The Strange Cat from Fuuto

A deep, gentle male voice rang out in the darkness, and Blackie's eyes widened: "That voice is...."

"Father's!"

When the black boy opened his eyes, he was shocked to find himself in a courtyard, and the darkness that had enveloped him had completely disappeared.

"here it is...."

The black-haired boy looked around and then fixed his gaze on a man and a woman sitting at the entrance of the Buddhist shrine in front of him.

"Honored One?" The woman's eyes gleamed with joy as she stroked her slightly protruding belly. "Tenkuji...Honored One?"

"Yup!"

The man ate the watermelon in his hand, while using a round fan in his other hand to fan his wife and cool her off.

"What a great name!"

The woman, stroking her lower abdomen, wore a loving smile and lowered her head to say to the child in her womb, "Did you hear that, Your Majesty!"

"This is the name your dad chose for you!"

"Is this the origin of my name?" Blackie stared blankly at his parents. At that moment, a warmth he had never felt before began to spread in his heart.

Soon, the scene in front of the black boy vanished without a trace, like sand in the wind.

The courtyard had quietly transformed into an indoor space, and Blackie was somewhat disoriented by the sudden change in environment.

"Respect!"

"Mother..."

Following the call, the black-haired boy only saw Yuri Tenkuji lying weakly in bed, her pale face covered in sweat.

Even so, she managed to turn around and look at the baby beside her. The newborn's eyes were full of curiosity and bewilderment as he looked at the world that was so new and exciting to him.

"Zun, I'm so sorry!" Yuri Tenkuji gently stroked the baby's face. "I'm so sorry I can no longer stay with you!"

"I can't make clothes for you, I can't cook for you, I can't see the day you learn to walk and talk."

"Mom really wants to see you go to school in your school uniform, see you come home with your girlfriend, and see you walk down the aisle with the person you love!"

"But Mom doesn't have time anymore, I'm sorry!"

"Respect!"

"However, Mom is very happy. I'm happy that you came into this world, and I'm happy that you made me feel the joy of being a mother!"

"Mom, thank you for being born!"

"Respect!"

"Mother..."

Upon witnessing his mother's most heartfelt confession to him on her deathbed, Blackie couldn't help but take a step forward.

But, in the next second, everything in front of him shattered!

"Mother!!"

Amidst heart-wrenching cries, the scene shifts once more.

This time, he had just turned five years old.

His father, Tenkuji Ryu, maintained his usual imposing presence, standing to one side with his arms crossed. A wooden sword lay at his feet.

He wielded the small wooden sword in his hand with all his might, hacking and slashing with all his might.

However, this kind of training was too arduous for a little guy who was only five years old. After just a few minutes, the young boy had to stop because of the soreness in his arms.

"Dad, I can't hold on any longer!"

The boy, lying on the ground, cried out to his father, "My arm hurts so much, my back hurts too, and my hand is bleeding!"

"Snapped!"

Tenkuji Ryu grabbed a wooden stick from the side and mercilessly whipped it across the man's buttocks.

"continue!"

"If you still consider yourself a man, stand up and keep going!"

"Take up your sword and stand up!"

"You are a man of the Tenkuji family, you are the only hope for the future!"

"How can I possibly collapse here!"

"Stand up!"

Amidst stern rebukes, the little devil gritted his teeth, wiped away the tears on his face, and endured the pain in his body, swinging the wooden sword with all his might.

"Father...."

Blackie looked at Tenkuji Ryu with extremely complicated eyes. A father's love can never be as gentle and delicate as a mother's love.

A father's love is always like a mountain, heavy and silent, expressing his feelings in his own unique way.

Even if he is stern and indifferent, it is still a way for him to express love.

The scene before my eyes receded rapidly, as if the whole world was being stripped away.

This time, Blackie, not trying to stop him from leaving, noticed the sudden change in the scene. Instead, he looked thoughtful and a special power was brewing within him.

And as he pondered, the power he nurtured grew stronger.

A hazy white mist hung over the mountains, its origin unknown, yet it could even block out the sunlight.

"here it is...."

Standing in the mountains, the black boy looked around in confusion. Just then, a child in tight clothes gritted his teeth and began to climb up the rugged mountain path.

"This is me, but why am I here?"

Blackie, instinctively taking steps to follow, watched his younger self climbing alone in the mountains.

The rugged mountain path, coupled with the mysterious white fog in the air that reduced visibility, made his climb even more arduous.

The young boy showed no resentment or anger, but simply kept climbing the mountain path. It didn't matter if his clothes were torn and dirty, or if his palms were cut by sharp rocks, or if he slipped and fell on the wet ground.

It was as if some special force was supporting him, allowing him to continue climbing.

Finally, the black boy followed the little boy to the top of the mountain. The top was full of strange rocks, and the white mist was even thicker than below, as if it connected to hell.

The young demon, groping his way forward through the white mist, found his goal: his father—the Sky Temple Dragon.

"Father!"

The little devil rushed over anxiously and grabbed his father's hand, "Father, hold on! I'll take you down the mountain right away!"

"Don't waste your energy!"

After stopping the little devil's actions, Tenkuji Ryu coughed, spitting out bloody foam.

"I'm done for!"

"No, Father. There is still hope for you. Let us all go down!"

"Once you get to the hospital, you can get treatment!"

"Don't cry!"

Tenkuji Ryu trembled as he wiped away the tears from the little devil's face. "You're a man, how can you cry so easily?"

"But..."

The kid, who was about to say something more, was interrupted by Tenkuji Ryu. Tenkuji Ryu tore the sword guard off his chest and handed it to the kid.

"Take this!"

After placing the sword guard into the little devil's hand and forcefully closing the little devil's hand with his large palm, Tenkuji Ryu looked at the little devil and said, "Master, don't be sad after I'm gone."

"Live with your beliefs. When you feel lost, ask your own heart, and it will tell you what to do!"

With a heart full of childlike wonder, Tenkuji Ryu stroked his son's hair and said, "Your birth is hope for your mother and me."

"Your existence allows our longing and our lives to continue; you are our most precious treasure!"

"So you must live on, live well!"

With a smile on his face, Tenkuji Ryu gazed into the void, where Black Demon Boy was located.

Under his father's gaze, the black-haired boy trembled and tears welled up in his eyes.

"Burn your life, and create a new future with your faith and longing."

The arm that had been stroking the little devil fell limply to the ground, and Tenkuji Ryu's breathing and heartbeat stopped.

Only a smile and a hint of shame remained on his face.

"Father!!!"

The little devil's heart-wrenching cries echoed across the mountaintop. The black devil instinctively took a step back, looking at his lifeless father, and clenched his fists tightly.

Just then, the white fog dissipated, and sunlight streamed down from the sky.

"Father!"

........

"Father!!"

The shouts came from the ruins of the Great Sky Temple. Miku, who was standing at the entrance, heard the shouts and smiled.

"It looks like we've successfully overcome that hurdle!"

At the same time, an extremely terrifying power surge erupted within the Great Sky Temple, and white feathers rained down from the sky.

Each feather carries the most sincere and pure power of longing.

Where the feather fell, Blackie stood up, and the cracks on his body instantly healed and disappeared.

He grasped a feather, looked at the image within it, and felt the purest longing contained within.

"I remember now!"

"I remember everything!"

"I am Tenkuuji Takeru, the continuation of my father and mother, the inheritor of their longing and life, and the pioneer and explorer of the future."