"What is it that you wanted to ask, then?" Yasamusa inquired, taking a slow, deliberate sip of his sake. The warmth of the alcohol bloomed through his chest, acting as a shield against the cool night wind that swept across the high rooftop.
"The fact that you belong to the Fujiwara clan bothers me," Yorimitsu spoke bluntly, lifting his own small cup to his lips. "To be entirely honest, I haven't exactly had the best experiences when dealing with your kind."
He swallowed the burning liquid, a brief wave of nostalgia hitting him. 'It's been an incredibly long time since I last drank...'
"Mmm, I see," Yasamusa replied smoothly, his expression unreadable. "That is a perfectly valid reservation for you to hold, especially considering the extensive ploys my family has orchestrated behind the scenes to destroy you."
"Hahaha! You don't even attempt to deny it?" Yorimitsu's sudden laughter lacked any real warmth. His eyes glinted dangerously in the twilight.
'Kukuku... look at those eyes. What a truly terrifying kid,' Yasamusa chuckled silently to himself, wholly unfazed by the sudden threat radiating from the youth.
"What would be the point of denying it?" Yasamusa asked aloud, tilting his cup toward the stars. "You would already know the objective truth. If I chose to deny it now, it would only prove that I am actively trying to deceive you, isn't that right? Like I told you before... I am striving to forge a world entirely devoid of all falsehoods."
Yorimitsu paused, his cup hovering halfway to the table. He watched in silence as a sudden, sharp gust of wind blew a few stray strands of hair across Yasamusa's weathered face.
'So, that is what he meant by those words,' Yorimitsu thought bitterly, a slight grimace forming on his face. 'Tch... playing it this way makes me look like the one who is needlessly untrusting. But it doesn't matter. It had to be done regardless.'
"I was planning to interrogate you with a dozen more questions," Yorimitsu spoke, setting his cup down with a sharp click. "But now, I see that doing so would be entirely useless. Instead, I am going to demand two upfront conditions."
"Conditions?!" Yasamusa raised an eyebrow, thoroughly amused.
"Yes. First..." Yorimitsu raised a single finger, his gaze unblinking. "I want the Minakaze clan."
"The Minakaze, huh? handing over an entire clan will be a bit tricky politically... but I can guarantee it," Yasamusa conceded smoothly. "What is the second one, then?"
"I want a Binding Vow."
"Hahahahahahaha...!" Yasamusa laughed aloud, the booming sound echoing across the silent rooftops. "It's just as I thought you are a truly fascinating creature. Tell me, boy, do you actually comprehend the severe risks that accompany such a pact? If your Reiryoku cannot perfectly match mine during the contract's formation, the spiritual feedback will leave you with incredibly unfavorable odds. Furthermore, if you form the contract and even think about breaking it later, you will pay a price worse than death."
Yasamusa's eyes widened, completely enthralled by the sheer audacity of the suggestion.
"I understand the terms perfectly," Yorimitsu replied, his voice a flat, unyielding line. "But if you cannot agree to that, I find absolutely no utility in us joining hands. Even without your assistance, my clan will survive. And with my latent talent, I am entirely confident that I can eventually seize control of all Nihon on my own."
Yasamusa's eyes shot up, locking onto Yorimitsu with newfound intensity. "Yes... now you are finally sounding like a true youth! The dreams of the young should always be just like that boundless and terrifying. And if it's you... I am certain you might actually achieve it one day. Very well, I agree to your terms. Let us forge the vow."
The atmosphere atop the roof instantly mutated. The casual, laid-back aura surrounding Yasamusa vanished, replaced by a suffocating, pressure. Tilting his cup forward, he poured his remaining sake onto the ceramic tiles and dipped his finger into the liquid, beginning to trace characters directly onto the ground.
….
"Do you truly believe that was a good idea, Yasamusa...?"
A raspy, elderly voice fractured the quiet of the private chambers. The Yasamusa remained focused on the low desk before him, his brush moving with practiced precision as he inked characters onto a long strip of parchment.
"Ha! Obaasan!" Yasamusa grinned, instantly abandoning his work. He lunged forward across the room to wrap the old woman in a dramatic hug.
But just as he came within arm's reach, the matriarch fluidly flicked her wooden cane upward. The tip snapped through the air, forcing Yasamusa to sharply pivot on his heel, dodging to the side just in time.
"Hey! That tip is coated in lethal poison!" Yasamusa protested, backing away with a grin. "Are you trying to assassinate your only good grandchild?"
"Oh, cease your whining. As if a pathetic dose like that could ever actually kill a little monster like you," the old woman scoffed, "And stop acting like an infant. You are a grown man."
"Hmph..." Yasamusa pouted, crossing his arms.
"Tch... Just looking at your antics is giving me a severe headache," she muttered, settling into a cushion. One side of her deeply wrinkled face was completely obscured by intricate, sealing tags that covered her eye socket. She fixed her remaining eye on him, her gaze piercing right through his facade.
"I will ask you one more time. Do you honestly think it was a wise decision to bind yourself to that boy with a contract of that magnitude?"
"Yeah," Yasamusa replied easily, turning his back to navigate toward the tea hearth. "I see absolutely no reason for us to worry. Your visions have never been wrong so far, Obaasan. Its because of you that Bushido went to kill Orochi."
"Tch... That is precisely why I am so thoroughly terrified," she clicked her tongue aggressively, shaking her head. "How can you blindly trust the fate of our lineage to a single person so entirely? Tch, tch, tch..."
"You should be significantly more cautious, you arrogant brat," the old woman lectured as Yasamusa returned to her side, carefully placing a steaming cup of freshly brewed tea on her desk.
Yasamusa collapsed dramatically into a kneel next to her, clutching his chest. "So you do actually care about my survival! Oh, I am so deeply touched..." he spoke, mimicking a melodramatic actor wiping away phantom tears of pure joy.