Darkness.
That was the first thing Kanetaro knew.
Not pain.
Not fear.
Not even the sensation of falling.
Only darkness.
An endless, suffocating darkness that stretched in every direction, swallowing thought itself. There was no sky above him, no ground beneath him, no sound to tell him whether he was moving or standing still.
Kanetaro opened his eyes.
Nothing changed.
He blinked.
Still nothing.
"...Where am I?"
His own voice sounded distant, as though it had travelled through an immeasurable void before returning to him.
He tried moving his hand.
Nothing.
He tried moving his legs.
Nothing.
For a moment, Kanetaro wondered whether he had somehow fallen asleep.
Then he remembered.
The war.
The arrow.
His sacrifice.
His death.
A strange calm settled over him.
"So this is what comes after..."
He barely finished the thought.
A brilliant light suddenly erupted before him.
Kanetaro instinctively raised his arms.
The darkness vanished beneath a blinding radiance.
For one brief moment, his entire vision became white.
He squeezed his eyes shut.
When he opened them again, everything had changed.
Soft, gauzy clouds surrounded him.
They drifted lazily through an enormous sky painted in colours he had never seen on Earth. Golden light poured through the clouds, illuminating their edges until they resembled floating islands of silk.
Kanetaro slowly looked around.
"...What?"
There was no ground beneath him.
He appeared to be suspended among the clouds.
He turned his head.
Nothing.
Then he looked behind himself.
His expression changed instantly.
A creature was there.
It was not human.
It was not an animal.
It was something that seemed to have crawled out from the deepest nightmare of creation.
The creature was hunched over a fallen divine being.
Its body was dark and twisted, its form shifting unnaturally as it consumed the celestial creature before it.
Kanetaro froze.
He had seen monsters during his years on Earth.
He had fought warriors.
He had faced death.
But this was different.
The creature was not merely killing.
It was changing.
As it devoured the divine being, something began forming upon its back.
Wings.
The same kind of wings possessed by the creature it had consumed.
Kanetaro's blood ran cold.
"What..."
The creature stopped.
Its head slowly turned.
Its attention had shifted.
Toward him.
Kanetaro stared into its eyes.
For one terrifying second, neither moved.
Then the creature lunged.
Kanetaro's instincts screamed.
"RUN!"
He did not wait to find out whether he could fight it.
He ran.
There was no weapon in his hand.
No armour.
No ally.
Whatever abilities he had possessed during his final moments on Earth were useless against something like this.
So Kanetaro did the only sensible thing.
He fled.
He raced through the clouds as the creature pursued him.
The sky seemed endless.
Clouds tore apart around him as he pushed himself faster. Behind him came the sound of enormous wings beating through the air.
He dared not look back.
His lungs burned.
His legs felt strangely weightless.
Still he continued.
"Why is this thing chasing me?!"
The creature screeched behind him.
Kanetaro glanced over his shoulder.
It was gaining.
"Okay!"
He immediately faced forward again.
"Definitely not stopping!"
The chase continued.
Cloud after cloud passed him.
The creature remained behind him.
Kanetaro pushed himself harder.
Then, through the haze ahead, something appeared.
At first, he thought it was another illusion.
A green glow.
Then trees.
Then flowers.
Then an entire landscape.
Kanetaro's eyes widened.
A paradise unfolded before him.
The clouds thinned.
Below them stretched an enormous realm of nature.
Velvety grass covered the earth, each blade glowing beneath warm golden sunlight. Flowers of impossible colours bloomed between ancient trees. Streams of crystal-clear water wound through the landscape, reflecting the sky like fragments of polished glass.
It was peaceful.
Beautiful.
Untouched.
Kanetaro descended toward it.
His feet finally touched the earth.
The instant his foot met the soft, sun-kissed grass...
A dense grey mist suddenly filled the air.
"What the..."
His vision blurred.
His body became heavy.
Kanetaro tried to remain standing.
His knees buckled.
"Not again..."
He collapsed.
The world disappeared.
When Kanetaro opened his eyes again, the first thing he felt was softness.
He blinked slowly.
A wooden ceiling rested above him.
The walls around him were made of smooth stone, though they had been shaped into something resembling a small cottage.
Warm light flickered across the room.
Kanetaro tried sitting up.
His head immediately protested.
"Ouch..."
He pressed a hand against his forehead.
"Why do I keep fainting all the time?"
He looked around.
The room was strangely peaceful.
Bundles of flowers hung from the walls.
Small vines curled around wooden shelves.
The air smelled of herbs and fresh earth.
Kanetaro looked toward the entrance.
"Where am I?"
Silence.
He frowned.
"Hello?"
Nothing.
Kanetaro scratched his head.
"Great. Another mysterious place."
Then a voice came from beside him.
"So thou art awake, my child."
Kanetaro nearly launched himself out of the bed.
A woman stood within his line of sight.
She was unlike anyone he had ever seen.
Flowers adorned her from head to toe. Blossoms grew naturally around her, woven into her flowing hair and clothing as though nature itself had chosen her as its vessel.
Her presence was magnificent.
Yet there was something warm about her.
Something comforting.
Kanetaro stared.
"Who are you?"
The woman smiled.
"I am Mother Nature, my child."
Kanetaro blinked.
"Mother Nature?"
She nodded.
"I raised thee. Dost thou not remember?"
Kanetaro stared at her for several seconds.
Then his eyebrows rose.
"I was born in a forest, as far as I can remember. I lived there for fifteen years, I guess."
He looked around the strange cottage.
"But I never saw you there."
Mother Nature smiled gently.
"Because the forest itself was my embodiment upon Earth."
Kanetaro's expression softened.
"I am the only goddess who may make direct contact with the animals and humans of Earth."
She walked toward him.
"I was there during every moment of thy life within that forest."
Kanetaro listened quietly.
"The days thou spent wandering beneath the trees."
"The nights thou spent beneath the stars."
"The moments when thou wert afraid."
"The moments when thou wert alone."
Her smile became more tender.
"I watched thee grow."
Kanetaro lowered his gaze.
Mother Nature continued.
"The hardest moment was when I had to bid thee farewell upon thy fifteenth year."
She paused.
"And my proudest moment..."
Her eyes shone.
"...was when thou became a legend."
Kanetaro looked up.
"For saving the people of both nations."
He remembered.
The war.
The two nations.
The choice he had made.
A faint smile appeared upon his face.
"You know my past."
He looked genuinely surprised.
"That's... surprising."
Then, with the innocent curiosity of someone who had just discovered an entirely new world, he asked:
"So should I address you as my mother?"
Mother Nature's smile widened.
"Of course, my child."
For the first time since awakening in Heaven, Kanetaro felt completely at ease.
The two continued speaking.
They talked about Earth.
They talked about the forest.
Mother Nature told him stories about moments he had never realized she had witnessed.
Kanetaro occasionally interrupted with questions, sometimes laughing when she revealed embarrassing memories from his childhood.
Eventually, however...
His stomach growled.
Loudly.
Kanetaro froze.
Mother Nature looked at him.
Kanetaro looked away.
His face slowly turned red.
"Are you hungry, my child?"
"...Yes."
He rubbed the back of his head.
"I'm hungry, Mother."
Mother Nature smiled.
"Then thou shalt eat."
She raised one hand.
The room shimmered.
In an instant, an enormous meal appeared before him.
Kanetaro's eyes widened.
Katsudon.
Ramen.
Tempura.
Fried fish.
Miso soup with tofu.
His jaw dropped.
"How did you..."
Mother Nature simply smiled.
Kanetaro didn't ask another question.
He attacked the meal.
One dish disappeared.
Then another.
Then another.
His hunger seemed almost endless.
Mother Nature watched him with amusement.
Her eyes held the sparkle of stars.
Every bite seemed to fill her with happiness.
Kanetaro finally leaned back.
He sighed with satisfaction.
"Thanks for the meal, Mother."
Mother Nature smiled.
But the peaceful moment lasted only a heartbeat.
A deep crack echoed above them.
Both looked upward.
Kanetaro's expression changed.
The stone ceiling trembled.
Another crack appeared.
Then another.
Mother Nature's smile vanished.
"Mother?"
The ceiling suddenly split apart.
A flood of demonic creatures poured through the opening.
Kanetaro jumped from the bed.
Mother Nature stepped forward.
"Hide beneath the bed, Son!"
Her voice had completely changed.
The warmth was gone.
A grim determination replaced it.
"I shall handle them."
Kanetaro hesitated.
"But..."
"NOW!"
Kanetaro immediately dove beneath the bed.
The demons descended into the cottage.
Mother Nature raised her hands.
Nature itself answered.
Roots erupted from the ground.
Vines twisted through the air.
Branches lashed outward.
The cottage became a battlefield.
Kanetaro watched from beneath the bed.
Then his eyes caught something.
A faint purple glow.
He reached toward it.
His fingers closed around a sword.
A katana.
Its blade possessed a mysterious purple hue.
At the back of its hilt rested a golden gem.
Kanetaro stared at it.
"What is this?"
Outside his hiding place, Mother Nature fought desperately.
Then Kanetaro heard her cry out.
His expression changed.
Something inside him awakened.
His fingers tightened around the katana.
The bed exploded apart as Kanetaro shot to his feet.
He stepped into the battlefield.
Mother Nature looked toward him.
"Kanetaro!"
She pointed toward the creatures.
"Aim for the red crystals upon their heads!"
Kanetaro looked.
Each demon possessed a red crystal embedded within its head.
His eyes narrowed.
The sword felt natural in his hand.
Almost familiar.
He lowered his stance.
The world seemed to slow.
Then Kanetaro moved.
The blade flashed.
A single strike.
It passed through the battlefield with terrifying speed.
The red crystals shattered simultaneously.
Hundreds of fragments scattered through the air like crimson glass beneath sunlight.
The demons collapsed.
Kanetaro calmly returned the purple katana to its saya.
Silence.
The golden gem upon its hilt suddenly illuminated.
A brilliant beam of light erupted from it.
Mother Nature stared.
Her expression transformed from relief...
To shock.
"I..."
She struggled to speak.
"Y-you..."
Her eyes widened.
"You are..."
She looked at the glowing gem.
"...the Saviour of Heaven."
Kanetaro blinked.
"What?"
Mother Nature approached him slowly.
"The prophecy."
She spoke with awe.
"It foretold that a mortal warrior who sacrificed himself within a war would one day save Heaven from the clutches of darkness."
Kanetaro stared at her.
"That warrior..."
Mother Nature pointed toward him.
"...shall defeat the Lord of Darkness."
Kanetaro's expression became increasingly confused.
"And when he toucheth the Sun God's sword..."
She looked toward the glowing gem.
"...the gem shall release a blinding beam of light."
Kanetaro looked down at the katana.
Then back at Mother Nature.
"So..."
He pointed at himself.
"You're saying I'm the hero?"
Mother Nature nodded.
Kanetaro sighed.
"I don't want to play the hero again."
Mother Nature blinked.
Kanetaro's expression darkened.
"I've already had enough of that on Earth."
His voice became firmer.
"It's not my decision."
Mother Nature shook her head.
"It is thy fate."
Kanetaro's eyes narrowed.
"I don't believe in fate."
He placed the katana down.
"I refuse."
Mother Nature looked at him.
Kanetaro's voice rose.
"I took that arrow on purpose."
He clenched his fists.
"I was bored with battles."
"I was tired of war."
"I defied my fate."
He looked directly into her eyes.
"And dying was my decision."
Mother Nature stepped closer.
"My child..."
"You don't understand."
"You have to become our saviour."
Kanetaro turned toward the wooden door.
"I'm leaving."
He opened it.
Mother Nature watched him.
"If thou wishest to leave..."
Kanetaro stopped.
"...return my katana."
He looked down at the sword.
For a moment, he considered refusing.
Then he sighed.
He walked back inside and handed the weapon to her.
"Okay. Take it."
He shrugged.
"I was carrying it for self-defense anyway."
He flexed his hands.
"My hands will do fine, I guess."
Then he walked outside.
The wooden door slammed shut behind him.
Mother Nature sighed.
"Stubborn child."
Kanetaro wandered through the paradise.
The grass brushed against his feet.
The sunlight warmed his face.
For the first time since arriving in Heaven, he could breathe without feeling chased by something.
He walked peacefully.
Then...
He stopped.
Something was wrong.
The air had changed.
Kanetaro's eyes narrowed.
His instincts screamed.
He turned.
A shadow lunged from behind.
Kanetaro moved instantly.
The attack passed through empty air.
He spun and struck the creature's neck with the edge of his palm.
The figure staggered backward.
Kanetaro advanced.
He grabbed the creature's black hood and pulled it away.
His eyes widened.
"...Mother?"
Mother Nature smiled.
Kanetaro stared at her in disbelief.
"You?"
She laughed softly.
"I merely wished to test thee."
She stood straight.
"I did not know thy senses had become so sharp."
Her smile widened.
"Now I know."
She looked at him with pride.
"Thou art truly the chosen one."
Kanetaro sighed.
"Of course."
Mother Nature raised two fingers.
"Then there is only one thing left to do."
Kanetaro looked at her.
"Do what?"
Mother Nature snapped her fingers.
"I shall send thee to him."
Kanetaro barely had time to react.
"Wait, who is..."
The world vanished.
In the blink of an eye, Kanetaro disappeared without a trace.
Mother Nature remained alone in the peaceful paradise.
She smiled.
"Let the training begin."
And somewhere beyond the boundaries of the natural realm...
Kanetaro's journey toward becoming the saviour of Heaven had begun.