Chapter Text
The past two days in Inazuma had been hell. Roof Shingles coming loose, carried by strong winds only to end up hitting someone in the side of the head. People loosing articles of clothing or umbrellas. The water crashing against the shores as if it wanted to devour the land. It was all normal at this point. The Tengu had just sat down, when a distressed guard came running.
"Tengu!" He cried, too out of breath to immediately say what he needed to.
"What is it?" She asked with a stern gaze, set upon the exhausted man before her.
"There is someone who wishes to talk to you. Well, it's two people actually!"
"Who?" She asked, rising from her chair.
"A man and a woman named Ubuyashiki. They wish for an audience with you regarding the matter of the storm and the recent disappearances." The Guard gripper his spear tighter as he spoke.
She didn't like that. Sara went quiet for a moment, the howling of the wind echoing through the halls.
"Very well. Bring them in." The Tengu gestured towards the door.
He nodded, running back out the door. A moment later he came back, followed by a pale Man with a purple pigment disorder of sorts and a woman, holding his arm, guiding him through the door.
Only as the man's blind eyes shone in the light, did Sara realise why the woman guided him.
She dismissed the guard and introduced herself.
"My name is Koujo Sara. I have been informed that you requested an audience."
The man's frail features curled up into a gentle smile, one that made the storm outside quiet.
He bowed. "I am Kagaya Ubuyashiki. This is Amane, my wife. We are very grateful to be here and be heard by the Tengu herself."
The woman named Amane held her husband's arm tightly, her posture straight and composed.
"Yes. Now. What do you wish to seak about?" Sara asked, awaiting what such a gentle looking man could have to say that was worth her time.
He smiled once more. "Yes. I have come to believe that as we speak, a good amount of people that I know might be wandering around the Isles. Yet you will find that neither of us have ever been here before. In fact we are very sure that we have never heard of the land named Inazuma."
Sara was conflicted. This clearly Inazuman man was telling her that he had never heard of Inazuma before? Not possible.
"Look. If you are trying to waist my time, you should just take a good listen." Lightning struck nearby, the sound cutting through the air. "The thunder speaks the will of the Shōgun. I serve her majesty. My time is spend to serve her. So if you are simply trying to waist my time you are therefore waiting time meant for assisting the Shōgun."
Sara was pissed. This had to be a joke. Bit of their features were Inazuman, they spoke without any accent and dressed Inazuman. During this current crisis she really didn't need any pranks that waisted her time.
The man's smile didn't fade. He waited for Sara to finish speaking until he continued.
"I believe your sepsis. But at the same time you must believe us. We are from a country called Japan. This most definitely sounds foreign to you, yet we speak the truth." He went on about explaining about this Japan country.
The Tengu had certainly never heard of something called Japan. Yet with every argument that Ubuyashiki made, her doubts vanished.
She kept her suspicion, yet this man somehow managed to actually convince her.
"You're telling me that you are not from Teyvat but from a Plant called Earth." Ubuyashiki nodded. "And that you two, along with your supposedly also present 'children', are from Japan."
He nodded as she recapped these impossible things.
"And what sort of action do you want me to take?" She asked, scratching the back of her head.
"To let us talk to the Shōgun himself."
"Herself." Sara corrected.
"Apologies. I assumed the Shōgun here was also a man. Ours have always been men." Ubuyashiki's hair swayed as he bowed again.
"Do not apologise. The Shōgun has a pretty busy schedule due to this ongoing disaster but we shall see if she is available. Please wait outside for me."
The Ubuyashiki's nodded, turning to wait outside.
Sara took a deep breath. She had been so easily swayed. Was it his matter of speech his tone of voice? Did he manipulate her? Would he try something shady? Her clan had taught her better than this. She had not asked for proof nor for any information that would have benefited her...Yet she found joy in his smiles. Joy that made her skin crawl. She despised this feeling. What others called joy, she called distraction.
"The Shōgun a man?" She scoffed, laughing to herself at the image. "What world does that have to be where a man is in charge."
Then she turned to leave, her desk overflowing with paperwork and other things. But a new hope had emerged from the storm. Maybe one that could tell the people were the Traveller had been taken to.