I'm aware you wrote this a while ago but I just had to say I really enjoyed it. There were wonderful details throughout the entire story and you gave insight to just about all the characters. Anyways, awesome job!

Encore Encore! That was a beutifull story altough Sai disepired in the last chapter(Cant help it Sai fans -grin).I like the battel and all and what a beutifull way you discribe of the story Thank you for making great story.I love luck in making more

when does this story fit into the hikago timeline?

also, i think you need to write a one shot about hikaru and what happened with the chickens. i need a reason to laugh insanely. course, i'd probably do that without a reason..but i'm drifting off topic. great beginning, can't wait to see where sai went, and i hope you think about the one shot seriously..:DD

And it looks like the fic is over now. I really super enjoyed reading this, Hikaru really came to life throughout the fic.

I disagree with your comment in your notes that Sai was OOC. I think he's always gotten serious when it came to actual games - the things that were important to him. And you made a really valid point when you said that he would of needed to behave himself in court.

Your notes were really interesting to read.

Thank you for writing such a wonderful, long interesting fic for all of us to read. _

Hee. I just wanted to say that I literally burst out laughing with Akira's and Hikaru's interaction here, they are just so cute and amusing and I wasn't expecting that - you write their interaction together really, really well. :)

I'm really just awwing at this. Hikaru and Sai are so cute and... Happy. :)

I'm literally beaming over hear. :)

This is so emotional the way that you tied everyone together and described it as a game for mortals. You really bring this fic to life with Hikaru's thoughts!

I am on the edge of my seat cheering! Hurrah GO HIKARU!

I pity any poor readers stuck on that cliff hanger! XD

E. I loved the way that you showed that Hikaru was good for Sai - let him be himself. I think it's really good parallels you show with how people have to be careful with the faces they show. Both in the Heian court and every day life in Japan.

I just wanted to repeat that this is really exciting to read. And Sai was so cute in this chapter!

Hi!

I just wanted to say that I found it really insightful in this chapter when Hikaru described himself as having no friends before Sai.

A lot of the time he tends to be contrasted with Akira as being able to make friends easily, which is something I've sort of disagreed with, because while he can easily talk with people and is really likeable he doesn't seem to form many long term bonds - he tends to lose contact with people easily, and in the beginning we didn't really see him talk with many people other than Akari - someone who he's apparently been bonding with since he was a tiny child and even then their relationship has ups and downs.

And while I'm hear, this story has become really exciting! I found the beginning a little awkward to get into which is why I have never read this far into this story before, but it's now really starting to come together and I have to force myself to pause to leave a little review. I love how Hikaru's thinking of this as a Go game, being pushed but pushing back. I love how Sai is desperately trying to protect Hikaru.

I just wanted to say that this is really awesome. :)

wow, this was a great story. took me about 5 hours to finish it (in one go, dang, that was a late night), but it was time well-spent.

I must admit, the beginning started out rather iffy, what with all the Miyazaki and American horror-story references (granted, though, The Ring is Japanese...). but it soon changed to more than that, drawing your attention so much, that you are on the edge of your seat, waiting to see what happens next. and the way the story's written from Hikaru's point of view, even if it is in third person, is a nice touch. it makes you think about the other characters, and how they see the situation.

granted, some points of the story were slow, and I was wondering when you'd get to the point of things, but it's a necessary slowness; if you didn't have that, one would wonder how you just jumped from one point to the next.

another thing that I found odd about the story: Hikaru curses too much for my liking. I know that a kid that age would probably result to cursing to voice his emotions on the situation, but...for some reason, I found it slightly out of character.

like all stories, or at least how all stories should be, the ending was the best, especially your little epilogue with Akira, and how he viewed the change in Hikaru.

this one will now scurry off to look through more of your beautiful fanfictions

~Yuki

You. Are. Amazing. And I have lost 5 hours of sleep reading this entire story. And I will regret it in the morning, but I had to know.

Well, I admire your writing style, vocabulary, and your many metaphors and similies. The only bad thing is they don't add up. There are only so many emotional revelations that can take place in a single chapter, and that number was surpassed after the first. The descriptions of pain is far too outlandish to follow, along with the concept of time for gods, and the neverending rules of the shadow realm.

The story had started well, but the interest of it was soon drowned in the depth of the complexity of the characters, emotions, time lines, rules, and sudden realizations. The story is far too deep. While that may make it beautiful, it also makes it boring and tiring.