"The Five Elements shift and change, urgently as ordered!"
Charging ahead, Kasahara Asuka waved her small hand, scattering the Spirit Talismans as if they were free.
Divine power surged forth, and with the enhancement of the Spirit Talisman, it erupted in an attack on the fox demons. Because the area of effect was so broad and she hadn’t bothered to restrain it, the torrent of divine power flooded the area where the group of girls from Fushimi Inari Shrine were, leaving them unable to retreat unscathed.
"What’s this woman doing—"
"Are all Kanto people unable to distinguish friend from foe—"
"The local shrine maiden is so impolite—"
Amidst the girls’ screams, Kasahara Asuka’s divine power, bolstered by the Spirit Talismans, transformed into a water dragon, charging unstoppably into Fujishima Kanami’s Fire Realm Spell.
As water met fire, steam gushed out like volcanic gases.
"Suzunoe Chiyoda, follow me, everyone else fall back!" Fujishima Kanami calmly commanded.
The three girls leaped into the air, avoiding the water’s advance. Fire and water clashed below, and the rising steam made their clothes flutter like leaves in the wind. The fierce wind also affected a few nearby fox demons, tossing them through the air.
Feeling the onslaught of the wind, Fujishima Kanami squinted her eyes and glared downwards.
"Suzunoe, handle that girl with orange hair. Chiyoda, rebuild the defensive barrier!"
"That girl with the orange hair is quite formidable, I’ll do my best!"
The two girls each answered, then swiftly descended to the ground.
The first to act was the girl named Suzunoe.
"Shikigami creation, urgently as ordered!"
With a shout, she released a bunch of Shikigami talismans, summoning a group of fake Shikigami—constructs of divine power infused within the talismans, disposable, without substance or life.
She flung over twenty Shikigami talismans, which transformed into tengu with black wings, flying in succession toward Kasahara Asari.
Facing such a technique, Kasahara Asuka’s response was extremely straightforward.
"Ha-ha, Senpai," she called out to Fujiwara Reya from afar, "watch carefully!"
Fujiwara Reya glanced back at her.
"Let me show you the results of Asuka’s training!" The girl, with a slightly arrogant smile, rushed toward the fake tengu. As she advanced, she swung a hand bell, producing a clear, jingling sound.
"We beseech the protective gods, eliminate all disasters! Urgently as ordered!"
In an instant, light radiated, illuminating the entire hilltop.
Under this sun-like glow, the tengu flapping their wings melted away one by one.
Even as an unreliable genius shrine maiden, her skills were nonetheless impressive... The conflicting forces in battle were briefly forced back by the light, creating a momentary calm on the battlefield.
This light... Fujiwara Reya was all too familiar with it.
Indeed, it was the power of Old Lady Amaterasu... A shrine maiden as the spokesperson for the gods was no exaggeration. As a shrine maiden of the Tokyo Grand Shrine, it was completely reasonable that the junior student could borrow a bit of the main deity’s power.
Fujiwara Reya suddenly felt thankful.
He was relieved that the junior’s current power wasn’t strong; the amount she could borrow was limited. If she had the strength of a king, he feared he’d suffer in her presence.
The girl named Suzunoe stood in a dazed stupor.
She felt on the verge of tears.
This was so unfair, she was just a small shrine maiden, so why make her face the power of the Great God Amaterasu!
"..." Fujishima Kanami’s expression turned sour.
She too sensed Amaterasu’s aura, and combined with the shrine maiden’s orange hair, a renowned name from the Onmyo-ryo flashed across her mind.
After calling out that name, Fujishima Kanami’s gaze suddenly sharpened.
"You look familiar..." Kasahara Asuka looked up at her, thought for a few seconds, then suddenly jumped up and cursed, "Oh, I remember, you’re that shameless fox spirit Senpai was staring at!"
In an instant, everyone and the fox demons had large question marks above their heads.
"Was that meant to be unexpected..." Hoshimi Rinko rubbed her temple with a headache, then lowered her head and chuckled softly.
The laughter was exceptionally jarring in the silence, causing Fujishima Kanami to angrily raise her eyebrows, rebuking, "What nonsense are you spouting! Who’s your Senpai? Why would he spy on me?"
"Him!" Kasahara Asuka pointed with a small hand at Fujiwara Reya. "He was just staring at you!"
He didn’t want to do anything else now other than give his junior a good scolding.
He secretly watched me? So happy... For a brief moment, there was a hint of shyness in Fujishima Kanami’s eyes.
But the next moment, recalling who Fujiwara Reya was, her gaze grew cold, radiating a more assertive and aggressive aura.
"No good Kanto people!"
A mocking sneer appeared on Fujishima Kanami’s face.
She changed from a gentle image to one with the aura of a sharp blade, full of determination.
"Wanna fight?" Kasahara Asuka snickered, looking up defiantly, and the two girls’ gazes clashed in the air, sparking invisible flames.
Hoshimi Rinko raised her hand and struck a karate chop to the back of Kasahara Asuka’s neck.
"Ouch, why are you hitting Asuka!"
"You need to deal with the fox demons right now..."
"That woman is even more annoying!"
"Save it for later, no messing around now!"