Chapter 31
|3rd POV|
A beautiful woman looked into the mirror in front of her with a bored expression.
"Ugh. So bored."
This woman was Amaterasu Omikami, the Queen of the Shinto Faction and the Goddess of the Sun and the Universe. Currently, she was inside her room, the Heavenly Rock Cave. This was the place where she had hidden from the other Gods and Goddesses after throwing a silent tantrum over her brother's behavior.
However, she had already grown accustomed to this place and decided to make it her room. She had decorated the space and lived her life there.
"So bored~"
Amaterasu was currently facing the biggest and toughest opponent all divine beings had ever encountered: boredom. Contrary to what many people thought, as the highest-ranking Goddess in the entire faction, she did not need to work. All of her responsibilities were already taken care of by the other Gods and Goddesses.
She spent most of her days inside her room playing games, reading books, and watching mortals using her mirror. That's what she was currently doing, but unlike in the past, not many interesting things were happening in the modern time.
Amaterasu released a sigh and rested her head on her desk. She was about to go back and play more games, but before she could do that, she felt something. Something familiar and something that she hadn't felt in a long time.
She quickly swiped her mirror, and a second later, she could see a man standing in the middle of a fire candle. She widened her eyes when she saw the man dancing around while releasing a feeling of gratitude and genuineness.
Ritual dance in the modern time is not what it used to be. People do it as a duty. There is no sense of gratitude and genuineness inside them. Kagura dance is meant to entertain the Gods not just by their movements, but also by the emotions they convey while dancing.
The gods overseeing their dance can sense the emotions inside them dancing as well. It's like witnessing the Aurora in the Northern region – a light that dances around beautifully, and in return, the gods will bless the one dancing for them.
Amaterasu looked at the light in the mirror in awe. Never in her life had she seen something like this. The man dancing was truly grateful for the sun that kept the world warm. There was no other feeling other than gratitude and happiness in his dance. He was glad that the sun kept coming back each day, and he was happy to see the warmth of the sun every day. The longer she looked at him, the more she wanted to dance. Kagura dance is not a solo performance; it requires a partner to make it complete. It is a dance between Gods and Mortals.
Amaterasu took her fan and mirror. She had already studied the movements and knew what to do next. She smiled a little and said,
"Dance for me, mortal. Entertain me. Let's dance until the sun rises from the horizon once again!"
Amaterasu stepped out of her room with her fan and mirrors in her hands. She let the mirror float above her, and suddenly, a figure of Ryan appeared in front of her, dancing. She waited for a few seconds before she finally joined the dance.
An iron sword and a paper fan moved around fluidly, creating a dance that was out of this world. It looked out of place, but at the same time, it was harmonious. The two of them continued to dance, and without realizing it, Ryan started to release a bright red fire from his movements.
The Sun Breathing activated on its own because the sun itself (Amaterasu) had already blessed him with its presence. The sun above Japan shone brighter than usual, but at the same time, it was warm instead of hot. People around the world looked at the sun in confusion, while those in the know knelt on the ground because they knew that Amaterasu was happy.
As for the Gods and Goddesses in Takamagahara, they saw their queen dancing with a mortal. Even Susanoo, who was currently engaged in a passionate encounter with a mortal, walked away from his room and returned to the home of the Gods. He saw his sister dancing and smiled while looking at his fellow gods.
"Bring me a Sake! It has been more than a millennium since I saw my sister dance with happiness! We need to celebrate this!"
Takagamahara became even more lively. The gods and goddesses watched Amaterasu and Ryan dancing around. They drank and ate in celebration of their Queen dancing for the first time in millennia.
Amaterasu and Ryan continued to dance for hours, and when the sun was about to reach its peak, Ryan suddenly said,
"The Sun is above us! Giving us its blessing! Let us dance with more vigor!"
Amaterasu laughed at his words and said,
"Let's do this! Let us dance under my light!"
The dance became even faster by the minute. The fire that came from the sword started to create an image. Ryan's movements created a silhouette of a dragon while Amaterasu's movements created a circle that looked like the sun.
When combined, it looked like a dragon emerging from the sun.
Susanoo, who looked at the scene in front of him, clapped his hands happily and said,
"Dance of the Fire Dragon! What a fitting dance! Come on, mortals! Show us more! Don't disappoint my sister!"
As if Ryan could hear Susanoo, he started to move even faster. His movements now created a silhouette of a dragon defending the sun from darkness that tried to consume it. It looked like a dragon roaring against all incoming danger.
This continued until the sun started to set and the image of their dance changed once again. The previous dragon started to slow down until the moon appeared in the sky.
That's when the Goddess of the Moon, Tsukuyomi, arrived in Takamagahara. She looked at the scene in front of her in awe. This was the first time in a long time that she had seen Amaterasu this happy.
"Susanoo, what is happening?"
"Hmmm? Ah! A mortal is performing a kagura dance that has attracted Amaterasu, and they have been dancing like this since the sun rose."
"They have been dancing for more than twelve hours?"
"Yup."
"Impressive."
Kagura dance, the real kagura dance, is a taxing dance. It requires peak physical performance and also peak spiritual performance. They communicate with the gods and need a large amount of spiritual energy to do so.
Tsukuyomi looked at the dance and widened her eyes when she saw the performance change. The dragon now slowed down and looked at the sky in a longing manner. The dragon longed for the sun, but because of restrictions, it could not go with the sun.
It was as if…
"Is the mortal in love with Amaterasu?"
Tsukuyomi couldn't help but ask that question. Susanoo shrugged and said,
"Maybe. I don't care. She can take care of herself."
Susanoo said while drinking his sake. The dance entered its last performance when the sun was about to rise from the horizon. The dragon looked at the sky with a happy expression and roared into the sky, telling the sun that it was still there, waiting for the sun.
The last move created an image of a dragon reuniting with the sun. That's when the dance stopped. Ryan took off his mask and released a deep breath before bowing to no one. The mirror above Amaterasu slowly fell into her hand, and she looked at Inari before saying,
"Inari, tell Yasaka that I want to meet this man."
"Right now?"
"Yes. I want to meet him before he goes to sleep. This is the first time I have had this much fun. I will reward him for this."