I became a heart-stealing thief in Azure Files

But then, the girl's large fox tails, which had briefly stopped waving, began to swing happily again, just like a puppy seeing its owner.

"Lord!"

She called out again, but this time, compared to the previous uncertain call, it was filled with much more surprise and excitement.

In a flash, she appeared directly in front of Amamiya, twitching her fox ears and staring at him with bright, golden eyes.

"After a long wait and 'hibernation'... Izuna, I have finally reunited with my lord!"

"My lord's apprentice ninja... Kuda Izuna, reporting for duty! Just kidding~"

Amamiya watched with great interest the fox-eared girl who immediately called him "Lord" after recognizing him.

Whether it's her energetic performance or her peculiar "endure" verbal tic, everything about her showcases her liveliness and vitality.

Amamiya looked at the tarot card above the girl's head, which represented the assistant.

[Assistant: Kuda Izuna / The Lord's Apprentice Ninja]

[Arcana: The Magician (Le Magicien)]

[Assistance Relationship: Not Unlocked]

Yes, he truly deserves the title of "Magician" in the Arcana.

Energetic and creative, with a strong vision and ambition for the future, and often possessing enormous inner potential, are the most prominent characteristics of magicians.

Amamiya slightly curved her lips into a smile, paused for a moment, and then said with a hint of surprise, "Indeed, it could be considered an 'unexpected meeting'..."

Strictly speaking, this was indeed the first time he and Izuna had met—but their 'interactions' before meeting (9) Lin Si Li Qishen. Erb%a could be considered to have started long ago.

Shortly after Amamiya arrived in Kivotos, Izuna tried sending some invitation messages to Sharai.

After that, Izuna sent his file to Xia Lai and joined Xia Lai under his name.

After her initial surprise, Amamiya looked at the pursuers approaching from a distance.

Why was Izuna being chased?

"that is because……"

Just as Izuna was about to answer, he keenly sensed that his pursuers were getting closer and closer.

"Ah... they actually caught up with us?!"

"What... what should we do, my lord..."

What was supposed to be an immediate answer turned into anxious pacing, leaving Izuna momentarily at a loss.

Her bewildered reaction made Amamiya understand why both her own self-reference and the title given by the "Third Eye" had to include the suffix "apprentice".

"Let's distract them first..."

Amamiya sighed softly, then placed her hand on her forehead.

A cluster of eerie blue flames roared out from beneath his palm, and then, under Izuna's surprised and curious gaze, quickly spread across his entire body, transforming his clothes into a black, magician-like phantom thief outfit.

Pressing the black and white smoky-eyed mask in her hand, Amamiya whispered, "I am you, I am you..."

"……bring it on."

"Fuuma Kotaro!"

[Psona-Fuuma Kotaro (Arkana: The Hermit)]

[Introduction: A famous ninja from the Sengoku period, and the leader of Fuma Village.]

It is said that even his name was inherited, and no one knows his true identity. Of all the generations of Fuma Kotaro, the fifth generation is the most famous. Fuma Kotaro, or rather the entire Fuma ninja clan, is said to be most skilled in sabotage and disruption operations behind enemy lines.

Unfortunately, the fate of the Fuuma clan was not as tragic as that of the Iga and Koga ninjas.

After the fall of the Hojo clan, the Fuma clan became outlaws and gradually perished.

A tall figure, dressed in traditional black ninja night clothes, with only his eyes barely visible, appeared behind Amamiya.

Although Izuna calls herself a 'ninja'... she only aspires to be a ninja.

Her dream is to become "the strongest ninja in Giwatos." This is the first time she has witnessed such a "supernatural" scene—the "dream ninja" that is not understood by everyone, and the supernatural ninjutsu phenomenon, have really appeared before her eyes.

Amamiya had no idea how imposing and towering his figure appeared to the girl who aspired to become the strongest ninja at that very moment.

He calmly and steadily ordered the tall ninja behind him, who was enveloped in a ghostly blue flame: "Fuma Kotaro, Shadow Escape!"

The tall ninja knelt on one knee in mid-air, making a gesture of "accepting orders".

Then, he began to form hand seals quickly.

Izuna watched the tall ninja's hand seals intently and excitedly—analyzing hand seals was the most basic thing in the world for her.

Chen, You, Hai.

After forming the hand seals, Fuuma Kotaro slapped his hands on the ground.

Immediately, Izuna discovered that... his 'shadow' began to wriggle, melt, and envelop and replace him.

Then, the living shadow was gradually filled with color and transformed into another version of herself.

As soon as 'Shadow' appeared, she seemed to know exactly what she should do. She deliberately made some noise to attract attention, and then began to leap rapidly between buildings, drawing the attention of her pursuers.

"My lord is so amazing...!"

Izuna, who had watched the whole thing with starry eyes, excited and curious, only belatedly expressed his feelings at this moment.

After his initial shock, Izuna looked down at his feet—and there really was no shadow left.

Is this... the 'ninjutsu' I've been waiting for...?!

It really is amazing!

The Shadow Cloak technique, which allows one to bring their own shadow to life and attract the attention of others.

Is it some kind of legendary advanced ninjutsu...?

After confirming that he was 'temporarily safe', Izuna breathed a slight sigh of relief.

"Thank you for your timely appearance, my lord, and for helping Izuna!"

"I never imagined that my 'phantom thief' master could also wield the power of a 'ninja'...!"

The fluffy fox tail behind her swayed merrily, and the fox-eared girl rattled off a whole bunch of words like beans spilling from a bamboo tube.

"Although this is only our first meeting, Izuna has long admired you ever since she heard about your activities as a 'phantom thief,' secretly punishing evildoers!"

"Izuna doesn't know why you came here, my lord, and why you happened to run into me, but... this is a rare cherry blossom festival!"

"If it's alright, may Izuna show you around this festival?"

They're really lively...

Amamiya couldn't help but smile at his cheerful demeanor.

“Perfect timing… I’m lacking a ‘guide,’ so I’ll leave it to Izuna.”

Amamiya's request was merely a simple verbal plea, but Izuna, like a ninja receiving a command from his lord, earnestly and meticulously agreed to Xia Lai's request.

"Hmm, I'll leave it to Izuna! Izuna will guide you through the entire 'Cherry Blossom Festival,' showing you the most noteworthy spots! Hehehe..."

However, the serious atmosphere lasted for no more than one sentence before she started laughing, shattering the professional image she had cultivated.

"Ah...then, my lord, please follow in Izuna's footsteps..."

As she said this, the girl stepped forward without any hesitation, took Amamiya's hand, and led her into the "Cherry Blossom Festival" event area, where the festive atmosphere was quite lively.

Walking through this cluster of buildings in the style of the Edo period, whether it's the fox-like girl beside you or the numerous fox-related elements that you can see everywhere... combined with the style of the surrounding buildings.

Amamiya even felt as if she had traveled back to the filming location of a ninja-themed TV drama from a classical era.

After being led by Izuna's hand and walking around the streets, Amamiya discovered something very interesting and noteworthy.

The students of the Hyakki Yagyō Joint Academy have a slightly higher probability of having "animal characteristics" than those of the other well-known large academies.

Besides the fox-like features, Amamiya also saw some students with 'ghost' characteristics.

On their foreheads grew pairs of reddish horns.

Unlike the students of Gersner...

While some of Gerhena's students also had horns, most of them were the kind of horns that resembled those of 'devil' argali sheep; horns that also looked "large" and usually grew on the top or back of the head.

In comparison, the students in the Hyakki Yagyō (Night Parade of One Hundred Demons) with long horns have much smaller horns, resembling the horns of 'demons' from the Kojiki (Records of Ancient Matters) or some urban legends.

"Sensei, please look this way... The roadside stall is selling a specialty of the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons—Fox Rice Crackers!"

"Ah, that's Tanuki Ink Okonomiyaki over there, a must-try when it comes to cherry blossom festivals!"

As Amamiya was being led around by Izuna's hand, she soon saw all sorts of "specialty items" from the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons.

Amamiya was somewhat surprised to see a product she recognized.

Kiwatos doesn't have a "Osaka" in its name, yet it has still developed a food culture similar to "Osaka-style okonomiyaki"...

"And the cherry blossom daifuku made with cherry blossom petals is delicious too! My lord, would you like to try some?"

With Izuna's seemingly ever-energetic voice still ringing in her ears, Amamiya could only passively agree.

"Are these... all specialties from the cherry blossom festival?"

"Yes, my lord is right. These are specialties that can only be bought now..."

Before they knew it, Izuna had led Amamiya to the vicinity of the huge cherry blossom tree.

After gazing at the gradually coming-to-be-seen cherry blossom pink for a moment, Izuna suddenly had a flash of inspiration: "That's right, this is a rare opportunity..."

"Speaking of the Cherry Blossom Festival in Hyakuya no Haru, you can't miss it..."

Chapter Eight: Izuna's "Way of the Ninja"

When Izuna led her to the observation deck of the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons, looking at the enormous cherry blossom tree known as the "Sacred Tree" that seemed to be getting closer and closer in the distance, Amamiya had a moment of realization, and then involuntarily recalled two lines of lyrics from a song she had heard before called "The Last Trip".

'The Tokyo Skytree was set ablaze by lightning, shooting up into the dark clouds.'

"Pushing open the window, I saw a dazzling display of fireworks on a rainy night; the city before my eyes resembled a sea of ​​stars."

For some reason, the sacred tree in front of him gave him a rather... subtle sense of déjà vu.

"There really is a kind of..."

Looking at the enormous cherry blossom tree in front of her, which seemed to be constantly shedding cherry blossom petals, Amamiya remained silent for a while before exclaiming in surprise, "It feels like a 'must-visit' spot. I've never been here before, but there's a strange sense of familiarity about it."

Just like after Makoto Shinkai's films like "Your Name" became wildly popular, some fans would often go to the staircase where the male and female protagonists met to take photos.

That feeling of familiarity, even though I've never been there in person, left Amamiya with a slightly complicated feeling.

Then he began to wonder if he had been "poisoned" by a novel called "Dragon Raja".

"Hey hehe~"

The girl holding Amamiya's hand stopped at the opportune moment, swaying her large, lively fox tail: "Does Master think so too?! This is the time of year when it blooms most beautifully~"

“Izuna’s favorite spot is where you can see both the sacred tree and the Hyakki Yagyō (Night Parade of One Hundred Demons) street at the same time… From here, you can get a panoramic view of the Hyakki Yagyō…”

“Every time Izuna comes here, he gets the motivation to keep striving for his dreams.”

Leaning on the wooden railing, gazing at the "ancient Japanese style" architectural complex where a hundred demons parade, and at the sacred tree that seemed so close at hand, Izuna's golden eyes sparkled with a simple longing.

The aroma of sacred wood, mingled with the sweet, caramelized scent of roasted dumplings, wafted over, causing Izuna's tail to twitch slightly involuntarily, following the scent of his nose.

She suddenly turned her gaze to Amamiya: "Izuna... has a dream!"

"Izuna's dream is to become the number one ninja of Giwatos! To become a ninja who can accompany our lord... to fight evil and promote good in the shadows alongside our lord, and to achieve our ideals and beliefs!"

"For this dream... Izuna is working hard today, and will continue to work hard every day from now on!"

That energetic declaration, which seemed to ignite the beliefs of others, made Amamiya smile involuntarily.

What a lovely dreamer!

Pure, sunny to the point of being endearing.

Amamiya leaned against the railing, standing beside the girl.

Looking at the sacred tree in the distance, he said sincerely, "Izuna's dream is 'great'... Since Izuna recognizes me as his lord, then as his lord, I should spare no effort to support Izuna's dream."