Hirara

I'm just a dancer under the Meisen. Life is as fleeting as the morning dew and death, serene as the autumn leaves. I only wish to burn the purple leaves, sculpt your incomparable beauty into eternity.

Hirara knew this “sky” only too well. In the illusion created by the Great Armament "Ukifune", there were no stars, only a river, the "Meisen", hanging upside down in the sky. She walked barefoot across the scorched earth, the searing pain sending tremors of ecstasy through her body – the same feeling as when crimson stained her gaze as she gazed upon the Higanbana.

In the hellscape of fans, the world's most magnificent Noh play was performed endlessly. “Come on, it’s the first part tonight.” Hirara opened her fans and evil spirits descended on her. Captivated by Hirara's dance, they sought to tear her apart and claim this eternal beauty. Hirara, smiling amidst her swirls, gently shredded them before absorbing their essence. On this scorched ground, cruelty was the height of elegance.

The madness of this scene always reminded Hirara of her teacher, once the most famous geisha in the Flower District. Her teacher lived in terror of growing old, until one night she set fire to the tea room. “Never forget that erosion is the vilest curse of this world,” the professor said as he held young Hirara in his arms. “Only by becoming ashes can fleeting beauty be saved.” As the silk turned to ashes in the fire, Hirara did not scream; instead, she eagerly inhaled the charred smell – she seemed to understand the lesson of this destruction.

Suddenly, a crimson figure walked across the sea of ​​fire. It was Hanabi, covered in soot. Although they had never met, she grabbed Hirara's wrist without hesitation. The heat from his hand was hotter than any flame in this infernal inferno.

Afterwards, Hirara was brought to the Scarlet Sect where she volunteered to become Hanabi's personal guard. When Hirara asked her about that night again, Hanabi replied that she was just saving her. To repay this grace, Hirara wanted to save Hanabi in the deepest sense of the word. Protecting her from the blades wasn't enough; it must save it from “erosion”, from the inevitability of decadence.

One moonlit night, an inexplicable obsession drove Hirara to push open the forbidden door and reach the fans of "Ukifune", the infernal weaponry forged from "Kaerazu" and "Meisen-e". If she could control them, she could save Hanabi, she thought.

Power coursed through her the moment she touched them. Hirara got his wish, but his physical body fell into an illusion: a hell under the Meisen, born of the Great Armaments. Here, in the midst of endless slaughter, she found herself in ecstasy. The connection between the Great Armaments gave her, the mistress of “Ukifune”, the privilege of freely spying on the “Higanbana” which flourish above the Meisen.

At first, his look was only frightened. As the heir of the Scarlet Sect, Hanabi was as dazzling as the sun. But as time passed, she saw Hanabi stumble through the rain and snow for the "honor" of the Scarlet Sect, pursuing the ghost called "victory" while being knocked down again and again, only to get back up again... The cruelty of this fleeting world was like a dull blade, eating away at her. It was “erosion,” the vile curse his teacher spoke of. It had entangled Hanabi after all.

How could this be allowed? Higanbana should never be allowed to wither. Hirara was devastated. She must return to the world of the living. And to do so, she used “Kaerazu” and “Meisen-e” to slaughter countless evil spirits and assimilate their power. It was during this carnage that the twisted words of his teacher became his illusion: beauty will erode; only death can stop it.

When Hanzo betrayed the Shadow Sect, Hanabi was seriously injured during their confrontation. Desperately seeking the power to protect her clan, she submitted to the weapon in her hand: the Higanbana. As her consciousness sank into this pitch-black river, Hanabi thought it was the dead that were dragging her down. No. It was, in truth, Hirara's “softest” embrace.

"Let me save you from this crude and fleeting world," Hirara called softly from the depths of the Meisen. But Hanabi didn't hear him. A ray of moonlight suddenly woke her and she broke the illusion of weaponry to return to the world of the living.

Watching the Meisen return to dead silence, a smile appeared on Hirara's face. This was the Hanabi she adored: the girl whose soul was fiercer than fire, who would do anything to protect others. Since her embrace could not hold one of such determination, she would sail against the tide, break the chains of the fleeting world, and carry Hanabi to a place free from erosion: "hell."

Hirara gave himself entirely to the weaponry, letting his soul sink into his hell. She was no longer herself, but a spirit roaming the world of the living, a calamity existing solely to "save" Hanabi.

Finally, the weapon seal broke. Hirara stepped over the corpses of her Scarlet Sect parents and stood in front of Hanabi, as she had wished. The childhood companion who was thought to be dead had returned. The shock and sorrow in Hanabi's eyes finally solidified into cold, murderous intent. For the sake of the Scarlet Sect, Hanabi launched her Higanbana without hesitation.

Ah, it was everything Hirara had dreamed of. She spread her fans, adorned herself with crimson maple and Meisen, and rushed toward a reunion she dared not disappoint.

“Please kiss me!” Hirara opened her arms to the cold glow. Since her gentle appeal had been rejected, she would fill that void with the shock of flesh and blood. This pain that pierced my body was the embrace that you refused me in the depths of Meisen.

“Please save me!” Facing the impending blade, Hirara's tears trembled with emotion. I understand now: just as I sought to seal your beauty with death, you also could not bear to see me erode. This fatal blow is your deepest and most merciful protection.

“Please kill me!” Hirara screamed in happiness, offering her frantically beating heart to the edge of the blade. Her fans hugged each other and walked towards Hanabi... Now that I have received your kindness, please... accept my devotion, Hanabi-sama!