I became a heart-stealing thief in Azure Files

【~???~】

After three blue favorability notes floated above her head, Fina nodded vigorously in agreement, causing the tea set she was carrying to sway slightly: "Well... although it is indeed very busy, it also has a very festive atmosphere!"

"Whoa... This is a little dangerous..."

Startled by the slight clinking sound of the tea set, Fina quickly regained her balance and slowed her movements.

"Hoo-hoo! [Also] hiss..."

After letting out a soft sigh of relief, Fina continued with great enthusiasm, "I love this kind of harmonious and lively atmosphere the most!"

"Ah... no, time is a little tight... Fina, I still need to deliver these tea sets..."

"Um, Sensei... goodbye for now! Feel free to contact me if you need anything!"

Seemingly realizing that continuing to 'drag it out' would definitely waste time, the girl hurriedly left after saying these two sentences, then grabbed her tea set box and ran away.

I felt Fina's trust.

[COOP embargo lifted!]

【Asahina Fina (Chariot) ★☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

'As expected of Arcana of the 'Chariot'... he always acts with such swift and decisive action.'

Only after watching the girl's figure disappear down the corridor did Amamiya turn his gaze away.

After reflecting on her feelings, Amamiya decided to wander around the "Cherry Blossom Festival" and buy some festival-exclusive special foods such as "Fox Rice Crackers" and "Festival Special Okonomiyaki" to fill her stomach.

After all, this is a special food that only appears at the annual celebration, it should be delicious...

Of course, even if it's not particularly delicious, it's fine to eat it as a souvenir.

Just as Amamiya was about to step out the door, a lively and cheerful voice, filled with a sense of anticipation, suddenly came from the rooftop diagonally above.

"Is my lord going on a trip?! If so... please take Izuna with you!"

"As my lord's ninja, Izuna will do everything in my power to protect my lord's safety during his travels!"

Following the sound, Amamiya looked at the 'ninja girl' who was crouching on the wall, wagging her tail at him with a mixture of helplessness and affection.

"Come down first."

Shaking his unusually active and frequent fox ears, Izuna obediently leaped lightly down from the edge of the wall, landing gracefully in front of Amamiya.

Then, she started talking to Akira Amamiya's unusually fluffy big tail.

"Hehehe~ Sorry to keep my lord waiting!"

Amamiya smiled and reached out to touch Izuna's head—Izuna's fox ears, as if they had been expecting this, drooped softly to the sides when he reached out.

“Izuna doesn’t have anything to do today…” Amamiya paused slightly, “Can we do ninja training? Then let’s go to the cherry blossom festival venue outside.”

Amamiya noticed that the girl's tail was swaying faster and faster, and he felt a little helpless.

He had absolutely no way to deal with this cute and clingy little guy who wanted to be his "personal ninja".

"It's a rare cherry blossom festival, and I've never had the limited-edition food that only appears at the festival before."

【~???~】

"Hmm...that's true. Last time when I introduced the Cherry Blossom Festival to my lord, I only introduced the various local delicacies, but we didn't have a chance to taste them..."

Izuna, whose tone softened unconsciously as Amamiya patted his head, wholeheartedly agreed: "Izuna agrees with my lord's opinion. Izuna is also a little hungry... my lord!"

Let's go out and find something to eat!

As always, after expressing his opinion, and seeing that Amamiya did not object, Izuna made no attempt to avoid the issue of excessive intimacy, and took Amamiya's hand, 'half dragging, half pulling' him away from Hyakuyado.

Perhaps because the troublemakers who were secretly disrupting the festival were all caught, the atmosphere at today's cherry blossom festival was more lively than usual.

The attendees no longer appeared 'preoccupied' or 'constantly worried about being attacked'.

After walking around the streets for less than a minute, Amamiya keenly noticed the faint rumbling sound from the girl holding his hand, a sound that symbolized hunger, coming from her lower abdomen.

And, the girl's slight sniffing sound, as if she were captivated by some fragrance.

"Sniff..."

'It smells so good...'

Following Izuna's subtle gesture, Amamiya looked in the direction Izuna was looking at—it was a rice ball stall.

The rice balls looked freshly baked and were still steaming hot.

Amamiya chuckled inwardly when she noticed that Izuna seemed about to accidentally drool from the corner of his mouth.

After shaking her head slightly, Amamiya spoke up, bringing the girl back to her senses, which had been captivated by the aroma of the rice balls: "Izuna... what's that?"

"That's also a specialty food of the 'Cherry Blossom Festival,' my lord!"

Clearly, Izuna knew something about it, and she responded enthusiastically, continuing without hesitation, "The name is 'Fox Rice Ball,' and it's said to be a rice ball recipe created by the 'legendary prophet'! Then it gradually became a specialty food sold only during the cherry blossom festival..."

After all, it is a food with a somewhat 'special' character, so it is only natural that it has been given a so-called mysterious aura.

To avoid upsetting Izuna, Amamiya nodded as if she suddenly understood: "Oh, I see."

After a pause, Amamiya asked with a slightly amused look, "I'm very interested in this... Izuna, do you want to buy some and try it?"

"R-Really?!" Izuna was initially excited and expectant, but then looked troubled. "But my lord, this is very expensive..."

Amamiya said half-jokingly, "I am Izuna's lord. It's only natural for a lord to spend money on ninjas in order to train them, right?"

【~???~】

"Thank you so much, my lord!!"

Amamiya smiled and shook his head, then pinched Izuna's fox ears, which were swaying slightly with joy.

Then, he went to the stall and started queuing.

Because this stall had a relatively high customer flow, Amamiya and Izuna waited in line for about ten minutes.

Just a second after the customer—a student from the Hyakki Yagyō (Night Parade of One Hundred Demons)—left with a large bag of freshly baked rice balls, it was finally Amamiya's turn.

Just as Amamiya was about to announce the rice balls she wanted, another surprised voice suddenly rang in her ears.

"Darling... how did you get here~?"

Amamiya looked in the direction of the sound and, through a fox mask, met the gaze of a girl who also had fox ears and a fox tail.

Compared to Izuna, she has matured considerably, and seems to be surrounded by an aura of 'calamity'.

Who else could it be...?

"...Wakazama?"

Chapter Twenty-Seven...And, the fox.

"...Wakazama?"

As Wakazama's questioning gaze shifted between herself and Izuna, Amamiya felt a sense of foreboding.

He genuinely hadn't expected... to "coincidentally" run into Wakamo at the "Cherry Blossom Festival"...

"Honey……"

After being called by Amamiya, Wakasa was stunned for a moment, and then responded subconsciously.

Then she realized something was wrong, and her gaze beneath the mask suddenly turned piercing, even fierce.

"you……"

Ruozao spoke softly, her voice carrying a chilling frost, as if laced with ice: "Who are you? Why are you next to my beloved...?"

Under Wakazama's aggressive and wary gaze, Izuna's fox ears immediately stood up, threatening to bristle.

Before she could say anything, she felt this 'suddenly appearing guy' fix his gaze on her hands.

"Ha ha ha ha ha……"

The next second, Ruozao's deep voice, tinged with a hint of hatred and envy, came: "Where did this vixen come from... how dare she casually seduce Ruozao's beloved, and even... even shamelessly... hold hands...!"

Ruozao's voice grew lower and lower, and she herself, the fox ears on her head and the fox tail behind her with its tips of fur in a deep red gradient, seemed to be ignited with deep red flames that symbolized calamity.

"Lord, be careful!"

Faced with such 'danger', Izuna's first reaction was to pull Amamiya behind him, while wrapping his fox tail around Amamiya's arm, ready to use his 'ninjutsu' to take Amamiya away at any time.

Seeing this, Wakazama, who was already on the verge of losing control, seemed to get even more agitated.

She spoke in a low voice, which seemed to gradually take on a tone of gritted teeth: "That despicable vixen, she actually dares to seduce Ruozao's beloved at a time like this..."

"Unforgivable...!"

As Wakazama spoke, she prepared to raise her gun.

Izuna, who had been repeatedly and sarcastically called a fox spirit by Wakazama, was clearly getting angry.

Although the 'big fox' in front of me, who was much bigger and more imposing than me, seemed like a formidable opponent... I couldn't afford to lose face.

Not intending to lose in terms of presence, Izuna immediately mustered his courage and glared back.

"Izuna is the lord's ninja, and she has also received the blessing of the 'Divine Tree.' She will surely be with the lord in the future and become his bride!"

"Izuna and my lord... are destined for each other!"

"She's not some vixen!"

Izuna's words hadn't been so bad; they clearly startled Wakazamo, who then became even more confused.

"Destiny...?"

“That’s right!” Izuna said with a serious and longing expression, holding up his ninja technique. “Izuna and my lord are destined to be together in the future—at the cherry blossom festival, Izuna and my lord strolled through the festival together, and afterwards, Izuna obtained a gift specially made for Izuna from the ‘Incarnation of the Divine Tree’…”

"That gift set is described in ancient books as 'Shiromuku,' which is worn when one becomes a bride!"

"And this [White Kimono] was custom-made for Izuna by the 'Incarnation of the Divine Tree'!"

At this point, Izuna seemed to have gained confidence, puffed out his chest slightly, and fearlessly met Wakamo's piercing gaze through her mask.

After hearing Izuna's additional 'little story,' the inexplicable aura surrounding Wakamo seemed to grow even stronger.

"【Shirokimo】...?!"

Seeing that Wakamo's aura was getting worse, Amamiya sensed that Wakamo was about to launch an attack and quickly tried to explain the situation.

However, unexpectedly, Wakazama's next words were: "In order to perform the 'betrothal ceremony' with my beloved, Wakazama also sewed a set by hand..."

She twitched her fox ears and raised her voice slightly in rebuttal: "I've never heard of a 'divine tree incarnation'... capable of manifesting spirits and even custom-making clothes for someone... It must be a wicked idea you, you fox spirit, came up with to steal the soul of Ruozao's beloved!"

Amamiya: ...

He really didn't know what to say.

Right now, Wakazama, this 'big fox,' is cursing Izuna, this 'little fox,' as a vixen in the street...

Well, how should I put it...

The situation is quite delicate.

Amamiya coughed lightly and stepped forward to stop Wakazama from continuing to unleash her hostility.

"Wakazama, don't do this yet. There might be some misunderstanding here, the specifics are..."

Amamiya was about to explain the situation at that time.

As soon as he opened his mouth, everyone heard his clear and particularly noticeable voice.

Step, step, step...

A crisp sound, similar to the sound of wooden clogs stepping on stone slabs, came from afar and could be clearly heard amidst the lively scene of the Hundred Nights Spring Cherry Blossom Festival.

Amamiya, whose attention was drawn by the sudden sound, paused slightly and looked in the direction of the sound.

The girl, who called herself "Kutsu no Haha" and whom I had met once before, appeared gracefully in the bustling city without attracting any attention, surrounded by smoke.

She waved her folding fan, half-covering her face with it meaningfully, seemingly smiling, and softly said with a smile, "...We meet again."

Ruozao, who had calmed down, frowned slightly.

Who is this...

This question lingered in my mind for a moment.