Half-Goddess Akane - Finding my Religion

Unending BE - episode 1348513

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Yuka followed her father down the sidewalk. He had told her they were going to visit somehow to help deal with the possessed monkey who was currently stealing all the fruit from the shopping district. They stopped in front of a gate leading to a house similar to her own, though without the shrine in the front.

Tendo Dojo: School of Indiscriminate Grappling
To Challenge the Owner to Savage Combat, use the Rear Door.

Yuka read the sign, so this was some martial arts dojo? She followed her father into the grounds, and he knocked at the front door. She ducked behind her father as the door opened.

“Hello, sir.” Yuka’s eyes widened at the sight of the woman answering the door. She seemed to have… a glow about her. She was beautiful, and smiled gently at her father, and it was enough to make her want to run away because otherwise it might make the young girl go blind.

“Hello, I’m Mr. Minamoto? I called here earlier.”

“Ah, you’re the priest who needs Soun’s help.” The lovely woman said, “Come in, he’s in the Dojo right now with my daughter.” She noticed the little girl behind him. “Well hello there, what’s your name?” She said gently.

“Y-Yuka.” She mumbled, unable to look directly at this practically glowing woman.”

“Well Yuka, you look to be about the same age as Akane. I’m sure she can keep you company while your daddy and my husband talk business.” She said, and escorted them to a living room overlooking a lovely backyard.

Yuka sat down and waited with her dad. A minute passed and a man, much less remarkable looking than his wife, came into the room. And behind him was a girl her age.

She had the exact same sort of glow about her as her mother. It was less blinding, so she could look at her directly. A short haired girl with a gi.

“Hi!” She said. “So you need Daddy’s help?” She said, her expressions erious. “It’s a Martial Artist’s Duty to help people.” She paused, and bowed, “My name’s Akane!” She said brightly.

“I’m Yuka.” She answered in turn.

That had been the first time Yuka had met the girl who would one day be called her best friend. Her family ran a shrine which meant that she had visited countless times for when just saying some prayers and writing some charms weren’t enough. Sometimes they needed somebody to punch the problem away.

Today had not looked like a problem that punching away would help. Akane had shown up after nearly a month of being gone. Wedding invitations had been sent out, the wedding didn’t happen and now Yuka owed Hiroshi five hundred yen. Then Akane returns to school and nearly destroys it via tornado.

“But Ranma can make tornados, I don’t see what’s so weird about it.” Sayuri, Yuka’s second closest friend and fellow bemused observer of Akane’s life spoke up when Yuka explained why she was heading to the Tendo household.

“That is Ranma using a chi meditation technique to create a miniature spiral of life energy.” Yuka said, and she saw Sayuri slightly glaze over. She never did care much for explanations of the more spiritual sides of things. “Akane straight up summoned a thunderstorm. Or a storm decided to show up when she shouted.”

“Yeah but what do you think is wrong?” Sayuri said.

“I don’t know. All I know is that when that storm started I felt something was wrong.” Yuka looked back to Sayuri, pausing in her march towards Akane’s house. “Didn’t you notice Gosunkugi vomited?”

“I mean, yeah, but that’s just gross.” Sayuri said. “And I don’t see how the two are connected.”

Yuka sighed. It was only a hunch, but she knew that Gosunkugi was the only person in her class who had some degree of spiritual power. Even if it was rather weak, he never bothered to improve it, and he was rather creepy and obvious about it. On the plus side the curses left on those dolls he hammered into trees were so weak that they didn’t even tickle Ranma. Honestly she thinks the Jusenkyo curse ate them.

“We’re here Yuka!” Sayrui said, “I’ve got the homework, you’ve got the moral support.”

Yuka nodded, and knocked at the door.

Kasumi was, like most of the time, the one to answer. Yuka took a moment to take in her… glowiness. All the Tendo daughters had that strange and comforting and sometimes overwhelming aura about them. “Good afternoon Yuka, Sayrui, are you here to see Akane?” She asked.

“Yup. We’ve got her homework, is she sick?” Sayuri said.

Kasumi frowned, an actual concerned frown. “Not.. quite. It’s a bit complicated, and some family came over too.”

“Family?” Yuka said, “What family?” She couldn’t recall the Tendos ever having any relatives over.

“Oh our grandparents, on our mother’s side. I think they’re... Divorced? But they decided it was time to visit after getting a wedding invitation.” Kasumi said. “I’ll go see if Akane’s up for visitors.”

The two followed Kasumi into the house. She, like any good host, escorted them to the living room. Where Yuka had first met Akane, where Yuka and Sayuri would both wait for her to come down. They stepped into the room, and Yuka looked over at the table.

“Oh my god!” Yuka shouted, because there wasn’t just some kind of glow in the middle of the Tendo living room. There was a blinding, burning light. A burning hot heat. Somehow somebody had planted the goddamned sun into the room. It was too much for her, Yuka fell back and passed out.

A few minutes prior, Ranma was stuck dealing with something he thought would ever be a danger. Namely the cool stare of an in-law.

“So.” Amaterasu said. Amaterasu-no-okami. The goddess of the sun. Basically the top god of Japan if you go by most Shinto beliefs. Who looked way too much like Akane for Ranma to be comfortable with. Who had a sword at her side, a long straight sword that kind of reminded Ranma of the Wishbringer, except this one felt a lot more impressive. “I’m kind of curious about some things, Ranma Saotome.”

What was she going to bring up? Ranma wondered what she even knew. Would this be about how he and Akane fought? Was she going to question their relationship?

“Like, first off, what made you think that getting into a bunny suit to win a food selling contest was a good idea?”

Gurk! He'd forgotten about that!

"Also, why were you surprised to learn about inheriting the Tendo Dojo when you had already gambled ownership of it away to that idiot Gambling King?"

“I was seven!” Ranma said.

“Next, why do you keep using your curse to seduce that Ryoga boy. I mean, I’m not judging but I think you should talk with your future wife about-”

“How do you know all this!?” Ranma shouted.

“I saw it. Remember Ranma, I am the Sun. Everything you do under the day I can see if I wish, and as my cute granddaughter’s fiance I was interested in seeing you.” She paused, “Also when are you going to tell her about your boyfriend's curse?”

“He’s not my boyfriend! He has a girlfriend!”

“I believe they call this tsundere…” She said.

Ranma wished that he could pray for something to end this conversation now. But, alas, he didn’t know if that would work with an awkward conversation with a god.

”Oh my god!” Thud. Ranma and Amaterasu both looked over to see…

“Yuka!?” Sayuri shrieked, and Kasumi gasped. Because Akane’s Class President friend had screamed and passed out in the living room.

Well, it was a distraction. “What’s going on? Is she OK?” Ranma said, standing up and rushing over to her.

“I don’t know she just passed out when she saw you and Aka-” Sayuri stopped, “Wait you’re not Akane.”

“No that’s Grandmother.” Kasumi said.

"Oh, that's right. The girl from the local shrine.” Amaterasu said. “I suppose I wasn’t as prudent in suppressing my divinity as I should have been and she saw too much of my true form.”

“Your what.” Sayuri said.

"Will she be alright?" Ranma ventured.

"Yes, but she'll likely be a little bit... fanatical for a little while. It's not like I just cast aside this form and burnt all of you to a crisp.”

“OK what is going on?” Sayuri said.
:
“Brother!” Amaterasu shouted.

“What is it?” Sayuri jumped in a panic as a man appeared behind her.

“Explain the situation to Akane’s friend, I Need to take Miss Minamoto up to a bed to rest until she wakes up.” Amaterasu said. She held up her hand and Yuka floated into the air. “Oh yes, and Ranma we’ll be getting back to this conversation when possible.” And then both vanished.

“Dammit.” Ranma muttered.

“Oh she did ask about the bunny suit didn’t she?” Susano-O said. “Man that was the funniest shit I had seen in the mortal world in ages. We had a bet going. She thinks you're into girly cosplay, I think you're a boneheaded idiot who lucked into being the hottest thing going whatever sex you are. Which is it?"

Ranma opened his mouth, considered both options, weighed them on the scale and then, with great reluctance, said "Boneheaded idiot," because it was less psychologically damaging to him.

Prayer really is useless when the gods themselves were the cause of your current problem.

Yuka’s eyes shot open, “Ah!” She sat up.

“Yuka!?”

“Akane!?” Yuka grabbed her best friend's hands, “Are you OK!?”

"Yes, oh divine grandchild of the Gods themselves!" Yuka said, clasping Akane's hands and... her eyes were shining, they didn't do that normally. "I am forever okay so long as I am in your presence. Your glorious, radiant presence."

“Yeah that seems about normal.” Amaterasu said from across the room.

“Yuka!? What the hell!?” Akane said.

“Humans are naturally inclined to worship and seek guidance from gods.” Amaterasu said. “So since she got a look at me with her Third Eye she is effectively drunk on faith right now.”

In a flash Yuka was out of bed and bowing towards Akane’s grandmother. “Oh thank you oh glorious golden divine goddess! What is your name!? What can I call yo?.”

“Oh yeah that’s the stuff.” Amaterasu said. “See Akane, you should make her your new high priestess.”

“Grandmother!? I’m not going to start a cult!”

“Man the word cult’s really picked up bad rap recently. It’s just a branch of religion.” Amaterasu
said.

"Such wisdom! Oh, to hear the truth of the gods from their holy mouths to my unworthy ears!" Tears ran down Yuka’s face.

“Yuka! What’s wrong?” Akane grabbed her friend’s arm and tried to pull her up. But she was surprisingly stubborn in staying in such a low bow.

“Like I said she’s drunk. I think this is the first time she’s seen anything bigger than a kappa.” Amaterasu patted Yuka on the head. Then she spun around, grinning wildly. “So once she calms down we can start talking about setting up a shrine, getting some prayers in, oh yeah and if you need some miracles to help prove your divinity we’ll help out of course. I wonder if we can get some cool martial arts monks too…”

"Yeah! Monks! With cool martial arts monks we can force people to pray to your wisdom and grace!"

"Yuka! Back from the ledge, please!" Akane snapped her fingers in front of the girl's glazed over, shining eyes. "You can best worship me by not being drunk on divinity! Snap out of it!"

Yuka blinked, paused, and blinked again. Then her eyes seemed to return to normal. “Huh?” Where am I?” She looked around. “Akane?”

“Great job Akane. You snapped her out of it.” Amaterasu clapped.

“Are you OK Yuka?”

Yuka sat up. “I’m… uh, fine. Last thing I remember is… like somebody had put the sun in your living room.”

“I mean, it was.”

"Oh," Yuka quietly said. "Akane, why is there a Goddess in your room, and why does she look nearly exactly like you?"

“Well to answer both those questions, I’m her grandmother, and a week or so back Akane went from being a demigod to a full blown goddess herself.”

Yuka’s eyes snapped back to Amaterasu, then Akane. “So.. that glow you and your sisters have always had…?”

“Glow?” Akane said.

“Yeah that’s the divinity you’re seeing.” Amaterasu said. “Notice that Akane’s brighter. Luckily she’s an arahitogami and doesn’t have to suppress it just to walk around in the mortal world.”

"Oh, I thought I was a little bit gay for all of them. That explains a lot."

"No, no, you actually are a little bit gay for all of them, they're quite pretty." Amaterasu said, “Honestly who isn’t gay for you girls here. I’ve seen how the ladies at Furinkan High act around all three.”

Yuka’s face turned pink. “Oh… oh my.” She muttered, standing up and getting back up on Akane’s bed.

“I’m surprised you believe this right away.” Akane said.

“Well, I mean, I am a Shrine Maiden, mostly.” Yuka said, “And there always was something special about you Akane.” She looked her best friend over. She had changed, internally. That glow was so much more… potent. “All right!” She clapped her hands together, “When can we start up a shrine?”

“Hah! I like you!” Amaterasu said.

“Yuka no!”

Go back - Go to the parent episode.

Tritan

Sat May 09 18:51:18 2020

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3 comments Last updated: Tue Aug 4 22:13:01 2020