously:
"Seto produces something like that?"
Masa adjusted his glasses calmly. "Just local products, rural organisations develop to stay relevant. Nothing remarkable."
"Oh."
Maya nodded as if she completely understood. After all, the Natsume family had declined too. If not for their remaining land assets and Shin's recent financial success, they might have been reduced to running a hot spring inn—the kind that never changes its water.
With this thought, Maya sighed. "Every family has its struggles."
"Indeed."
Masa nodded in agreement, but at that moment, a sharp sense of danger suddenly made his hair stand on end.
Meanwhile, Shin Natsume involuntarily activated his Dragon Eye and exclaimed in alarm:
"Look out!!" X2
The instant the words left his mouth, a black-and-yellow cloud surged from the distance, hurtling towards the trio's position.