"The Divine Comedy of Ayashi" "Inferno Five" " Myth" "This is..." "Saizo!" "We are Ayashi!" "We will never be permitted to live normal lives in this world anyway!" "We slay the Youi that lead people astray and eat their flesh!" "So we have no intention of following the law, either!" "Everybody knows what you did for the boss!" "Come on back!" "There was a time when I felt that was right and set my heart upon it." "However, nothing has changed with the authorities!" "Is there nothing more that can be done?" "!" "Is that what Takano is thinking?" "!" "Ryudo, you too will understand!" "Once you learn the truth about this world!" "Yukiatsu!" "Ryudo!" "So that's..." "Susa-no-O..." "The first god of the heavens to descend to our world!" "Susa-no-O..." "Yukiatsu!" "Stop this!" "Please stop!" "Cloud (Kumo) Stop this!" "Please stop!" "Cloud (Kumo)" "Ryudo..." "Saizo!" "Are you all right, Saizo?" "Boss!" "Pardon me." "Right..." "Ryudo..." "Ryudo, do you know who I am?" "Ryudo!" "Ryudo, stop!" "Do you mean to kill Saizo?" "!" "Ryudo!" "What is happening?" "Ryudo!" "Saizo, we must get Ryudo..." "Saizo?" "I cannot go with you." "Saizo!" "Saizo!" "What's wrong?" "Yukiatsu Ryudo has once again..." "Transformed into a god, eh?" "But he will not have all eight serpent heads." "The remaining three are in distant foreign lands, and we found Susa-no-O before that." "Susa-no-O, ruler of Nenokuni, king of the dead, is here." "You understand what that means, don't you, Saizo?" "So we never did find out who in the world she was." "Choei Takano came after this woman." "What does that..." "Boss!" "Yukiatsu!" "He turned into a dragon again?" "It seemed as though he had even forgotten how to use Ayagami." "This time, we may not be able to restore him, even with your character of "gen"." "Who is that girl?" "Well..." "Orochi, the giant serpent!" "Divine Maiden!" "You're alive?" "!" "Yes..." "Thank goodness..." "Thank goodness!" "Her heart had stopped beating and she was not breathing..." "She was definitely dead." "In which case..." "What is going on?" "What is Master Takano doing here?" "I feel like I'm beginning to understand." "What Takano was seeking..." "And also why this has happened to Yukiatsu." "You should eat something." "There's nothing here, after all." ""Eat"?" "Just now, you referred to Yukiatsu as "Orochi"..." "I do not know..." "I do not remember anything." "The giant eight-forked serpent, Orochi..." "That is a monster that appears in the Kojiki, records of ancient matters." "The Western Ones referred to Yukiatsu as one of the serpent heads." "Susa-no-O, the first god of the heavens to descend, slew a monster called the Orochi." "A giant serpent..." "But this was a monster?" "Monster..." "In other words, if we assume it was a god of the land..." "It was said that Orochi had eight heads." "Each time Yukiatsu merged with another giant dragon-like being, his appearance changed." "The eight heads of the Orochi becoming one..." "But what a startling thought." "Are you saying that Ryudo is a god of the land?" "The reason why only Yukiatsu is capable of manipulating Ayagami..." "This appearance of his..." "And why Torii chose Yukiatsu..." "A god of the land, is it?" "He has awakened..." "Susa-no-O has awakened!" "Ryudo!" "Yukiatsu, can you hear me?" "It is possible that all of this is Torii's..." "Wait, Ryudo!" "Once dead, no human returns to life." "If that were to be possible, this woman is a Youi..." "Or if not that, a goddess." "A goddess?" "Divine Maiden Kikuri, a goddess of the heavens..." "She guards the place where Susa-no-O is." "That is why Susa-no-O appeared upon your death." "I do not know anything!" "Edogen, Susa-no-O's place is in Hell, the land of the dead." "Not this world." "We shall know when we get there." "Saving Yukiatsu and Saizo..." "If this divine maiden is a goddess, that will be the goddess's duty." "What is that?" "That is Susa-no-O!" "As Mamiya predicted, Susa-no-O existed!" "This is not a Youi?" "This is not a god, but an armor of the gods!" "A weapon of the gods!" "So you will be able to wield it, too!" "Ryudo..." "Those are the serpent heads that Yukiatsu vanquished." "So, he's another step closer to becoming Orochi." "I will restore Ryudo to his human form." "Only this Youi is capable of doing that!" "So, Saizo was aware..." "That Yukiatsu is..." "Becoming a god of the land?" "!" "That he is becoming Orochi?" "I was the one who realized that." "And you got it into Saizo's head that there is a way to restore Ryudo to his former self?" "!" "Don't get the wrong idea now." "I perceived that the personage by the name of Yukiatsu Ryudo would become the Orochi, but I did not engineer things to be this way." "Then who are you saying did it?" "!" "It seems we did not make it in time." "So that is Susa-no-O." "The power of the god of the heavens, who once destroyed Orochi." "Lord Torii..." "With a fire lit under you, you've made an excursion all the way out here." "When I heard how you got the Ayashi together, it all made sense." "Why you tacitly approved the Ayashi and made Ryudo one of them..." "Ryudo is a child who returned from the Other World." "In other words, you could say his divine powers were awakened!" "If you could use his powers to revive one of the gods of the land, who had vanished from the face of this earth..." "Ultimately, the gods of the heavens are the gods of the Emperor in Kyoto." "Someday, the Tokugawa will have to wage war against the Emperor, as well as against foreign nations." "When that time comes, what we will need are the original gods of this land." "Orochi, a god of this land, is truly worthy of that!" "I immediately realized what Torii was plotting." "But that would mean being forever ruled by Torii and the Tokugawa!" "I'll be damned if I let that happen!" "And so, you duped Saizo and broke out of prison!" "To resurrect the Youi, Susa-no-O, who once destroyed Orochi." "Saizo means to save Ryudo!" "But Susa-no-O's intentions towards Ryudo..." "Are to kill him." "Saizo is nothing more than a sacrifice." "Her will is no longer present." "Very soon, the myth will be reenacted." "Orochi will be dominated by Susa-no-O!" "Are you so sure of that?" "Did you think that I would not be able to discern your plot," "Choei Takano?" "That's just sour grapes!" "It was convenient when you broke out of prison and headed north." "Behold!" "Until now, his humanity had gotten in the way and Ryudo had been unable to wholly become Orochi, but now!" "There is no guarantee the myth will be repeated!" "Not only that, but inside Susa-no-O is one of the Ayashi!" "The true power of Susa-no-O's divine armor cannot be invoked!" "Ryudo, go on and destroy Susa-no-O!" "With a god of the land vanquishing a god of the heavens," "Japan will be led down a new path!" "The myth will be rewritten!" "Yukiatsu." "What has happened?" "Now, do it, Ryudo!" "You want to protect Tokugawa's rule that badly?" "Then I'll tell you something interesting." "You people believe that above this world is Paradise, the Other World, the world of the gods." "And you think that beneath this world is Hell," "Nenokuni, the land of the dead, don't you?" "Takano..." "But what do you make of that?" "Why is Susa-no-O, king of Nenokuni, here in this world?" "This world that we live in... is Hell!" "Hell and the Other World." "There were only those two from the very beginning!" "This world is Hell?" "!" "This world is unclean." "That is why the gods departed for the Other World." "Then where do people go when they die?" "!" "They disappear." "That is all that happens!" "People are born in Hell, crawl and writhe about, and then die!" "That cannot possibly be true!" "We are wrongdoers, shut away in Hell." "That is why we always yearn for the Other World." "Divine Maiden!" "Susa-no-O is my armor." "Divine Maiden Kikuri!" "So you came back to life..." "I was once one of what you call the gods of the heavens." "A god has taken possession of the armor..." "Ryudo, run!" "You cannot win against a god!" "That Ryudo..." "Surely, he does not stand a chance." "The gods of the heavens disappeared into the Other World." "Yukiatsu Ryudo, it is you and I who will rule this world!" "Why are you here?" "If this is Hell..." "I am a goddess, but I alone remained here for you all." "I want to go to the Other World." "The Other World?" "So he would flee alone..." "Ryudo..." "This body is unclean." "So once I enter the Other World, I will instantly vanish and be gone." "Is that your wish?" "I don't want to become a god, nor Orochi." "But as things stand, I..." "Is it not the office of the gods to grant people's wishes?" "I will not allow this!" "Ryudo..." "You spoke so passionately of not returning to the Other World." "Torii, it's over!" "You've got no power now!" "The best you can do is go back and be condemned by Mizuno!" "Magistrate..." "It does not matter." "No matter where he goes, it will still be Hell." "Six years later, after wandering from place to place, Choei Takano is finally located by the Magistrate's Office while he is hiding in Edo." "Upon being found, varying accounts state that he either took his own life or that he was beaten to death by officers of the law." "The Next Y ear Koka Y ear 2 (1 845)" " Autumn" "The Next Y ear Koka Y ear 2 (1 845)" " Autumn So, you will be placed in custody of the Marugame Clan in Shikoku." "So, you will be placed in custody of the Marugame Clan in Shikoku." "Yes." "Thinking back, I did some rather high-handed things under Mizuno." "Look hard enough and you can find the dirt." "I cannot begin to justify all that I did." "I will spend the remainder of my days confined to a room in the country." "Then I wish you the best of health." "Were you serious about what you just said?" "We have been preparing this past year just for that purpose." "Do you think you will find what you are looking for?" "No, do you even think you can get there safely?" "Who knows?" "What Takano said was right." "This world is Hell." "Humans are guilty beings delivered into Hell." "You have lost everything, too..." "And even then, you insist on going?" "There are some things that we have not lost." "What are they?" "How about that?" "It's the exact scene that I saw long ago." "Very well." "In short, all we must do is envision it." "Think of yourself in the Other World." "As if you are telling a story." "Atl." "We will take back Yukiatsu." "Yukiatsu." "This is such a fun place." "Won't you go back?" "Go back?" "Where?" "Into a person..." "No!" "Yukiatsu!" "Go, Ryudo!" "You have your own story!" "And that is our story as well!" "Someday, we will meet again!" "Yukiatsu!" "I've come back." "But it was so much fun." "The Divine Comedy of Ayashi The End" "Ayakashi mukashi Mystic days of old" "Hana wa saiteta Flowers were blooming" "Yume no naka e hairi-komu Finding their way into dreams" "Tamashii no iro yo The colors of souls" "Akaku Turning red" "Aoku Turning blue"