Sword Art Online Crossover: They're all close friends, how did I become a player?

"Phew, we're finally away from those two. I thought we were going to fight them as soon as we arrived in Heian-kyo."

Kashuu Kiyomitsu gently patted his chest to calm himself down.

"Kitsunenosuke, can you find Abe no Seimei's current address?" Yagen asked, touching Kitsunenosuke in his arms.

Only after leaving Minamoto no Yorimitsu and Onikiri did Mikazuki and the others begin to relax.

Fortunately, they found out where their lord was, and according to the head of the Minamoto clan, Higekiri-dono should also be with their lord.

"Okay, Yagen-dono. Please wait a moment. The map is being downloaded."

……

"Master, we've finally found you!"

Just as Yu Bai was talking with Abe no Seimei, the familiar yet urgent call of Kitsune no Suke came from not far away.

Presumably, the sword spirits of the citadel had finally located Yu Bai's position after a long search and rushed over.

"Master Saniwa~ uh... who is this? Please put me down!"

After leaving Minamoto no Yorimitsu and Onikiri, who were locked in a love-hate relationship, Kitsunenosuke, along with Mikazuki and the other sword spirits, successfully found Abe no Seimei's residence using a pre-downloaded map.

It's no wonder they're master and servant from the same citadel; even their ways of doing things are so similar.

Kitsune and his companions did not choose to go through the main gate, but instead jumped onto the cherry blossom tree where Yu Bai and Bu Yue had previously hidden.

As soon as he stood firm, Kitsunenosuke, who was being held tightly in Yagen Toushirou's arms, spotted Yu Bai sitting in the corridor chatting, drinking tea, and enjoying grilled fish with Abe no Seimei.

Finally seeing the Saniwa he had been longing to meet, Kitsunenosuke was incredibly excited. He couldn't help but jump down from Yagen Toushirou's arms and try to pounce on Yu Bai.

But just as he leaped into the air, before he even touched the hem of his own Saniwa's robe, he was intercepted halfway.

A pair of well-defined hands grabbed Kitsunenosuke by the back of his neck, leaving him dangling in mid-air, unable to escape no matter how much he struggled.

Kitsune looked up and saw that the person holding him was wearing a black ram's horn mask. Although he couldn't see the person's face, the terrifying aura emanating from him clearly indicated that he was in a very bad mood.

"Oh my? It seems my comrades in the citadel have finally found us."

Higekiri, sitting beside Yu Bai, naturally witnessed this scene. He leisurely picked up his teacup and took a sip.

"Anija!"

Upon seeing his brother, Hizamaru couldn't help but jump down from the cherry blossom tree. Seeing how excited Kitsunenosuke and Hizamaru were, the other swords exchanged helpless glances and then appeared in Abe no Seimei's courtyard.

"Oh, it's my little brother Maru! It's been a long time."

Higekiri greeted Hizamaru with a smile, who was looking at him with such excitement that he was almost crying. As always, he forgot Hizamaru's name, but it didn't matter. Calling him "little brother" would be fine.

"Anija, it's me, Hizamaru. Have you forgotten my name again? QAQ."

Seeing this familiar scene that often appeared in the citadel again finally gave Yu Bai a sense of familiarity, like encountering his own family while away from home.

Thinking of this, Yu Bai quickly came to his senses and turned to look at Fu Yue. He walked over quickly, took Kitsune no Suke from Fu Yue's hands, and then led Fu Yue by the hand to the five Tsukumogami.

"Fuzuki, let me introduce you. These are Mikazuki Munechika, Yagen Toushirou, Kashuu Kiyomitsu, Tsurumaru Kuninaga, and Higekiri's younger brother, Hizamaru. Like Higekiri, they are all my tsukumogami."

Looking at the several sword spirits that suddenly appeared in front of Yu Bai, Bu Yue felt a mix of emotions that were hard to describe.

Feng Yue seemed to be surrounded by a large group of people. Watching the swordsmen chattering around him, Feng Yue felt isolated and unable to join in.

At that moment, a sense of panic welled up in his heart; Fengyue seemed to be getting further and further away from him.

“Fengyue…” He opened his mouth to call out Yu Bai, but then he didn’t know what to say.

Noticing Fuyuki's unease, Yu Bai gently squeezed Fuyuki's hand a few times. When Fuyuki's attention turned back, he pulled her tightly to his side and spoke to Mikazuki and the others.

"This is Bu Yue, the most important friend I've made in this era. Bu Yue is very important to me, so you two must get along well."

"Haha, since he is a friend of our lord, we will naturally get along harmoniously. Please rest assured, our lord."

Mikazuki smiled, understanding the implied meaning in his lord's words. Every move he made exuded the elegance of the Heian period.

Of the five tsukumogami who came this time, apart from Kashuu Kiyomitsu and Yagen Toushirou, the other three, along with Higekiri, were originally swords of this era.

These few spirits, even just standing there motionless, allow one to glimpse a microcosm of this era through them.

"Yes, that really startled me. Don't worry, my lord, we will get along well with this deity." Tsurumaru Kuninaga suddenly jumped out from the side, curiously looking at Futsuki.

As tsukumogami, they could naturally sense the divine power emanating from Futsuki, as well as the changes in the Saniwa, just as Tsurumaru Kuninaga had said.

This really startled them. The Saniwa had unexpectedly arrived in the Heian period and met a real god. Not only that, but the Saniwa himself had also become a god.

Moreover, because of the contract, Tsurumaru Kuninaga and the others could more clearly sense the terrifying amount of divine power within the Saniwa.

Startled by the sudden approach of the head, Bu Yue felt somewhat displeased, and reflexively, black energy began to surge around her.

But the next second, when he saw that the person had the same silver hair and golden eyes as Feng Yue, his displeasure inexplicably dissipated a lot.

"General, are you alright here? Are you unharmed?"

With an aura that seemed to stand two meters and eighty centimeters tall, Yagen Toushirou stepped forward and pulled Tsurumaru Kuninaga aside. He hadn't overlooked the desolate divine power that Futsuki had just exuded; only this fearless troublemaker would dare to approach so recklessly.

"Yes, I'm fine. I even learned Yin-Yang techniques from Seimei."

Yu Bai habitually ruffled Yagen's hair and pointed to Abe no Seimei, who had been standing quietly to the side ever since the Tsukumogami appeared.

"Our humble courtyard is truly honored to welcome so many tsukumogami today."

This top-ranked character in Heian-kyo possesses an appearance and demeanor that are in no way inferior to those of the Tsukumogami. Even when stared at by so many Tsukumogami, she remains composed and elegant.

Suddenly, the quiet courtyard became lively as the Genji brothers chatted in the corridor.

More accurately, Hizamaru was pulling his older brother aside to inquire about his recent life and whether he was taking good care of their lord. However, as they talked, Hizamaru was repeatedly brought to tears by his brother's constant forgetfulness of his name.

Sometimes, Yu Bai would wonder if this light-gold-haired Genji Shige was deliberately teasing his younger brother.

Yagen Toushirou, meanwhile, was chatting with the boy and girl while holding Kitsunenosuke. He was quite interested in the healing properties of these two yokai.

As for Tsurumaru Kuninaga, who loves to cause trouble, he's never still. He looks around the courtyard, and even tries to pry open the carp spirit hiding in the pond.

Although Futsuki felt a little uncomfortable, he still chatted with Mikazuki. He was very curious about what happened before Yu Bai met him. Fortunately, Mikazuki saw through Futsuki's thoughts and was willing to talk to him about some things about the Saniwa in the citadel.

Besides that, there was another one. Yu Bai looked at Kashuu Kiyomitsu, who was huddled to the side in silence, and waved to him.

"Kiyomitsu, come over here."

……