Chapter Text
The Shinazugawa family lived in the Ishizaki village, located near the mountains. Even though the village was quiet, inside the household, the family itself is pretty dysfunctional.
The matriarch, Shizu, was trying to protect the rest of the family everytime their dad physically abused the kids. This happened repeatedly until a tragic disaster happened, which was a flood that caused a landslide on the mountain range.
A few years had passed. After their family was killed by the landslide, Sanemi and his younger brother Genya were the only ones left. They decided to pack their belongings up and went away to find a new home.
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"Big bro, are we there yet?" Genya asked.
"Shut up. You're annoying me. Both of us haven't reached the destination yet, you dimwit," Sanemi scowled.
Genya stopped talking shortly after his brother got angry at him. He was clueless why did he acted so aggressive at him, despite growing up together in the same household.
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A couple of hours later, they stumbled upon a small cottage inside a dense forest. It was located near a coursing river.
The brothers went inside the presumably empty cottage and surprisingly noticed that it was pretty clean for a house in the rural area. Sanemi instantly put down their belongings on the floor.
"Alright. From now on, we can stay here. And that's it."
Genya nodded after hearing his brother's words.
Without realizing, the sunset had already turned into nighttime. After having a quick dinner, they both lay down on their respective futon on the bedroom area.
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"Shoki shoki..."
It was midnight. Sanemi suddenly woke up from his sleep, hearing a strange noise. Genya, on the other hand, was still asleep.
"Damn, what kind of noise is that? Is that from a demon or something?"
"Shoki shoki..."
The noise was getting clearer and clearer. Sanemi wasn't afraid of ghosts, he even asked them to come out.
"COME HERE, YOU GHOST!! DON'T YOU EVEN PLAY A TRICK ON ME!!"
It turned silent in an instant, making him more pissed off than before.
Sanemi walked outside and saw a young man around the same age as him, washing some red beans in the nearby river. He stared at him nonchalantly for a moment with his deep blue eyes.
"Hm? I think I've sensed someone nearby..." he thought.
He was shocked because the house they lived in wasn't completely abandoned. He remembered that the man he saw wasn't actually a ghost. He was an azukiarai, or the red bean washer. A yokai that was harmless to humans— but also elusive.
"Wait, you dumbass! Come back here—" he shouted.
As soon as the azukiarai vanished from his sight, Sanemi fell into the river. Fortunately, it was the shallow part of it, so he could get up easily.
"God damn it, man! That guy suddenly disappeared without me noticing! What the fuck is his problem? Is this some kind of joke?" he scowled.
Even though he was pissed, Sanemi kept his first encounter with the azukiarai as a terrible, yet fascinating memory.