Celestial Path Chapter 36 (Patreon)

I then asked helplessly. "So why is it such an issue then? You are still passing the souls down to Yomi to be processed anyway. Isn't the ownership of the souls Izanami's issue as the goddess of the dead?"

The two women shared a look before Kamimu said with almost pity. "Akari... Izanami is the most neutral of all deities when it comes to events of the mortal world so long as other gods don't mess with her shrines. As she is also the mother or a mother figure of most gods in general."

She took a breath before she continued. "Sure she herself watches over new souls and makes sure their karma is cleared and if they aren't slated for reincarnation. She just let's them go to the gods who blessed and watched over them in life to their patron god's own afterlife they host for their champions as a final reward for a lifetime of wearing their banner." 

My face pinched at that even as Yuyuko said flatly. "And who is the one who has to stamp their afterlife paperwork when their fresh souls here in Konoha arrive? Me! A soul can only go to one god's afterlife and already I have several divine letters strongly demanding I send certain souls to them and not other gods!"

Yeahhhh I could see the problem now. She rightfully didn't want to be the knot in a tug a war between gods.

I gave Kamimu a look before I said flatly. "You are making this really hard to force her to do her job. Hell, I don't even want to get involved at this point. As I don't want to get involved in more divine affairs if I can help it."

A heavy gaze fell on all of us, and we all paused as a deathly whisper of a sigh rang out.

"It is a pity you are still so young, and your mother passed Kamimu. If she were here, I woudn't have needed to send Yuyuko up to the mortal world." 

The thick, heavy mist that filled the ground became almost tangible as I knew who was speaking... It was the very goddess of death herself, Izanami.

There was a heavy silence as both Yuyuko and Kamimu refused to speak up first, and finally. I took a breath and asked the pressing question we all wanted to ask. "Lady Izanami, then what is Yuyuko supposed to do then?" 

Izanami's gaze became a more literal thing as it surrounded the central sakura tree that was Yuyuko's body. A set of massive glowing, angled crimson eyes looked upon us.

'Why didn't she just take on a human form and be awkwardly touchy like she was at the capital?' I wondered as the gaze of a primordial goddess weighed on me to the point I could feel a cold sweat forming on my back.

And after taking our measure, Izanami said calmly. "She is to take bribes, of course. If a god doesn't pay for her to direct the soul to them when another god paid more. Then the loser has no right to complain, do they?" 

Then my face twitched as the fog faded away along with those bright yet haunting divine eyes... As Izanami just bounced after aura farming on our damned meeting.

The three of us shared a look before Kamimu just face-palmed with a quiet scream ringing out from her covered mouth. Then she elegantly put her hands down with a cough.

"Ahem." She elegantly cleared her throat with a smile on her lips and in her gleaming ruby red eye's before she continued. "So Yuyuko, how about that? You can use the bribes other gods send you to buy all the food to feed yourself as well!"

Yuyuko put a finger to her lips before she said slowly. "Hmm that could work... Yes, I could accept that. But!" She pointed her finger at Kamimu before she continued firmly. "I will be pulling a couple retainers for myself. I need someone to cook for me as well as deal with any little annoyances that come to cause issues."

Kamimu's face twitched as she said with gritted teeth. "This is a shrine to Izanami and you want to pull a souls that are at rest to be your servants?" 

And Yuyuko shrugged as she said more calmly. "They are slated for reincarnation anyway. And with how strong their soul is, their reincarnation would have been troublesome with how they would have remembered their past life."

I then cleared my throat and said helplessly. "Well, I guess things have been mostly laid out here and I am not longer needed... Please excuse me ladies."

And without waiting for a response I made my body utmostly light and flew out of the shrine with a stream of wind chakra shooting from my heels.

'I am the champion of the sun goddess... Why the hell am I getting dragged into such petty ass situations?' I thought with exasperation as I flew home at high speed.

But even as I landed in the back lot of my property and with a sigh I dropped my henge and my fox tails unfurled more comfortably. I just went to the patio of my house and with a soft thud.

I laid out sideways on the padded long pillow to look out towards the stars above me. 

'For a moment, I considered just throwing the Kiln of the First Flame into the shrine... But the Kiln is fucking massive and not at all subtle.' I mused before looking back on the 'perk' with some actual disdain as it was honestly just kinda shit.

What the hell could I do FIVE THOUSAND common souls of humans with no chakra!? Why the fuck would I wait a full century for a Lord quality soul to be used as fodder to make some enchanted weapon?

I would need to literally sit on that damned Kiln as it shat soul's out ex-nihilo out of nowhere and I had a feeling that Izanami woudn't be happy with a hundred and twenty thousand random, 'fake' souls flooding her realm every single day.

"Yeah, the Kiln is staying in the system... I don't even have anyway of using souls anyway." I muttered before my face twitched as just to spite me the Celestial Grimoire reacted.

[Karmic Staff- A copy of the Karmic Staff wielded by Adam Warlock, this golden bird capped pimp cane is unbreakable and allows you to focus your energies though it for more precision and a minor boost to the power channeled through it. It has the added benefit of making you look like a pimp.]

A dull clunk of a heavy metal object hitting my wooden patio rang out as the fucking grimoire just tossed my new 'pimp cane' out of my inventory.

"Well fuck you too? Are you calling me a bitch or something you star filled Jojo poser?" I demanded but the Celestial Grimoire remained silent.