Night draped itself over Kagemura like a velvet curtain, softening the lantern glow into warm halos that floated above the streets. The air smelled of grilled eel, damp wood, and the faint bite of incense drifting from a distant shrine. High above the murmuring crowds, Chiyo skimmed along the rooftops, her small silhouette flickering between moonlit tiles and pockets of shadow. Her fluffy striped tail swayed behind her with smug rhythm, catching just enough light to look like a mischievous comet streaking across the eaves. Every leap was a whisper, every landing a secret, and her bright blue eyes—framed by that natural black bandit mask—gleamed with the thrill of a city that belonged to her the moment the sun went down.

She dropped into a narrow alley with the soft grace of a falling petal, short black hair bouncing in unruly tufts as she crouched behind a stack of sake crates. A pair of guards trudged past, lanterns swinging, muttering about a missing coin purse and a “tiny masked demon” someone swore they saw on the rooftops. Chiyo smirked, rolling a newly acquired trinket across her knuckles before tucking it away with a flick of her wrist. The city at night was a different creature—quieter, slower, easier to tease—and she moved through it like a breeze with opinions. With a quick hop onto a rain barrel and a spring back toward the rooftops, she vanished into the dark again, leaving only the faint echo of laughter and the sense that somewhere above, trouble was already on the move.