Shikigami Summoning in Konoha

Chapter 11: Shikigami: Yuki-onna

"Another Shikigami!?" The Three-Tailed Fox perked up upon seeing Katsuragi's excitement. She rubbed her still-sleepy eyes and asked, "Little Katsuragi, are you saying you're about to summon more yokai to this place?"

"Mm-hmm!" Katsuragi nodded. He then asked eagerly, "Fox Sis, do you want to come watch?"

"Of course!"

In an instant, the Three-Tailed Fox leapt down from the bed, suddenly brimming with energy. "I've always been curious how you do these summons. Now I can finally see it for myself!"

"Come on then, Fox Sis."

Seeing her excitement, Katsuragi smiled. Together, they headed to the wooden hut beneath the large shrine gate where the summoning circle was located. Along the way, Katsuragi wondered which Shikigami would appear this time—and what if it had a difficult personality?

However, recalling his experience with the Three-Tailed Fox, he figured there must be some kind of protective mechanism. After all, she hadn't turned on him, so presumably the summons wouldn't harm him either.

Upon reaching the summoning array, Katsuragi sat cross-legged on the floor. He asked the Three-Tailed Fox to stand a bit off to the side. Taking a deep breath, he began the ritual:

"Rin, Pyou, Tou, Sha, Kai, Jin, Retsu, Zai, Zen!"

With each syllable, the previously dim circle glowed brighter. The Three-Tailed Fox watched in rapt attention, worried she might miss even the tiniest moment.

When the summoning circle fully lit up, a sudden chill filled the hut, a thin layer of frost forming on the surfaces. Katsuragi and the Three-Tailed Fox both shivered slightly. The second Shikigami had arrived.

"A frozen heart cannot beat, can it?"

Long white hair, as pure as snow, spilled down to her waist. Her icy-blue eyes were emotionless, and hovering beside her were tiny, six-pointed snowflakes. At a single glance, Katsuragi recognized the Shikigami who had once dominated the meta in his old game—an SR-ranked yokai:

Yuki-onna!

"Were you the one who summoned me?"

Yuki-onna glanced briefly at Katsuragi, who stood dumbfounded by her sudden appearance. Her voice, like the weather itself, was cold and crisp: "I am Yuki-onna. I have come in response to your call."

Her frosty blue gaze dispelled much of Katsuragi's initial excitement. On the surface, she appeared to be the complete opposite of the fiery, mischievous Three-Tailed Fox.

"Hello! I'm Takanashi Katsuragi." He introduced himself politely. "No matter how things go, we'll be together from now on, so it's best if we get along!"

"Yuki-onna, huh!"

At that moment, the Three-Tailed Fox sidled up, sniffing around Yuki-onna before reaching out to touch a drifting snowflake. "I'm the Three-Tailed Fox. Wow, your snow smells really good!"

Seeing Yuki-onna take a silent step back rather than respond, Katsuragi couldn't help worrying. One of them was like fire, the other icy cold. Could they peacefully coexist?

"Looks like I'll need a third Shikigami someday,"

Katsuragi thought wryly. Aloud, he said, "Alright, Fox Sis, let's show Yuki-onna to her new place first."

"Fox Sis?"

Yuki-onna gave Katsuragi's backside a puzzled look, apparently searching for a tail. "You're a fox, too?"

Katsuragi felt a bit awkward. He hurried to explain, "No, I'm a human. Fox Sis asked me to call her that. If you don't mind, I can also call you 'Big Sis Yuki-onna.'"

Hearing that, Yuki-onna's gaze flickered with a trace of something unreadable. Her voice softened, ever so slightly: "Suit yourself."

From that subtle shift in her manner, Katsuragi realized she might not be as aloof as she seemed.

They led Yuki-onna to a wooden house with her nameplate on the door. Katsuragi began asking questions: "Big Sis Yuki-onna, do you recall where you were before I summoned you?"

Yuki-onna's expression wavered. She frowned in thought, but after a while, she simply shook her head. "I don't know. It feels like something is interfering whenever I try to remember."

"Interference?"

Katsuragi frowned, too. He didn't necessarily have to know the courtyard's origins inside and out, but occurrences like this left him feeling uneasy.

"Alright, Little Katsuragi, why worry about all that?"

The Three-Tailed Fox, ever the optimist, tried cheering them both up. "We might not remember our pasts, but I've had a great time with you here so far!"

"Oh, that's right—Yuki-onna, you haven't heard, have you? There's a village called Konoha outside. It's lovely, and there's so much delicious food…"

Seeing the Three-Tailed Fox enthusiastically chatting away to Yuki-onna about Konoha, Katsuragi smiled. Indeed, fretting about it wouldn't change anything. Even if he did learn about the courtyard's secrets, there wasn't much he could do at his current strength.

He shook his head slightly, looking over at Yuki-onna. She gave an outward display of indifference, but her subtle head tilt hinted she was listening in spite of herself.

Taking a seat off to the side, Katsuragi opened the Shikigami Registry to examine Yuki-onna's card.

Unlike the Three-Tailed Fox's blue card, Yuki-onna's had a purple trim. Likely this represented the difference between an R-ranked card and an SR-ranked card. Equipping it, Katsuragi gained insight into her powers.

In simple terms, Yuki-onna controls ice and snow. At her current two-star stage, the increase in Katsuragi's abilities wouldn't be huge. But crucially, unlike the Three-Tailed Fox—whose strength is more of a "power type"—Yuki-onna's abilities are more akin to ninjutsu.

It's similar to how the ninja world distinguishes between taijutsu and ninjutsu. The Three-Tailed Fox is basically a "body-art yokai," while Yuki-onna focuses on "control-based ninjutsu." Specifically, she manipulates ice and snow, an ability that in this context costs "yōki" (妖力).

Katsuragi had first sensed this yōki when he leveled the Three-Tailed Fox up to three stars and gained his first skill. Yōki is tied directly to his chakra—the more chakra he has, the more yōki he can draw on.

But at only four years old, with limited training, his chakra reserves are meager indeed.

"Is that Konoha place really as wonderful as you say?"

While Katsuragi was pondering whether to level up Yuki-onna first or keep focusing on the Three-Tailed Fox, he heard Yuki-onna suddenly chime in. Her frosty voice carried a hint of curiosity. Looking over, he spotted a mischievous sparkle in the Three-Tailed Fox's eye.

"Little Katsuragi, why don't you take Yuki-onna out for a stroll around Konoha today?"

The Three-Tailed Fox sounded like an eager salesperson, turning toward him with a grin. Katsuragi could only stare, speechless.

"Sorry, Big Sis Yuki-onna. That might not be possible today…"

He gave a rueful laugh. Though his body felt fine here in the courtyard, in reality he was severely injured—and the aftermath of last night's incident wasn't even resolved yet. Exploring Konoha was the last thing on his mind.

Catching the look on his face, the Three-Tailed Fox realized something was up. She rushed over, suddenly serious: "Little Katsuragi, did something happen?"

Yuki-onna approached as well, her icy-blue eyes fixed on Katsuragi. Although she said nothing, her gaze clearly asked for an explanation.

End of Chapter 11

Translator's Notes Yuki-onna (雪女): In Japanese folklore, the "Snow Woman" is a spirit or yokai associated with cold weather and snowstorms. In many games—like the one referenced here—she's an SR-level unit with ice-based attacks.